The mainstream media would have us believe that the barometer of success in Gaza is dependent on how many Qassam rockets are fired into southern Israel. After 1,300 Palestinians were killed in twenty-two days, a tenuous ceasefire took effect. Yet, a number of political analysts assert that even many in the progressive media have gone silent on Palestinian human rights.

This week, the Israeli defense establishment promised more "pinpoint strikes" in Gaza (reminiscent of "targeted assassinations" that have killed hundreds of Palestinian civilians). While President Obama appointed George Mitchell as Middle East envoy and gave Arab news outlet Al Arabiya his first interview, his policy positions have been vague at best. But is it too soon to be asking for the President's Middle East blueprint?

Last Monday, Katrina vanden Heuvel, the editor and publisher of the Nation, Mark Green, the President of Air America Radio and the author of Change for America: A Progressive Blueprint for the 44^th President, Andrea Batista Schlesinger, the Executive Director of the Drum Major Institute, and Ali Abunimah, the co-founder of the Electronic Intifada and the author of One Country: A Bold Proposal to End the Israeli-Palestinian Impasse discussed Obama's first week in office and engaged in a lively debate on the issue of Palestine.