by Stephen Lendman

There's plenty already. More builds a stronger case. Previous articles explained. Israeli/Palestinian peace talks were stillborn from inception. They began decades ago. This time's no different.

Managed news misinformation substitutes for truth and full disclosure. Facts trump propaganda. Palestinians are on their own. Their legitimate government's excluded from talks.

Imagine holding them with one side denied participation. Imagine a sham process. It's planned. It's baked in the cake. The outcome's predictable. Failure and betrayal define it.

Israeli hardliners run things. They deplore peace and stability. They won't tolerate it. Netanyahu plans to prevent it. Doing so advances Israel's agenda.

It prioritizes greater Middle East control. It includes expanded territories. It involves continued militarized occupation. It means no peace for our time.

Netanyahu's using stealth tactics. He wants a national referendum. He's expediting legislation. He wants Israelis deciding up or down on what affects Palestinians.

He's got no right to do so. He's proceeding anyway. He and Economy Minister Naftali Bennett want legislation passed in 90 days.

Bennett represents settler interests. He wants unabated settlement construction. It's on stolen Palestinian land. Netanyahu and dominant coalition hardliners endorse it. They're land-grabbers. They're peace haters. They're racists. They're ruthless.

Netanyahu called holding a referendum "essential. I don't think that decisions like this can be made, if an agreement is indeed attained, through some coalition move, but rather it should be presented to the people to decide."

On July 22, he told cabinet ministers he's "committed to two goals, and it must be understood that they must also guide the result, should there be one."

"First of all, if it will be, it will be put to a referendum." Israeli security matters most. It's code language for all take and no give.

"Our negotiating partners will need to make concessions that will allow us to maintain our security and uphold our vital national interests," he said.

Israeli-style peace is none at all. It's continued occupation harshness. It's institutionalized racism. It's unabated ethnic cleansing. It's persecution writ large.

It's imprisoning Palestinians for wanting to live free on their own land in their own county. It's doing so for praying to the wrong god. It's about Jewish exclusivity. It's about doing the wrong thing and calling it right.

Israel continues lawless occupation. Palestinians alone are entitled to vote up or down on any agreement reached. It affects their lives. It's their land. It's their future. It's their right to choose.

Israelis have no legal authority to decide for them. Netanyahu, Bennett and other hardliners plan doing it anyway.

In 1973, Northern Ireland voters chose Britain over the Republic of Ireland. They did so by national referendum.

In 2014, Scottish voters decide whether to remain part of Britain or seek independence. It's their right. Brits have no say. Territorial residents have sole authority. No one else.

Israeli's have no right to decide for Palestinians. Netanyahu and Israeli hardliners plan otherwise. They want Jews deciding for Palestinians. Not the other way around.

On July 23, Haaretz editors headlined "Referendum isn't needed," saying:

Bennett wants "referendum law (turned) into a Basic Law." Israel has no constitution. Basic Law substitutes. It institutionalizes inequality.

It discriminates unfairly. It furthers apartheid. It advances separate an unequal. It affords rights solely to Jews. It reveals Israel's dark side.

Existing law "requires a referendum only on conceding territory to which Israeli law has been applied," said Haaretz editors.

Territories meeting "this criterion are East Jerusalem, the Golan Heights, and any parts of Israel that might be transferred to the Palestinians under a peace agreement."

Referendums sound democratic. Not what Netanyahu and Bennett propose. They have ulterior motives. They want unconditional surrender. They deplore peace.

They want Palestinians denied all rights. Turning referendum enactment into Basic Law lets Knesset members repeal it by "special majority."

What's planned doesn't surprise. It's typical Israeli tactics. It's one of many ways Palestinian rights are denied. It more proof about fake peace tlks.

Proposing a referendum "casts doubt over the sincerity of (Netanyahu's) intentions toward the peace process," said Haaretz editors.

Finally they mentioned what this writer repeatedly stresses. Hopefully they'll say more.

Netanyahu's referendum applies only to peace agreements. It "shows (his) real goal is to make it harder to ratify any future agreement," they said.

"Other important decisions (not) part of Israel's 'constitutional system' are not put to referenda."

Decisions made to occupy Palestine, build settlements, do so on stolen land, ethnically cleanse it, Judaize it, and suppress Palestinian rights weren't put to referenda so "people could approve or reject them."

"Nor were other fateful decisions - like whether to start a war or end one - ever submitted to a referendum, even though such decisions are liable to have grave implications for all Israeli citizens."

Democracy means people rule. Palestinians are entirely denied. They're nonpersons.

They negotiate without strength. They have no say. They're set up to fail. It's guaranteed. Washington's orchestrating things. It's no honest broker. It never was. It's not now.

State Department spokeswomen Jennifer Psaki said no precise date to resume talks is decided. They're expected to begin this week or next.

The State Department's sending both sides formal invitations. They're supposed to be identical. Palestinians haven't received theirs.

Most likely it's because Israel must first sign off on proposed terms. Palestinians have no say. They want discussions based on pre-1967 borders. They want political prisoners released. They have other stipulations.

What Israel alone wants matters. Abbas willingly agrees. Publicly he says otherwise. Privately he plans unconditional surrender.

He says one thing. He does another. He's used to it. He's done it many times before. He governs that way. Why Palestinians put up with him they'll have to explain

Jimmy Carter's surprisingly hopeful. He knows Israel's no democracy. He calls it an apartheid state. Palestinians are grossly outmatched. They haven't got a chance.

"No one knows what's going to happen," he said. "They might meet the first time and adjourn. But I think there's been pressure (for) resolution on this issue."

He's more hopeful than a month ago, he said. He'll have to explain why. No evidence suggests it. Plenty indicates otherwise. The tragedy of Occupied Palestine continues. Peace and liberation remain elusive.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book is titled "Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity"

http://www.claritypress.com/Lendman.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com

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