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Obstacle to Peace: The US Role in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Why has peace in the Middle East remained so elusive? Obstacle to Peace not only provides the answer, but also explains why you won’t hear it from US government officials or the mainstream media. With incisive and provocative analysis, Jeremy R. Hammond provides a meticulously documented account that explodes popular myths and deconstructs standard narratives about the Israel-Palestine conflict. For anyone seeking a better understanding of the conflict’s root causes, the true reasons for its persistence, and the way forward, Obstacle to Peace delivers the knowledge and insights to effect the paradigm shift required to achieve justice and peace in the Middle East. Inside its pages, you'll
538 pages, Paperback
Published July 9, 2016
About the author
Jeremy R. Hammond
10 books26 followersI'm an independent journalist and author specializing in exposing dangerous state propaganda serving to manufacture consent for harmful government policies.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 17, 2024
It took me a long time to finish this book… ~ two years. One of the heaviest books I have read. I found myself multiple times having to put it down and take breaks from reading it for weeks on end…due to anger and rage at some points, and deep sadness at others that I felt. By far the most informative book I’ve read on the subject and Hammond makes an iron clad case that in order to achieve peace, “the US government support for Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people must end.” It is worth noting that Hammond’s scholarly research is impeccable citing local Israeli news, Palestinian spokespeople, historians, investigative journalists, UN reports, fact finding missions, and much more, adding up into the thousands—all cited in his book. Anyone wanting to understand the dynamics of the conflict will benefit from reading this book.
February 17, 2019
If you'd ever wondered why the longest running conflict in the modern world hasn't come close to resolution ,this book provides the answer. For many decades the US government has sided with the Israeli government to ensure that a Palestinian state has no chance of being born. It is more than apparent that if this is to occur, it can only be with either a fundamental change in the US approach (not impossible under a future Democratic president and congress influenced by the likes of Ilhan Omar and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez), or the removal of the US from the process.
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September 26, 2020A good summary of Israeli atrocities and the US involvement in Israeli deciet. The summary of events and diplomatic engagements presented chronologically proves that Israeli government is not serious in finding a solution. The prolonged diplomatic negotiations simply allowed Israel to continue its expansionist policy by expelling Palestinians from their centuries old settlements.
January 19, 2019
This is a book that I have had in my shelf for a very long time and I finally got to start reading it last winter. After 2-3 months and 400+ pages later, I am disappointed.
When I read a political book that I disagree with, I judge it on its ability to convince me to its side. The goal is convince the reader how the US role or its “criminal policies” have been an obstacle to peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and there was hardly any mention of that; I have my own reasons why I think the US should reconsider its role in that conflict, but Hammond did not address them nor did he bring anything new to the table. We give Israel and the PA lots of money, but there was hardly any mention of foreign aid in this book. I’ll touch more on this later.
Now I am not Israel’s biggest fan. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 as Noam Chomsky and 10 as Ben Shapiro or Dennis Prager, I am a 4, but if you take in what I believe the US role should be in that region, how biased the media is reporting in this conflict, I am like a 6, maybe 6.5.
With that said, another major flaw is the HORRIFIC bias against Israel. Throughout the book the repeatedly cites from the NYT, “Amnesty International”, “Human Rights Watch”, and I think “The Guardian” to explain various conflicts between Israel and the Palestinians. Again, I’m not Israel’s biggest fan, but I do believe that there is a great deal of media bias against Israel. And Hammond even (unsuccessfully) tries to make you believe that media in the US is biased IN FAVOR of Israel.
One glaring example is his rundown of the Goldstone Report. He goes on about Israel’s horrific war crimes, but he hardly mentions how Judge Goldstone retracted most his claims a few years after the report was published. There are other examples throughout the book, stuff even I could tell was insanely biased.
Based on his bias in the first 300 pages, it made me question the impartiality of the last 100. He talks about the UN and how the Palestinians are poorly treated, etc. But it gets rather difficult to trust his writing based on his history of bias.
Now there is nothing wrong with being biased, as long as you say you are biased, and let the reader know that he/she is not getting an impartial view of the account. Hammond does not do that. He tries to make you think you’re getting an unbiased view of what is happening, but it is clear he is being very biased.
The few good things that I would say are that it gives the Palestinians perspective of the conflict. He does talk about Israeli occupation and Israel’s blatant violation of international law in increasing settlements. He also debunks some claims on President Obama being a vitriolic anti-Israel semite.
I believe we should protect Israel and give it some money, because if we do not, its neighbors will wipe it off the planet. Hammond did not convince me that my view is wrong and the US is responsible to fanning the flames of the conflict. I’m gonna give this book the lowest grade I have given- 2.5/10.
When I read a political book that I disagree with, I judge it on its ability to convince me to its side. The goal is convince the reader how the US role or its “criminal policies” have been an obstacle to peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and there was hardly any mention of that; I have my own reasons why I think the US should reconsider its role in that conflict, but Hammond did not address them nor did he bring anything new to the table. We give Israel and the PA lots of money, but there was hardly any mention of foreign aid in this book. I’ll touch more on this later.
Now I am not Israel’s biggest fan. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 as Noam Chomsky and 10 as Ben Shapiro or Dennis Prager, I am a 4, but if you take in what I believe the US role should be in that region, how biased the media is reporting in this conflict, I am like a 6, maybe 6.5.
With that said, another major flaw is the HORRIFIC bias against Israel. Throughout the book the repeatedly cites from the NYT, “Amnesty International”, “Human Rights Watch”, and I think “The Guardian” to explain various conflicts between Israel and the Palestinians. Again, I’m not Israel’s biggest fan, but I do believe that there is a great deal of media bias against Israel. And Hammond even (unsuccessfully) tries to make you believe that media in the US is biased IN FAVOR of Israel.
One glaring example is his rundown of the Goldstone Report. He goes on about Israel’s horrific war crimes, but he hardly mentions how Judge Goldstone retracted most his claims a few years after the report was published. There are other examples throughout the book, stuff even I could tell was insanely biased.
Based on his bias in the first 300 pages, it made me question the impartiality of the last 100. He talks about the UN and how the Palestinians are poorly treated, etc. But it gets rather difficult to trust his writing based on his history of bias.
Now there is nothing wrong with being biased, as long as you say you are biased, and let the reader know that he/she is not getting an impartial view of the account. Hammond does not do that. He tries to make you think you’re getting an unbiased view of what is happening, but it is clear he is being very biased.
The few good things that I would say are that it gives the Palestinians perspective of the conflict. He does talk about Israeli occupation and Israel’s blatant violation of international law in increasing settlements. He also debunks some claims on President Obama being a vitriolic anti-Israel semite.
I believe we should protect Israel and give it some money, because if we do not, its neighbors will wipe it off the planet. Hammond did not convince me that my view is wrong and the US is responsible to fanning the flames of the conflict. I’m gonna give this book the lowest grade I have given- 2.5/10.
December 1, 2022
What a detailed and informative source regarding the Israeli-Palestine conflict. Hammond's facts and diplomatic tone engaged my curiosity and inspired to be more inquisitive about this complicated topic. I appreciated Hammond's meticulous research on this matter.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews