So Obama's Cairo speech was a hit! Of the many straight forward, things he said, he made it clear that America supports the two state solution. The link below is Gershon Baskin in Jpost, writing about the need for Israel to present a viable, constructive peace initiative (Bibi is set to present one on Sunday) what it would look like and how challenges to it can easily be overcome once Israel shows the world it wants peace. I recommend it:

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1244371044149&pagename=JPArticle%2FShowFull

By the way, I am interning for IPCRI in my nonexistent free time. So far its been amazing; I'm learning a lot from just being in the environment and the project I'm working on is challenging. Also, I'm in the middle of an intensive course on Islamic law learning about reasoning methodology and logic of Islamic courts, and Muslim notions of justice in familial and societal relations. From this context it's interesting to ponder what Obama means by universal human rights and responsibilities, specifically women's rights as I learn how similar or divergent these can be between my cultural understanding and the cultural understanding I am slowly grasping through analysis of fatwas.