And so it begins.... again.

September 2, 2010.

Really, it's just a day to talk about the Middle East - especially if you're Benjamin Netanyahu or Mahmoud Abbas. I don't happen to be either (thank goodness), but I'm going to join in the fun anyways... well, tune in and comment, at the very least.

May 14, 1948: Declaration of the establishment of the state of Israel

A few hours later: Declaration of war upon Israel by Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia, quickly accompanied by an invasion and the start of the 1948 War/ Israeli War of Independence or War of Liberation/ al-Nakba or "Catastrophe"

I briefly considered timeline-ing it out, but quite frankly, there's just too much. That fact alone should get the point across, no? From the day Israel declared itself independent (not to even touch that which led up to that moment) to this very moment, it's been wrought with violence, tension, and conflict, originating both from within the (sometimes fuzzy) border and without. Amazingly but not surprisingly, everyone's still holding their ground. On one hand, I have to admire the determination and persistence involved here, disastrous as it may prove at times. On the other hand, those disastrous results of obstinacy and intolerance also prevent progress.... as we will most likely see once again after today's attempt.

Sometimes, admittedly, I can be rather cynical.* You got me. Caught red handed with a presumptuous smirk, quizzical brow, and/or roll of the eyes. When it comes to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, however.... well, it's a large club of cynics, and for good reason.

Perhaps it's the memory of the late Israeli PM Yitzhak Rabin that forms the true bastion, if you will, of my cynicism. "Late," that is, because he was assassinated on November 4, 1995. By a conservative, right-wing and Jewish Israeli. Following peace talks with Yasser Arafat (again under the watchful eye of the US).

Rabin, along with Arafat and Shimon Peres had been awarded the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize thanks to the previously signed Oslo Accords. In his acceptance speech, Rabin declared: "We are in the midst of building the peace. The architects and engineers of this enterprise are engaged in their work even as we gather here tonight, building the peace layer by later, brick by brick, beam by beam. The job is difficult, complex, trying. Mistakes could topple the whole structure and bring disaster down upon us. And so we are determined to do the job well - despite the toll of murderous terrorism, despite fanatic and scheming enemies." ...How painfully ironic.

If nothing else, the case of Rabin reminds us that there is more to conflict resolution than agreements between political leaders; their citizens must agree, as well.

Ah, and here is an NYT update: the fellows in question have agreed to successive rounds of talks. All well and good, but it's only the beginning. The cynic in me is too busy coming up with the questions at hand (West Bank, Jerusalem, Gaza, settlements, refugees, right of return, etc etc) to celebrate just yet.

*Note: "Cynics" are not to be confused with "pessimists." I prefer to differentiate in one key point. Namely, pessimists expect only bad or, at the very least, nothing good. Cynics, on the other hand, are those of us who might vaguely hope for something good but, perhaps due to past experience, chalk it up as unlikely, taking into account human nature as they see it.