I dont see how we can win the hearts and trust of people torn between Taliban bullets & American bullets. In their eyes we are on equal with Taliban. We need to PUT DOWN all weapons and help the people of Afganistan & Pakistan, help them against the Taliban. It will cost us less money and less lives to get electricity to all citizens, buy them a fridge, stock it with food, provide education for their young, baisically we have to become the solution – the desirable alternative to everyone – everywhere.

Just see what it is that Taliban offers them & go one better. Killing people will never buy us trust and will only lead us down the inevitable road to greater & greater loss of lives & money.

We must stop being a nation of foreign policies based on killing. It does not work….( see 8 years of bush).

Please!

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i think u did not do anything since you came into office for pakistan as u promised. since u came into office u have just blamed pakistani goverment for not doing the most. i tell u if u really want the war to be finished than give pakistan more morden weapon don’t only talk but do

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I’ll start very basically… If Iran IS interested in beginning some kind of dialogue with the U.S. based on mutual respect and more than just words it seems obvious it’s time for the west to make a concession. The easiest concession to make is one that was never ours to give. Israel inhabited parts of Palestine by FORCE ILLEGALLY in 1967 even after the UN saw fit to grant them their own country in 1945. The worrysome thing is that America does not condemn, but supports the nation who did this while condemning any other country that may do such a terrible thing. AND yes America can achieve this through sanctions or even the simple withdrawal of support from Israel will force their hand, if not, the international community should do what it should have done 42 years ago.

In basic summary to keep it short and sweet, it’s not difficult to see why the middle east hates america when the west steals from them and then tells them what to do. Give back Israel as a concession to the Islamic alliance to show them you ARE serious about bringing about peace and not simply maintaining your dominion. I’m sure Iran and the rest of the missle east will be much more willing to chat under these circumstances. The rest of the west is really wondering what the hell is going.

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We are bias , we have been favoring Israel from the beginning of its creation.

We have been influenced from within,increasingly ,to do so.

We have provided an excessive amount of aid to Israel , so

much that it created disadvantage for the neigboring

countries and their economies , and it created resentment.

Laying he ground work for all the now existing conflicts,

we are ill equipt in sound judgement for solving these

conflicts .

We should support an appointment of a World Panel by the UN

or something above their authority , to establish Rules and Guidelines for resolving such conflicts . Apply military force when Genocide or Crimes against Humanity are involved.

Of course , the other side of the coin is ,that the United

States has an interest in an unchallenced military presence in that region of the world to serve their own interest for national security or for the interest of client states.

Then Israel and its miltary might may serve its creator and

vice versa the creator justifies its existence by supporting it.

Henry Detlef

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Dear Mr. President, Gaza = world’s largest open prison. More people have been killed in Gaza in the past 7 days than Israelis have been killed in the past 7 years. Please help stop this illegal occupation and siege on Gaza. Thank you

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In looking at how the ascension of Barack Obama to the presidency of the United States could affect the Middle East, I am firmly of the belief that to find the answer one need look no further than the way he ran his stunningly successful campaign. By far, it was the most professional, strategically mapped and brutally well-managed two years that any politician could design, with a potent mix of inspiration and perspiration tapping into the Zeitgeist [spirit of the time].

While running a campaign is clearly not the same as governing, many valuable indicators can be gleaned to show how the man from Illinois will tackle the Herculean challenges awaiting him and his administration.

Despite conventional wisdom, the core of many of the Middle East’s problems, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, is not an intractable morass that lacks solutions. In truth, the desired outcomes, and the path thereto, are relatively clear: a safe, secure and democratic Israel living in peace, prosperity and mutual recognition with its neighbors; a free, independent and democratic Palestine within the pre-June 1967 borders and the creation of a united Jerusalem as the capital of the two countries. There are reams of documents and studies that lay out these plans in minute detail and are readily available to any and all. All that is needed is U.S. leadership that is willing to implement these plans.

The entire facade of peace negotiations during the past eight years has been proven to be not only a canard, but completely ineffectual to boot. The incoming president can change all of that if he applies the same laser-sharp focus he employed during his amazing run for office. As a public service, I would humbly like to make a few, unsolicited suggestions as to how the president-elect can translate his hard won political capital into lasting peace in the Middle East:

• Announce the formation of a team to exhume the most relevant and agreed upon plans already in existence. This should be easy seeing that a lot of the work done was completed during the Bill Clinton administration.

• Appoint a high-level presidential emissary (former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell?) and empower him/her to hammer out the deal with the parties. This person, who would report directly to the president (with a dotted line to the secretary of state), would immediately bring on board America’s allies and partners in the European Union, Russia, China and the United Nations. Only then would they approach the Israelis and the Palestinians. This group needs real power, not like the horribly ineffectual Peace Quartet of yesterday. Obama will be inaugurated on Jan. 20, 2009 with unprecedented amounts of goodwill around the world, especially among America’s allies. He needs to harness that potential as soon as possible.

• Make a major speech on how the new administration sees the Middle East, what it wants to achieve and how it is going to go about it. As the most powerful person on this planet, Obama’s bully pulpit is worth its weight in gold. And while much of the world will be very happy to have America lead again, it would be prudent and correct to give a substantial portion of the stage over to America’s friends and partners. This would clearly send a message that the United States is no longer going it alone and would make its position infinitely stronger.

Coupled with the gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops in Iraq and the opening of serious negotiations with Iran, President Obama will be able to gain the confidence of a vast majority of the world’s peoples. He can also tap into a wealth of talented individuals just raring to tackle this problem, people willing to dedicate their lives in the pursuit of real peace. There is probably no more opportune time in history for a comprehensive solution to be found, if only he can find the inner strength of character that I am more than confident he possesses.

In his campaign, Obama never strayed from his core message, never gave in to scoring cheap political points, no matter how hard he was pressed to do so. With his team’s nearly flawless performance, he has shown the world what can be accomplished when Jew, Muslim, Christian, Hindu and atheist join forces, bringing a message of hope over fear forged with professional competence. There is no better testimony to this (and to the enduring power of a real democracy like the United States) than the election to the presidency of a skinny black man born in Hawaii with a funny name.

http://www.metimes.com/Opinion/2008/11/21/how_obama_can_win_middle_east_peace/1816/

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