You were among the ones telling us that they would never abandon the Philadelphia route. You told us this was a move of toughness not weakness. None of this has come to pass. What has become ridiculously obvious is that Sharon views himself as a colonial Governor and Israel as a colony of the USA. The only difference with Labor is that they view Israel as a colony of Europe. Has Sharon ever said no to Bush or Rice? Do you honestly think he ever will when push comes to shove?
Of course he has. You need a reminder:
"All of our efforts to attain a cease-fire have been been torpedoed by the Palestinians. The fire did not cease, even for one day. The Cabinet has therefore instructed our security forces to take all necessary measures to bring full security to the citizens of Israel. We can rely only on ourselves. And from this day forward, we will rely only on ourselves."
"We are currently in the midst of a complex and difficult diplomatic campaign. I turn to the western democracies, first and foremost the leader of the free world, the United States. Do not repeat the dreadful mistake of 1938, when the enlightened democracies of Europe decided to sacrifice Czechoslovakia for the sake of a temporary, convenient solution. Don't try to appease the Arabs at our expense. We will not accept this. Israel will not be Czechoslovakia. Israel will fight terror. There's no difference between 'good terror' and 'bad terror' just as there is no difference between 'good murder' and 'bad murder.' Terrorism, as we witnessed this week in Alei Sinai, is worse than murder."
"We have been fighting terrorism for over 100 years. Unfortunately, there is no swift and immediate solution, but if we confront this terrorism united, we will be able to overcome it and bring peace. And we shall overcome."
--Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (in translation), October 4, 2001
Do you honestly think he ever will when push comes to shove?
I didn't notice any letup in settlement construction around Ma'ale Adumim. Did you? It seems like the Prime Minister is ignoring the Bush administration on this key issue right now.
Oh, and yes, Israel is stronger without Gaza than with it.