A Daily Analysis
By Marc Schulman

November 9, 2008- 10,000 KristalNacht/ Rabin Assasination Two Different Lessons of Jewish History

Last night 10,000 Israelis turned out to commemorate the 13th anniversary of the assassination of Yitzchak Rabin. In Israel, a great deal of talk has centered around the politics of the day. Who speaks for the peace camp today? In fact, on the political scene there has been a sea change. Labor is rapidly losing out to Kadima for leadership, with Barak making a pathetic speech on the dangers of some of the settlers, while having spent the last two years as defense minister doing nothing about the situation. Today, the assassination of Rabin was officially commemorated tomorrow. KristalNacht, the night of broken glass is commemorated. Both events are part of the narrative of the Jewish people. How one relates to the other may determine the Jewish future. If one looks only at KristalNacht to guide us forward, then it is impossible to every make a concession, ever count on anyone or ever reach peace. If one thinks only of Kritsalnacht this will ultimately lead to more assassinations. On the other hand, if we forget the lessons of Kristalnacht, we fail to understand the risks the future holds. They say those who forget the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them. With Jewish history, as we work to understand what history's lessons are, we find often they are contradictory.

Foreign Minister Livni met together with Palestinian President Abbas today in Sharm El Sheik with the Quartet (representatives of the US, Russia, the European Union, and the UN.) At the meeting the representatives reaffirmed their commitment to a two-state solution. The Quartet further affirmed that the world community would simultaneously stay out of the way have and yet support the Israeli/Palestinian efforts, as long as they continued to negotiate. Lastly, it was also stated at the meeting (not to state the obvious), that there would be no agreement made in the remainder of President Bush's term.

President Assad of Syria gave a long speech today. The speech alternated between attacking the United States, attacking Saudi Arabia and attacking Israel. He claimed that Israel was not serious about negotiating for peace. According to sources, Assad conceded Syrian claims on any part of the Kinneret. He has not, however, agreed to change his relations with Iran.