The Ojai Post

The book is an easy read and written in a very casual manner. It begins with a personal history of his experience with the Middle East and how he came to know the region. The language and experience is rich in Christian religious experience and may make some people roll their eyes a bit. An overview of the key players is reviewed followed by the political efforts made by the United States from Reagan through W. It could certainly seem depressing after reading through all the material and history, but Carter is clear in his summary:

Despite these immediate challenges, we must not assume that the future is hopeless. Down through the years I have seen despair and frustration evolve into optimism and progress and, even now, we must not abandon efforts to acheive permanent peace for Israelis and freedom and justice for Palestinians.

Carter provides three clear options:

• A forcible annexation of Palestine and its legal absorption into Israel. Israel would be further isolated and condemned by the international community, with no remaining chance to end hostilities with any appreciable part of the Arab world.
• A system of apartheid, with two peoples occupying the same land but completely separted from each other, with Israelis totally dominant and suppressing violence by depriving Palestinians of their basic human rights. This is the policy now being followed.
• Withdrawel to the 1967 border as specificed in U.N. Resolution 242 and as promised in the Camp David Accords and the Oslo Agreement and prescribed in the Roadmap of the International Quartet. This is the most attractive option and the only one that can ultimately be acceptable as a basis for peace. One version of this choice was spelled out in the Geneva Initiative.

To help us understand the history of the conflict, though many of us have lived through the years of all these efforts, will provide a good overview leading to the current crisis situation in the Middle East. If you are interested in a more detailed history that goes back a few millenium, try reading the new book by Milton Viorst called Storm from the East: The Struggle Between the Arab World and the Christian West, another excellent and easy read.

Though the two titles mentioned above take a more global and political perspective, I am a firm believer in finding peace within oneself in order to help find peace in the world. My teacher has helped to support a program called "Peace Begins with Myself" that was created and coordinated by two members of the Israel Sangha in 2001. A space was created for Israelis and Palestinians to come together in dialogue. The main emotion expressed in this dialogue was fear, but the feedback was all hopeful and positive.

We, Palestinians and Israelis, lived with harmony, love, and compassion. It was very easy to interact positively with each other, we showed much understanding even though our house is burning and been destroyed.

Give peace a chance.