The solution to the bubbling caldron in the Middle East is simple, we are told.  If only Israel, A.K.A the Jews, would "give back" the territories conquered in the June 1967 war all would be forgiven. 

Sounds simple enough, but that is not the answer the Palestinians, any Arab nation or their allies are looking for.  Time and time again the statements, "Drive Israel into the sea" or "Kill (all) the Jews" has been stated as the goal of the Arab nations and their allies. 

Looking around this war-torn world, do you hear of any other nation stating similar pronouncements against their adversaries?  During World War Two was the objective of the United States to win the war against Japan or kill all Japanese people?  Is our goal in Afghanistan to be victorious against our terrorist enemies or murder all the Afghani people?   

Why does the world accept as fact that only death to the Jews will bring about peace in the Middle East?  Granted, when a country is at war many lose their lives, but eliminating an entire ethnic population seems to be reserved exclusively for Jews.  Even when Israel wasn't the Jewish state and their nation consisted of bearded men all over the world bent over their Holy books "Death to the Jews" was a battle cry. 

Throughout history hatred, bigotry and persecution of Jews was perfectly acceptable.  When bigotry in the United States was fashionable, anti-Jewish rhetoric was as commonplace as the flag, mom and apple pie.  In the past fifty or so years being anti any ethnic, religious or racial group has become politically incorrect.  However, hatred towards the Jews is still acceptable.  The difference is the bigots have found a politically correct way of verbalizing the old hatred that has scarred society for thousands of years.

Today, instead of saying something against Jewish people, Jews have become Zionists or Israelis.  While you can't stand on Main Street screaming protests against a particular race or religion, you can speak out against other countries.  Hence, anti-Zionist or anti-Israel rhetoric is perfectly acceptable in a PC world. 

But anti-Israel and anti-Zionist slurs are merely synonyms for anti-Jewish.  What do the enemies of the Jewish people hate?  According to Dennis Prager and Joseph Tolushkin in their book Why the Jews? They hate what Jews have represented for the past four thousand years: belief in one God, the Torah or law given them by the Almighty, their allegiance to Jewish nationhood and the concept of being chosen by their Creator to be a light unto the nations and spread the morality of Torah the world over.  In short, what the enemies of the Jewish people have always hated is Judaism and all it represents.

When Jews settled in countries throughout the world they brought along the books containing the teachings of their people.  They learned these books in their synagogues, in store fronts and at home.  The image of a bearded Jew bent over a book was one that not only evoked laughter, but children were taught this bigoted reaction from the youngest age.  In all societies, from pagan, to Christian to Moslem, governmental, political or religious hoards descended on their nation's Jews to torture, imprison and murder.  Their reactions never made sense, but this was the way of society and citizens had no desire to change it.

The majority of persecutions against the Jews throughout history originated with religious hatred.  The hatred was an acceptable part of society and culminated with Jewish deaths wherever Jews lived.  Most of these religions demanded that the Jews convert to their religion.  The persecution continued against those who refused to convert.  In other words a strong belief in something people equated to religious behavior was a good reason to murder the non-believers or infidels. 

Hitler did it differently.  He not only slaughtered believing Jews, but traced the genetic background of each citizen and murdered all people who had Jewish blood going back three generations.  Many Eastern Europeans didn't know they had any Jewish ancestors until the Nazis came to arrest them.  Hitler's main objective, as stated in his book Mein Kampf was, "Providence has ordained that I should be the greatest liberator of humanity.  I am freeing man from the restraints of an intelligence that has taken charge, from the dirty and degrading self-mortification of a false vision called conscience and morality, and from the demands of a freedom and independence which only a very few can bear."  The vast majority of Jews in Germany at the time were non-practicing.  Still, they usually had a desire to live according to Hitler's dreaded morality and conscience.  Hence the slaughter of six million people because they were practicing Jews or carried the ancestral blood that might provoke their legacy of morality.

The war against the Jews today is different from the persecutions and bigotry of the last two thousand years.  Now that the Jews have their own state after wandering the world for millennia the Arab nations, supported by both dictators and leaders in the free world, claim they only want the land where Israel is located.  If all the Jews in Israel converted to Islam tomorrow the feud would be over.  However, anything short of that is a reason to invade the tiny nation state, murder Jewish inhabitants and spread lies about Israeli occupation on land won in war. 

The history of the Palestinians, the people supposedly persecuted because Jews live in Israel, is nothing more than a plant by Moslem countries.  In the fifties, when the Arab nations started turning their oil into cash, they had a problem.  Most of their populations were opting to work in the more lucrative oil industry and countries needed people to operate their infrastructures.  They put ads in American and English newspapers offering jobs at top pay with homes, cars and other perks.  Arab leaders were asked why they didn't employ the people who remained homeless and poverty stricken in Jordon after fleeing their homes in Israel in 1948.  The leaders answered, "We are saving them for a higher purpose."

The higher purpose presented itself in 1964 in the person of Yasser Arafat.  He organized these self proclaimed refugees treated badly by their own people into a new "country" called Palestine.  In 1967 Israel executed a pre-emptive strike against the Arab nations lined up on the Israeli border armed for an invasion.    

Israel was victorious.  Jerusalem, the eternal capital of Israel and the Jewish people, was reunited and Israel conquered the areas referred to as the West bank, Judea, Samaria and Gaza.  They also conquered the area on which the ancient Temple of the Jewish people stood, the Temple Mount.       

Obviously the Palestinians living in land previously governed by Jordon now were governed by Israel.  Immediately Israel enrolled them in their single payer health system.  In Palestinian communities schools sprang up, people became employed by Israelis and the religious sites of Christianity and Judaism became accessible to people who wanted to visit them.  But before visitors could visit these sites the Israelis had to clean them up.  While under Arab control these holy sites were used as latrines.   

Since 1967 the dialogue between Israel, the Palestinians and other Arab nations has lowered Israel to the status of occupiers in their own land.  The propagandists for the PLO claimed that all they wanted is to have the West Bank and Gaza returned to them. 

In 2005 Israel gave control of the Gaza strip to the PLO.  Immediately after taking control of this once lucrative Israeli territory the PLO destroyed every beautiful home in the area.  They demolished the greenhouses that once flourished with produce and flowers raised for domestic use and export. 

They turned all synagogues into Mosques.  Gaza immediately became a desolate but safe haven for Hamas, a terrorist organization that swore they would use their vantage point to eradicate Israel.  Soon after the PLO takeover elections were held and Hamas was voted in as the ruling party in Gaza.

After the Hamas takeover, missiles started flying into Sderot, a small town in Israel close to the Gaza border on a daily basis.  Children born in this town haven't yet slept in the same house as their family.  They have spent their lives in bomb shelters.  In Sderot children don't play outside.  It is too dangerous.  In other words, Israel gave the land and got no peace. 

To this day Western leaders such as President Obama are encouraging Israel to return more land to the PLO, promising that the giving of land will encourage peace.  But Israel already knows what land for peace is, a transparent lie. 

On the premise that Israel isn't cooperating and giving land for peace, the feud, or should I say the bubbling caldron continues.  All over the world people hate Jews because Israel is referred to as the Jewish state.  They claim that anti-Jewish sentiment will end when Israel hands over all land conquered in the 1967 war to the PLO.  But as we saw in Gaza, land close to the border of Israel in the hands of the PLO or Hamas gets the Arab or Moslem nations just a little closer to their goal of eradicating Jews living in Israel. 

Yes, it's the obliteration of the Jewish people and Judaism that the enemies of the State of Israel have stated as their goal. 

The economies of Europe and the United States have made this prime time to confront Israel with a new anger and hatred.      

Some say Israel is the only religiously identified state, and that is making her more of a target for her enemies.  Has any Christian tried signing up for a tour of Saudi Arabia lately?  Moslem countries may as well take the old signs from the south and post them at all airports and ports, "No Jews, Blacks (using a repulsive adjective) and dogs allowed.  You may as well add Christians to the list.  If you're planning such an excursion look up your limitations as a citizen of a Western society before you pack your bags.  In short Israel is not the only religiously identified country in the world, but it is the only religiously identified country without restrictions to visitors of other religions.  But the bottom line is still that the majority of citizens are Jewish, and that makes all the difference.