The violation of foundational humanity is at times so shocking that no political rationale can justify it. Yet humanity requires that in the end political solutions must be sought and found.
Thanks, Joe for your thoughtful and nuanced take on this horrendous situation. I’m glad you ended on a hopeful note at a time when despair is an almost unavoidable reaction. My own natural optimism has been failing me.
Joe, as always thank you for all your effort in articulating these challenging issues. After reading your piece and the comments that support the state of Israel and it's right to defend itself I am trying to understand for myself why I always come down on the side of the Palestinians. Am I one of the misguided leftists who is just so tired of the complete oppression of Palestinians all these decades and so frustrated by the inability to formulate a peace process that sticks, that I cannot give myself over to Israel's tactics and defense? That the always disproportionate response from Israel invokes so much anger in me? I love Israel and its people, I was there in "98 for the 50th anniversary and I have family and friends who live there. And since I was in my 40s at the time I had a deep awareness of the occupation and an uncomfortableness knowing I was so close to that oppression. What happened last Saturday is about as horrible in war as things can get. I am sickened by it and I'm sickened by what is happening now. So this is my solution. WE (that is average people going about their lives) have to ask the Vietnameses Buddhists who are descendants of the Vietnam War and were active in that process of reconciliation and the Paris Peace Talks to intervene with the Israelis and Palestinians as neutral arbiters of peace. Something different has to happen because as of today nothing is different than every other incursion and response. Let the Buddhists have a hand at bringing peace to these people. They have to tools and the capacity to do it. Bring in people who have no skin in the game. This is what gives me hope....the idea that there are people who can mediate peace from a completely different perspective. I don't mind being overly idealistic. "Idealism leads to change." If anyone else has any new ideas please share them because whatever we have been doing up until now is not working. And thanks for listening.
Yours is a very creative proposal, Alan. It's the first time I have heard about the introduction of Buddhist mediators. At the moment I fear the war makes it impossible for anyone to get a hearing. Perhaps after the dust has settled a third party can make the introductions. But, as noted, I think the material conditions on the ground need to be right for anyone to gain a hearing.
We live in a time when victims are valorized, perhaps overly-valorized. I have long believed that the occupation is oppressive, cruel and humiliating. I also believe that it is erosive of Israel's moral character. Settlement of the West Bank is a major cause. It has allowed an extreme right-wing settlement movement to grow. It tragically has pulled Israel far to the right and increasingly controls too much of Israeli society. It has infiltrated the army, which is very bad news.But Israel is not solely to blame.
Though proclaimed dead, I think the two-state solution needs to be revived. While Israel is the more powerful actor by far, the Palestinians have been oppressed by their own thoroughly corrupt leadership. They did have chances with Oslo and afterward to have their own state, but always rejected the opportunity.
Though I stridently oppose the occupation, it is true that each time Israel has ceded territory - in Gaza and in Lebanon in 2066, - terrorist groups have moved in, Hezbollah with 100,000 missiles pointed at Israel. I can understand Israeli skepticism about a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza.
The only way I see it working would be for such a state to be demilitarized with American forces stationed there (think Korea).
The only way I see out of the current horror is for the moderate Arab states -Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia -to act as mediators between Israel and Hamas. It is a slender hope. I surmise that this was what Blinken was discussing in his recent visits to Arab leaders. We will have to see. Best wishes.
It is well written but is mostly one-sided. Hamas has undoubtedly started this act of terrorism killing over one thousand Israeli civilians but Israel's response has also killed so far nearly two thousand innocent Palestinians. It must be condemned. Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have been living under horrible conditions for decades. The establishment of several illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank cannot be ignored from where the settlers have attacked nearby villages killing Palestinians. One such attack took place following the Hamas' terrorist attack of last Saturday and killed 5 innocent Palestinians.
Many thanks, Waheed. I concur, as I noted, that the occupation is cruel and needs to end. I have stridently opposed settlement by Israel from the beginning. International pressure needs to be put on Israel to avoid harm to innocent Gazans. Palestinians are not the enemy. I wish the answers were clear and I had them. I don't. I contend that the surrounding Arabs states can have a role in mediating a solution. But it needs to come on fast and strong. I deeply appreciate your interest and look forward to keeping the conversation going. My best wishes to you.
This article represents my views so much better than my efforts. I too am gravely disappointed by my left-wing friends who fall back to shop worn slogans ranting against western imperialism imposing Europeans into the Mideast, unequal power by Israel, and Israeli privilege (a terrible steal from the valid concept of white privilege). As if these slogans justified wanton terrorism. It is as if they would rationalize ISIS or Hitler's depravity because of a bad deal for Germany following WW I. I too hope (even without much expectation) that somehow a brighter future for Palestinians will rise from the ashes of what will undoubtedly happen in Gaza.
Many thanks, Marvin. I detect that we are soul-mates in our despair with elements on the Left. There is much as a progressive emerging from sectors of the Left that I don't recognize. Tropes, cliches and ideologies have come to supersede facts, details and nuance. It reflects an identity politics gone rampant. If you have the time and interest I would like to direct you to "Left Is Not Woke" by philosopher, Susan Neiman. You can find my review of her book in this Substack file. You can also find an interview I did with her on You Tube. She is brilliant, and I believe on target. In a similar vein, I am in the middle of reading "The Identity Trap" by Yasha Mounck, a democracy advocate who has taught at Harvard. He documents that this is a broad phenomenon that has caught on fast, and is politically very destructive. Neiman ends her text noting that the Nazi won power in Germany because the Left was divided against itself.
Many thanks, Abe. Not surprisingly, I have received many responses to this piece. The platform allows for sharing the article, and I would be much appreciative if you could pass it on to those whom you think would be interested. Many thanks.
Thanks for bringing this to my attention. Such was the initial claim by Israeli officials, and which Biden reiterated. It seems that they are now asserting that this particular atrocity has not been substantiated, though the Israelis also asserted that children were burned and certainly murdered. It is part of the fog of war that initial reports are often wrong or proffered for propagandistic purposes. Time will probably provide a more accurate account. If I am proven wrong, I apologize for my mistaken assertion.
Thanks, Joe for your thoughtful and nuanced take on this horrendous situation. I’m glad you ended on a hopeful note at a time when despair is an almost unavoidable reaction. My own natural optimism has been failing me.
Thanks, Ed. My optimism is very guarded and far off. Best wishes.
Let us keep Hope Alive that a move amiable authority will emerge in Gaza
Let us keep Hope alive that more reasonable authority will emerge in Gaza
Joe, as always thank you for all your effort in articulating these challenging issues. After reading your piece and the comments that support the state of Israel and it's right to defend itself I am trying to understand for myself why I always come down on the side of the Palestinians. Am I one of the misguided leftists who is just so tired of the complete oppression of Palestinians all these decades and so frustrated by the inability to formulate a peace process that sticks, that I cannot give myself over to Israel's tactics and defense? That the always disproportionate response from Israel invokes so much anger in me? I love Israel and its people, I was there in "98 for the 50th anniversary and I have family and friends who live there. And since I was in my 40s at the time I had a deep awareness of the occupation and an uncomfortableness knowing I was so close to that oppression. What happened last Saturday is about as horrible in war as things can get. I am sickened by it and I'm sickened by what is happening now. So this is my solution. WE (that is average people going about their lives) have to ask the Vietnameses Buddhists who are descendants of the Vietnam War and were active in that process of reconciliation and the Paris Peace Talks to intervene with the Israelis and Palestinians as neutral arbiters of peace. Something different has to happen because as of today nothing is different than every other incursion and response. Let the Buddhists have a hand at bringing peace to these people. They have to tools and the capacity to do it. Bring in people who have no skin in the game. This is what gives me hope....the idea that there are people who can mediate peace from a completely different perspective. I don't mind being overly idealistic. "Idealism leads to change." If anyone else has any new ideas please share them because whatever we have been doing up until now is not working. And thanks for listening.
Yours is a very creative proposal, Alan. It's the first time I have heard about the introduction of Buddhist mediators. At the moment I fear the war makes it impossible for anyone to get a hearing. Perhaps after the dust has settled a third party can make the introductions. But, as noted, I think the material conditions on the ground need to be right for anyone to gain a hearing.
We live in a time when victims are valorized, perhaps overly-valorized. I have long believed that the occupation is oppressive, cruel and humiliating. I also believe that it is erosive of Israel's moral character. Settlement of the West Bank is a major cause. It has allowed an extreme right-wing settlement movement to grow. It tragically has pulled Israel far to the right and increasingly controls too much of Israeli society. It has infiltrated the army, which is very bad news.But Israel is not solely to blame.
Though proclaimed dead, I think the two-state solution needs to be revived. While Israel is the more powerful actor by far, the Palestinians have been oppressed by their own thoroughly corrupt leadership. They did have chances with Oslo and afterward to have their own state, but always rejected the opportunity.
Though I stridently oppose the occupation, it is true that each time Israel has ceded territory - in Gaza and in Lebanon in 2066, - terrorist groups have moved in, Hezbollah with 100,000 missiles pointed at Israel. I can understand Israeli skepticism about a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza.
The only way I see it working would be for such a state to be demilitarized with American forces stationed there (think Korea).
The only way I see out of the current horror is for the moderate Arab states -Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia -to act as mediators between Israel and Hamas. It is a slender hope. I surmise that this was what Blinken was discussing in his recent visits to Arab leaders. We will have to see. Best wishes.
A thoughtful and reasoned analysis. Let's hope for a good outcome for all.
Many thanks, Jean. I wish I could see a good outcome. I am not sure I will even in my lifetime. Best wishes to you.
It is well written but is mostly one-sided. Hamas has undoubtedly started this act of terrorism killing over one thousand Israeli civilians but Israel's response has also killed so far nearly two thousand innocent Palestinians. It must be condemned. Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have been living under horrible conditions for decades. The establishment of several illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank cannot be ignored from where the settlers have attacked nearby villages killing Palestinians. One such attack took place following the Hamas' terrorist attack of last Saturday and killed 5 innocent Palestinians.
Many thanks, Waheed. I concur, as I noted, that the occupation is cruel and needs to end. I have stridently opposed settlement by Israel from the beginning. International pressure needs to be put on Israel to avoid harm to innocent Gazans. Palestinians are not the enemy. I wish the answers were clear and I had them. I don't. I contend that the surrounding Arabs states can have a role in mediating a solution. But it needs to come on fast and strong. I deeply appreciate your interest and look forward to keeping the conversation going. My best wishes to you.
This article represents my views so much better than my efforts. I too am gravely disappointed by my left-wing friends who fall back to shop worn slogans ranting against western imperialism imposing Europeans into the Mideast, unequal power by Israel, and Israeli privilege (a terrible steal from the valid concept of white privilege). As if these slogans justified wanton terrorism. It is as if they would rationalize ISIS or Hitler's depravity because of a bad deal for Germany following WW I. I too hope (even without much expectation) that somehow a brighter future for Palestinians will rise from the ashes of what will undoubtedly happen in Gaza.
Many thanks, Marvin. I detect that we are soul-mates in our despair with elements on the Left. There is much as a progressive emerging from sectors of the Left that I don't recognize. Tropes, cliches and ideologies have come to supersede facts, details and nuance. It reflects an identity politics gone rampant. If you have the time and interest I would like to direct you to "Left Is Not Woke" by philosopher, Susan Neiman. You can find my review of her book in this Substack file. You can also find an interview I did with her on You Tube. She is brilliant, and I believe on target. In a similar vein, I am in the middle of reading "The Identity Trap" by Yasha Mounck, a democracy advocate who has taught at Harvard. He documents that this is a broad phenomenon that has caught on fast, and is politically very destructive. Neiman ends her text noting that the Nazi won power in Germany because the Left was divided against itself.
Remarkable, Joe. Can you try to get it published more widely?
Many thanks, Abe. Not surprisingly, I have received many responses to this piece. The platform allows for sharing the article, and I would be much appreciative if you could pass it on to those whom you think would be interested. Many thanks.
I will gladly share it., Joe.
The whole world needs to read it?
I had read that the early accounts of decapitated infants was unsubstantiated
Thanks for bringing this to my attention. Such was the initial claim by Israeli officials, and which Biden reiterated. It seems that they are now asserting that this particular atrocity has not been substantiated, though the Israelis also asserted that children were burned and certainly murdered. It is part of the fog of war that initial reports are often wrong or proffered for propagandistic purposes. Time will probably provide a more accurate account. If I am proven wrong, I apologize for my mistaken assertion.