Welcome to The Micah Report, my ruminations on Israel, terror & security and the Middle East as well as politics and world events. Thanks for stopping by.

Column:
Palestinians just do not understand democracy.

It comes as no surprise. They have no history of democracy. They have never really known or accepted responsibility for their actions, their plight, their very being. They have no democratic role models. Palestinians have no idea at all of the awesome power or democracy-they have never tasted the elixir of democratic freedom.

What they do have is "know how." Palestinians know how to exploit those freedom loving countries that lend them support. They know how to hate. They know how it feels to be the downtrodden underdog. They know how to survive, but just barely.

It all comes from the top down. Palestinian leadership has no commitment to improve the plight of their people. They do know how to line their own pockets with the aid money earmarked for their needs and needy. They know how to say the words that need to be said in order to gain the attention of the Western world. And then they know how to masterfully avoid the actions that should be taken in response.

The people, the masses, have no expectations of change, no expectations that the leaders will change or that their behaviors will change. They have no true expectation that their lives will ever be changed. And probably not the lives of their children, either.

The Palestinian Authority is probably the best example of a cleptocracy and corruptocracy in the world today. It's frightening. But it is to be expected.

Equally frightening, but totally unexpected, what I do not understand and what bothers me even more than Palestinian behavior, is the behavior of the United States vis a vis the Palestinians. US policy advisers and the White House have no idea that the Palestinians are not ready for democracy. None.

Palestinian leaders know how to deceive others. US policy people are operating under the influence of self deception.

In their dealings with the Palestinians, United States policy makers perceive a reality that meshes with their own objectives ---- an independent Palestinian state. But the facts on the ground clearly show that the groundwork is insufficiently prepared for the Palestinians to function within a democratic society. Much more education and a significantly larger investment of time and energy must be dedicated to help improve the status and the attitude of Palestinians toward decision making and problem solving in a democratic way before any democracy can be imposed.

This self deception will assure failure. It is a mistake of the highest order.

So why can I see this and the White House cannot?

Because they want it so bad. They want a Palestinian state and peace with Israel so much that they are not willing to entertain even the thought of potential pitfalls and shortcomings let alone the reality the rest of the world is seeing so clearly.

That is the mistake that the Clinton Administration made. It is the mistake that Israeli prime ministers and negotiators Ehud Barak and Shimon Peres made.

They were intoxicated by their own dreams. And they duped themselves.

The only way out of this mess is to help the Palestinians recognize and come to grips with the corruption of the past. Help them purge the remnants of that negative leadership. Show them how powerful the voice of democracy can be. Teach the Palestinians of this generation so that they may pass on to future generations the need to respect those who are different. Expose them to the process of debate. Describe why it is so essential to resolve issues through discussions. Explain the power of democracy, and then let them experience the pleasure.

To do otherwise is to treat the Palestinians with as little respect as do their leaders. It is dangerous. The United States must take upon itself the responsibility of impressing the Palestinian masses with the power they inherently have to control the few among them who may be violent. To teach them how the majority has an imperative to squelch the trouble makers, the terrorists and the criminals in their midst.

That is the only way to democracy. It is not simply about voting. To do it wrong, is worse than not doing it at all. Self defeat trumps self deception.