Wait, is this thread still going? I thought we resolved everything.

There are really three distinct questions.

1. What happened in the past?

2. What is happening now?

3. What are possible futures?

It's clear that the two "sides" have very different narratives as answers to Question 1. It seems to me that it would help if both narratives were well understood. On the other hand, I'm open to the possibility that a peaceful solution is more likely if people just stopped talking about the past. For example, I find it terrible how little attention the Armenian Genocide (committed by Turkey) gets. But it's possible the world is more peaceful today because most people pretend it didn't happen.

The two "sides" also have very different answers to Question 2. This is largely a question of focus. If someone is pro-Palestinian, then they focus on checkpoints, prisoners, settlements and pictures of dead Palestinian kids. If someone is pro-Israel, they focus on suicide bombings, rocket attacks and hostages. If someone is anti-Palestinian, they focus on videos showing Palestinian kids in schools learning to hate Jews and performing in plays pretending to behead Jews. If someone is anti-Israel, they focus on Israeli kids playing with toy guns. It's not that all of these things aren't happening. It's just that if you are on one side then you make sure to focus on the parts that are favorable to the side you favor.

Regarding Question 3. The most likely outcome I can see is 6 million dead Jews, followed by celebrations around the world (including by many of you), followed by an army of nano-robots attacking the human reproductive system. Another outcome might be a two state solution. A two state solution seems like it would require so many things to change (including some fundamental cultural changes for the Palestinians) that it's hard for me to imagine. I'm certainly not convinced that Israel is taking actions that make this outcome "less likely" -- but with the goal so far away and the terrain so complicated it's hard to tell which direction leads towards it and which direction leads away from it.

(Actually, I'm not really sure the phrase "2 state solution" is appropriate. The territory was part of "Transjordan" after WW1 when the British took over. It included what is now Jordan. Jordan is a state with a lot of Palestinians. It seems like Israel-Palestine-Jordan would be a "3 state solution," but whatever.)

Let's suppose a "2 state solution" is the most desirable outcome. To be clear, this means agreed-upon borders and an end to hostilities. (Yes, I know, stop laughing.) Is such a "2 state solution" more likely if people stop trying to answer Questions 1 and 2? Especially regarding Question 1, it should be clear that there will never be agreement about what happened.