A question on a quote by Madeleine Albright, former US Secretary of State...?

Question

I once heard Madeleine Albright make comments to this affect:

"I once met a Palestinian diplomat and he told me, 'You will never understand us, for you too (meaning Americans) are a settler people.'

I thought about it for a minute and then replied, 'You know, I think you're right'."

These comments struck me at the time, and have given me some perspective on tacit American support for the settlements.

What are your thoughts on this quote and the mindset that it suggests?

you are making good points about all people being a settler people at one time or another. And yes, its acceptance is a matter of time frame.

Gamla joe- I'm not throwing any stones! As to your reference, when Islam spread to those areas, the Muslims did not to my knowledge forcibly displace the inhabitants. Consequently, you will notice that there are "Arabs" of every skin tone and feature description.

My thought on hearing this was that America is based on the idea of manifest destiny, irrespective of what the native population had to say about it, because it was in the interests of a higher purpose from the settler's perspective. It was messianic in a way and of course a feeling of superiority over the native population played a part as well. It strikes me as very similar to the Israeli perspective. I think that is what both of these diplomats were acknowledging in the conversation.

riviva- Why so cryptic of late? I believe you are referring to UN resolution 1322?

L'Chaim- I agree with you that most of the original immigrants were merely seeking safe refuge. I am speaking particularly about the settler movement, the religious wing of which believes it is their destiny to resettle the Biblical homeland. In that since I am comparing it to Manifest Destiny.

As to your argument that no other country has ever had to give back lands lost in wars, this is not correct. During WW II there was all manner of occupying going on by those who had won the war. They did return the lands to their owners and leave. I will agree with you, however, that historically speaking a victorious nation has traditionally kept lands won in battle. We are now living in an age of international agreements and laws which govern conquered lands. Just as Israel was set up through the auspices of international law, so too must it return the lands it won in battle because that is current international law. Israel can't have it both ways!

1 a- While currently Native Americans enjoy many rights, that was not always the case. If you will look back into history you will see that what the Americans did to them is actually worse than what the Israeiis have done and are doing. The dirty work is done now, and 95% of the population was destroyed through disease (some of it willfully given), massacres, and battles. They are now marginalized in reservations.

Answer 1

Much of the world has been occupied by the UK , France, Germany, so they don't know any different, they can't feel how it really feels to be on the other end. Most occupations were/are for land and/or money. Peace!

Answer 2

Israel is based on the idea of manifest destiny? I don't think so! Zionism is a political movement, not a religious movement. Jews have been living in Israel for 4000 years. In spite of the diaspora, many Jews remained in Israel, and many Jews had returned peacefully and were purchasing land at inflated prices.

After the Holocaust, the West was perfectly content to let the Jews remain in the countries where they had been persecuted and tortured -- even the US would not increase the immigration quotas and Jews were forced to wait 10-12 years for admittance, as if any of them would have survived that long in such an environment! No country in the world would accept an influx of Jews so they had no choice to but accept the British offer of a "safe-haven."

Israel was attacked by all their neighbors immediately after the UN designated their statehood. Eventually, Israel acquired additional land after winning wars their neighbors had started, but the international community insists that those lands be returned to Jordan. What other country on earth has been forced to return lands won in wars?

Israel is held to a higher standard. Manifest destiny does not apply to a group of desperate refugees!

Mr. X mentions Gaza. Israel tried to return that land to Egypt immediately after the war, but Egypt would not accept the responsibililty for the people living there. So Israel must return the land in *some* cases, but in others, they cannot return the land and *must* feed, water, and protect their enemies!
.

Answer 3

There was a point in time when the Palestinians settled that land lol... at one point everyone was a settler. No one group of people has ever stayed in the same place for an extremely long period of time. Every once in a while, a people moves, and new settlers come. Thats just the way the world appears to look to me.

Answer 4

All people are a settler people. Modern anthropologists postulate that humans developed in Africa, thus any people living outside of Africa settled there at some point in history. Modern day Americans have settled somewhat recently, within the last 400 years (memory range). Arabs settled Israel around 1400 years ago, not within memory range. Jews settled 3500 years ago, then again 2500 years ago and then again 150 years ago. It's really all just a matter of timeframes.

Answer 5

The situation with the Native Americans is very different than with the Palestinians and to even compare them is an insult to the rights of the Palestinian people. Here is a simple question for anyone that thinks the two are the same;

Are the Native Americans today cramped into a small area of land, surrounded by a fortified wall? Are they prevented from travelling to other countries or getting medical supplies? Do we have an army tracking their every move in their own neighbourhoods? Do we have 20% of their population in our prisons? Do we have Native American Children held in our prisons without trial? Do we prevent them from reaching their places of work and their their schools every morning?

This is not how the Native Americans/Canadians/Australians live but this is exactly how the natives of the Land of Palestine have to live.

Answer 6

Its just another excuse for things not working from the Palestinian perspective. Mexico is a settler nation, so is Canada, Cuba, Columbia, Brazil, and another other nation in the Western Hemisphere for that matter. I have never heard that Palestinians claim a Argentinian doesn't understand their cause. What the problem is with the Palestinian point of view is that it is all about deflecting from their problems and issues to other things.

Good Luck!!!

Answer 7

well I guess if they support all the settlers they should support all the arabs muslims right? - I mean most arab muslims after being islamed wandered the deserts until they settelled.. so I guess we all are settlers that is the way of life man :) or women :) you are a women right? sorry I don't know because I can't rely upon the picture, anyways thnx for the question

Answer 8

i see it the other way. i would say that it's unfortunate that ms. albright seemed, for that brief conversation, to buy into the whole victim mentality falsely perpetuated by some west bank and gaza arabs. she seemed to play along with the false idea that the settlements are in any way a cause of the problems in the middle east.

the issue of settlements is a red herring. a distraction.
israel uprooted all of its settlements in gaza, and how did the arabs there respond? they tore down working greenhouses and sabotaged their own economy, they started daily shelling of southern israeli towns, and they started a fatah-hamas civil war.
what makes you think the removal of settlements in the west bank would go any differently?

gaza was a test, and the arabs there FAILED.

Answer 9

Yes, and Arabic is the natural language and culture of the people of North Africa, Mesopotamia, and the Levant.

People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

Answer 10

1322.