Poll: majority of Palestinians want Israel eliminated

June 11, 2002 8:06 AM

Poll: majority of Palestinians want Israel eliminated What does this tell us about the chances of a peace accord?
posted by Postroad (13 comments total)

That chances of success are slim? I'm sorry but this doesn't strike me as particularly newsworthy.
posted by ljromanoff at 8:16 AM on June 11, 2002

What does this tell us about the chances of a peace accord?

What does this tell us that's different from yesterday?

Better question: What does this tell us about misleading headlines?

It is improper to declare 51% a majority when there is a margin of error large enough to bring the number below 50%. It would only be appropriate to use the "majority" label in this case if more than 53%, or 625 of the 1,179 respondents, answered the question in such a way.

Of course, Palestine is not a true democracy, and so the difference between 48% and 51% of the people feeling a certain way is even less meaningful.
posted by PrinceValium at 8:19 AM on June 11, 2002

Blah. A majority of Israelis want Palestine eliminated (i.e., ethnic cleansing). And the Israelis are much farther along in their goal than the Palestinians. I agree w/ljromanoff - is this news?
posted by laz-e-boy at 8:23 AM on June 11, 2002

contradicting poll by the same group conclusion: polls are bullshit
posted by aLienated at 8:30 AM on June 11, 2002

If you are going to stir the I/P debate come up with a better story than this.

For instance this is on CBC tonight at 9 ET: The Siege of Bethlehem. I caught a preview yesterday and it looks pretty interesting. There is a real player comercial online here
posted by srboisvert at 8:37 AM on June 11, 2002

Under the present circumstances, if a majority of Palestinians had said they want to see Israel survive and prosper, that would be news.


However, we might at least read the Reuters article. 51% think that the result of the current uprising should be the liberation of pre-1948 Palestine... but 43% are OK with the 1967 borders and a Palestinian state in the Gaza and West Bank, i.e., the current Saudi Prince Plan. One of these two things has an appreciable chance of actually happening.
posted by anser at 9:13 AM on June 11, 2002

Sorry about posting, again. Israel poll: transfer is not elimination of a peoples. Saudi plan: calls first for total withdrawal of Israel from lands taken during war. And then things might proceed. This is not the way the game is played by those winning and those losing in war. Saudi plan: calls for (added by Syria) Right of Return of 3.5 million people of the 700 thousand who left (for whatever reasons you care to argue about).
Not news: good enough for major news outlet to list it. It may be news if you believe that total withdrawal leads to peace when this suggests otherwise.
My pledge: no more posts of any kind dealinbg with I/P issue....we see things not as they are but as we are.
posted by Postroad at 9:37 AM on June 11, 2002

What percentage of Americans would like to see France eliminated?

Vaca
posted by vaca at 10:40 AM on June 11, 2002

I dunno, but I bet 100% of MeFi users wish Postroad would stfu about Israel.
posted by salmacis at 11:14 AM on June 11, 2002

perfect illustration of christopher hitchens thoughts on the true axis of evil:


judaism, islam, and christianity.
posted by specialk420 at 1:53 PM on June 11, 2002

salmacis: I'm 100% certain that I wish you would stfu about what 100% of MeFi users would like.
posted by HTuttle at 3:45 PM on June 11, 2002

"perfect illustration of christopher hitchens thoughts on the true axis of evil:


judaism, islam, and christianity."

Gotta love left-wing reductionism! Why these left-wing nuts get their panties in a bunch when they encounter the same dogmatism coming from the extreme right-wingers is beyond me!

Oh, and Christopher Hitchens should consider changing his given name.
posted by Stumpy McGee at 7:13 PM on June 12, 2002

Does anyone remember the "blue eyes/green eyes" expirement?

Meditate on that.
posted by delmoi at 12:35 AM on June 13, 2002