Middle East Peace Act of 2009 (On the President's Desk)

[Franzl]

I urge all Senators to vote against this Bill. 

reason please.

[RI]

I urge all Senators to vote against this Bill. 

This only makes me want to vote for it.

[DownWithTheLeft]

I urge all Senators to vote against this Bill. 

reason please.

The Palestinians are not forced to bend over while being paddled by the Israelis

[Kaine for Senate '18]

I urge all Senators to vote against this Bill. 

reason please.

We seem to be making it much easier for Palestine to receive aid than for Israel.  Second, we should not be making decisions for Israel relating to the blockade; telling them what is acceptable is not good.  Regarding Palestinian tolerance/support of attacks on Israel, it is very easy for them to support and help such measures without us knowing.  Increasing aid to Palestine without increasing it for israel should not be done, either.  We need to be tougher on Palestine, if they're going to receive our aid.

[DownWithTheLeft]

Why do we need to help Palestinians to tougher standards rather than equal ones?

[Purple State]

I urge all Senators to vote against this Bill. 

reason please.

We seem to be making it much easier for Palestine to receive aid than for Israel.  Second, we should not be making decisions for Israel relating to the blockade; telling them what is acceptable is not good.  Regarding Palestinian tolerance/support of attacks on Israel, it is very easy for them to support and help such measures without us knowing.  Increasing aid to Palestine without increasing it for israel should not be done, either.  We need to be tougher on Palestine, if they're going to receive our aid.

A lot has been done to make it less biased for the Palestinians. I think the fact that so much is left to the discretion of the Senate helps and Section 5 (which Franzl and myself worked on quite a bit) basically ensures that the usual Palestinian shenanigans are not to the detriment of Israel.

[Franzl]

I urge all Senators to vote against this Bill. 

reason please.

We seem to be making it much easier for Palestine to receive aid than for Israel.  Second, we should not be making decisions for Israel relating to the blockade; telling them what is acceptable is not good.  Regarding Palestinian tolerance/support of attacks on Israel, it is very easy for them to support and help such measures without us knowing.  Increasing aid to Palestine without increasing it for israel should not be done, either.  We need to be tougher on Palestine, if they're going to receive our aid.

So in other words, you believe that Palestine is simply inferior and not worthy of equal support if they comply with out suggestions. It's as simple as that.

Secondly, we're not forcing Israel to do anything. Absolutely false. We're encouraging them to comply, of course, but they have no obligation to accept these conditions. They're perfectly free to simply refuse further funding from Atlasia.


I'm not trying to discriminate against Israel, don't get me wrong. Absolutely not. I'm interested in equality.

[Franzl]

I urge all Senators to vote against this Bill. 

reason please.

We seem to be making it much easier for Palestine to receive aid than for Israel.  Second, we should not be making decisions for Israel relating to the blockade; telling them what is acceptable is not good.  Regarding Palestinian tolerance/support of attacks on Israel, it is very easy for them to support and help such measures without us knowing.  Increasing aid to Palestine without increasing it for israel should not be done, either.  We need to be tougher on Palestine, if they're going to receive our aid.

A lot has been done to make it less biased for the Palestinians. I think the fact that so much is left to the discretion of the Senate helps and Section 5 (which Franzl and myself worked on quite a bit) basically ensures that the usual Palestinian shenanigans are not to the detriment of Israel.

Yes, basically. The fact that the Senate does have the ability to determine various things keeps either side from seriously abusing their bargaining power.

[Kaine for Senate '18]

I don't see the conditions are being equal.  Palestine only needs to change its rhetoric to receive funding, which increases by 5% each year.  Israel needs to give up its national security decisions to Atlasia, in order to receive a static amount of funding.  These are not equal requirements.

[DownWithTheLeft]

I don't see the conditions are being equal.  Palestine only needs to change its rhetoric to receive funding, which increases by 5% each year.  Israel needs to give up its national security decisions to Atlasia, in order to receive a static amount of funding.  These are not equal requirements.

With a 5% increase, it will take 23 years before the Palestinians receive 10% of the aid Israel does

[Purple State]

I don't see the conditions are being equal.  Palestine only needs to change its rhetoric to receive funding, which increases by 5% each year.  Israel needs to give up its national security decisions to Atlasia, in order to receive a static amount of funding.  These are not equal requirements.

If there are any attacks on Israel funding will likely be cut, as it shows that Palestinians are not doing enough to monitor their borders and territory.

[Franzl]

I don't see the conditions are being equal.  Palestine only needs to change its rhetoric to receive funding, which increases by 5% each year.  Israel needs to give up its national security decisions to Atlasia, in order to receive a static amount of funding.  These are not equal requirements.

Palestine has to refrain from supporting any attacks on Israel. Doesn't that seem beneficial to Israel's security to you?

And the level of funding currently is not fair at all....with Palestine only getting.....like less than 5%....of what Israel does.

We need to be neutral here....and frankly....the fact that Israel, even after both sides comply with our conditions (hopefully), continues to retain a significantly higher level of funding (for a rather long time)....means that Israel still has an advantage.

[RI]

Can we actually vote soon?

[DownWithTheLeft]

Can we actually vote soon?

Once HappyWarrior opens one, hopefully that will be sometime soon

[Hash]

I have a late idea. Could the Palestinian aid also be conditional on the Palestinian government, whatever it is defined to be (judging by section 5, they'll likely settle on the Fatah as the government), preventing by any means necessary local non-governmental parties and terrorist groupings from attacks on Israeli soil?

[Kaine for Senate '18]

I have a late idea. Could the Palestinian aid also be conditional on the Palestinian government, whatever it is defined to be (judging by section 5, they'll likely settle on the Fatah as the government), preventing by any means necessary local non-governmental parties and terrorist groupings from attacks on Israeli soil?

That would assuage some of my concerns, although I'd still rather the whole thing just be voted down.

[HappyWarrior]

This is called to a vote:

Section 1:
All non-humanitarian aid to Israel and Palestine is suspended.

Section 2:
1. Aid to Israel will be reinstated if both of the following conditions are fulfilled:
 a.) Israel recognizes Palestine as an independent state.
 b.) Israel refrains from maintaining any military presence in Gaza. A limited military presence to protect and
      ensure the safety of Israelis residing in the West Bank will be tolerated. The government of Atlasia
      is given permission to determine exactly what is to be tolerated.
 c.) Israel will end the blockade on Gaza in order to continue receiving aid.
      Atlasia does, however, recognize that Israel should be able to defend itself in the event of
      Palestinian aggression, therefore:

        Should Atlasia determine that the Palestinan government is responsible for supporting attacks
        against Israel or its citizens as described in Section 3, Israel may reinstate a military blockade
        with Atlasian approval for a limited amount of time until it is deemed by Atlasia to no longer be
        necessary for the safety of Israel and its citizens, without loss of aid or other negative
        consequences.

2. Any unprovoked military attacks against Palestine will lead immediately to an indefinite suspension of all aid.

3. Failure to meet the following conditions within six months of the passage of this bill will result in full suspension of all aid to Israel.

Section 3:
1. Aid to Palestine will be reinstated if both of following conditions are fulfilled:
 a.) Palestine recognizes Israel's right to exist.
 b.) The government of Palestine refrains from encouraging, supporting, or tolerating any attacks
      against Israel or Israeli citizens.

2. Atlasia recognizes that the government of Palestine cannot control every potential attack and will not impose any sanctions if it is determined that it could not prevent any specific attack from happening. The government of Atlasia is given permission to interpret specific situations.

3. All aid will be suspended indefinitely if it is determined that the government of Palestine is actively supporting attacks against Israel of its citizens.

4. Failure to meet the following conditions within six months of the passage of this bill will result in full suspension of all aid to Palestine.

Section 4:
If Palestine meets said conditions, their aid will be increased 5% each year beginning January 1st following the year they met said conditions.

Section 5:
1. The Israeli government and the Palestinian National Authority will agree upon a definition of the "Palestinian government" for purposes of complying with this act. This definition will be used in determining eligibility for aid based on the requirements and restrictions outlined in previous sections. Should no mutual agreement exist 4 months after the passing of this bill, the Atlasian Senate reserves the right to define what constitutes the "Palestinian government" and borders between Israel and Palestine.

2. If at any time the Atlasian Senate is convinced that one party is intentionally impeding progress for reasons other than outstanding legitimate concerns, the Atlasian Senate may, at any during these 4 months, with a two-thirds majority in the Senate, reinstate aid for the innocent party, and block any aid for the guilty party until it is prepared to resume sensible negotiations.

_________________________________________________________________________

AYE

[Purple State]

Remember the new name. Maybe retitle the thread?

[DownWithTheLeft]

Aye

I think the version Lief posted is actually the correct one and mine contained something a little off.

[Associate Justice PiT]

     Aye

[DownWithTheLeft]

Middle East Peace Act of 2009

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THIS IS THE BILL

[HappyWarrior]

Middle East Peace Act of 2009

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THIS IS THE BILL

Thanks.  Sorry bout that.  Got a bit turned around lol.  Its late here.

[DownWithTheLeft]

Not a problem, the caps were just to make sure it wasn't missed/blend in with the rest of the bill

[RI]

In recognition of the work put into this bill, I shall cast my vote as aye.

[Lief 🗽]

Aye