Thomas Friedman of the New York Times recently wrote an editorial that has really struck a nerve. he calls on Israel to renew the construction freeze for another two months. he compares Israel to Hezbollah as being a spoiled child. he says Americans are fed up and Israel is losing them.

Friedman gave the following interview to Israel's Channel 2 to discuss his opinion and follow-up thoughts on the editorial.



Friedman makes good points, that none of this is worth not testing a new opportunity for peace.

To comment on what Friedman said and wrote:

Friedman stresses that America is Israel's ONLY friend. That is not true. Perhaps the United States is Israel's most reliable friend. Perhaps Israel's best friend. But the US is not Israel's ONLY friend. And who even knows if "friend" is the right word at all, especially nowadays where the friend is not so friendly.. perhaps a better way to describe it would be that we share common interests..

Also, it is nice to say that 2 months will be a worthwhile test, and Netanyahu, and Israel, should worry less about keeping his word about what would happen at the end of the 10 months freeze, and worry more about not missing such an opportunity for peace, or at least to test the opportunity for peace that would only come at a small price of 2 more frozen months. Very nice, but why should we look at the 2 months any differently than the past 10 months?

Look at those 10 months as the test and say the test failed? The Palestinians ignored the freeze and refused to talk to the Israelis until the beginning of September, right when the freeze was about to finish. Their goal then was, obviously, to lessen the pressure on themselves and show they are willing to talk but Israel is about to start building again. Yet for 10 months Israel did not build and the Palestinians still refused to talk.

Why would 2 months more be any different? And does anyone really believe that the request to continue the freeze is really only for another 2 months? What will happen at the end of the 60 days? the Palestinians will throw another fit about how Israel is destroying the peace process, the Americans will request/demand another extension of the freeze, and everyone will be upset about it again.

And by the end of the additional 60 days, the world will turn to Israel and say you have already frozen the construction for a year, so you must continue it for the sake of the peace process.

It is time to try something new to solve the issue. Netanyahu tried something new with the construction freeze, and it did not work. Why keep trying things that don't work by continuing the freeze? Come up with something new to try.