I just finished reading a short book of poetry written by Israeli author Ahron Shabtai and translated by Peter Cole called, "J'Accuse". It was a challenging read for me, not because the material was unfamiliar or complex, but because the point of view as so very different from my own. Shabtai is a man who deeply loves his country and is harshly critical of his government's policies. He is an idealist who sincerely believes that Israel's best course of action would be to demilitarize, throw open the borders of the Territories, and to embrace those who shout for Jewish blood.
While I can empathize with his revulsion at the violence (he mentions only violence against Arabs, but it obviously goes both ways), I cannot comprehend the thinking that would assume a positive outcome for Israel if his way were made national policy. To me this is analogous to the United States inviting Al Qaeda and Taliban members to reside here so that they can see that American's aren't so bad.
No, some relationships are not reconcilable and romanticizing about a Disney ending to the Israeli-Palestinian tensions is, just like Disney, the stuff of fantasy.
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