,
9 tweets,
3 min read
Read on Twitter
Just arrived in Israel for a @philosproject study tour on religion, nationalism, and liberalism in Israel and the Palestinian territories. We'll also be spending time in the West Bank. Will start a running thread here with some random thoughts and observations
A fascinating (and somewhat depressing) day in the West Bank including a meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh and a visit to Al-Amari refugee camp 
I already have a pretty dark view of human motivation, and I was already skeptical of any "peace process," but discussions with Palestinians—but much more so Israelis—put me even closer to the position that peace is basically impossible to imagine for the foreseeable future
A lot has been written about the decimation of the Israeli left, but it's another thing to actually hear it over and over: Most of the center and "center-left" Israelis we've met with sound like proper right-wingers when it comes to anything Palestinian-related
At the Israeli-Syrian ceasefire fence in the Golan Heights
Looking back at my notes from the various people we've met with the past couple days: "Liberty depends on democracy but now democracy depends on nationalism." For better or worse
My personal favorite: "A falafel is more charismatic than Benny Gantz"
Israeli writers and politicians on the center and center-left generally say they believe in two states in theory, but they no longer seem to believe in it in practice. Supporting an impossible state isn't the same as supporting a Palestinian state
The common refrain is that Israelis don't have a Palestinian partner for peace, but I think the reverse is truer today than anytime in recent memory: There is no partner for peace on the Israeli side
