Three Steps to Mideast Peace: A Non-Pandering Approach

Barack Obama has been accused of a great crime - of feeling sympathy for ordinary Palestinians. To counter this charge, he has demonstrated on his current world tour that he will tilt more toward Israel than most Israelis would. Let's consider a better way:

1. Consider the practical benefits of neutrality. When U.S. politicians conclude that God gave Israelites enduring control over Canaanites and Palestinian Arabs, the world criticizes our unfairness and we violate our own separation of religion and state.
2. Exhort Muslims from Morocco to Pakistan to get on the therapist's couch and stop playing "vicarious victim." They can do more to get Palestinians on their feet, but they often prefer to complain.
3. Even if we remain "Israel's good friend," we can critique it constructively. Many Israeli citizens are such critics, and they are not "mere self-loathing Jews."