generalspeaking

Peace and Prosperity

U.S. Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, on a visit to Israel, made a rather unpopular, although not surprising, thoughtful observation: that Israeli culture and value priorities lead to prosperity through innovation and hard work.  And that, conversely, Palestinians, lacking that kind of culture, are not entrepreneurial by nature and as a result do not work hard, and consequently live in poverty.

 If not in poverty, then hugely reliant, through their lax and hapless attitude, on the goodwill and financial support of the international community.

“I thought of having been to Israel the first time and remarking at the extraordinary technology that the Israelis had built in their society,” (he said at the National Press Club in March 2010). “And yet in the Palestinian areas, there was not that same level of technology and innovation. I looked at America versus Mexico. How could there be such a gap between two nations so close to each other? How can Argentina and Chile today even have such dramatically different prospects for their future, despite their proximity?”

Education is more important for Jews than for many other ethnic groups, including the Palestinians.  Hard work leading to prosperity and social advancement has a similar outlook in each culture with their value systems and priorities.  And of course, familial values are hugely reliant on the social culture that surrounds them, the social compact.  Familial values are what inspire the young to succeed through expectations that they will make an effort.


If one takes a neutral approach to the matter and weighs the lack of impetus to education and to hard work and entrepreneurship, and adds to it an abysmal lack of positive leadership, then it seems a society is doomed to failure and will forever be reliant on the hand-outs it inspires out of pity and human concern from others.  In the Arab and Muslim countries of the Middle East, too many are not inspired to make a success of their lives through effort and commitment.


They live under oppressive governments where opportunities to succeed do not exist, and they live in poverty with unemployed young people hardly knowing what to do with themselves.  A young man in protest of this condition for himself, died through an act of self-immolation in Tunisia, setting off a domino effect throughout the Middle East, resulting in revolutions called the Arab Spring, in Tunisia, Libya, Egypt and now raging in Syria.


Saudi Arabia and Qatar followed in Iran's example by militarily putting a stop to their own particular protests.  And in Gaza now, a young man, 21-year-old Ihab Abu Nada, set himself afire in despair over chronic unemployment.  Urged by his father to find a job, even though unemployment in Gaza stands at 20%, and for youth 50%, the lack of hope and a future drives many to despair.  Sufian Nada, the young man's father described his son as "like all the other youth of Gaza".


The family struggles to get by on the father's civil service salary of $220 a month.  The father explained that after he had urged his son once again to find employment: "He told his mother: 'Tell my father I'm going to find work'."  And it was shortly afterward that the young man set himself ablaze beside the morgue at Gaza City's Shifa Hospital, and later died of his injuries.  Most of the population of Gaza rely on UN financial assistance.


Gaza was always a poor enclave, and rife with violence and tribal antipathies.  When Hamas took violent possession of Gaza, the Strip became even poorer, although Hamas itself is not poor, for it imposes taxes and enriches itself from the avails of smuggling.  Because Hamas is pledged to the destruction of the State of Israel, and because never-ending attacks from Gaza into Israel presented an existential threat, Israel was forced to militarily oversee Gaza and more recently to blockade it.


This too is a choice, one the leadership of Gaza, like the leadership of the West Bank saw fit to make; to encourage conflict ('resistance') with Israel rather than submit to the Partition offer that would have garnered them a state and which latterly still remains an obdurate thorn toward a peace agreement.  Palestinians have chosen conflict over settled policy and the search for self-sustaining opportunities for social and political advancement.


They victimize themselves even while they blame Israel for their plight.

Labels: Hamas, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Political Realities Peace  Middle East, Poverty, Prejudices

posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, September 05, 2012