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Annapolis came and Annapolis went and still people are dying each day in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel too. Qassams are still being fired, missles are still being fired, bullets are still being fired, bombs are still exploding, homes are still being demolished and people are living their lives in quiet desperation or not so quietly. Hamas says no to Peace. Hezbollah says no to Peace. Iran says no to Peace. The National Religious Party says no to Peace. The Yesha Council says no to Peace. Likud says no to Peace. But Prime Minister Olmert and President Mamoud Abbas say yes to Peace. And in the final inning of the second term of the Bush Administration, Secretary of State Rice moved every one she could to the table so they could join together in one voice and say that it is time for Peace. It’s easy to throw a monkey wrench and begin anew the blood bath that has killed thousands. It’s easy to say that Gaza is one big prison and that almost a million and a half prisoners are suffering great privations each day. Its easy to say that the occupation of the West Bank, its 500 plus check points, road blocks, closures, the wall and military policing represent a brutal form of collective punishment that makes terror inevitable. It’s easy to say that having retreated from Lebanon, disengaged from Gaza, and relinquished control of large areas of the West Bank to the PLO has only emboldened extremists. For me, everything is easy because I sit in a warm home thousands of miles away from the fighting here in America. But I believe in Peace. Not because it is easy, but because it is so very necessary. I believe that the leadership on both sides has long known the contours of that Peace. I believe that even as President Abbas and Prime Minister Olmert struggle to market the concept to their seriously cynical respective publics, it’s far past time to begin building bridges across the wall that separates the two peoples. Work has to begin in earnest on the ground with the economic development projects promoted by Tony Blair and Shimon Peres and Salam Fayad. Work has to begin in earnest in the schools with help from the EU and the UN to teach Israeli and Palestinian children alike that Peace is not only possible, but that it is desirable. Work has to begin in earnest between the Arab League and Israel to build diplomatic and functional relationships. If we do not establish a culture of Peace it is too easy to see the roadblocks, to point at the killings and to allow fundamentalism to defeat every effort to create a better future. There are too many weapons to allow another Israeli/Palestinian War of attrition. Feed the people of Gaza. Break the back of the terror that kills young and old, mothers and fathers and children on both sides of the Green line. The money exists to move the vast majority of West Bank settlers comfortably to villages, towns and cities within Israel. The money exists to move refugees to new homes in the West Bank and provide compensation for the millions who don’t return. Today Israelis and Palestinians each reside in Jerusalem no matter what you call it. There is room to allow both sides to share the land and the water and to learn to live together in Peace. It will not be easy. But it will be better than the alternative. Shalom-Salaam-Peace.
Larry Snider
