Declarations of historical inevitability are typically secured through deadly force

Evidence

As Israel reinvaded Gaza in early July 2006, and was on the verge of intensely hostile action in Lebanon to curtail the activities of Hizbullah, long a needle in Israel’s side, Olmert declared revealingly that “the inevitable historical process of separation between Israelis and Palestinians” cannot be stopped. The declaration of historical inevitability, it is known from long experience, must invariably be ensured by bombs, bullets, and boots on the ground. Ethnoracial separation can only be guaranteed with the alienating engagement of deathly weaponry. — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race, 682

Categorization

• APHORISMS: A ruthless but transferable observation: appeals to inevitable historical processes mask that they must be actively enforced with violence — applicable well beyond Israeli-Palestinian politics.