Well, I've been doing history coursework about Yasser Arafat's impact on the Arab-Israeli Conflict, which is interesting, but nevertheless effort. Basically Arafat was an Arab Nationalist responsible for leading the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization) against Israel's ever expanding empire (which is largely so because of the US). On the one hand he wanted peace... But at the same time, he wanted a revolution against Israel... You can probably see why there might be some conflict because of this.
On another note, I'm currently involved in a Strokes cover band entitled The Blokes, we've recording a version of Is This It. This Is It.