24 Comments
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Francesca Bossert's avatar

It's always the same, isn't it. The victory lap, and then crickets - and that's if the people are lucky. Thank you for another great article, Olivia.

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Friedrike Merck's avatar

Love reading really smart women writers on the topics of war and peace. Thank you for keeping this story on the front burner.

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Olivia of Troye's avatar

Thank you. Appreciate your comment more than you know…given what Pete Hegseth is doing to women & minorities who serve in the military.

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John Collins's avatar

Excellent piece, Olivia!

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Ellen Brown's avatar

While this information is disturbing, it should definitely be expected. Slapping a plan together doesn’t bring a real solution to a millenniums’ old problem. In this case, there is the added story of Trump’s quest for the Nobel Peace Prize. Millions of people serve in the Armed Forces across the globe. On this Veterans Day when we honor the veterans of war in this country, we should strive to do better. Do better for those who volunteer to serve and protect us.

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KLevinson's avatar

So basically, this so-called peace plan is the Underpants Gnomes of planning. Lovely. Why am I not surprised at all?

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Al Draycott's avatar

Thanks you Olivia for a very informative script. I think of the first world war ,, when the allies left Germany with a massive debt.. Owning all the blame for the war. The treaty of Versaille just decimated the nation. The depression hit and made the country ripe for a despot to run the country, it took a few years. Birthing Nazism. The second world war broke out. After the allied victory they implemented the Marshall Plan to help rebuild West Germany. A prosperous nation today. Nothing like that seems to happen anymore. Netanyhu must keep stirring the pot to stay out of jail and wants territorial expansion. Bombing civilians does not get rid of Hamas.

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William Schrader's avatar

Thank you for giving an informed update. Your experience and knowledge and your common sense explanation makes following your updates easy. Also thanks for a true view of the facts.

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Sandra's avatar

Olivia I give you so much credit for not losing your mind watching all this unfold. I can’t imagine how this affects you. But so grateful that you share your insights w us.

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Jennifer Eory's avatar

Thank you for bringing clarity to this sad and complex situation.

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Caleigh Lynn Hall's avatar

Very cogent and sobering article, Olivia. Thank you.

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Scott Whitmire's avatar

The only nation building effort we’ve ever done successfully was a Japan and Europe after WWII. It took almost 30 years, and both Japan and Europe wanted it.

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ABJ's avatar

What surprises me is not that the plan is not working. What surprises me is that anyone believed it would.

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pj's avatar

you bring back bad memories of my time in the IC...the plan to rebuild Iraq fell apart in less than five days...the overestimation of the ground war...100 days became 100 hours...then the greed and corruption on both sides took over...the Civilian Provisional Aithority was poorly thought out and the execution to stand up the authority was worse...

Gaza ia already destroyed, but the enemy isn't destroyed, the same opportunities and incentives remain for greed and corruption...no lessons learned, just lessons repeated ... this time I only have to watch rather than have a front row to another failure...

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ETA's avatar

So let me get his straight. We paid our taxes to destroy Gaza with our bombs, now we will pay our taxes to make Gaza into a Trump Kushner resort and all his cronies will benefit financially while they use our money?

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Deborah Newman's avatar

I wonder if there were plans for a Trump resort. He had mentioned a while ago many times that Gaza would be a great location. He’d be tickled pink to get the Nobel Peace Prize AND build a resort. Maybe Eric was there too. Some family crypto currency deals would really make it lovely.

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Robot Bender's avatar

Other than trying to get a Nobel, that's the only other reason he's involved. Like everything else he does. A Gaza resort will be a terrorist magnet for the entire Middle East.

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Karen Humphries's avatar

We never learn fron the past, so keep repeating our failures.

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Robot Bender's avatar

Many of us do, but we never seem to end up with the power to change anything.

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