Sometimes one person can change the tide. A single life. A single story. A single face. Someone to whom we can relate, someone who we can imagine as a friend. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish may now, to his own horror, fit the profile of one who can help change the course of the violence in some small measure in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Dr. Abuelaish is an unusual man, a Palestinian doctor who reports for Israeli television. Though he lives in Gaza, he was educated in Israel, speaks Hebrew, and works in an Israeli hospital. Dr. Abuelaish has been giving Israelis daily reports on the military campaign in Gaza, and he is a man who works for peace, who builds bridges between worlds. This past Friday, he witnessed three of his daughters and a niece killed by Israeli bombs (and another daughter seriously wounded). His first panicked moments of terror were broadcast live on Israeli television.
WATCH a three minute video of this television segment.
As we all know, there is often little compassion between warring people, little willingness to recognize the humanity in one another. After all, how would it be possible to kill others if we didn't see them as less human than us? How would Palestinians find justification for launching rockets into Jewish civilian neighborhoods? How do Jews justify bombing Palestinian civilian homes in their search for their enemy?
But ironically, Dr. Abuelaish is the face of a friend to Israelis. That very simple fact is what has the power to make a difference, to crack open hearts so that enemies begin to see one another as human, as suffering, as wanting the same things for themselves and their families.
So what if we apply this to our own wars? What if we knew the faces and the stories and the pain of hundreds of thousands of grieving Iraqis as well as we are coming to know the faces of the passengers on U.S. Air Flight 1549 (the plane that landed in the Hudson River)? What if, just as we saw ourselves in the cracking composure of the father who could return home to kiss his five year old daughter after surviving a plane crash, we could see ourselves in each relationship and family that is lost and torn and broken by war? How would "our" Iraq war be different? How would we be different?
And what if we step back and apply this to the way we war with one another figuratively? How differently would we treat people who we hate from a distance if we could see ourselves in them, and if we could actually see the shared pain we all carry within?
So this story is not simply about Israelis and Palestinians; it's about all of us.
WATCH another video that includes reactions from Dr. Abuelaish's Jewish colleagues.
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The pain that Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is feeling right now must be unbearable. To witness the death of someone close to you is enough to break the spirit of anyone, even someone as influential as Dr. Abuelaish. To witness how broken he was over the death of his daughter and niece is absolutely heartbreaking. If only his enemies who had caused this pain could see it they might be regretful of their terrible actions. This war between Gaza and Israel has taken the lives of many people. This killing of Dr. Abuelaish's family is certainly not the first, but imagine his emotion displayed on the faces of all the grieving families who have lost their sons and daughters. Though they are anonymous faces, their grievance is no less painful. Why does it take the witnessing a popular person's heartbreak to feel the same feeling within ourselves? To realize, “holy crap, this is real, people are hurting everywhere, now let's do something about it!” Why don't we care more when people die during war? How did we become so desensitized to death? This is what has happened to the enemies as well. They could care less who they kill or how many people they've effected by doing so. I wonder, if they were to see the face of true grief and mourning, would they feel differently? Would they have the heart to put themselves in the others' shoes? Being the monsters that they are to start a war in the first place, I do not think that it would make a difference to them. The monsters of war seem to have to heart at all. They have the nerve to kill a mother and child point-blank. They have the guts to strap a bomb to their chest and rush into a crowded area, taking their own lives for the sake of killing their “enemies;” innocent people with no direct relation to the war they are fighting. What is the use of killing innocent people? Soldiers in Iraq face death on a daily basis. Families of Americans are torn from the loss of a loved one all of the time. Hopes are held high in many households that their brother, son, or husband will come back safely. I believe that the tragedies of the Iraq war are not shown as often so many of us may forget it's even happening. We focus on a foreign war when one is happening with men from our own country. Regardless, I do not understand how people have the nerve to support war at all. Hopefully, someday the wars of the world will come to an end, once we all really understand that the value of a human is not just held within one person, but within all the lives they have touched and when you kill that one person, you are also killing all of their loved ones. Perhaps it will take something as drastic as the death of someone close to a leader of war to have them realize what they are really doing.
Wars are entirely political. The citizens of the U.S. have little to no say about the wars our government gets into. George Bush’s approval rating reached new lows largely because of the dissatisfaction citizens had with the war, coupled with a struggling economy. The decision to declare war is left to Congress. Personally, I would like to believe our government always has the best interests of the citizens of our country at heart, but I can not fully believe that. As I sit here now, watching Miss USA, I come to realize what really matters to U.S. citizens. More people are interested in watching the Miss USA pageant than in the country we are at war with. If asked to point out on a map which country Iraq is, it would be tragic how few people could successfully do this. When there are more votes cast for American Idol than there are for the President of the United States of America, there is a problem in our country that is fundamentally problematic in our society. This is not something that can be changed easily. There are no easy solutions. So the question posed about war, civilian casualties, and the lack of American sympathy towards the war’s victims is easily answered. America is a country of apathetic and ignorant people. It is incredibly surprising to me the amount of people that do not know we are truly at war. “Oh the Iraq thing with Osama. That’s not a war…is it?” The media does not help this cause either. To continue fighting the war successfully, one side has to be painted as evil. It must be black and white, there is no other way. If the humanistic side of our enemies is shown, than repeated attacks against them begin to be questioned. So instead, our enemies are viewed collectively as the evil Middle East. There is no such thing as children, women, or civilians. Instead, every enemy of the state is a terrorist, Arab insurgent that provides real danger to us. I am a strong believer that U.S. media is biased. To what degree can be easily argued, but many people who have spent time in other countries can vouch to the biased reporting of American media. Rarely are there stories of victims on the other side, only our soldiers violently taken down. The true nature of the war is largely unknown to most of us. While the media can be partly to blame, too many people just have no interest in the war. However, if we find we are at war with ourselves, the problem hits home harder. Citizens of Iraqi descent must constantly worry about their families or friends that are in danger every day. Imagine if a war was being fought where your parents, grandparents, cousins, any family lives. War is a complicated issue, one that most citizens do not understand. I don’t think the feeling of apathy will ever go away, but it all starts with education. The more we eliminate ignorance in people’s minds, the more people will begin to see how wrong the U.S. can be at times. That said, we live in the greatest country in the world, a leader of the free world. We all have responsibility, as citizens of the world, to do what is right and moral.
Straight from the man him self, my main man Edwin Starr, “War HUH, GOOD GOD YALL what is it good for!?” My brothers and sisters do you also read this and think to yourself how messed up this is? I want to talk about this in a serious manner but unfortunately that is not going to happen. Let me speak by stories of stuff I can better relate too. Ok, got it.
Personally, I am a strong believer that Pokémon is way better than Digimon. Being at least a fifty time Pokémon Master, because I caught all 151 Pokémon on Blue version and beat the Elite Four numerous times, I grew a strong relationship with my friends, a.k.a. Pokémon. Now this relationship caused us to prevail through thick and thin. I would always keep potions with me and especially antidotes. Every once in a while I’d let them have a rare candy because we were just that good of friends. It started with just Squirtle and I going through the Viridian Forest. We were slamming down Caterpies like it wasn’t a thing. And let me tell you this. If a Metapod tried to raise up, I would bubble beam him straight to his maker. This went on and on until I became a Pokémon Master. I would never let the Pokémon that I had relationships with die in battle though. Now you’re probably starting to see how my journey reminds me of our nation’s troubles.
Here’s another thought. If we were friends with our enemies, we probably wouldn’t have wars. While writing that, I kind of thought to myself, “Duh... What kinds of friends kill each other?” Bad friends. Bad friends kill each other. Good friends love each other and make it to the Pokémon League and live happy lives. They might even catch a Legendary bird Pokémon along the way. That, my good friends, would be sweet. So if we were friends with our enemies then it would be so much better. Iraq would be all like, “Oh American buddies, do not worry about all the trouble you caused.” And America could answer something like, “Yeah, guys. All that drama we caused. Totally uncalled for. My bad.” Then we would compromise like friends. (This is like when I evolved Evee into Flareon so he could still be cute, even though I wanted Jolteon so he could electrically blast some non-friend Pokémon into oblivion!)
I can now safely say this. I feel like friends would in fact, NOT kill each other. Yes. There would be a change in the way conflicts are handled. Now we just need to come up with some jokes to tell our enemies so that we can bond and become friends. Then we just have to worry about Iraq sleeping with America’s girlfriend and vice versa. Other then that, I think everything would be peachy.
Although the world is filled with people of different “races” and ethnicities, all in all, people have the same desires for themselves, their families and friends. We all want safety and security. We want to matter and to be important to someone and loved by those what matter to us. So then why is our history and the present world covered with bloodshed and war? Power. Power can be anything from land to money to control, but it’s always the same.
The Israelis and Palestinians are fighting a losing war. It will continuously circle and cause only more pain and suffering for both parties. “Our” war with Iraq has caused so much suffering in the world. Americans and Iraqis alike are losing so many lives. Families are being killed, innocent children and their parents, and for what? It seems hard to believe the pain and suffering that so many families endure due to these wars.
So many innocent people get killed, even the loved ones of people who take steps every day to work towards peace like Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish. He is living in a nightmare right now, having recently losing his wife and now three of his daughters and a niece dying in Israeli attacks. Although this is a true tragedy in every possible way, perhaps this will open people’s eyes to the unnecessary harm that is caused every day. Civilians who are just trying to carry on with their lives get bombed and massacred. He has touched and saved so many Israeli lives, even though he lives in Gaza. Then for Israelis to target his house and kill his family seems barbaric and horrific. Actions like this happen frequently between the Palestinians and Israelis as well as every other warring country in the world.
These wars for power need to stop. They do not accomplish anything positive. Thousands of innocent lives are taken almost every day because of these wars for power. Even if civilian life becomes safe again, the soldiers of these countries still have families that are affected by the war. My grandfather fought in World War II as a driver in Germany. He said that occasionally he would have to shoot people from the truck in order to get where they needed to go and it was procedure then to get the wallet/identification of the deceased soldier. He said that was the worst part of the War for him, having to collect the identity of a man that he did not know and flip through his wallet only to see pictures of his loved ones and family. All he could think about was his family back home in New York and how it could have been the other way around. Although he continued to serve our country through the rest of the War, he said that he was never the same after he returned home.
If all people felt as my grandfather did and were affected by stories such as that of Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, then perhaps we could find an alternative to war. Maybe there could be a future without killing people over power and the world could finally be at peace and countries would prosper and millions of innocent lives could be saved.
The loss of a family member, a friend, or even an acquaintance is one of the most difficult parts of living your life. You have to learn to face the day without seeing, talking, or hearing that person ever again. Therefore, it would be one of the most horrifying things to have to watch three of your own daughters be taken by a war that you are working your very best to attempt to end. Dr. Abuelaish and many others who have lost their loved ones as a consequence of fighting are the ones who really and truly know what this pain feels like. However, everyone who has not had to face this sort of tragedy knows the immense feeling of loss and sadness that comes with death. Humans all have feelings of sympathy and passion towards others, whether they choose to show them or not. When it comes to war and fighting, most of the time, those passionate feelings towards others go out the window and feelings of anger and judgment prevail.
When the United States began to fight the war on terrorism, many Americans were very much for it. They were so angry and hurt by the attacks on September 11th that they were more than willing to get out there and accomplish pay back for what the terrorists had done to our country, and our citizens. In this case, and in many others like it, country’s leaders and citizens are quick to act on their first instinct. They want to deal with these issues head on and do not take the time to realize what difficulties may lie ahead. All of the emotions that they have built up, paired with little time to think makes them completely blind to the fact that they may be hurting innocent human being as a result of their approach.
Therefore, countries, leaders, and individuals need to begin to take the time to think before making a decision. No matter the enormity of the decision, everything deserves a second look. People need to think and weight the options, instead of talking and acting more. They need put their emotions aside for one moment, and truly consider what others around them may be feeling. Maybe if we take that extra time for careful examination, we can find a better solution for the problem, no matter what it is. On the other hand, if a country does choose to begin war, this extra time to think everything out will give them more of an opportunity to seek out what they are truly trying to accomplish, while attempting to avoid at all possible the injury of innocent bystanders. We all just need to stop and think for a minute. Take a deep breath, and figure out the best way to handle things before blindly jumping into the problem.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish must be feeling a whole lot of pain right now to witness the death of his 3 daughters and a niece.
I feel like people and countries go to war because they feel a need to defend. They feel a need to protect their countries. It has to do with politics. I do not think people go to countries go to war because they feel like one country is inferior to another. I do not think they see the opposing group as less than human. I do think the only justification they go to war with one another is because of their differences in views. One country/radical group wants to do something completely different from another.
I believe the two opposing sides are so caught up in their own worlds and minds that they do not care to think about a lot of similarities they all possess. It is easy to see the differences, but hard to see the similarities. I think the reason for each side not being able to see the similarities is because they are so caught up with what is wrong with the other side. They only want to see these differences so they can justify being at war with one another. People like to see negatives before positives and if this was the other way around, there would not be any wars or violence. I guess it is just human nature to see negatives before positives.
If opposing sides did slow down to think about the similarities, I do not think there will be any war. If people understood that even though they have different views from one another, they still have family and because they care greatly about, then there would be second thoughts about hurting one another. People do not realize the gravity of witnessing a loved one being killed until it happens to them. If people would stop and think before they hurt someone, “What if this was my wife or daughter,” there will be a world of difference. A lot of people do not think before they act. I have to admit that I am guilty of acting before I think and once again, it is human nature. People get so caught up in the heat of the moment that is it hard to think about how you would feel if it was the other way around.
The idea of viewing similarities as opposed to differences and putting yourself in another’s shoes will cease a lot of fire and wars between each country but it is a lot easier said than done. The idea is just the beginning to change and if this idea was applied to more people, then changes will start to be seen.
It is really an eye opener to see that someone who is striving for peace is now going through such immense pain. The war has gotten so out of hand and it’s crazy that we can go day to day and not think twice about the grief of people like Dr. Abuelaish and his family. To think that this is only one very unfortunate event that has taken place out of so many that we will never even know about makes the reality of it even harder to accept. It's almost as if we are blind to what is happening because we are fortunate enough to live in a country that is good at ignoring the world around us, if you want to call that fortunate. Everyday someone speaks up about taking a stand and ending the war or doing something to help, but every second wasted is another lost life. At the same time it's hard to really do anything to stop the terror. People try every day to take a stand but in the end we can't make the decision and that really makes it just that much more unbearable. My dad is currently serving his third year in Iraq as a captain of his troop. He is in charge of the lives of so many people and each day I think about him and his safety. He is just as vulnerable as any of the civilians who live there. I want as much as everyone else to end the war and the pain and suffering of others. I think Obama has good intentions of pulling out the troops, but it scares me that he is trying to do it so soon. If everyone just leaves think of all the chaos that would continue, the lives that would be lost, the families to be torn apart like the doctors. There is a time to leave, but this extremely unfortunate event just shows that we are not ready. It would only continue and get worse because the people over there fighting to help control the disorder would be gone. All that hard work for years now would be lost. It's really hard to take a position on the war being a daughter of a captain. I want it to end and I want him to come home, but I feel like there is more that needs to be done. How much more misery do people really have to withstand? It’s so sad that everyone causing all of this pain can’t realize what they are doing to the people around them, and in this case, the people that really seem to care the most. I wonder what else has to happen before someone responsible for the agony sees what the war has come to. It’s a really scary world over there, and we are lucky to not be in the position of those who are literally living in hell, but so much more still needs to be done to stop more lives from being lost.
The story of Dr. Izzeldin is a devastating one, but war is inevitable and the fact is it wasn’t a war against Dr. Izzeldin. It may be cynical to say so, when his family was broken because of the actions of others but that is what war is, messy, and those that are not intended to get hurt, due. But the real thought provoking question that comes to mind from this entry is not the discussion of war but compassion for others. How is it that we cannot relate to others we fight in wars with? The answer is that we chose not to have compassion for them by keeping them at a distance. We do this so we are not plagued with guilt. Take the news and the government for instance they have a lot of power as to what we see from the Iraq War. We hear about devastating stories like the one above but rarely see pictures and video, which have more effect on an audience. Who wants to feel bad about themselves and country while sitting at the dinner table on a Sunday night? Media plays off of the consciences of its audience So for one, we don’t see the graphic and most violent aspects of the war and chose to believe they don’t exist even if they do. But on the flip side we are also desensitized to images and stories of violence and this may be because the media makes these events so distant to us. Because these events are not happening on our soil and happening to those we know we can truly not relate. We see them as “those people.” This is something that is hard to combat though, because we see ourselves as in the right and others as in the wrong. So when wars start we see this affecting “the bad people” not the innocent that get caught in this fire like the family of Dr. Izzeldin. But what we have to remember is that this is how the other side views it as well. When our innocent citizens get hurt we blame it on the entire country instead of a select few that chose to act the way they did. Until both sides realize this, nothing will be understand. We all have families, sisters, brothers, dads, mothers, and children and until we can see we are one and the same despite out cultural differences things wont be resolved. We are threatened by each other because of an extreme select of individuals, we feel the need to guard and protect those that we know. But isn’t that natural? The fact is things would be extremely different if we could relate to Iraqis because we knew them. But we don’t we have no connection and loyalty to them.
No matter where we live, what color our skin is, or what language we speak people all around the world have things in common. We all strive for happiness and success, we want to be loved by others, and we try to make our loved ones proud. Even though people all around the world have so much in common, our differences are what we allow to separate us from each other. You can look back into history as far as you want, but unfortunately it has always been this way. People seeking power and control have been tearing apart civilizations for centuries, but maybe if these people had been aware of how similar the people they fighting were to themselves, our history could have been different.
When people are off fighting wars they look at the people on the opposing sides as people putting our nation and loved ones at stake, not like someone that is trying to make their father proud or protecting their country just like they are doing. Maybe a situation like Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s has the potential to open up the eyes of people at war. Maybe the Israeli soldiers will look at Dr. Abuelaish and realize that those children could have been their own daughters and niece. Dr. Abuelaish, even though he was from Gaza, was an important part of the Israeli community and saved many lives, some even Israeli soldiers. How could Israeli soldiers target his house when he had been doing so many positive things for their community?
For Dr. Abuelaish to be from Gaza and have the courage and inspiration to help people from a land that had killed his wife and innocent citizens shows what an amazing person he is. He witnessed civilian bombings and the destruction of the towns around him on a normal basis, but still had hope, even after losing his wife. Maybe Dr. Abuelaish can use his unique position as a Gaza citizen, but also an important part of the Israeli community, as leverage to help the people of these countries come to the realization of what is really important and how unnecessary this war is. Innocent civilians are dying everyday that this war over power goes on and maybe Dr. Abuelaish can help it come to an end.
If people could look at each other and realize all the things they have in common and relate to each other rather than dwell on the differences amongst them, the world we live in today would be a very different place. It would probably be a more compassionate and safer place where people were welcoming and more accepting. This is a place that I can possibly exist someday.
After reading the blog and many of the blog responses, I found myself intrigued by many of the creative interpretations of the videos and to the blog posted by Professor Richards. Personally, this assignment made me wonder why such global peacemakers are the ones that seem to be targeted. If no one spoke up and tried to make peace within a conflict and ignored the situation at hand, would the problem intensify or slowly diminish? I know it seems to be a radical thought, but it is one worth considering. Such influential leaders in history have been ridiculed and in many cases killed for their peaceful attempts at ending war, conflicts, and hatred amongst races, religions, etc. If we continually ignore these radical attempts of violence, maybe, just maybe, some of the perpetrators would not find success in their violence.
When Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish had to suffer the deaths of his daughters and niece, he was optimistic in hoping that the death of his family members would be the last straw to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I was taken back when he made this comment. After the loss of a family member, friend, or loved one, I do not understand how he could remain optimistic and hopeful for the conflict’s conclusion. I think that this truly shows his goals to live and lead a peaceful life for his children and for the world. His perseverance and hope through these hard times are truly inspiring.
On a more personal level, I know how hard it is to lose a loved one, but it has been said that no pain is greater than at the time when you have to bury your child. In Dr. Abuelaish’s case, he had to bury three of his children, including a niece. I cannot fathom the sorrow he must be enduring, especially in regards to his peaceful attempts to solve a conflict that has been escalating. Also on a greater scale, this situation concerns me for the safety and direction of our peace efforts. How differently would the events have unraveled in the Middle East, if we had not been involved? For better or worse, the decision was made and many of our men and women’s lives were lost to create peace in the world today. These influential leaders, including the men and women of the military services across the world, are the true heroes. It is hard to say that there will ever be world peace, but violence is certainly not the answer. But if we are the ones constantly repeating these words, why do we ultimately resolve to violence? Peace efforts can be made in a multitude of ways, including the actions presented by Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish. I believe a smile can go a long way. It is not going to solve race conflict, war, or any form of hate, but it is a step in the right direction. Acceptance is key. We are all human and it is a great place to start respecting what we have in common. Respect for human society should be recognized more in the media and spread across the world. Hopefully one day we will all learn from these terrible acts and recognize that we are all the same with a different makeup.
Reading this blog, my heart really went out to Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish. I felt terrible that he lost three daughters and a niece. I cannot even imagine going through the pain he must be feeling. It’s also a terrible thing that he was friends with those that caused him pain. Unfortunately this is just something that happens when a person lives in a war zone. I think that it’s a terrible thing that innocent civilians must lose their lives, but its reality. For our own war, how do we know that our soldiers aren’t thinking that every day? How do we know that they don’t imagine what the other side is going through and how they are feeling? But what they do know is that those soldiers and civilians trying to kill off our troops are doing so without hesitation. War is a terrible thing, but it’s necessary. I know that is a harsh thing to say, but the world is not perfect. We will never all get along. There will always be fighting. When we figure out our current issues, new ones will appear. I believe that it would be perfect if we could all get along, if we could look at the world in each other’s shoes, if we could understand each other, but people don’t work that way. People take advantage of each other. They use each other. That’s just how it is and how it’s always been and history proves it. We saw it with the killings of Christians, with Hitler and WWII, with those who killed thousands on 9/11, and with Saddam Hussein. I agree that we, as the United States, can better ourselves and set an example for others. That is why it is our duty to rid the world of those people. We must better this world by ridding it of those suppressing others. Do you think that Hussein looked at his people and thought of what they might have been thinking? Do you think that he wondered how the women felt when his men raped and tortured them? I believe that is one reason why we are trying to pick up the pieces in Iraq. Why, if we started a war there, would we leave those people in a mess? We must set the example by being honorable enough to fix things. I agree that life would be so much more wonderful without the war at all, if we could all just get along. But again, that will never happen and so we can only handle things the best we can. There will always be innocent lives lost, but in order to save as many innocent lives as we can, we must do our best to fight back if that is in our capabilities.
Upon reading this blog, I immediately began to hear the song “New Beginning” by Tracy Chapman play in my mind. The song tells of a broken world that isn’t world fixing, with too much pain and suffering, and to little understanding. In order for this to be remedied, Chapman explains that “we need to make new symbols/Make new signs/Make a new language/With these we'll define the world,” and I couldn’t agree more. There is too much fighting, and there is too little understanding. So what do we do? We must learn to see one another as the brothers and sisters that we are for any of this to change. In order to do this, however, we need to find wholeness within ourselves.
In the constant struggle for “success” and in the pursuit of fitting the particular mold laid out for us, we hardly have the opportunity to take a moment to feel. We think all day long, and look where it has gotten us. We think about the things we “need,” our daily schedules, and who knows what else. The point is, is that we are preoccupied with things that need not preoccupy us as much as they do. We need to separate from our broken-record like internal monologues and take a look outside of us. In doing this, we will be capable of seeing our connectivity and oneness. Just as we are maiming one another, we are maiming our environment. And it’s all for the same reason. We just can’t see the connection. The symbols we put into the box of what “we” are doesn’t match the symbol for what “they” are. So it seems that the only logical solution is to fight so that the “we” prevails over the “them.”
This all reminds me of a story I coincidentally looked up just yesterday. The story is called “The Sneetches,” and it’s be Dr. Seuss. In this story, there are many Sneetches that live on the beach. Some of the Sneetches have stars on their bellies, while others do not. Because of this, the star-bellied Sneetches felt it appropriate to form an elite and exclusive group, leaving the plain-bellied Sneetches out. Then one day, a man from far away comes and provides the plain-bellied Sneetches with stars (for a price, of course). The star-bellied Sneetches were furious, and decided that they would “de-star” themselves (again, the man took money), so that they would remain the elite Sneetches. All day, the machines were buzzing. The Sneetches changed back and forth so many times that no one could tell which Sneetches were which anymore. The symbol that separated them was removed, and they became one.
Clearly this is a made up story, but it has a point. If we lost the flags, the nationalism, the “us” and “them” ideology, then the fighting would surely decrease. Who wants to harm someone on their team, anyway?
Although war is a terrible thing for countries involved but the whole world in its entirety. Though I am not an advocate of war, I sometimes think it’s is justifiable (Not a supporter of the Iraq or Vietnam War just to add my 2 cents). Families and individuals are affected sometimes negatively and sometimes positively, but this is just a natural cause of war. After viewing the short clip in the blog entry by Professor Richards I have empathy for the man; he not only lost a family but a piece of himself. This may sound ugly, but through war someone has to take some pain and loss; it’s just the way life is. The man in the video is hurting and I do feel bad, but I’m thankful that I’m not in the situation. I just happen to be in the position of living in one of the greatest civilizations of all time, 21st century America. This is all it really boils down to, survival of the fittest; although it may not seem apparent, a lot of American principle has been based on this pure statement. Would you rather have other countries attacking us, killing some of our American families and destroying our homes that we have devoted the better of half of our lives to? It’s honestly just not fair but someone has to take the brunt of the violence. All I can really say on the subject is that I wish war didn’t have to happen, but when it does ( and there is a very real possibility that disputes will be solved this way) I pray to god that me our me or my country is not the victim.
War should be a last option for resolving political disputes, and if the option is enacted there should be clear and concise evidence for the decision, but sometimes there isn’t. Going back to the survival of the fittest theory, self-motivated actions are sometimes a clear influence on whether or not certain decisions are made. Though this is sometimes wrong, these decisions are made through clear and rational thought. Once again, this could be hard to swallow for some people, but this is the way it’s always and been and always will be. You’re fighting for last life boat of the sinking ship, and there is only one spot left on the last boat. Suppose me and you are on the last two on the ship (remember once again there is only one spot left), what would reaction be? Would you just sit aside and let the other person take that spot while you sink and drown? Well I can answer that question for you; no you are going to do whatever it takes to get on that boat, even if it means using violence. Think about it what makes your life any better than mine, why should I save yours and throw mine away? It’s cruel, its mean, but its HUMANITY. Tragedies of war are simply just an effect human’s natural animal instinct.
War is a terrible thing for countries involved but the whole world in its entirety. Though I am not an advocate of war, I sometimes think it’s is justifiable (Not a supporter of the Iraq or Vietnam War just to add my 2 cents). Families and individuals are affected sometimes negatively and sometimes positively, but this is just a natural cause of war. After viewing the short clip in the blog entry by Professor Richards I have empathy for the man; he not only lost a family but a piece of himself. This may sound ugly, but through war someone has to take some pain and loss; it’s just the way life is. The man in the video is hurting and I do feel bad, but I’m thankful that I’m not in the situation. I just happen to be in the position of living in one of the greatest civilizations of all time, 21st century America. This is all it really boils down to, survival of the fittest; although it may not seem apparent, a lot of American principle has been based on this pure statement. Would you rather have other countries attacking us, killing some of our American families and destroying our homes that we have devoted the better of half of our lives to? It’s honestly just not fair but someone has to take the brunt of the violence. All I can really say on the subject is that I wish war didn’t have to happen, but when it does ( and there is a very real possibility that disputes will be solved this way) I pray to god that me our me or my country is not the victim.
War should be a last option for resolving political disputes, and if the option is enacted there should be clear and concise evidence for the decision, but sometimes there isn’t. Going back to the survival of the fittest theory, self-motivated actions are sometimes a clear influence on whether or not certain decisions are made. Though this is sometimes wrong, these decisions are made through clear and rational thought. Once again, this could be hard to swallow for some people, but this is the way it’s always and been and always will be. You’re fighting for last life boat of the sinking ship, and there is only one spot left on the last boat. Suppose me and you are on the last two on the ship (remember once again there is only one spot left), what would reaction be? Would you just sit aside and let the other person take that spot while you sink and drown? Well I can answer that question for you; no you are going to do whatever it takes to get on that boat, even if it means using violence. Think about it what makes your life any better than mine, why should I save yours and throw mine away? It’s cruel, its mean, but its HUMANITY. Tragedies of war are simply just an effect human’s natural animal instinct.
Losing family members is never easy, no matter where you are from. Whether you are from America, Israel, Iraq, Palestine or anywhere else in the world, loving and losing will always hurt. The problem with war is that it is hard for many people to see things in a perspective other than their own. For a few, the American perspective is that people from the Iraq and Afghanistan are a bunch of blood-thirsty radicals. Some believe that all Iraqis and Afghanis hate Americans and that they are all part of a plot to attack our homeland and kill our troops. However, many know that this is not the truth. It seems as if their view on us is probably the same as our view towards them. I have no desire to hate every Middle Eastern person that I meet. I don't think that the Iraqi civilians have much much of a say in the matter. I believe that there are a few radicals in the Iraq that caused a problem, but that the general population is not looking to cause America's downfall. The same can be said for Americans. Most people I know are against the war in Iraq. Most believe that it should be ended. I don't think the majority of Americans are rooting for the deaths of as many Iraqi citizens as possible. Just a select few; the radicals.
When I think of the people who I know who have been killed in the attacks on September 11th and all the news stories of people who were killed in Iraq, it hurts me to think of the pain and sorrow that the families of these people have felt. I live thirty minutes from New York city, and many of my family and friends work in Manhattan. My aunt Aurora was on the 92nd floor of the second World Trade Center building when the first building was attacked. Luckily, she was able to escape the tower just as the building that she was in was hit by a plane. When I heard about the attack all that I could do was worry that she was in danger, my worst fear was that she was dead. This event put so much sorrow and fear into my heart, and I couldn't help but hold contempt for the people who did this to so many people that I care about. I did lose many friends to this event, and I still feel sorrow about what happened.
To put myself in the shoes of those Iraqi citizens who lose loved ones to Americans each and every day is very easy for me because I have felt this sorrow and I can imagine that their feelings are exactly parallel to mine. I can only imagine that they are feeling sadness and fear, but also contempt for the people who did this to them. It is only natural. This is not to say that they want to join a group of radicals and kill as many Americans as possible. I have lost to this war as well and my intention is not to cause more war, but simply to hope for a timely end to this mess. I bet many Iraqis feels this way as well. If we had the capacity to think of all the hurt we could prevent but putting ourselves in others shoes, war wouldn't be an issue. The ethic recognized globally has always been, “Do not do anything to others that you would not want done to yourself.” If it were only that simple.
Losing family members is never easy, no matter where you are from. Whether you are from America, Israel, Iraq, Palestine or anywhere else in the world, loving and losing will always hurt. The problem with war is that it is hard for many people to see things in a perspective other than their own. For a few, the American perspective is that people from the Iraq and Afghanistan are a bunch of blood-thirsty radicals. Some believe that all Iraqis and Afghanis hate Americans and that they are all part of a plot to attack our homeland and kill our troops. However, many know that this is not the truth. It seems as if their view on us is probably the same as our view towards them. I have no desire to hate every Middle Eastern person that I meet. I don't think that the Iraqi civilians have much much of a say in the matter. I believe that there are a few radicals in the Iraq that caused a problem, but that the general population is not looking to cause America's downfall. The same can be said for Americans. Most people I know are against the war in Iraq. Most believe that it should be ended. I don't think the majority of Americans are rooting for the deaths of as many Iraqi citizens as possible. Just a select few; the radicals.
When I think of the people who I know who have been killed in the attacks on September 11th and all the news stories of people who were killed in Iraq, it hurts me to think of the pain and sorrow that the families of these people have felt. I live thirty minutes from New York city, and many of my family and friends work in Manhattan. My aunt Aurora was on the 92nd floor of the second World Trade Center building when the first building was attacked. Luckily, she was able to escape the tower just as the building that she was in was hit by a plane. When I heard about the attack all that I could do was worry that she was in danger, my worst fear was that she was dead. This event put so much sorrow and fear into my heart, and I couldn't help but hold contempt for the people who did this to so many people that I care about. I did lose many friends to this event, and I still feel sorrow about what happened.
To put myself in the shoes of those Iraqi citizens who lose loved ones to Americans each and every day is very easy for me because I have felt this sorrow and I can imagine that their feelings are exactly parallel to mine. I can only imagine that they are feeling sadness and fear, but also contempt for the people who did this to them. It is only natural. This is not to say that they want to join a group of radicals and kill as many Americans as possible. I have lost to this war as well and my intention is not to cause more war, but simply to hope for a timely end to this mess. I bet many Iraqis feels this way as well. If we had the capacity to think of all the hurt we could prevent but putting ourselves in others shoes, war wouldn't be an issue. The ethic recognized globally has always been, “Do not do anything to others that you would not want done to yourself.” If it were only that simple.
War is inevitable and has been inevitable in every society since the beginning of time. Wars have been going on forever and there is nothing anyone could do to completely stop them. In all war people die, including the innocent. The death of the innocent is the worst part, especially if it is the death of a loved one or an acquaintance. However, families who are involved in wars need to understand that people will die, and there is a large possibility that one of the causalities will be someone that you know.
I feel greatly for Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish and all of the pain he has to go through. He not only had to deal with the death of one person he knew, but three of his own daughters died. On top of that he had to witness the death of his niece as well. I cannot even imagine losing one loved one, as so much to losing three at the same one.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is a branch between Israel and Palestine on the war in the Middle East. He is a Palestinian doctor but he works in Israeli hospitals. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is loved by both people of Israel and by the people of Palestine. Both sides are grieving for Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish and his family member that he has lost.
Unfortunately for Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish he has almost no control over the situation. War is solely a political process. No matter what the people think, say, or do they have little to no control on whether the country they are from goes to war or not. It is solely at discretion of the elected officials to decide the countries major decisions.
The war in the Middle East has been going on for hundreds of years. The fighting has picked up ever since Israel officially became a county, less than a hundred years ago. Palestine wants the land that they rightfully believe is theirs back. The fighting between them is just going around in circles with hardly anything ever being accomplished. The same thing is occurring in Iraq with the American troops trying to take control there. Progress is being made very slowly, if any progress at all. Hundreds of innocent people are being killed every single day. Even entire families are being wiped out. It is a shame that all of these people are dying, and for what? Iraq’s problems really aren’t being solved. Israel and Palestine’s problems really aren’t being solved. Why are so many people supporting these wars if nothing is being accomplished? Is it really worth it that we are there and still nothing is being done to help the situation. I feel both the war in Iraq and Israel need to be stopped. Both wars have to many people dying and it is just not worth it.
I feel that in today’s world there are too many wars being fought over the wrong things. They are being fought over money, oil and land, which will always be superficial material things. What this doctor is going through, in losing his family, is due to a war that he so strongly fought to end in peace. I could not even comprehend the amount of pain and frustration that he is experiencing in this great loss.
After viewing the news clips of what he has had to say on the matter and how he still hopes for peace throughout this experience is amazing. He said that he just hopes this is the last thing they do and that they will leave his family alone. I feel that it is so upsetting for it to take this man’s loss to make viewers voice their concerns and ideas on the ongoing war. The way society views war I feel in this world is as a disjointed political debate, but the reality of it is that hundreds of people are dying every day due to this pointless decision. Unless it hits close to home and the destruction and loss of lives affects you personally, war almost appears to be a fairy tale story that doesn’t exist.
I have friends and family that are fighting over seas in Afghanistan and I very strongly believe that war should never be an option. It is murder and destruction of lives of people that have not done anything wrong. When war effects a population to the point where one of the sides has won then it is because of the amount of killing and destruction that the winning team has been able to deliver. I believe that there is no true winner in a war and they will never end in a victory because there is always a great loss in lives on both sides of the battle field. If this can be evident anywhere, but even more so today it can be shown in the pain and hurt that Dr. Abuelaish is going thought.
The world is made up of so many different kinds of people. By engaging in war, lives of people who could have had the most interesting way of thinking will lose their lives. I feel that in getting to know people and who they are would make war less prominent. The world would function at a higher level if the brutality of war would disappear and instead of shooting missiles and bombs at each other communication would be this interaction between fighting nations. The lives of countless innocent individuals would not be lost and solutions that do not end in bitter bloodshed would make for a more peaceful place to live. Instead of tearing down civilian neighborhoods they would be built up and a better way of life would be discovered. Until this happens there will still be losses of lives and terrible stories on CNN that make viewers want to cry.
As a student of journalism I know that readers react much differently to death overseas to death here. Reports are allowed to be more descriptive and more vulgar of overseas suffering. How many times do newspapers show us images of dead Iraqis? But pain that affects a more immediate area is treated with more compassion and concern. Editors are more aware that they may show a neighbor, a sibling, a mother or some other relative to their audience when a disaster hits closer to home.
The compassion seen in the first video is not very evident until you understand what the broadcaster is saying. The second video has the interpretations of the reporter. The moved reporter is only “choked up” because he knows Dr. Abuelaish. This story might not have been as big of a deal if the reporter had not been personally involved in the attack. Because the extra tie is there that adds interest to viewers, this story became national news. People already knew about the war, and I am sure there were other fathers who lost their daughters, but this story has a unique approach and draws more sympathy.
If we could treat everyone like we loved them as if they were our neighbor, I highly doubt we would have any war at all. We war because of differences, and if everyone understood each other’s differences, there would be no reason to fight. This would bring world peace. Unfortunately, there are not enough open minds in rulers of the nations.
The truth is that we do have more compassion for disasters that strike America personally. Proximity is a main element of newsworthiness. A local disaster around State College may be more important than a plane crash in California on any given day, simply because local disasters will impact more people than disasters farther away. This is why the second video is very graphic. That video was intended for Americans, as provided by the New York Times.
I would not say that people do not sympathize with others who are affected by disasters abroad, but there is certainly a reason to be more hardened to them. We can’t all be shaken by every little incident that occurs everywhere in the world; society would never be able to survive. People have to understand the importance of a disaster before you can react with grief or sympathy.
Dr. Abuelaish does draw out sympathy. International recognition and sympathy is going to this conflict. Based on stories like this, no one blames either Israel or Palestine. There is no single side to blame. As the doctor says, he wants this to be the last strike and for peace to soothe the troubled countries. Even if peace were possible between these two countries, it would not mean united peace throughout the world.
This is a very interesting blog entry, especially to expose the human sympathy and compassion as to what has happened. My first thoughts were about how sorry I am for Dr. Abuelaish, and the pain and suffering he will have to go through for the rest of his life. Sadly to say, most of the United States public has no idea what it would be like to lose several close family members all at once, especially due to a wartime conflict. I can understand the sympathy that would be given from the “Western” culture, but I really do not feel as though our culture truly understands or sympathizes near enough as we should. I think until it actually happens to you, you will not be able to fully understand the situation that one person is going through.
I would also like to point out that I will totally agree with Alexandra Robinson’s entry. She wrote that Americans tend to show more sympathy for things that occur in our own country. I certainly have a lot of compassion within me, but take these examples into consideration: when the tsunami hit Southeast Asia, how did you truly feel? To me, it was sad, but nothing extremely important or sad. When the earthquakes hit China, how did you feel? To me, it was sad to see all the destruction and death, but I know I will probably forget about the event in five years time. How did you feel on September 11, 2001? I was in sixth grade, and for me, I will NEVER forget the moment that I found out what happened. Heck, I didn’t know how to make out with a girl yet, but I knew that the events happening were wrong, and I felt horrible for the victims of the attack. The same also happened when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. To conclude about Alexandra’s comments, I would have to say that even I tend to mourn and sympathize more for the events that occur within the United States, and less for things that happen in other countries around the world. But I often wonder why that is? Do you think that people in the United States care less for whatever else happens in the world? I mean, when 9/11 occurred, we had so many countries and people mourning with us, but it seems that we do nothing in return when bad things occur in foreign countries. Are Americans just uncompassionate?
However, I do believe American have some sympathy for the events in Israel and Palestine, because many innocent lives are being taken. I think John Lennon helps the world into a great segue. He says “Imagine all the people, living life in peace.” We can imagine, now we need to accomplish it.
It is impossible to hear about this tragic incident in the life of this peace-loving Palestinian man and not apply it to the seemingly endless war that our country is currently engaged in with Iraq. So often in the American media is the Iraqi “enemy” painted as being nothing more than a heartless, misguided people. With images of men like Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden flashing across our television screens and emblazoned on the front pages of our newspapers, how can we not begin to view these people as non-human? The answer, it seems, can be found in stories like this.
Regardless of the color of our skin, the religion of our people, or the customs of our country, the one thing that remains constant and universal are the emotions felt by people throughout the world. While I do not believe we should completely disregard the fact that evil people do exist, both in and outside of the United States, the majority of the people in the world are not cruel, selfish people with whom we have nothing in common, but rather good, caring people such as ourselves, separated more from us by physical barriers than differences in hopes and desires.
I will admit that at times I too have let the negative images portrayed by the American media sway my way of thinking. However, it is the stories of people like Dr. Abuelaish that force me back to reality. I cannot even begin to imagine the incredible pain I would feel if I were to suddenly have four of the most important people in my world taken from me. Even more outrageously, taken from me for no personal reason. In the face of tragedy, we are forced to open our eyes. To take a step back from the barbaric custom of war and remind ourselves that these are not just mannequins or crash dummies we are firing at, but people with beautiful and intricate life stories. How much sooner would wars come to an end if we stopped to realize what was at stake? Better yet, how many wars would be prevented altogether?
Dr. Abuelaish’s loss is without a doubt a terrible tragedy. But perhaps this will also be a wakeup call. Perhaps his story will force people to ask themselves at what price they are willing to stop this war. When will it be their turn to lose a family member? When will the loss of a man from Iraq resonate in the hearts of the American people and open our nation’s eyes to a suffering that knows no skin color or nationality? It is unfortunate that it sometimes takes heartbreak to make true progress, but in the case of war it is evidently not uncommon.
There is no doubt that the pain that Dr. Abuelaish is experiencing right now is unlike any other but just because his personal pain was publicized doesn’t mean that he’s the only one experiencing it. Not only in this war but in wars throughout history there have been millions of victims just like Dr. Abuelaish, and that’s not to take away from his pain but I think that it’s a fact that many who are not directly involved in the war realize. While stories like Dr. Abulaish’s are heartbreaking to hear, what is more troubling to me is how easily a country make the decision to go to war knowing full well that there are far more civilians killed than combatants. After listening to U.S. marines describe their experiences in combat in Iraq and how soldiers, U.S., Iraqi’s, Palestinians, and Israeli’s alike, are trained to partake in this civilian deaths without an ounce of regret, in the moment that is. That is not to say that they don’t in hindsight, or maybe they really don’t, there is no way for me to tell; however, as Laurie said, how could they justify what they are doing without seeing the victim as ‘sub-human’ in some way. The point is these civilians deaths occur in worlds all over the world every day, and as a result, there are millions of Dr. Abuelaishs out there right now. Having the opportunity to watch videos such as this one from the outside definitely does open the eyes of the viewer sitting at home in the comfort and warmth of their own home, causing an overwhelming surge of compassion. Do the people responsible for such an attack and who are close to Dr. Abuelaish and others just like him feel the same compassion? One would hope so, but war, unfortunately, does not allow for much emotion in the heat of combat. Now again, I may be completely wrong, but I must admit that this is what I have been brought to believe after listening to personal stories of those who have been in combat and have witnessed attacks just like that first-hand.
As much as I want this war and wars all over the world to cease, unfortunately, I don’t’ see an end in sight. There are multiple factors that lead a country to go to war, completely overlooking all of the civilian casualties that occur all coming back to power. Why is there this need for power? This need to dominate over another? To make sure that “we” are safe and that “we” have what we need to survive. The answer is simple: fear. Fear of losing one’s place in the world, fear of not being provided for, fear of dying. Until, not only the leaders of the world, but the people of the world as a whole, come to realize that all that they need to survive is within them, wars will wage until the end of time.
What if we did see the faces of those killed by the hands of our American soldiers?
I imagine that some would feel horrible and want peace, others may make an excuse and say, “well they bombed us first,” some may not give a shit in the world because they are not American, one of us. It’s hard to see someone not react to Dr. Abuelaish’s suffering. He is human; we all know what pain feels and some of us know what it feels like to lose someone so close to us.
It would be amazing if we can all live in harmony and live as humans and not countries divided by lines…we created. It reminds me of the John Lennon song, imagine. Imagine if all the things he said were to exist. I believe that war is the most cowardly way to solve a problem. Having your opponent dead is easier than actually working with them and coming up with a solution. This may be very naïve of me but I’m not the only one that thinks like this. Dr. Abuelaish dedicated his life, his teachings, and his beliefs to peace. Someone that truly had faith in mankind. Hopefully Israelis can see this and take a second look at who they are killing…hopefully we can take a second look at who we are killing. If we were to see people for people and not enemies…foreigners…we would actually save the lives of many. These people dying could’ve made a difference in today’s world if given the chance; lives that could’ve been doctors, engineers, mothers, friends…lives that could’ve lived.
We would probably work together as a planet as oppose to destroying each other.
When we sit back and look at what we want, we all have similar goals in life. We all want to have a career, have a family, friends; we all want to be happy. It’s hard to see us ever live in harmony…it would be ideal. But there are too many people in the world that do not look at their neighbors as humans, but instead look at them as a gender, race, religion, an inferior individual. If we as Americans, individuals living in the land of the free, have a hard time co existing with people of different cultures…it would take a miracle for us to look at those in another country in the same level as us. People need to get over themselves. You are not the only person in this planet, your religion isn’t the only “right” one, and the color of your skin is due to melatonin not because you’re superior. The sooner we live with the facts and see the amount of beauty this world has, the sooner we can take a step forward and live as one.
The first thing that comes to mind after reading this post is empathy. Our actions as a nation lack empathy for other countries…Iraq. Dr. Abuelaish has empathy for others who have been faced with the travesties of war. Rich people lack empathy for poor people. I myself lack empathy for my room mate, who I tend to talk smack on rather regularly, and she isn’t even in the country this semester.
So what would a world with lots of empathy be like? While skimming the comments on this post, one student pointed out that if we were all friends, there wouldn’t be any war. This is a valid point, in theory. We must not forget that friends fight and have disagreements. Though these disagreements may not be grounds to wage a war, it’s hard to envision a world where we are all friends. Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist, who I like to think of as a peace activist. One of his most interesting pieces, at least to me, is his 14 Mindfulness Trainings. In one of my past communications classes, I was challenged to envision what the United States would be like if we practiced #4 – Awareness of Suffering. What if we were aware of how others suffered? Certainly we would empathize with the impoverished, the hungry, and the war stricken people of the world. This practice also invites us to transform the suffering of others into joy. We would be a compassionate, caring nation. This idea can be applied to anything – empathizing with Hurricane Katrina victims, Virginia Tech students, Israelis. It’s quite an idea, don’t you think?
I find it very interesting what Barack Obama is attempting to do with Gaza, the Hamas and the Muslims in the Middle East. He is trying to make amends and fix hard feelings. It really is a great step toward peace, and what has the United States got to lose? Our relationship with the Middle East sucks, so Obama’s attempts to fix it could be a great thing. It could be the best thing ever – perhaps less terroristic attacks and threats. Obama certainly has empathy toward Muslims, but some may argue it’s because his father is Muslim. Whatever the reason, I like to believe that Obama is great at empathizing with other people, and wants peace not only during his presidency, but also for the future of the United States.
I think if we could all empathize more, we could be happier. In fact, I know this is true. When I get mad at my room mate for not cleaning her side of the sink, I just think about how busy she is and I can see where she’s coming from. But, it all starts with one person – yourself. If I vow to empathize, and spread the idea to my friends and family, hopefully they will consider adopting this way of life. It could be a domino effect, and spread like an epidemic.
It is beyond horrid to read this blog and realize that someone as influential as Dr. Abuelaish, who is striving for peace, has to go through such a traumatizing event. Losing a loved one is definitely one of the most unbearable events an individual has to overcome throughout the course of their lifetime. You are faced with the reality of never seeing, talking, or having any sort of acquaintance with that person again. To have to go through the deaths of three daughters and a niece, let alone witness it, just proves that the morals of this world are truly unethical. Although Dr. Abuelaish’s pain was publicized, this does not mean that he is the only one experiencing this grief. Think back to when you lost a loved one—how many other people were also crushed by losing the exact same person? It also appalls me that Dr. Abuelaish still had optimism left inside of him when he claimed that he hoped this would be the last straw to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This blog causes me to once again face reality and realize that there is still a war going on over in Iraq. Unfortunately, I do not think of the Iraq War everyday and realize that although they are our “enemies,” we are also killing innocent people who mean a great deal to someone else, as are they as well. As citizens, we are embedded with the image that they are our enemies and we must keep them at a distance. We fail to realize that they have something in common with us—this war and the emotional and physical effects it is placing on society. My heart goes out to soldiers and their families who everyday are faced with both the fear of losing a loved one or companion, and also the reality of losing them as well. There have been so many other leaders throughout history who have also strived for things such as world peace and equality, whose lives have been ended because of this positive trait they are carrying around with them. The media plays an influential part in the portrayal of this war. It fails to show us the most violent and graphic instances of the war, causing us to believe that these instances do not exist. By publicizing these events, Americans will be affected more and hopefully help fight for an end to this nightmare as well. During his campaign, President Barack Obama promised to end the Iraq war and remove all troops within eighteen months. We can only hope that Obama fulfills this promise and returns all our loved ones home to us safe and sound. It is hard to believe that an end to this war is in sight, but Obama promised change and this would perhaps be the most important change amongst us.
Lacey Carney
Section #13
It is horrible what happened to Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish. No parent should ever have to bury a child, let alone three in one day. However, there is more to the conflict than a single person and a single family. And if one group of people does what this blog entry is asking them to do and takes a step back and looks at their enemies as their brothers, they will be at the mercy of the other group unless that group does the same.
Compromise is almost impossible. There will always be someone or some group that will be unhappy. These unhappy people will almost always rebel, and nothing will ever be settled. It is horrible that a man who was working so hard for peace had to have such a tragedy happen to him. But how he reacts will be the real message. If he continues to work for peace in Israel, he will surely make changes. But if he becomes bitter then his earlier work will be useless.
Personally I understand the Israeli-Palestinian situation. I understand it much better than America’s situation with Iraq. And personally I am on the side of Israel, but as are many other Americans I am not doing anything about it.
It could be because personally I hate war. I do not want to be a part of a war whether in my own country or in another. While I love the country I am from, I do not know if I would be willing to die in the line of duty, in another country, for her. I don’t think I could shoot another human being unless it was in self defense. And I tend to trust pretty much everyone despite race and ethnicity. Even if I disagree with a group of people on their believes or the way they conduct their lives, I’ve never seen another group as less human.
I’m sure my family is partly to blame for my lack of commitment to fighting for my country. When the U.S. Army called my older brother shortly after he turned 18 to recruit him, my brother politely turned the man down. When the officer asked why he did not want to join, my brother responded, because I’m lazy and I’m a pussy. The officer had nothing to say and hung up the phone. While pussy may not be the best way to describe my brother, it showed his unwillingness to fight others.
I agree with statements in entries above my own that says that Americans are ignorant and I could surely be one of them. But I wish we could all just get along. Additionally, I agree with another above statement that wars are political. But as much as we can dream, our world will never be a utopia.
I have always been completely anti-war under all circumstances. I have never been able to understand how people could ever just hate entire groups, races, religions, even nations of people. It makes absolutely no sense to me. Things like that have always and undoubtedly will always blow my mind.
My ex-boyfriend joined the Navy after he graduated from high school. We are still friends and when he is not at sea we talk on the phone every once in a while. He is overseas now, and a few weeks before he left we had a long phone conversation that I will always remember. He was talking about how he was going to “kill all those motherfuckers” and saying extremely derogatory things about Iraqi people. At one point, he even used the term “towel heads.” I wanted to start crying. I thought to myself, oh my God, I don’t even know him anymore. I hated the things that he was saying and felt as if he was almost brainwashed to believe the things that were coming out of his mouth.
I think that even though it is awful that soldiers are often so desensitized to the people who they are trained to kill, it is simultaneously almost necessary. I mean, how many people would really be able to go out and massacre a bunch of people if they thought about the fact that those people were actually human beings with lives and families? Then again, there are some people who have no qualms about killing innocent children who clearly have done nothing to make them deserve to be put into violent and terrifying situations. I wonder what those people could possibly be thinking. How do they justify killing children? And furthermore, how do they justify killing anyone who is not in a military uniform? How do they bomb countries haphazardly, not even really caring what the bombs hit as long as they create some destruction?
Dr. Abuelaish probably has some extra grief simply because he wants so much to create peace. Watching the CNN news clip, it was amazing to me to see him, a Palestinian man, hugging an Israeli soldier and just generally being a well-liked and highly respected member of Israeli society. The video on The New York Times website was especially heart-wrenching because there were actually clips of Abuelaish crying in the hospital where a surviving daughter and niece were being treated for their wounds.
It is extremely hard to even imagine the pain and sadness that Dr. Abuelaish must feel right now. I cannot even fathom witnessing any of my family members dying, let alone being brutally killed. Moreover, it would be even more difficult for Dr. Abuelaish as a parent. Children are supposed to outlive their parents, not the other way around. This story is tragic on many different levels.
I feel that if we applied these same concepts to the war in Iraq it would be a completely different type of fight. It’s much harder to kill a man when u no his story when u his life when u no he has children that are at home waiting for him. I feel that it might also b harder for the Iraq’s to commit the mass murders that they do with suicide boomers. If that person could just realize and truly know the amount of devastation he was going to do and the number of lives that would be destroyed as a result of this act he just might not do it. Just as the pilot on that American fighter jet might be less inclined to drop that boom on a small town in Iraqi if he knew the type of harm it would truly do not only 2 his enemy but their families. Honestly if we could see all these things then there would probably be no wars in this world, but unfortunately war is a necessary evil. When population grow and expand they need land so that their own people can grow and survive so in many cases war is emendable if they don’t want their own people to die out. So as a result people go to war and the strong conquer the week so that their population can survive. It is just a part of life, and we try to justify what we do by make others seem inferior or barbaric so that we can carry out theses necessary acts. Such as using things like religion such as call mass atrocities and killings a holy war. Telling people that our religion is correct and their s is not so they deserve to die. Or for Americans we are liberating their people from their horrible government. W itch really means we are going to go into someone else country destroy their way of life take what we need and force them to convert to the American way of life, and those that refuses to convert to ours ways are destroyed. It is very unfortunate they people can’t see just how similar we all really are we all deal with the same problems and struggles in life. Just as that young American boy who’s just been drafted may not understand what he’s fighting for, there is some young Iraqi boy on the other side that doesn’t really understand what a religious war is or why he’s fighting in it. However this is something that will always be a figurative dream there will never be a world where everyone resects and excepts each other because man will always have the drive to be soupier to another man.
I think everyone can relate to Dr. Abuelaish in some way or another. Most of us, I believe, have lost someone we love. Whether it’s a family member, a friend, or even just a friend of a friend, we have all felt that pain. It’s evident in how many people come together when a life is lost because that one person has made an impact on so many lives, probably without even knowing it. To lose three daughters and a niece to an Israeli attack is horrible for Dr. Abuelaish especially considering he has devoted much of his life to ease the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And even after their deaths, Dr. Abuelaish continued to remain positive and hope that this was what it would take to end the conflict - that his suffering in some way would stop the fighting.
However, I’m not sure I really believe that if everyone could witness such suffering, we’d end all conflicts we had with our enemies. Maybe I think this because most of us are pretty naïve when it comes to knowing about the war. I wouldn’t put the entire blame on us not wanting to know though - the media definitely fails to portray the war as it really is. We never see suffering. We never see the families of the people that are killed. We never see the pain in their eyes. We do however, on occasion, see the families of our own men and women who have died. But that only makes us more willing to continue to fight a war. Because we don’t want our own men and women to die. But if the people dying are not from our country, and if we are the ones doing the killing, we turn our eyes from it.
We are able to do this because we never have to feel close to the people we are fighting. We do not consider them people. They are truly enemies in the minds of those who are fighting. It would take too much for us to see them as people. I can be shown the suffering of the people we are fighting and feel compassion and wonder why it is we are killing them. But I can’t stop anyone. One person cannot accomplish anything. Dr. Abuelaish tried and seemed to be somewhat successful until recently. It just goes to show that a single peace-maker can put everything he has into solving the conflict and only make a slight step forward. We would need to force everyone to feel compassion and to see the suffering of our enemies as the suffering of humans for anything to change. Not only would everyone on our side need to see and feel this, but the people we fight with would need to feel the same way. The other side would need to see our suffering and want to stop as well. Otherwise, if we stopped alone, we’d be the peaceful, compassionate country who everyone would walk all over.
I believe that this blog leaves more for discussion than people are noticing. You asked, "How differently would we treat people who we hate from a distance if we could see ourselves in them, and if we could actually see the shared pain we all carry within?" And the honest answer is we don't know how we would treat them differently because most people don't take the time to think about other people in a new light. You have judgemental people, sterotypical people, and people who just don't give a damn about anyone else. And that's unfortunate. If you were to ask anyone who knows me, what they thought of me, more often then not, you would be told that I'm funny, outgoing, FRIENDLY, and always smiling. I light up their days and I make them smile. And that is my goal. Life is too short to be unhappy. However, the people that would say that about me, don't know what I've been through. They don't know that in the past 7-years I've lost 12 people in my life, starting at just 13-years old. They don't know that I've been working to support myself since I was able and that I'm struggling day in and day out just to make it. That's the point. No matter what race, religion, age, ethnicity, etc. someone is, we are a judgemental society. We learn what is acceptable and what isn't, and if someone doesn't meet that criteria at first glance, they never will. Most people don't bother to take the time to get to know others. And people that we eventually develope negative feelings for, most of the time we don't know them or their past. And I believe that is key. I hated growing up being judged. It's the worst feeling in the world. But we all do it. If we all just took the time to say "Hi" to someone we ordinarily wouldn't, someone we'd consider not to our standards, we could make a difference, even if just for a moment. You never know if that one person was planning to go home and end it all, because they felt inadequate and as if they didn't matter, or that they were alone. You saying "Hi" to them might just change their life, and bring a smile to their face. To often we assume that we are worse off, or the exact opposite, too good for those around us. However, most of the time, we couldn't be more wrong. So I guess my point is, if we took the time to actually get to know people and give them a chance, and listen, we'd realize that it doesn't matter what someone looks like, how much money they make, or what they wear, we really are all a lot a like, striving for the same things in life; acceptance, happiness and respect. And honestly, isn't that all that really matters? What's life if you're not happy!
I think it is truly incredible what Dr. Abuelaish is attempting to do to aid the conflict occurring between Israel and Palestine. It takes a great deal of not only sympathy but also empathy to put oneself into the shoes of another, especially those of such an opposite as Israel is to Palestine. Perhaps these feelings emerge from his close connection and knowledge of both cultures, (i.e. the fact that he has been educated in Israel, is fluent in Hebrew, and works in an Israel hospital). Nonetheless, it is truly incredible that he is able to take such polarized views and toss them aside as if they are nothing in an effort to pacify the conflict. At the sight of seeing one’s daughters and niece murdered, most people would immediately feel revengeful toward those responsible. Yet Dr. Abuelaish seems to remain undeterred, focused on his mission to create some sort of peace among the warring nations.
Why then is it, that most people are unable to have a similar mindset, relating to foreigners not as enemies, but as brothers and sisters of the human race? Perhaps it stems from a lack of education; people tend to view life in the eyes of those around them. Whether it be parents, peers, school groups, religious sectors, or a number of other communities, most people formulate their opinions based on the general consensus around them. The Iraq War is a great example of this. Now it is commonly scrutinized, with almost one hundred percent of the blame being placed on former President George W. Bush. What hypocritical behavior! When the war was initially proposed, it was passed through Congress and most of the public were in favor of it. I think people should learn to become more self actualized and formulate their own ideas and opinions rather than taking those of the majority.
This is what is so profound about Dr. Abuelaish. He sets aside the common Palestinian views of the Israelis, and goes by what he feels is right. Perhaps Americans are unable to feel similarly about the situation in Iraq because they are simply too uneducated and too conformist to truly understand anything about it. Due to a biased media, we are unable to receive accurate information on the conflict and the people involved. Since the majority of us have never visited the country and met those with whom we are at war, we are unable to relate to them. Perhaps CNN and other liberal news programs should stop looking at the conflict so negatively and rather give us an accurate portrayal of both the war and the characters involved so that we may feel more involved. I think that if we all took the time to learn about the culture and attitudes of Iraqi’s, perhaps we could get together and implement a more effective solution that would limit costs both in money and in body counts.
Hearing stories like these really makes you think about the world we live in and what kind of people live among us. Anyone who hears this story or a story similar to it should feel for the people effect. However, unfortunately a lot of people feel a little bit of their sadness or want the world to change, but the next day go ahead and continue living their daily lives. Many people go through life free from the pain that Dr. Abuelaish has felt. It may sound pessimistic or unfaithful in the human race but it will take a lot for any huge changes.
Contrary to what I have just said this story did affect the people of Dr. Abuelaish’s country. It did bring about change and hopefully opened up a few individual’s eyes to see the reality of the violence taking place all over the world. These stories need to be shared and people need to connect with other people on an emotional level even if they are thousands of miles away or are their enemies. Putting ourselves in other people’s situation should hopefully make us want to change things about our world or be more appreciative of how we live. Once the majority of people apply this theory there should not be any wars.
There are many people who believe violence is the answer and those people who believe in that will be hard to change. I do not know if a story similar to Dr. Abuelaish’s will change those types of people. So those who are moved by those stories must put in an effort to reach out to people of violence in any way they can. It cannot happen overnight but it shows a lot of hope when you see that Dr. Abuelaish’s story has changed many people of his country to express their condolences when that is not something of their social norms.
In the United States we support our troops overseas and when we hear their stories it causes most people to feel their pain or the pain of their families that have lost someone overseas. The support from a distance is there but for only our side of the war. Maybe if we thought the soldiers on the other side we could relate them to our men and woman. They are essentially doing the same thing and that is putting their lives on the line for their country. If people saw themselves in their enemies, I believe the idea of enemies would not exist between them. People would treat each other with respect and be there to help, even if it is from a far distance. All the pain would be shared and each party would try to prevent that pain from happening again.
The act of war is not one of sympathy, consideration or understanding of the opposing side. It is a political action where people remove themselves emotionally and impartially complete a task. For some, it is out of anger or hatred that they take the steps towards combat and for others it is just their compliance to a higher power.
The particular battle between the Palestinians and Israelis is irrational and unreasonable. The long lasting disgust the two parties have in regards for one other is both distasteful and disgraceful. Perhaps it is their lack of understanding of one another’s culture and civilization that brings about the war. It is clear that neither community has a sense of compassion for the other.
Unfortunately, I do not believe that Dr. Abuelaish’s family tragedy will change circumstances for Israel or Palestine. The hatred that exists will not disappear or calm because of this unintended misfortune. On one hand, this may even bring about more drive for revenge.
In general, education and positive relationships between individuals of different race and ethnicity undeniably promotes peace rather than war. When people accept, or better yet, understand another’s culture and traditions different than their own, they can more easily relate and understand the reasons for their behaviors. This helps generate healthy relationships. And once this is established, people would not be so quick to harm the brothers and sisters of their friend’s ethnicity. When you turn those differences into similarities, there is less motivation to harm.
It is saddening to think that innocent Dr. Abuelaish is suffering to such an extent. His kind and generous deeds only brought him unwarranted circumstances. The beings that strive for peace and try to remove themselves from conflict, in some cases find themselves as more of a target. The citizens living in both countries live their lives in fear and danger. The possibility that an unjustified explosion may happen on their school bus or to their neighbors forever remains an unavoidable, nasty thought in their heads. So many people have lost their loved ones over the best decade and throughout this war. I cannot even begin to imagine what it would take to end the suffering. It is so obvious that this is a losing war; in whatever light it is examined. Why, after all this time we cannot seem to reach a point of peace or understanding between the two countries, is a real mystery to me.
Although I do not feel directly affected by the Iraqi war, it still saddens me to think that there do exist a plethora of stories that could just as well be advertised on the news…but that would mean getting rid of commercials and never turning off your television to hear them for the next 10 years.
Sometimes things go on around the world, in our own country, and even in our own state that don’t really affect us. You see it on the news, read about it in the newspaper, or hear about it from someone your talking to, and for that minute you feel the compassion, the horror, or the joy that the story brings to you, but for many people as soon as you turn off the TV, or put away the newspaper, or say goodbye to the person you’re talking to that feeling goes away. Unless we’re affected personally most of us don’t even think about the things that completely devastate others. I live in New York, and thank God I don’t know anyone that was hurt or killed in the September 11th attacks, so for weeks I grieved with my country, worried about what was going to happen next, and felt horrible for anyone who was killed, and for the families that were torn apart, but after a few months the memory and thoughts drifted into the back of my mind. It didn’t hit me how much it effects people still to this day until I was babysitting one day. It was my first time watching her and it went smoothly, I helped her with her homework, made her dinner, gave her a bath, and went upstairs to tuck her in. I could hear her talking as I approached the door and figured she was playing a little before she went to bed, but as I opened the door I could hear her more clearly, she was praying. I could hear her asking God to bless her family and protect her daddy, I stood in silence. Then she started talking to her dad, she said that she missed him and she giggled a little as she told him she got an A on her spelling test. I let her finish before I went in, I tucked her in under her blankets and as I turned off the lights she said “night Michelle” I smiled, and as I pulled the door closed I heard her say “night daddy, I love you” and that’s when it hit me. For girls like her September 11th wasn’t just something that happened 8 years ago and it was over, it was something that changed every day for the rest of her life. And now the more stories I read about the war, the more I think about that little girl, and the lives that are affected every single day by wars going on all around the world.
Millions of people in our world today are living their lives with no idea of the bloodshed and deaths that are happening right now. I have to admit I do not have much knowledge of this myself. I am concerned about getting my college diploma and finding a job, I do not see any bombs exploding houses in my backyard therefore I feel like it does not concern me one bit. Hearing the story of Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish sure has given me a large insight to the pain and suffering I think so little about. This man has reported the wars he has seen and devoted his life to promoting peace. Watching the videos I can see he is a very well liked and well known figure putting positive thoughts in the minds of suffering middle easterners. What does he get in return? He got to witness the death of his three daughters as a result of everything he has been fighting against. Seeing his anguish was unbearable. If that is not heartbreaking enough to make you want to become more educated on these horrible affairs and become a peacemaker yourself then I don't know what does. Yes there is little compassion between warring people and the feeling of others inhuman, but maybe if more stories like Abuelaish's made daily headlines the world would see war as destroying many innocent humans. It is intriguing to think about war from an opposing side. For example, what if you were an Iraqi right now overseas watching Americans walk around with guns looking for anyone to make a wrong move and BAM an explosion erupts with the high possibility that your innocent child was playing ball right next to the man just shot resulting in half his face blown to pieces. Not a great thought, upsetting actually. This is the insight the world needs to see. The media should work on this, really trying to get the world to take a step back and think less about enemies and more about the innocent. These wars are all about power, but who wants to live under a man with power that could have been responsible for killing your very own family. These people who want power from war even claim it is for the safety of their country and their people. They certainly are not worried about their safety in the process of this now are they? They are setting bombs on either their own land or another which will then surely result in returning bombs. Oh yea that is some real safety for one's country, bombs flying around. So when we think about war, we need to think about the innocent, for they are the real victims. Put yourself in their place, nothing comes from war but pain and suffering, NEVER peace.
Considering I was for Bush’s presidency, I agreed with our war and position in Iraq. Although, I knew we had many soldiers, people of our country, in danger, I still felt that it was a good idea. I definitely felt thankful for the Americans that were willing to put their lives on the line for the pride of our country. However, I never truly, in actuality, thought about the pain that it could not only cause that person, but also their loved ones. And, not only does that go for the Americans, but also the families all across the world. Yes, we may be fighting for different sides, but in reality, we are all the same. We are all humans. We almost get so caught up in this war, that we forget to truly think about what is happening. If we truly thought about what was happening, then we wouldn’t let it happen. We are killing people everyday, and in that, we are killing their families, and we don’t really even think about it.
I was guilty of being naïve and insensitive about this war. I do think that it may have been the best choice for our country because of what was happening, but I didn’t really think about anything else. That was until one of my good friend’s lost her fiance. I never actually thought that something so drastic could happen to someone so close to me. When I actually hear the words that he was “shot in the head”, my mouth dropped. People actually shoot other people in the head? I knew he was in the war in Iraq and that obviously there were weapons involved. But, I guess that was me being naïve when I didn’t think that something so horrible like that could happen. Hours later, my friend had still not heard from him, and never did. Instead, she got a phone call from one of his relatives, that he had passed away. When the words hit my friend, her entire life collapsed. I have never lost someone so close to me, that I literally couldn’t stand up. When I saw the effect that this war had on my friend, I was disgusted and so angry that I agreed with this. Why? Why was I all for people getting shot and dying? Apparently I didn’t realize the damage that could actually occur. When something so drastic like this occurs, we remain in disbelief. We think that we, as humans, aren’t capable of that, but in reality, we are. This will change her life forever. When I finally saw and realized the war’s effects on my loved ones, I truly felt the pain for Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish.. The pain for him that will never go away. If it becomes reality to our own personal lives, our views seem to change.
War is a terrible reality that countries face. I believe that any war can be avoidable. People seem to think that wars between differing countries or differing types of people are necessary. The plain honest truth is that they are not necessary. No good can come out of death and destruction. Innocent civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan have died because of these wars but yet, Americans still believe that we should continue to do what we do. Americans only see one side of the story. If the American media truthfully showed the Iraq war from an Iraqi point of view, then the American people might have a different opinion about what is going on overseas. Just because government officials and politicians got a country into war, doesn’t mean that the war is justified. People need to put war into perspective. Death, poverty, and destruction are some of the many things that people all over the world inherently do not want to have happen to them. These commonalities permeate throughout all people – regardless of race. People’s values don’t change just because he or she is from another country and has different beliefs and standards. The case with Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is a perfect example of how people have inherently similar values. Nobody wants to lose a loved one. If Israelis can see and understand the pain and suffering that one Palestinian man had to face, then why can’t they see the pain and suffering that all Palestinians face? The same could be said about the pain that Palestinians have caused to Israelis. I believe that it is harder to fight someone once you put a specific face to him or her. It is easy for people to sit back and make excuses about why one country should go to war with another, but the truth is that people are just plain misunderstood. A simple understanding of people, place, and culture may help alleviate any differences between different people. I believe that people who want war to happen truly do not wish to open up and have an understanding of the people whom they want to go to war with. Iraqis are not that different from Americans. Both Iraq and America want to have peace and prosperity in their country. If Americans get to see Iraqi families that have suffered in the same way Israelis saw Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish suffer, they would probably have a different perspective on the war. I believe that there is only a one international truth in the world and that truth is that people trust people who are like themselves. If people could put themselves into other people’s shoes, then they would realize that we are not so different after all. If a person treats another person the same way he or she would want to be treated then the world would be a better place.
The pain of what Dr. Abuelaish is feeling right now must be terribly agonizing. As many may know, it is very hard to lose the life of a loved one or of someone that is very close to you. Not only does it not seem fair to lose three family members all at once, but to such a peacemaker as Dr. Abuelaish, it just seems utterly cruel. This must put him in such a hard position for the war he is trying so hard to end, has just ended the life of his three daughters and his niece. Now how can someone go back and still act as peacefully as they were before, knowing that these people took the life of his beloved daughters? After watching the video and reading the story, I felt that it was almost impossible to not feel terrible for this loving doctor. How could you not? It seems that he did nothing but try to create peace. When it comes to war, something has to provoke it. The attacks on the twin towers on September 11, 2001, that killed thousands of innocent Americans, provoked the United States to react instinctively and immediately advance to defend our country. When we hear that Iraqis are killed in the war, we are less sympathetic because we know what has already happened and what they have done to our country. We feel more empathy for U.S. soldiers that are killed because we feel more directly related and closer to them. I’ve always felt that the closer that a person is to me, the harder it would be to deal with their death. However, to see that faces of anyone, familiar or unfamiliar, in a time where they have lost a loved one, it is hard not to feel any emotion. It seems to me, that the war in Iraq, is sometimes in a whole different world. The life of seeing others die in front of you every day, and coping with loss, just seems so distant from my daily life. Stories like the one of Dr. Abuelaish are a reality check for many Americans who seem to have forgotten what is really going on over in the Middle East. Not only are there Iraqis dying everyday, but there are also Americans soldiers over there fighting for our country that are also dying. At this point in time I feel that the war is doing nothing but taking lives. This also means that the same way that Dr. Abuelaish was affected by the loss of his daughters is happening in the lives of many other families every single day. I hope and believe that one day this world will be free of war for then will we finally be able to say that we have taken a step closer in trying to achieve world peace.
I am the step daughter of a United States Soldier who is serving a term in Iraq. Everyday we are challenged by our own minds on whether something is going to happen. To be honest, all we do is pray and hope for the best since we cannot personally affect what is happening over there. My Uncle is also serving a term in Iraq; the difference between my step-dad and my uncle is my uncle is in the heart of the war zone. He is a young soldier that came right now of high school and went right into the military. He had a wife and two young children, who could possibly never see him again.
The story about the doctor that helps people has truly touched me. He is saving people that are sick, and yet his family was killed by people he thought were his friends. This story is not just about him, but it is also about every person in general. I heard the story about the plane that landed in the Hudson River. Dr. Phil had an episode on his show and it touched me again. The people who survived the plane crash are asking themselves why they lived. I would probably do the same. Maybe God has a purpose for all those people, or maybe he just wanted us to realize how purposeful life is. It makes me wonder what the peoples last thoughts were as the plane was going down, and how so many people kept calm. I know that the doctor is feeing pain. I feel for him. This is another example of how life isn’t fair. My own story is my step dad was telling me about one of his soldier who got shot in open fire. He was helping the kids in Iraq and my step dad was there with him. He was giving the children food, and figured it would be safe to not wear his chest protector. He made the wrong choice because open fire began and he was killed. The family was devastated because the government doesn’t want to give the family the money they deserve. This is a situation that is frequently happening to United States soldiers families. This article gave me new insight on how much the world is fighting; how unfair everything can be. How do people kill other people? How can there be so much violence that most people don’t even understand why they are fighting in the first place? I know fights continue because it is passed down through generations. For example, gangs. Some gangs don’t even know why they are fighting. So why continue to fight? Maybe it is a pride issue? But seriously, can their ever be peace on Earth? I can guarantee that peace on Earth will not come during my generation or the next. It is going to take time and for people to view the world differently. The main question is, why is their so much violence to people who are good, such as Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish?
“The grief of war comes full circle” is an interesting blog, but it is human nature that we are talking about changing, and that will never happen. Every time we see someone different from us, we get scared. If we are white, we feel safe hanging out with people who are white. It is the same for people who are Asian. Why is it that most times you see an Asian person (not from this country) walking on campus, they are with a friend. It is because we are comfortable with people that look like us. In the 1840’s, the British invaded the Irish, called them savages, and basically led to over 3 million Irish coming over to the Americas, and another 1 million dying of hunger in Ireland. The British saw the Irish as another race, different then them, and so they were scared. The British were more powerful, so they basically destroyed the Irish way of life. It is the same thing with slaves in the new world. Owners were scared of them, so they made them work ridiculous hours so that they could never revolt. Many slave owners had sleepless nights, not knowing if the slaves were going to revolt and kill them. This is exactly what is going in Gaza. The Israeli’s are afraid of the Palestinians, and vice versa. The problem is, that both of them have weapons that can cause massive destruction. Another problem about this war is that it is about religion. War never ends when it is about religion. They are going to continue to blow each other up until one of them wipes the other one off the planet. Its sad, but it’s the only way it will ever be solved. A funny thing about this is that everyone is the same. Its true. My sister was in Ireland studying abroad last fall. She was one of the three Americans she met at the university. She said that everyone, whether Irish, German, English, Russian, UAE, everyone acts the same. She said that people in Germany act no different then kids in the states. All humans are like 99% the same, and yet we always find a way to polarize ourselves from another group. It’s sad, because we are all the same, and yet we can always find a reason to hate someone. Whether it’s religion, race, sex, orientation, or anything. In our society we generally think about the problems between blacks and whites, in the Middle East it is between Palestinians and Israeli’s, in Rwanda it was the Tutsis and the Hutu’s. There is no science or reason why one group hates another. Like I stated in the first sentence, it is human nature to find something to dislike about a group, and sadly the group with the larger military power or the most resources will win the conflict.
I think it is true that one person's story, such as Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish's, can help to change the minds of some people. This man worked to help people all of his life. He is a doctor and news reporter for the Israelis, keeping people informed with the military feud. By doing this, he tries to stop some innocent people from getting hurt. That makes his story very ironic. He works to help people and keep them safe and healthy and his own family was hurt. I cannot imagine how he felt knowing that his own people bombed and killed some of his family members. He must have felt so betrayed. I also think it is very ironic, that even he as a doctor, had to rush his children to the hospital and was not able to help them. The Israelis are bombing their own innocent people, sometimes when they think they are being attacked. Both sides bomb neighborhoods trying to find their enemy, but many times they are finding their own people and bombing them. Other people, like Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, need to spread their stories around. I feel as though before both sides stop attacking one another, it will take someone close to them to get hurt. But do we really need to wait this long? If more Israelis spread their stories, maybe the Israeli military will start to open their eyes and see their own innocent people are being hurt and sometimes even killed. Regarding our own wars, the same idea needs to be applied. Our own people are hurting and the enemy is hurting. Everyone on every side has their own families and cultures. Every person has their own story to tell and their own reason to live. When fighting wars, we are fighting to get hurt and maybe even die. Wars tear lives and stories apart. Isn't it great to have a person come home from war to be with their family? Our world would be so much different if we stepped back and listened to each other. We see each other from a distance and do not understand what is going on in each others lives, except the fact that we are enemies. Neither side seems to see a face on the other person or see the person in general. What about war that has to do with individual people? So many people do not like each other because of race or sexuality, but what if we could see the stories behind them? A person could be very withdrawn or mean, but until we hear their story we think exactly that, they are just mean. What if their story has to do with getting beat as a child or neglected? Then we all understand why they may be withdrawn. “You obviously cannot judge a book by it's cover.” We need to spread our stories and show what war, in all senses of the word, does to people everywhere. If we start accepting people for who they are and not what they look like or their views, maybe our whole world could change. We can start off by telling one story, like Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish's. But more people need to tell their stories too. If we can connect to more people, then possibly there could be peace throughout our world.
Though the subject matter of this article is truly heartbreaking, the powerful story lying at its core, and the overarching message being presented, is one citizens of the world must be forced to hear. The extreme pain and undeniable loss of Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is intensely unfortunate and extremely real. Not only must he watch as the people inhabiting the two most prominent locations in his life battle bitterly; he has also experienced the death of three daughters and a niece—innocent victims whose lives were ended prematurely—due to the ongoing hatred burning fiercely among these territories. Dr. Abuelaish’s life is positioned at the center of a revolving circuit, within which orbits little aside from resentment, destruction, and the loss of human life. Just as this man must awaken each day to face the severe realities of war, we as constituents of the human race must impose upon ourselves the task of addressing this devastating issue head on, rather than merely turning the other cheek, a skill we have so expertly mastered.
Since the dawning of established boundaries, divided territories, and the competition for land, power, and affluence (thus, since the beginning of time), man has unthinkingly—almost robotically—assigned himself the role as just and virtuous in thought and act. It is simply human nature to view ourselves as the party which is in the right, and our adversary whom is always in the wrong. This mode of thinking has become so instinctive and almost rather innate, that we disregard the fact that our enemies are, in fact, human beings. By designating our own personal and individual interests and objectives (or, perhaps in this case, our nation’s) as those which are honorable and superior and, those which should thus be achieved, we are doing more than simply disagreeing with our opponent. When a country’s borders are being threatened, or a state’s sovereignty is in jeopardy, political leaders go to any extent to protect such symbols of authority and power. In fact, the lengths to which individuals will go to defend their assemblage—whether their cause be identified as patriotic, religious, ethnic, or racial—is infinite. When a faction of individuals engage in conflict with another—one whom is in some manner distinct from themselves—and sense that their beliefs, ideology, rituals, or customs are in danger, members of mankind become desensitized to the significant value of human life. We become so enamored with the will to defend and triumph, that we lose perception of the fact that citizens of humankind are being brutishly murdered. We—the inhabitants of the world as a whole—have become dehumanized. An overwhelming number of American citizens no longer look at Iraqi men (even civilians) as the father of a child, or a brother, or son, or husband. Rather, they view them as merely a figure with whom we are at war. We have lost the ability to empathize with the pain and suffering of those we deem our enemies, and therefore, we have lost a large portion of our humanity and compassion.
The great irony of this tragic reality lies in the truth that we all—allies and foes alike—desire the same basic outcome: the termination of animosity and the commencement of peace. There is not a country or collaboration of peoples inhabiting the world which enjoy being at war. In times of conflict, nonetheless, people lose sight of their enemies as living entities, stripping away from them these human qualities. It is for this reason that warring peoples fail to reflect upon the situation of their adversary. If individuals engaging in hostilities were selfless enough to be capable of envisioning the plight of their opponent as a result of such warfare, the span of time spent in battle would diminish. Simply imagining ourselves walking in the shoes of our enemy would result in a lessened degree of enmity and aggression. As human beings, regardless of the church we attend, the heritage with which we identify, or the country which we call our home, we all wish to conduct our lives in manner which generates safety, happiness, and harmony. Thus, as human beings, regardless of race, territorial borders, ethnic differences, and authoritative power, we must recognize and acknowledge all who dwell upon this earth not as friend or foe, but simply as people, having essentially the same wants, deserving the same respect, and, all of whom, entitled to life.
It is always tough watching someone that is in pain because of the death of a loved one. I don’t think that it matters who you are, whether you are at war or at peace, whether you were the killer or not, it is always hard to watch someone who is in pain. Many of us should know this if you go to the funeral of someone that you don’t know, but you see their family. This feeling hits home because many of us have felt that same pain, and know how difficult it is to know that whomever it is that you love is not coming back. However, I think it is very important to understand that many of the people who are killing are not seeing these repercussions of the family…and I think that is ok. I understand that people must be responsible for their actions, and that killing is never ever a good thing. However these people are at war. They have been at war for a very long time. The war in Israel is no ordinary war either, it is a religious war. This is in one sense the worst kind, because the suicide bombers, and the people launching bombs into civilian neighborhood believe in one sense that what they are doing is for a greater good.
I am in no way trying to justify that war is right and good and that people are not being hurt. And do I think that the enemy should see the faces of the grieving families? Maybe. This is a question that I am not sure I can answer. I do not think that anyone ever wants to be at war. If seeing the faces of the families that were grieving would solve the problem, and suddenly we would have world peace…sure go for it. However I am not so sure that this is the case. Seeing the grieving faces is always difficult, because we are all human. For the most part, I don’t think if people on opposite sides saw the grieving of their enemy’s family that they would be elated. I think that they would still have empathy for the other’s families unless they were truly psychotic. In answer to the question, “How would "our" Iraq war be different?” if we could see the faces of the grieving...I don’ t think that it would be. We would still be in the same predicament that we are in now, and that is…how to leave. I do not think that the government or Americans want us to stay in Iraq any longer than we have to. Watching the faces of the grieving families will neither speed up nor slow down our leaving of that country. I believe that Bush made a huge mistake in invading Iraq. However, the fact is that we have to clean up the mess, and I believe that if we leave immediately there will only be more bloodshed, and we’ll still be watching the grieving families. There is never any easy answer or outcome when it comes to war.
The violence is getting out of hand I hope this will once and for all stop the violence and if not decrease it. This was the last straw for me. Killing someones family who did nothing. This doctor worked hard to help people and what did he get in return? Someone killed his kids and neice. Thats cruel. The thing that killed me the most was when he asked why they did it and they said someone in his house was shooting at them or something like that. Which I believe to be a bunch of crap. I think they just said it to cover up their tracks. Its possible they just did it to do it. And they shot the wrong people. The doctor barely has anyone now. Just a surviving daughter. He lost his wife and now his kids and neice. When will the violence stop? When will all this tragedy end? When will we be able to live in peace? When will people wake up and realize that violence isn't always the answer? I can't even watch the news without them talking about people shooting and killing others... This violence is really getting out of hand. And if we keep it up it will get worse than this. No one deserves to take someones life. This war should end. But it doesnt seem like no one is trying to make it happen. They're all talk but no one is really taking the iniative to make this happen. And if the war still goes on think about all of the people that will die because of it. How many broken homes there will be. How much poverty there will be. How many families that will lose many loved ones in the war and out because as seen they aren't just killing people fighting in the war they are killing the ones that have nothing to do with the war including kids. Which has got to stop. Kids should not have to suffer because of someone elses battle. They should leave the young ones out of it.
I was overcome with emotion when I first heard about the events detailing Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish and the tragedy that occurred this past Friday. I became particularly upset when I learned of his peace-making nature, and wondered if he could ever revert back to being such a peaceful man after suffering from the nature of his loss. I am not sure if I would be able to maintain my composure after such an enormous loss.
In this case, as in all other cases, I believe that a single face can make a difference. At the very least, a single face allows people to see the human in each other. A Palestinian doctor, Dr. Abuelaish was a friend to many Israelis. Many people, Israelis and Palestinians alike, see the immense pain Dr. Abuelaish is under and hope that the deaths of three of his children and one niece will be the wake up call that is desperately needed to end the conflicts in Gaza.
In terms of our own wars, many people can go through their days without thinking about either one. I’m still trying to figure out if that’s a good or bad thing. Regardless, many people choose to think of the Iraqis as simply the enemy, giving little thought to the people “over there.” It’s hard to think about the people “over there” because unless we are personally connected, we really have no idea! We have never had a war in America; therefore, we have never had to deal with things like people kicking our doors down or having a gun pointed to our heads. Even if we do not know someone who is fighting in the war, taking a minute to think about what it is like to experience war in our own homes would certainly make us feel differently.
The older I get, the more I realize how similar all of us are. We more or less go through the same things – whatever they may be. I am a big fan of PostSecret, an ongoing community mail art project created by Frank Warren, where people mail their secrets anonymously on a homemade postcard. The emotions I experience after reading the secrets are usually mixed. On one hand, I feel sad because most of the secrets are pretty depressing. On the other hand, I think that many of the secrets are things we all keep to ourselves. These secrets have made me realize that many of us go through related experiences. I often wonder if someone who I have disagreements with have similar thoughts as me – and I often come to the conclusion that yes, they do! PostSecret reminds me of this and helps me be more open minded.
The blog entry titled The Grief of War Comes Full Circle discusses an incident in which a Palestinian doctor who works in Israel loses three of his daughters and his niece to an Israeli attack. After watching the videos that the blog linked to, I found myself almost numbed by the terrible tragedy that Dr. Abuelaish has had to endure as a result of the current conflict between Israel and Palestine. It is even more numbing to imagine the thousands of other such horrible tragedies that have resulted from this fighting. I completely agree with the main point that is suggested by the blog entry: If we could see stories like this about Iraqis, maybe our troops would have already been withdrawn from Iraq.
One of the most harrowing things about Dr. Abuelaish’s story is that he was not a militant member of Hamas. He was a good man living in Palestine who lived his life in search of peace and who healed both Palestinians and Israelis at the hospital where he worked. It is often the case that innocent civilians are the casualties of war even though they have done nothing wrong. They are simply collateral damage: acceptable losses by military standards. From the videos, it seems that Dr. Abuelaish was a victim of either faulty intelligence reports or faulty weapons targeting. One of the videos stated that Israeli troops had been fired upon “from the direction” of Dr. Abuelaish’s home.
As Americans, we don’t really see many stories like this about Iraqi and Afghani civilian casualties. Sure, some news networks might break down the numbers for us (though others might think it “unpatriotic” or “defeatist” to even give us this much information), but we hardly ever see the stories about the lives of the people that died as a result of collateral damage or incorrect intelligence. Many Americans seem to have become desensitized when it comes to numbers. Either that or maybe it is just hard to imagine thousands of innocent civilians dead simply because they happened to live in Iraq in an area that had been targeted for an airstrike.
I believe if news networks would actually start broadcasting stories like Dr. Abuelaish’s from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan the American people would get a better understanding of the effects our wars are having on innocent civilians. Maybe they will even be able to put themselves in the position of those civilians and try to imagine how terrible it would be to lose family and friends to bomb explosions that don’t differentiate between innocent and guilty. It is often stories like Dr. Abuelaish’s, stories that put a “human face” on the effects of war, that prompt people to advocate peace. I think that if we all made an effort to read about civilian casualties and imagine what it would be like to be like Dr. Abuelaish and lose three of your daughters because you lived in the general direction from which the Israelis were being attacked that we as a people would be a lot more selective of the conflicts we chose to initiate.
Wars today are faceless. It is not a person killing another person; it is an army killing the enemy. How many times a day do you think about the war, which the United States is fighting, in the Middle East? Unless you have a close friend or family member in the military, the chances that you rarely think about the war are high. This is part of the depersonalization process put in part by the military and media. If you do not see the “enemy” as another person, then you are less likely to feel grief for their death. This holds true for the people in our own military as well. I bet a majority of American citizens have no idea the number of American soldiers killed during this war. Families, both American and Arabian, are being torn apart, but unless we directly know the family being torn apart, we do not see that side of war. We see soldiers die. Faceless men that we feel close to no remorse for. If we saw all of these casualties as fathers, or sons, or uncles or brothers maybe it would be harder for us to partake in war. Like someone stated, friends don’t fight against their friends. It is horrible that it takes the death of three young girls to show people the grief, but it shows a face, a person, who is being punished by war. Media has an enormous part in this phenomena. The media does not show war. People do not agree with war right now, so that means bad ratings. Every now and then you will see a sad story about an American soldier and his family. And while this does promote grief, it probably also produces at least at the smallest level, a hatred for the opposing side. Never does the media show the grieving stories of the opposing, Iraqi families. Never are the casualties of the opposing side flashed across the evening news. Grief is not something promoted through the media unless it gets ratings. It is ridiculous that a majority of Americans can tell you who Angelina Jolie is married to, but can not state how many American soldiers have died in the Middle East. While it can definitely be blamed on the American people themselves, it can also partially be blamed on the media. This is the stuff they are showing us. Feeding us day after day. I feel the lack of draft is another reason we are as a society are not as interested in the war. The war is not on our turf, so the only people affected by the war are the volunteer soldiers and their families. Wars today are much different than they have been in the past.
As the Israeli-Palestinian conflict continues, many people have still encountered the deaths of their friends and family. For Palestinian doctor Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, he must now face the fact that three of his daughters along with his niece are dead. As I began watching the television segment, I noticed that the news reporter Dr. Izzeldin was talking to was in shock. He was a friend of Dr. Izzeldin’s and expressed his emotions towards a caring friend. For a man who has spent his whole life helping out others in the hospital, I feel that this is a situation he can never get rid of. Despite his background, many Israelis have cherished this individual for his hard work. Why are we still having conflicts across countries in which we know innocent lives will be in the middle of it? It seems that the Palestinians and Israelis don’t see each other as part of the human race. When I think of this conflict, I can’t help but think how the government is responding to this. They know that parents work hard all day to support their children. They also know that parents want their children to become responsible and have the necessary education to move on in life. Next thing you know they are caught in the middle of battle leaving some wounded let alone dead. I feel that these soldiers have no remorse for how other people feel. Instead, they are caught up with all this religion and political nonsense. What I feel is the most shocking is that they know parents and children are going to get hurt if they are seeking the enemies in battle. This conflict has to stop or more people are going to be injured as well as cities being destroyed. My grandfather, who served for the U.S. Air Force, told me it was one of the most difficult challenges he had to face. Even though he was born from Iran, he came to the U.S. because he knew what happened if he returned. If we knew the faces of those struggling now, I would not be able to imagine if my friends or family were dead. My parents have worked hard to get where they are at now. If I somehow lost them due to the misconception of war, this would never let go. I wish there was a way we can get together as a nation and discuss plans on ending this hatred. Even though I am not Israeli or Palestinian, I feel that strong and growing lives should not be handled by guns and missiles. For Dr. Izzeldin, it’s now the fact the children he has raised his whole life are dead. Like him, no other individual deserves this. I feel that our lives should not be hindered on the fact of war but accomplish everything we can peacefully before we pass away. Racism in politics has become a dangerous combination which I feel needs to end now.
War…what is it good for, really? I have always wondered why people use violence to get what they want; it hurts many more people than it helps. I remember when I was younger in social studies class, speculating why wars are necessary to gain land or whatever it is that the opposing sides are fighting for. Hopefully I don’t sound naïve, but I still do not see how fighting and killing can ultimately lead to “winning.”
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is obviously not the first person to lose loved ones by the horrific events that plague the Middle East (as well as any other region that has been involved in wars and violence). My point is, that if people are just starting to look at these wars as a possible way of killing innocent, harmless people because of the experiences of one well known and well liked man, what have they been thinking happens of the other side of the line for all of these years?
I think it is often really hard for people to imagine what is happening on the other side of the fight because under normal circumstances, people are against the beliefs, values, etc. of the opposite side and are so focused on winning that they never really take the time to think about the other people’s safety and well-being. Even though I am completely aware of the War on Terrorism, and I know that US troops are dying every day for the rest of our country, I have never really been worried that the violence will immediately affect my life. It is the complete opposite for Israelis and other people in the Middle East. I would assume that they have become quite accustomed to the fighting since it has been occurring constantly for a long period of time. Until now, I have never really thought what it would be like to live in a constant state of fear, never knowing where the next bomb would fall, who you could lose in a mere instant and never see again. I do not really believe that if leaders and other authority figures thought about the consequences of war a little bit more, we would have world peace; it is such a lovely thought but as bad as it sounds, war is inevitable.
The two videos showing Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish are tragic, sad, and real. They definitely touched every viewer, and struck and emotional chord in all of us, and hopefully made everyone put themselves in someone else’s shoes. I think that peaceful times can occur, but only to an extent. When the US aired so much of the Vietnam War on television for everyone to see, there was so much anti-war action in America. However, the actions of the “doves” did not eliminate war all together, but in their fight, the war eventually came to an end, yet here we are again, causing more unnecessary battles and wounds. I am not a pessimist, I am a realist. I really, truly do want world peace, but I know it is a far-fetched dream.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is and was a man of peace, and his commitment to amity will certainly be tested through these next couple of months. What happened to him and his family is something no human should have to deal with. Dr. Abuelaish and his children were civilians, and mere bystanders to the bloodshed that engulfed their neighborhood. They were caught in the crossfire of a war that is not worth the bullets being fired, let alone the lives being taken. Although Dr. Abuelaish suffered a devastating and terrible tragedy, there is still a chance for some good to come out of it. For Dr. Abuelaish the good will not outweigh the profound evil that was inflicted upon him, but given the right stage and set of ears, he has the opportunity to, god willingly, change the way warring people see their enemies. Dr. Abuelaish’s story although devastatingly sad, is far from unique. In every war there is innocent life lost. Whether it is a bystander or fighter. The only way to stop this senseless loss of life is by convincing the world that we are all human and we are all brothers. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish has been spreading this word for years, but now his commitment to peace shall be truly tested. It is easy for one to preach peace when no real harm has been done to them, but it is much more difficult when one has lost loved ones due to a war or conflict. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish has the opportunity to overpower and extinguish the hatred and loathing that he must feel toward the Israeli army, and find the will to once again preach peace. It is the hatred that billows from the loss of a loved one in a senseless act that makes people forget that we are all the same. If Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish can find it in his heart to forgive the men responsible for firing the shell into his home, he will be one step closer to changing the world. If he does decide to forgive the men, and go on air and explain to the people the tragedy that has taken his three daughters and niece, and furthermore make clear why it is so important that he does not resort to hatred and violence, the impact could be ground breaking. Humanity needs to understand that by resorting to hatred and violence, you are only adding fuel to the already blazing fire, and being taught through example is the best way. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is now faced with a very unique and highly significant decision, and I can only hope that he sees the opportunity that lies in front of him, and for his sake, his daughters sake, as well as humanity’s sake, he uses his devastating experience to show the world that peace and love triumph over evil.
“The Grief of War Comes Full Circle,” ironically, brings up a lot of points that my friends and I were discussing this past weekend. Some of you know what I am talking about, you and a bunch of your friends on a Saturday night, a little drunk, sitting in a circle and getting into discussions that just shouldn’t be discussed between people that have been drinking.
Well, our discussion was all about perception- how two people could look at something and see two completely different things, but agree that they are seeing the same thing because neither really knows what the other is seeing. If each American could see what people in Iraq are seeing, without the bias of being an American, I think their opinions of this war would change drastically. This would mean we would have to block out all that we know of the people of Iraq, what they have done to our country, and we would just have to see them as humans, as families. This completely un-biased perception is pretty impossible since we cannot erase the knowledge we have, but we can take steps that help us see the people that have done us wrong as just that, people. We all bleed the same and we all feel the same emotions, our values and ethics are the things that are different. This is all easier said than done. Like everything that is hard, this cannot be resolved overnight, this is something that our country will need to work on for the rest of its future.
I think the media has played such a huge role in this war going on and if anything can help change America’s vision of the people we are warring with, it is the media. If the media showed more about families and children and villages of the people we are against, how would people respond? Would they be less inclined to stay and fight? Yes, I believe so.
All of this reminds me of one of my favorite songs, The General, by Dispatch and I think these lyrics apply to this topic perfectly:
There was a decorated general with
a heart of gold, that likened him to
all the stories he told
of past battles, won and lost, and
legends of old a seasoned veteran in
his own time
on the battlefield, he gained
respectful fame with many medals
of bravery and stripes to his name
he grew a beard as soon as he could
to cover the scars on his face
and always urged his men on
but on the eve of a great battle
with the infantry in dream
the old general tossed in his sleep
and wrestled with its meaning
he awoke from the night
just to tell what he had seen
and walked slowly out of his tent
all the men held tall with their
chests in the air, with courage in
their blood and a fire in their stare
it was a grey morning and they all
wondered how they would fare
till the old general told them to go home
[CHORUS:]
I have seen the others
and I have discovered
that this fight is not worth fighting
I have seen their mothers
and I will no other
to follow me where I'm going
I cannot begin to imagine the grief and frustration that the doctor must have felt to loose so many of his children after loosing his wife in this war. I don’t think that those of us who have lived in the United States for the majority of our lives or those of us who have never lived or spent an extended of amount of time in a war zone can begin to understand what it means to literally be surrounded by death. Especially in Israel where for thousands of years people have been fighting in order to say that this Holy Land is theirs; to say that they control God’s land. As a person who was raised with very few religious beliefs I don’t understand the idea of killing in the name of your peaceful god in order to please her in some way or to protect her holy land from those other people. Israeli’s are killing the Palestinians, but for what? This cycle of one side killing a member of the other side and then that side killing 10 so the other in turn kills 30 and so on. Gandhi said that and eye for and eye level us all blind, but throughout watching this conflict I can’t help but wonder how he would have reacted to and eye for 20 eyes. I try to avoid taking sides in situations like this, when I know deep beliefs and strong emotions are involved but I read a news article last week that said something along the lines of 500 Palestinians and 3 Israeli’s dead in the most recent conflict. At what point should we as an international superpower step back and say that this is ridiculous. And in some respects should the United States be ashamed of ourselves for not stepping in diplomatically at the United Nation and politically through presidential press conferences and phone calls to the prime minister.
I think one of the main reasons that we as Americans have such difficulty understanding the real meaning of war is that we have not had a war within the U.S in over 100 years. We can see the photographs and hear the stories, but the majority of us are so detached that it doesn’t affect us anymore. The majority of us have never even been to a war zone or to a refugee camp to understand what this means. If we would take the time to even imagine what we would feel if one day you left your apartment and went to class and when you emerged from a basement somewhere all of the buildings on campus and the businesses downtown and you apartment building or house and you car and your roommates were all just gone every single one of you possessions. On top of this for some reason the government has set up a barricade around state college so that no medical help for the injured can enter, no clean water or basic food stuffs can enter. You literally have no where to go and have just lost you closest friends on top of this your cell phone doesn’t work and you have no idea if your family is okay or even alive. How does a person react to this situation? I think if we as a nation began to understand first hand the atrocities of war that we would be less willing to simply send soldiers halfway across the world.
On the more personal level I believe that what Soc 119 and the RRP seeks to do is one of the best ways to, not only on the individual level but on the global level, end hatred. Talking to those who are different that us is one way of finding common ground and begin to end wars; both large and small. In this situation if the doctor were to gather parents, both Israeli and Palestinian, how would their sadness and frustration over the loss of their children be any different? Maybe they would realize that they formed a hatred for the other from a belief that was passed down to them by their parents and their community. Maybe they would begin to realize that they had never taken the time to reevaluate the beliefs they had always held. Only through first hand experiences and discussion can we begin to understand hatred and war and hopefully to someday end these things.
I will never fully understand war. I will never fully understand how people can truly HATE another, to the point that they want them killed. I will never fully understand how a person can believe that blowing himself up will help a cause; suicide bombers don’t get recognition for their actions, they don’t get praise, they don’t get love, or support, or faith, or help, or a feeling of peace, or closer personal relationships….they get DEAD and in his path to remain loyal to a cruel ruling force he succeeds in taking all of those aforementioned qualities away from others, and for what? Did he believe that strapping explosives to his destructible human frame and walking into a market and murdering all of those people in his path would solve a crisis? I guess the answer is yes, but how….how does violence on top of more violence lead to less violence….well, its quite simple…IT DOESN’T!!! It seems that people get so caught up in war and bloodshed that it becomes a part of their history and they cant remember why the fighting stated in the first place….they can’t stop the fighting. I will never fully understand how people can support wars, especially wars based on race and ethnicity. I can better understand wars in which people fight for freedom from oppression, but fighting and killing other humans on the basis of skin color, for instance, is something that boggles my mind. When I hear people say they dislike someone because of their race, religion, sexual preference it makes me sick, how can they judge a stranger based on the way they look? How can they hate another person because they don’t believe in the same God as you, or because they don’t believe in a God at all? Why do we hate based on this? People are people, no matter what we look like, we all need the same things to survive, so why not help each other coexist rather than help each other into our graves?
I can’t imagine how Dr. Abuelaish feels having seen 3 daughters and a niece perish in front of his eyes. No one should ever have to endure this type of pain. His daughters weren’t soldiers ( not that being a soldier would have made he situation any less painful for the family), they were civilians killed because of anger and hate. I believe that it is easier for people who do not have children in the armed forces to support war. However, they should consider how their family life and values would be affected if their son or daughter was killed at war, I’m guessing that in this case war would look like a pretty terrible option to try and solve a political crisis. We have become de-sensitized to war…maybe because its not being fought at home, maybe because all of the American deaths are not broadcast over the television, maybe because we have lost interest…whatever the case is…its disgusting that people ( not just Americans) are fighting…fighting and dying and we aren’t stopping it. War based on race, religion, and ethnicity is morally corrupt. I will never understand war.
In a perfect world, there are no wars, there are no shortages, boundaries and no more hate. The Israeli-Palestine problem is a very complex one, where there is no clear right or wrongdoer in the situation. The only clear point that is being made is that there is deep rooted hate and resentment on the part of both parties and that there is a cycle of violence. It seems as if the “eye for an eye” philosophy carries the most weight in this conflict and that both sides are incapable of thinking in the other side’s shoes. In a slightly different way, the same concept can be applied to the United States and some of the foreign policy decisions we make. Most of the time, the media portrays our point of view and only ours even if they do not support the war. Flipping through the major news networks and online websites, I hardly see documentaries chronicling the consequences of our foreign endeavors on the local environment and society. I feel as if US citizens sometimes do weigh our lives more heavily than anyone else’s. It may seem contradictory to argue that this concept goes against a premature withdrawal from Iraq. If we had retreated years ago, Iraq would be in a much more chaotic position than it is now. The government would probably have been overthrown by local and international renegades and the entire country would be without food, water, and a national defense against domestic and international terrorists. Thousands of people were being slaughtered by the Sunni-Shi’ite conflict that was independent of the US occupation. Although I do not condone the deaths of the thousands of Americans already nor will I ever, more Iraqis would have died as result of an early retreat. It is also easy to see Hamas and the Palestinians to be the instigators and the terrorist radicals in this conflict, however they have their own history and reasons for fighting, not just to cause upheaval or to fuel their anti-Semitic rages. I believe that if both sides truly made the effort to understand how the other side felt, many of the wars that are being fought right now would have alternative endings. It’s easy to say war is never the answer, and I do not support it as a plausible and good solution to anything, but sometimes there is no other course of action. I think that is a decision to be made once all of the facts have been brought forth and both sides have tried every possible alternative means to work out their differences.
It is often easy to criticize other people’s actions when one is safe behind a safety glass. It is different when one is in the same position as the victims and it becomes easier to empathize with their struggles and pains and see how people have to live their lives from the other side.
Reading the article about Dr. Abuelaish and watching the videos, it is just unbelievable what he has been through and how compassionate he can still be. He seems to be a man who trusts in his belief that he can make a difference and he is committed to it. I think that we could all learn something from Dr. Abuelaish. If we as human beings, capable of feeling and emotion were actually able to stop and think about how others are feeling in their own shoes we might realize what kind of impacts we are having on other peoples’ lives. Many of us go about our daily lives not thinking about other people and things we are doing that can affect them. I feel like sometimes we forget to think that other people are worse off than we are. We get caught up in the moment or in our egocentric self and think that whatever is happening to us is the worst thing in the world. However, if we were to think about other people and see and feel how they are feeling we would realize that almost all of us go through the same emotions and deal with terrible things throughout our lives. Our challenges are what make us stronger. I feel like if we were really able to see other peoples’ lives, that would really change how we view wars and significant events that happen. If we were able to see and feel the abundant families that are being torn apart and killed in Iraq we would feel bad and would have remorse for what we are doing. But we can’t always see the other point of view, so I don’t think we have as much feeling for the ‘enemy’ we are fighting. I am not saying that soldiers don’t feel bad for what they are doing, they are serving our country and protecting us and it is a very tough job and they witness terrible events. I am just saying I think we or they would feel more if they were to be put in their enemies’ shoes. Feeling for the enemy could lead to wanting to make peaceful resolutions instead of war. I also think if we could feel what is like to survive a plane crash and then be able to walk into your home and say hello to your wife and daughter we would feel more connected to the event. As humans we are more attached and interested in things that affect us personally. So when things affect us we become involved and with that comes emotions and understanding. When we are not personally attached I don’t think we clearly understand the situations and have as much emotions for the event. For example September 11 was a huge tragedy in our society and most people view it as a sad and tragic day and most remember where they were when it happened because it was so huge. However, I think there are more feelings attached to the event for people who have loved ones on the planes or in the towers. If we were able to feel how these people felt maybe we would have more compassion and understanding. I think the saying “You can’t really understand another person’s experience until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes” or the many other sayings like it are so true. We will never really understand other people until we have been through their experiences; but by trying to listen and work along with these people and see their points of view I believe we can become more accepting or understanding of all people. As humans if we could become more accepting and understanding of differences the world could become a much different and maybe better place to live in.
If right now we knew about the faces and the people that we affected with each move that we made, then our wars would be different. The people would worry more about the lives that are taken and hopefully more diplomacy will happen. Strikes for peace will be stronger and, our soldiers will hesitate with one more breathe before firing a bullet. As a result our soldiers will weaken, or they will lose peace of mind, and anger will fuel their shots. This might mean that our wars will be fueled with more blood rather than less. A hard question arises in my mind which is, when both sides hesitate for one breathe, does the one with the quickest breathe win? If say the slower one dies, with each death does not the anger of his comrades add to fuel the fires of war and give power to the side that has lost? Or will it strike fear into the eyes of the soldiers making them hesitate forever. Also if we faced an opponent who could surpass the torment of the stories of death, by for example an entity of god, then doesn’t that make the opponent stronger than us?
However, the good side of this would be that it would unite the world of peace. Pain is universal, and if with every bullet we can feel the pain as if it was our own blood –assuming that we care about our own blood and are not blinded by their deaths- then shootings will have a much higher price and nations will be able to better unite against tyranny by utilizing anger. Will we become a nation hardened until the hearing of sad stories will not faze us, or will we become hermits scared of anything that remotely sounds like the muzzle flash? I do not know enough about military training or the psychology of war to say with any confidence about anything.
What will our world be like if every human that had to die told their story like in the movies? If I had to pick the route that I thought Americans would take, we would feel sympathy at first for all who have died. This is enough maybe to change our policies, or urge us to talk rather than shoot. Then eventually we would become hardened to the stories, not letting them phase us with each story that we hear. Then each generation that gets born into this new world will find this as normal with less and less resistance from those who find this not normal. Then the hesitation to shoot will disappear, but something about our lifestyle will have changed. This is only the scenario that plays out in my head. I am starting to think that it is more of a luxury to be ignorant.
In the beginning of the war every citizen believes and hopes that when their country gets involved in a conflict that it will be quick and their will be minimum amounts of casualties. However, the Israeli and Palestinian conflict has been occurring for many years and it is very hard for the citizens of these countries to stay positive and for the citizens to make peace within the two countries. This is why I think Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is a really remarkable because he is a Palestinian doctor that was educated Israeli and works at an Israeli hospital where he helps patients that were attacked by Palestinian attacks. Dr. Abuelaish puts his ethnicity behind him and is committed to his job. He is able to bridge between the two different ethnic groups. However, Dr. Abuelaish patience is running thin because he has recently lost his wife, his three daughters, and his niece in this conflict. How is he supposed to be a promoter of peace between the two groups and remain positive when his family is being killed by the patients he is treating?
The war on terrorism that is currently going on with the United States is similar to the Israeli and Palestinian conflict because it finds the American citizens frustrated with how long the war is lasting and the number of casualties’ occurring. It is hard listening to the news channels on the television and hearing about all the road side bombs that go off in Iraq that kills American soldiers and Iraqi citizens. It is hard seeing the families that had one of their family members killed. It is even hard seeing families that have members fighting in Iraqi and worry every day hoping that they are alright. I see this through my boyfriend’s family in which his brother is currently fighting in Iraq. My boyfriend’s parents go to church every day to pray in order to make sure their son comes home safe. Since I started dating my boyfriend and seeing how the war brings pain to his family and how this pain is felt by other families in the United State, it makes me want this war to be over quickly. I hope that Obama will be able to fix the war and bring home the soldiers. I think the citizens of Iraq wish that this war would be over also so that they would be able to govern their country by themselves, stop the innocent deaths of civilians, and allow the citizens to feel safe in their country and not worry about attacks.
However, unlike Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish I do not think that American citizens could be nice and helpful to Iraqi citizens. For example, after September 11th the United States imprisoned many Middle Eastern citizens thinking that they were a threat to the country and could cause another terrorist attack. I know that world peace may not be able to occur but one day I hope that the world could resolve conflicts without going through long drawn out warfare and to stop the unwanted deaths and worry to soldier’s families.
At many points in our world’s history we have faced wars which reshaped the direction our world was heading. Although lives are lost, people are injured, homes are wrecked and whole cities destroyed these are not the main goals of war. The purpose of war is to oppose groups of destructive or dangerous political strategies that negatively impact the world we live in. Within every war zone are innocent people. There are those who disagree with government, but are threatened to stay quiet. There are those who can leave, but are afraid to leave everything behind. There are also those people who want peace and will stay in hope that one day, peace will come.
Although the main goal of war is not devastation it is an inevitable part of war. This inevitable outcome is what makes war so difficult and so troubling. As previously stated, during war, innocent people are still present. Innocent people end up being in the center of the conflict. In the current War in the Middle East, the situation that Dr. Abuelaish is facing is common and inevitable. This conflict is another example of how separating the true enemies of war and those who are innocent are difficult and hard to manage. For example, Hamas sets up their war attack zones in Gaza, in locations within the city. They strategically plan to use areas near schools, hospitals, and other areas where bombing is difficult and innocent men, women and children are in danger. According to the Israel Defense Forces http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/06/israel.gaza/
spokesman, "we face a very delicate situation where the Hamas is using the citizens of Gaza as a protective vest." We all see the pictures on the news of wounded children who are injured in war. My heart does feel for them and their families, but war is dangerous. War is an awful thing, but in the minds of many, every war has its purpose. I may or may not agree with the war in Gaza, or the war in Iraq, but I do understand that loss and tragedy is a part of war.
There are many situations in which we cannot relate with the enemy. We may not speak the same language, may not believe in the same religious figures, or even value the same things in life, but we all feel pain and suffering. This common suffering is what makes war so hard. If the problem could be isolated, Hamas in the eyes of Israelis, then war would be less tragic while still accomplishing the main goal. Unfortunately, isolating the enemies from innocent civilians is often difficult if not impossible. It is a tragedy that Dr. Abuelaish lost so many close to him, but that is a fact of war. This fact of war is what makes war undesirable and in most cases, especially in America, avoided at all cost.
After watching the videos posted in the blog and reading the article about Dr. Abuelaish I feel terrible that something like this had to happen to such a friendly and caring person. I feel like in today’s world, it is very hard to find someone that is as compassionate about peace between enemies as Dr. Abuelaish has been with regards to the conflict between Israel and Palestine. I cannot imagine that after all of the hard work and effort he has displayed to incorporate peace into the lives of others he is not frustrated over the death of his daughters and neice. The death of a family member can be one of life’s most painful encounters, something that no one I know would ever wish to experience, and especially a sudden death that could have been prevented. Although I cannot say I have been personally affected by the deaths of our country’s soldiers at war, it kills me each day when I turn on the news and hear of the casualties overseas. Where I grew up is just outside of New York City and I will never forget the way I felt on September 11th. I have both relatives and family friends that work in the heart of downtown Manhattan and was terrified until I heard that they were okay. Luckily, everyone I knew ended up being safe, but was in complete shock over what had happened. I can’t imagine what it would have been like if I hadn’t been so lucky, but I’m sure that that it is similar to the way that Dr. Abuelaish is feeling. As much as I would have never wished for this to happen to Dr. Abuelaish, I hope that this makes people realize how killing the innocent really does no good in any situation. People need to take into consideration how they are ruining the lives of others and although at first it may seem beneficial to hurt your enemies because it will make you look stronger, they really need to take a step back and ask themselves what they are gaining from doing such a thing. Personally, I think that a country or an army who is ending the lives of harmless people are cowards and should feel ashamed that it makes them feel stronger and more powerful by doing so. It is sad to think that the story of Dr. Abuelaish is just one of the many, many stories that have resulted from war. Although we may not hear of them, I can’t even fathom the amount of people who have similar stories to tell about the death of their family members every single day. I know that war is inevitable and cannot say that it is completely unavoidable in certain situations but I wish that there were more civil ways to fight than killing innocent bystanders.
I can’t even begin to imagine the pain that Dr. Abuelaish is experiencing. For a man who has dedicated his life to peace, it is horrible to see such a tragedy happen to a good man. Throughout his life he has set an example, not only for his children and family, but for all the people of Palestine and Israel who are in the midst of this war. Although he is only one man, he has shown all of these people that there can be peace between these countries. He has dedicated his life to helping others, regardless of who they are and what country they come from. He shows that we are all human, and killing innocent people is no justification for trying to find the enemy. He is a friend to Israelis and Palestinians and is a trusted face to all people involved in this war. His house was targeted and innocent members of his family were killed. If anything, Dr. Abuelaish’s family should be the symbol of peace during this conflict. Because of this tragedy, that withstanding symbol has been tarnished and gives innocent people little hope.
During any wars or conflicts, the focus is on finding the enemy and taking over. We are focused on one goal and it is very difficult to step back and take a look at the big picture. But if we did this just for a second, it might give us a whole new perspective on what is going on. Often times we only see the pain and suffering of the people in our own country, or only on one side of the conflict. But maybe if we saw the faces and heard the stories of the other side, it would be easier to see how alike we all really are.
The war in Iraq has been going on for far too long in my opinion. Innocent people get killed every day for no reason whatsoever. Millions of people have lost their lives or lost family members to this tragic war. We hear the stories all the time of American soldiers getting hurt or killed amidst the fighting. But what we don’t see are the war torn streets and innocent lives being taken. The images I love to see are those of American soldiers playing with Iraqi children and bringing food or other essentials to innocent people. These are the things that we need to see more of to show everyone that there are times of peace even during war.
Even when fighting everyday battles, we lose a sense of how the rival will be affected. The next time we disrespect someone, or intentionally hurt another, maybe we should take a moment to see the other side.
There is no denying that the story of Dr. Abuelaish is touching and makes most people think about and feel bad for the thousands of people who are dying every day in wars around the world. The video makes one wonder why wars are ever fought and if any reason for fighting can truly be justifiable. In fact, it is very possible that soldiers who are currently fighting may become disinterested in their wars and change their mindset to one of peace after becoming more familiar and closer to the people whom they are fighting. While all of these aspects point towards peace around the world, the thought of it is the only thing that will ever happen. Even if soldiers knew everything about their enemies, war would still take place. A mindset of peace within every soldier would only be a thought and not an action.
The concept of war dates back to thousands of years ago when empires and countries fought for control of land. Since the beginning, war has been strictly business, regardless of who is fighting. On Christmas during World War I, soldiers stopped fighting to celebrate the holiday and even shared the happiness with the people whom they were fighting with. After Christmas was over, the war started back up like nothing had happened the day before. In addition, throughout the Civil War, tons of soldiers from the North and South were fighting against their best friends and people they knew. Unfortunately, this did not change anything and there was no mercy for anybody.
Even if enemies began to see each other as humans, nothing about war would change. Knowing the backgrounds and stories behind enemies does not change a soldier’s duty to fight for his or her country. It is only wishful thinking to say that wars would change and that we would be different if we knew more about our enemies. For all we know right now, the United States army could be training its soldiers so well so as to know about the background of the Iraqis or other country’s soldiers who we are fighting.
So what if a solider knew a lot about the people who he or she was fighting and decided that he or she did not want to fight in a specific war, would this solider just go fight another war? Basically, this article relates war to a selection process where soldiers can say that they have sympathy for their enemies and not fight them, while picking and choosing when they want to fight.
It is obvious that every solider has their own background and stories behind them that would make another person connect with them. Regrettably, this common thing shared amongst all soldiers will not change anything dealing with war.
War can be a very sensitive topic to talk about. I personally don’t think that it is the most effective way to resolve a problem. But the truth of the matter is war will never completely disappear. When reading this blog, and watching the two videos on this Palestinian doctor whose family got murdered and injured by Israelis I was very saddened by this event. I believe that he was a man with a kind heart who had good intentions on change. He was trying to prove to others that even though they are “supposedly” enemies, the barrier could still be broken. In spite of the war going on between Palestine and Israeli, he still chose to become educated, reside, and work in Israel where usually people of his kind were unwelcomed. This was the first big step in breaking the barrier. He dared to be different and step out into the other territory which showed great courage. He was a prominent peacemaker and was well known amongst the Israelis. Witnessing the death of his family must have been a horrific and devastating experience. I know this wasn’t something he would have expected just based off the fact that he had so much creditability amongst the Israelis. I don’t know how I would have felt if I were in his shoes. I can’t imagine trying to go to a place where my people are not welcomed, attempt to make peace during this time of war, begin to progress in my mission and then my family gets killed. It just seems like a slap in the face on the Israelis’ part. In watching the videos, I could tell that this was a big issue after it happened. An event like this really opened up a window for outsiders to voice their opinions about the matter. Many viewers were just as shocked as he was and wanted answers from the Israeli soldiers. I really believe it was a lot of behind the scene hatred amongst some of the soldiers and jealousy which caused this trauma. The soldiers I believe were responsible just lied to cover up what they did. In every peace related movement in history, there was at least one or two people against it which caused a problem. One thing I respected was that although Dr. Abuelaish wasn’t upset, he didn’t resort to retaliation. He didn’t respond to an act of violence with violence. I know this is very hard to do but two wrongs won’t bring back his family or change the situation. I think that everyone can learn from this story. The story helped me to step back and think for a second about war in general and war amongst my peers. Life is too short as we can see from this story; we should be trying to make peace instead of war.
Reading and listening to Dr. Abuelaish’s tragic, devastating story was truly painful. It is a terrible thing that our world has to resort to terror and violence to solve our issues. There have been far too many deaths and negatively life changing stories throughout this bloodshed of a war. It is a scary thought to be thinking of all the families who have loved ones fighting over in Iraq. It is like living through a nightmare for them every day. Will they every see their son, brother, grandson, or nephew again? Was that day they left our country to fight the very last precious moments they would ever spend with their loved ones?
My family and I similarly live fearful every day thinking of our entire one side of the family that lives in Tel Aviv, Israel. My father grew up in Israel and was the only son who made a move and came to America later on in his life. The rest of his family still remain in his beautiful homeland. With this war that has been prolonging for so long we constantly worry about whether or not one day an enemy will decide to throw bombs around in the areas in which my family live. Growing up, I have made many, many visits to Israel which happens to be one of my favorite places in the entire world. It is amazing to me to learn how care-free everyone lives in that country. There is not as much stress and uptightness over little things like there is in the States. Everyone grows up to be extremely independent very quickly. At the age of ten my cousins were already taking public transportation by themselves. My family in Israel has told me time and time again that they don’t need to be living in fear. They decide to live their lives just as any other normal life. They don’t let the things going on with the war prevent them from going anywhere they need to go or doing anything they need to do. How will life ever go on if you don’t let it? I know when I go to Israel I never feel fearful. The fact that everyone is so close nit in that country and there is such a huge sense of community, it makes you feel very safe and comfortable. Although there have been so many scary, tragic stories such as Dr. Abuelaish’s, I believe everyone must live their lives as if there will always be a tomorrow, not matter what their living circumstances are. Living in fear every day of your life would just make life even more scary and miserable then it already might be. My heart goes out to Dr. Abuelaish and his family and every other family who has suffered through his same pain.
This is a tragedy moment for Dr. Abuelaish. I know this is something that no one can tolerate or bear. All my prayers go to Dr. Abuelaish. I can only imagine the pain he is feeling right now. It is already hard enough to witness death of the people that you know; having to bury your own children is the worst thing that can happen to any parent. To see him breakdown was definitely an emotional breakdown for me because I can relate to what him and his people are going through. Living in a place where there is always a war going on, being born and raised in Eritrea and the war with Ethiopia. This war between Gaza and Israel has taken the lives of many people. It has been going on ever since I can remember. I think it has reached its worst moments and there needs to be an end to it. Like Dr. Abuelaish said “let his daughters be the last price to be paid by citizens. This makes you think how many of this had happen to people from Israel or Palestine? I am pretty sure he is not the only parent that is going through this right now. I know there are a lot of parents that are feeling a lot of pain because of the losses of their children, people that’s in pain because they have lost their brothers and sisters or children that has lost their parents. I think it is time to change what is going on. Most Americans don’t really watch CNN so we are not well aware of what is happening in the Middle-east. This is something that happens a lot there are a lot of families that have been heartbroken. A lot of people blood has been spilled to the ground. I think it is time the government of Israel to do something about it or the UN to do something about it. This war is dangerous it is not just the troops fighting with each other but peaceful civilians cannot even go outside knowing they can make it back home. Civilians themselves need to get alone with each other. If they can feel the horrible pain they going through they should also realize that their enemy are feeling the same pain. Holding a resentment is not going to make their lives better. They should think about their future generation. They do not want their kids to experience the same thing as them. I know it is hard to think about the future when the present is the worst but this is something that has to come to an end or otherwise this is going to get worst and worst. I am sure people are tired of losing their love once.
This is a tragedy moment for Dr. Abuelaish. I know this is something that no one can tolerate or bear. All my prayers go to Dr. Abuelaish. I can only imagine the pain he is feeling right now. It is already hard enough to witness death of the people that you know; having to bury your own children is the worst thing that can happen to any parent. To see him breakdown was definitely an emotional breakdown for me because I can relate to what him and his people are going through. Living in a place where there is always a war going on, being born and raised in Eritrea and the war with Ethiopia. This war between Gaza and Israel has taken the lives of many people. It has been going on ever since I can remember. I think it has reached its worst moments and there needs to be an end to it. Like Dr. Abuelaish said “let his daughters be the last price to be paid by citizens. This makes you think how many of this had happen to people from Israel or Palestine? I am pretty sure he is not the only parent that is going through this right now. I know there are a lot of parents that are feeling a lot of pain because of the losses of their children, people that’s in pain because they have lost their brothers and sisters or children that has lost their parents. I think it is time to change what is going on. Most Americans don’t really watch CNN so we are not well aware of what is happening in the Middle-east. This is something that happens a lot there are a lot of families that have been heartbroken. A lot of people blood has been spilled to the ground. I think it is time the government of Israel to do something about it or the UN to do something about it. This war is dangerous it is not just the troops fighting with each other but peaceful civilians cannot even go outside knowing they can make it back home. Civilians themselves need to get alone with each other. If they can feel the horrible pain they going through they should also realize that their enemy are feeling the same pain. Holding a resentment is not going to make their lives better. They should think about their future generation. They do not want their kids to experience the same thing as them. I know it is hard to think about the future when the present is the worst but this is something that has to come to an end or otherwise this is going to get worst and worst. I am sure people are tired of losing their love once.
If we all could see ourselves in each relationship and family that is lost and torn apart by war, war would no longer exist. Maybe not diminish completely, but most wars would not surface because they would no longer be as important as people once thought they were. When two people and/or countries discover they have a disagreement, war breaks out in an effort to support their belief. I believe that if everyone took the time to put themselves in the positions of the parents, siblings, husbands, wives, aunts, uncles etc. that are losing their loved ones the war that is going on between Iraq would finally be over. In addition, the shallow “wars” that people of different races or beliefs tend to have, would also become meaningless. Dr. Abuelaish is an Israeli that has lost his daughters and niece because of a bomb. After watching the video and hearing of his painful story, it is virtually impossible to not feel some type of remorse for him. Putting race and ethnic backgrounds aside, situations where one may lose the person that means the most to them are always saddening. After watching the video, I could not help but feel sorry for him. I could not be able to imagine what he must have been going through. Regardless of race, emotions are stagnant. If Dr. Abeulaish were white, or black, or even green, people would still feel the same remorse for his hardship because most likely others can relate to what it would be like to lose the person that meant the most to them.
I think that if we took a step back and looked at the big picture of “war” it would almost seem pointless to kill anyone. Because “anyone” could be a mother, father, sister, brother or best friend. Therefore, it raises the notion if we all realized war was not worth it in the sense of killing those of loved ones, would war even exist? Everyone must be special to at least someone and would prove why war should be abolished all together. If we all could see the pain within that was caused when losing someone, I feel that other races and ethnic backgrounds would be more appreciative and respectful of one another. In reality, it would be refreshing and interesting to learn about other cultures even if they have different ideas or beliefs than one’s own. It’s sad that countless people are losing their lives because they are believed to be the “enemy.” Something to think about is, just as there are Americans that do not support the Iraq war, there are also Israeli’s that may not support the war. Therefore, no innocent lives should be spared in an effort to defeat the enemy.
Wow. …. . . It ‘s really sad that this is what it takes to open some of our eyes and realize that we all share the same pain and sorrows in this world. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s loss is absolutely tragic and I cannot even imagine beginning to think about the pain he is going through.
This idea that we only share the same sadness when we see a familiar face being hurt is a disgrace; yet, unfortunately very true. I think that in some sense, this country through its societal pressure, mimics celebrities in their style, weight and their actions and we as a country look up to these people. Therefore, it is in our culture to feel the pain of a familiar face. Yes, it is absolutely disheartening to know however articles such as this are making us realize the reality through the blindfold we try to hide behind.
What I am trying to emphasize is that I feel it takes a tragic event like this for our country to feel sorrow and relate to another country because we are so use to looking up to familiar faces. Let’s face it, on average; most of us want that “perfect body” like Gisele or Adriana Lima, or maybe Brad Pitt (guys). We mimic their trends and diets to be like them. Thus, if something were to happen to them or their family we would feel their grief as well. We are accustomed to looking up to these people. I think this is why it takes a familiar face for us to feel related to a situation.
I feel if we took this situation and applied it to the war in Iraq, lets just say maybe we would no longer be in war with Iraq. I read this blog and watched the videos and even made a comment to my roommates of how much violence is going on and what if this happened to anyone of us. We never think about this stuff. It was funny because my one roommate even replied with “Let’s just not think about it”. I think that simple phrase says a lot about this country. Yes, let’s just not think about the war or the fact that people are dying and losing family members. Why is it ok not to think about when it isn’t happening to us? But as soon as it happens to us personally or someone we know, we feel grief. Why does it take a soldier actually experiencing the war to have a better outlook on the situation than we do? We live in the dark. As a society we are so caught up in what everyone else is doing that we don’t realize how much we have in common. It really takes the courage and realization to be able to step back and look that we really aren’t “better” or “different” than anyone else in the world.
If we take away the personal connection we have with another human being, it becomes much easier to ignore the fact that this other person or persons have so much in common with us. This is often done in war, as well as in other situations where two humans, so alike in so many ways, are pitted against each other, either voluntarily such as in a personal conflict, on involuntarily as in war when they are sent by their government to carry out a mission or objective.
While we do have so much in common as a species (family structure, emotions, and general physical characteristics) it is the psychological differences which generally drive us to “hate” each other and fuel conflicts where two people are fighting or killing each other. We do not necessarily fight for the same reasons that animals fight, such as for mating rights or for territory or for food. We fight over complex things, one of the oldest being religion and differing perspectives on religion.
This battle over religion is where the fighting that killed Dr. Abuelaish’s daughters and neice stems from. The Palestinians and the Israelis are fighting a battle because one believes the other is harboring criminals who are killing others in the name of their supreme being. It was unclear in the article why Dr. Abuelaish’s house was targeted by Israeli forces when he was a known ally to both sides of the conflict. Perhaps Israel wanted to make an example out of him, saying “we will kill our friends and comrades without second thought, so imagine what we will do to you if you do not stop harboring Hamas terrorists.” Whatever the reasoning behind killing these innocent women, we see the ignorance for another human life, and how easily someone can take another life without thinking about the implications that are had from that killing on all the family, friends and people who wittiness the act. If the soldiers who killed these girls saw their faces, and knew their father and uncle, and witnessed the aftermath of their killing, I imagine it would have been much harder for them to ever follow through on this command. The face that wars are able to be executed from a distance makes it easier to ignore the human connection that we all share.
I imagine that centuries ago, before guns were invented, when hand to hand combat was the only main form of fighting, soldiers and fighters did not have the impersonal and disconnected sense that many people today do. We hear stories about the American Civil War in which soldiers from both the North and the South would congregate at night and talk to each other from the trenches or even share a drink and a card game at night, and when morning came they went back to killing each other. I imagine it was much more taxing on the individual soldiers then who killed each other than it was on the soldiers who killed Dr. Abuelaish’s girls. The reaction is still the same though. No matter which side of the line you are on, if someone is killed, their family still goes through the same grieving, the dreams of that person, everything that they meant to anyone else in the world is now gone. Seeing this story brought that point to light, death is death, and it is mourned the same way everyway and the aftermath is the same on the same people, no matter who did the killing or what the cause was for, the end result is the same.
Wow. I was moved to tears by Dr. Abuelaish’s story. To lose not one, but three daughters and a niece in one night is the stuff that parent’s nightmares are made of. A man of peace who had never done anything to provoke a whole army, did not deserve for that to happen to him. Especially in the safety of his own home. The Israeli army did not even have a legitimate answer for the bombings!
Dr. Abuelaish is a friend to both the Palestinian people and Israeli people, and yet he was targeted. He saw them both as human, and treated both as patients in his hospital. Is that why he was seen as a target by the Israeli army? Because he is a beacon of peace and works towards that goal? Because he is the epitome what Palestinians and Israelis need to work towards? Watching that video of him and his seriously wounded daughter in the hospital was heartbreaking. If we saw the mothers and fathers of Iraqis holding their children and crying grief-stricken tears we would definitely feel differently about this war. There is a sort of disconnection when the other side of a war is a faceless body of people. You cannot really feel for them or know how they themselves are feeling. By adding both names and faces to a group of suffering people makes a world of difference. You can see with your own eyes that they are hurting and that the violence around them affects us too. It affects us because they are human beings just as we are and with the same emotions, and what if we were that mother or father? What if we were in Dr. Abuelaish’s shoes, we would be just as heartbroken as he is.
Human emotion is universal and it is something that everyone can relate to. When we see videos or hear stories like Dr. Abuelaish’s, we can’t help but think, what if that happened to someone I knew? We think of our families and friends and seeing them in a situations like that, and our hearts go out to Abuelaish. You’re right, this isn’t just about Israelis or Palestinians. This is about each one of us bridging that gap between faceless violence and the real heartbreaking stories behind those horrors. We may hear about a bombing in Iraq, but how many of us really think about that bombing? How many of us really think about the fathers and mothers that died in the bombing? Instead of seeing targets and statistics, we should start seeing each other as friends in humanity. We all suffer and if we can help one another through compassion and empathy, that is a step closer to a better world.
People never really take the time to think about how some one else feels about a situation or try and put them selves in some one else’s shoes because that would require them to not think just about them selves. It would require people to stop being selfish to stop only thinking of them selves. They would have to try and relate or understand some one else’s feelings and situation. I think if people actually applied certain things into their own wars it would be a lot different and there would be a lot less conflict in the world. There wouldn’t be so many people consumed in them selves and their own selfishness. More people would think of others before them selves and before starting a “war” or a conflict. If people thought about others first then there wouldn’t be so much war in the world and there would be such a thing as peace reached in the world. But I feel like people don’t think of others and only think of them selves before any one else is because they don’t want to actually have to feel something. No one wants to really feel pain or any real emotions because it is so much easier to just not feel anything at all. It’s a lot easier for some one to only think about them selves and the fact that they are not actually feeling any real pain or any real emotions. With people only thinking about them selves and being selfish they don’t have to feel anything and realize what is actually going on in the world around them or in their surroundings. This is not something new with people it’s been going on for a very long time it’s the reason why things like the Holocaust happened. If people stopped being so consumed in them selves and actually learned to feel something for some one else there wouldn’t be so many wars in our world or so many people being killed and hurt because some one else hates or dislikes some one. If people took the time to put them selves in the shoes of some one they don’t like the world would be a completely different place. People would actually know how to feel something for some one besides them selves and there wouldn’t be so much war or people dying in our world. Each individual person should really start to think about conflicts they start and try and figure out how the other person feels and what they are going through or what emotions they are trying to cope with. If people took the time to see how or feel how others felt then we could actually reach some peace in the world.
I think that what Dr. Abuelaish has gone through is sad, especially since he was an ally to the Israelis as well as a prominent figure amongst Israelis and Palestinians. This incident shows that no one is safe, and we could all fall victims no matter how nice a person is. I think that people get so caught up in the big picture that they look over or forget about the little things like morality. Had the troops done their jobs right and found out where the shots were truly fired from, then Dr. Abuelaish’s family would not have been killed. The whole Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been going on for a very long time yet they still have not put aside their differences. One lesson adults are always trying to teach students is, to solve their problems or whatever differences they may have, without fighting. I think this is hypocritical because they are doing exactly what they tell us not to do on a much larger scale, and many innocent people are being harmed and even killed because of it. For Dr. Abuelaish to actually witness his daughters being murdered is horrible. The question is will this act of violence? I don’t think it will change anything. The fact that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been going on for so long, I think that it is something that will always exist in some form. But through this situation could it open our eyes to the war in Iraq. Dr. Abuelaish is a person who has dedicated his life to helping solve this ongoing problem. He has even made peace with Israelis, yet for them to perform this act is like a slap in the face.
I noticed that in the second interview he stated “I hope that my children will be the last price. And that they will be satisfied with this. And that they will stop.” Here is a man who has lost three of his daughters and a niece, and he took this and used it as a force to his dedication for them to stop fighting. He never sounded bitter or revengeful; he just wants them to stop even if it took his own children’s life for them to do so. I think that these actions are so big of him and they show how much he is dedicated for them to stop fighting. With the Iraqi war, we have no clue what the soldiers are out there doing. But I am sure that they are committing these same acts. We rarely hear about it but it doesn’t change the fact that it is happening. I think as a people we have become so immune to bad things because we hear them so often. But hearing Dr. Abuelaish call into the news station was enough to bring emotion back. Maybe we need that in order to take action, we need to hear and see that raw emotion in order to act.
The whole concept of war is a touchy subject. The reason we don’t see the faces of the people who are hurting because of the war is because Americans can’t handle that. All in all, there are some things that just need to be done. If there is a terrorist and the only way the military can effectively stop his act of terrorism is to kill him, but also in turn kill others, then the military is just going to make that sacrifice. It’s a terrible situation for them to be in. If the media reported that they let the terrorist go, half the country would complain. If they kill the terrorist and harm the innocent bystanders, the other half of the country will complain. And all in all, if we just kill the terrorist, yeah half the country is complaining, but at least that terrorist isn’t a concern anymore. So yeah, the military has to do it. So what if we did start putting the stories of the now dead terrorist or his family in US media? Everyone would freak out. The person who carried out the mission to kill the terrorist would not be a hero. He would be a monster. And of course we could all just put ourselves in each other’s shoes all the time all over the world and watch CNN clips about the families of the people we harm, and in theory everyone would just stop being evil. NOT. In reality, some people are evil. Many of the people that our military is battling in this world will not be stopped if Americans try to build alliances. There is no such thing as alliances with some of these people. These are corrupt, powerful, and persuasive people who are determined to hate the western way. If you ask their six-year-old children what they want to do, they want to kill Americans. We can think about the war and try to change how Americans view the concept of war in general, but it certainly isn’t going to make a lot of our bigger problems any better. Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t want a war any more than anyone else. I have a boyfriend in the Navy who leaves for months at a time to go on tours to defend the country. War makes me rather sick. However, I just can’t stomach the idea that there will be any kind of benefit from viewing war differently. It’s pure ideology. If anything, knowing about the families of the victims of war will make Americans full of conflict and anger. Sometimes it’s best just to turn your head when you aren’t in control of a situation. And yes, one could argue that we could take control and end the war. But the people who hate us are still going to hate us, and when you’re dealing with people like that, there really isn’t a different way out.
The topic of war always disparages me. Being in a country that believes in peace and freedom makes it a contradiction when we fight. The situation with Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is absolutely heart breaking. A person who completely dedicates his life and advocates for tranquility and helping others with medical needs as a doctor doesn’t deserve the outcome that he experienced. He was a Palestinian doctor who worked with Israeli television; that in and of itself was evidence of his desire of unity. He lived in Gaza, which is a Palestinian city. He was considered to be one of the few people to help the violent conflict between the Israelis and the Palestine’s. After all of this sacrifice, he finds out his three children were killed in a bombing? Is that the thanks, the gratefulness, the payback? I’m not quite sure of the origin of this altercation but they’re adjacent proximity and similar religion and cultural practices should theoretically bring a close comradery between the two groups. I think this could honestly be parallel to the discrimination occurring within the black race of its own. There’s so many clicks and groups divided by acceptance. Color and tone is a big category of bias. In the African American culture, being light is beautiful. The lighter you are, that’s when you look the most appealing. Being too dark is unacceptable. It’s usually related to being of indigenous African descent and the history behind it all; slavery. The ones who were out in the fields picking cotton were the darker blacks while the ones working in the house were lighter and doing more of the household chores. So the more inferior shade came to be the darker. Then hair textures come into effect. Having “kinky” hair is considered to be ugly and a sign of dirtiness. A lot of times so many black women, especially, will conform to society’s perspective on beauty and try to straighten and perm their hair. Who derived the fact that the natural texture of black people’s hair is “nappy” or unpretty? So now within our own race, it’s seen that sporting an afro is weird when actually it’s embracing who you are. But this factor goes within every race and they’re judgments casted everywhere. It’s an inevitable barrier, especially with Arabs or others with Islamic heritage. Ever since 9/11, they’ve been alienated throughout the nation simply because of the image of Osama Bin Laden. It’s not fair that they are mistreated for their culture and relating it to one event that individuals and families had nothing to do with. In conclusion, I feel that this event is a strong but relevant representation of selfish and racial rivalry that still exists today.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is just who Israel and Palestine need right now. Although his situation is a terrible one, it is one that both nations can relate to. I thought that CNN did an excellent on reporting this story. I loved how they described Dr. Abuelaish as a “face of Gaza Israelis can relate to” and how his losses “touched a raw nerve” and were able to “expose [Israel] to the suffering of its neighbors.” While both countries have been suffering for many weeks now, both were blind to the other’s pain. However close they are in distance, it is obvious that these two countries are miles away from any sympathy for one another. Although it is rather unfortunate for Dr. Abuelish, the loss of three of his daughters and one niece might just bring about the first steps to bringing Israel and Palestine to peace. Even before the deaths of his family members, his story was an unusual one: an Israeli doctor living and working in Gaza, yet still a friend to the Palestinians. His unique position already made him a figure to look up to, even before his terrible losses.
As for applying Dr. Abuelaish’s story to our own wars, I believe this is an excellent idea, and it is one that can go beyond just war. Take genocide for example. Genocide is made possible by simply creating a dangerous outsider and not giving them any links or overlapping characteristics to the familiar people. By making them so foreign or inhuman it is not so hard to dispose of them. But put a face to the outsider’s suffering, especially a face such as Dr. Abuelaish’s, who has ties to both sides of the suffering, and suddenly it is not as easy to justify the killing. Instead of some random stranger this can easily be a cousin or a coworker. Distance is the worst enemy in any conflict, and I am not just talking about miles and kilometers. The moment you distance yourself from another human being some problem will almost always arise. The moment that you begin to think you are right and they are wrong or that you are better and they are of a lesser value, major conflict will arise. Had we taken this into account I believe our Iraq war would be very different. Realizing that not everyone is the same, and that just because we are different no one culture or society is right or wrong can be the first steps to creating a lasting peace. This is exactly what I hope Dr. Abuelaish’s story does for the people of both Palestine and Israel. His losses are ones that can be recognized by both of these nations.
How much is too much? How far is too far? When is enough finally ENOUGH? I could never imagine having to watch people that I love die in front of me, especially my own children. How much more pain is going to brought to people because we are not able to see other people as human. The attacks of September 11th really hit home for me, and I watched my father stare into the TV as they announced names of people he worked with in the NYPD. When are we finally going to let go of all the anger in this world, and try to work towards a more peaceful environment? The roots of hatred have been grown so deep that it is going to take forever to finally repair the damage, but it is not a good enough reason for people like Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish to have to suffer the way he has.
There is so much suffering going on in the world, and innocent people are suffering. Children are dying because we as a people are unable to step back from a situation and think clearly through a problem, rather than targeting people who shouldn’t be targeted. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is fighting for peace and has to watch three of his daughters die. How FAR is too FAR? How much more pain do people have to feel before we realize that we are all human? The Palestine/Israeli crisis is a situation that will take so long to work through, and every day people are suffering because of it. When do we as a people finally take a stand against violence and try to find a more peaceful way to solve our disagreements? Children are dying, women are burying their husbands, and we are watching it all happen. There are not enough people in the world like Dr. Izzeldin who sees a person as a human being rather than someone different. He is a man striving for peace between the two countries, and instead is the one to suffer. How does that make any sense?
We are all human. We have loved ones. We all are the same. We might have different skin colors and we might have different beliefs, but that does not mean we should be fighting each other and allowing innocent people to die. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s story truly broke my heart. This man lives his life trying to break down the barrier between the two countries and in turns loses the people closest to him because of the disagreements between the countries. Life may not be fair, but this is truly a travesty. When will we finally live in a world where we can see past our differences and work through our disagreements in a more peaceful manner? I hope that day will come soon because the longer we wait, the more people like Dr. Izzeldin will suffer such great tragedies.
This war has been very tragic and many people have lost loved ones. I do believe that once you know the story behind the many faces that we are fighting against, it hurts even more. Knowing more about the people that are being hurt, makes them seem more like ourselves. They are not just animals running around with guns they are fighting for their country just like American soldiers are fighting for us. I personally do not have someone close to me fighting over in Iraq, but I do have a close friend whose father is leaving this weekend for another year over seas. It’s just so sad to see people who really are just like ourselves, who are children, brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, friends or cousins dieing or being attacked. I would hope that if we knew each and every person personally we wouldn’t fight them, we would feel compassion for them, because killing that person you are killing all of their loved ones. Personally I feel like a war is hardly going on because lately we have only been focused on Obama coming in to office and because no one especially close to me is over there I don’t think about the war much. Though I know I should because there are men from our country a part of this war. I would just like to hope that some day the world will understand the value of life and how killing one person is hurting many others who are close to them. People of all races have one thing in common that they all want safety and security, but the world is full of war. Also maybe if people saw the stories and the lives behind the many different ethnicities and races they would stop seeing just a color. Maybe the reason so many people are still racist is because they only see color they don’t see human beings and the stories behind all the faces and all the colors. The soldiers fighting any war are just human beings fighting for their countries and fighting for their families and loved ones. Unfortunately I know what it feels like to loose a loved one and I feel for Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish. I also feel that wars have a lot to do with politics and I don’t care much for politics. People always feel like they need to defend their countries, when why should it be citizens putting their life on the line, when it’s the politicians creating all the problems. Shouldn’t they be the ones fighting their own battles instead of letting innocent people like the Abuelaish family and other civilians dieing because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. War is a struggle for power, it’s sad, but unfortunately will probably never go away.
The journey of Dr. Abuelaish’s life is by far the most devastating story I have heard. How could anyone possibly be able to resist witnessing the death of his three daughters and a niece in one day and watch his other daughter struggle to survive? Is this really fair? Is this the meaning of life? The main question in my head is always about the things that must be changed in order to survive this life? Even Dr. Abuelaish who has committed his life to save other human beings and has worked for peace throughout his living is facing one of the biggest tragedies of his personal life. This makes me doubt certain things about this life and why he, who is a good part of this life, must go through this tragedy. This is not really about the war...it is about people’s personal issues...It is all politics and the majority of these innocent citizens are paying for it. Everyday people are losing their loved ones in process of this non meaningful peace that others are reaching for. A good example would be the Iraq war. God knows how many people have died and struggled to live in order to bring peace to the world. We will never have peace in this world if we keep doing and thinking the way we currently are. We always must treat others as we would like to treated, so how would it be possible to kill others if we didn't see them as less human than us? If everyone put themselves in the situations that the people of war are facing such as death, loss of loved ones and homes…no one could kill anyone. If we put ourselves in their position and actually live the way they are living, life would lose its meaning. I am sure that there must be a way to change all this for a more peaceful life where others do not have to die for the rest of us to have peace and freedom. This politics that makes no sense for the most part has ruined the life of many innocent individuals and will be like this for decades from now if we don't stop it. Why do these people who are actually reaching for peace and are the cure of this world have to go through this? Is this a revenge for the death of other? This is the story of all of us, if we really think about it. Everyone’s live connects to each other at one point. I believe if we could sense and share the amount of pain that these Palestinian citizens, Israeli, and Iraqis have gone through for the past years, there would be no war and people would have begun to create more peace among them.
First off I would like to extend my extreme condolences to Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish and his family for their tragic loses. No one, parent, child, etc. should have to witness the loss of a loved one at any given point in their life. With that being said, death is a part of the human life cycle. We cannot expect to keep our loved ones with us physically, in person, forever. We must say goodbye to them and keep them in our thoughts and in our prayers. However, the way that Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish lost his family is extremely heart wrenching. I do not feel that Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish and his family were targeted. I think that it was just a very unfortunate event that occurred at a wrong moment. Once again I express extreme sorrow for him and his family and hope that they can recover from this in a timely manner.
Wars, and its reasons, are very much a big issue in the world and one that will not be solved easily. My only objection to not having wars is that our country, the United States of America, was founded solely on the act of war against the British. Yes, there was a mass genocide of Native Americans, I cannot explain the reason for this, but when it is laid out, our country is a free country because of the wars we fought and the lives we lost.
With regard to the war in Iraq, I would be heartbroken if one of my family members was killed over there fighting this war of, what seems like, no end. Being in a family with no close military background, i.e. parents and grandparents did not fight in a war; I do not know the feeling that comes with the death of a soldier. I have extreme respect for our soldiers and troops protecting our national boundaries and keeping our nation safe and free. I realize that these troops have a family somewhere and should return home to them safely. I can only sympathize with all of the families, in the world, who have lost loved ones to acts of war and hatred.
I cannot honestly think what it would be like to murder someone or something. Even hunting disturbs me a bit. Now I know the entire argument about the food cycle, but in my personal views it is still gruesome. As for murdering a human being, I cannot even begin to describe the horrors that would follow. I would envision that person’s face in my dreams for many years to come. I just do not see the positive side about killing another person.
Asking for a world without war is unreasonable. The idea that war=power has been imprinted in the minds of many citizens across the entire planet. I have no solution to ending war, but can only pray that it could be terminated after some time.
I can’t imagine losing one child, let alone losing three at once (AND a niece). My immediate reaction while watching the first clip was sadness. Not only did this guy lose three children and his niece but he lost them because of the violence and war that is happening. Their lives could have easily been saved. It is a terrible tragedy and I cannot imagine what he is going through. My grandmother lost two children early in their life to leukemia at two different times and I know it has severely impacted her life in many ways. I see the tragedy and depression and many effects that this has had on her and the rest of my family and I know that it sure is not easy. But, this doctor’s loss is even greater and comes all at once. It is just unfathomable to understand the kind of suffering the doctor is going through. One day you have your family and the next three of your daughters and niece are gone.
I understand that there are reasons for war. I do not necessarily agree with war, but I support our troops. I understand that at this point, these are the steps that are being taken to try to solve something. I wish that there was a way that we could all just get along and that war did not cause the tragedy that it does to so many people every day. It is so scary to imagine everything and hear everything that is going on. When I was a little kid, I remember learning about war in school and hearing all the bad things about war. I would cry to my mother because I never wanted to live during a war because I was that afraid. Today, I am living through a war and although I experience the impact of it, I do not really fully experience what I imagined as a little kid because I am not there first hand seeing all that is happening. I am not watching car bombs right outside my house or waking up one morning to seeing my daughter die. But, other people are and that is the problem.
I wish that we could find the compassion for the other countries we are fighting. I wish that we would realize that they are the same as us and that when we are killing someone we are killing someone else’s daughter, someone else’s mother, someone else’s father, etc.
It is horrible to think that it takes seeing the “the face of friend” to “open hearts so that enemies begin to see one another as humans.” I wish that we could all unite and be better people so that our world could grow in peace.
What in heaven's name is this world coming to? How many innocent unsuspectiing people must be killed before we realize that violence is not the answer. Imagine a man like Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish who has worked to promote peace during his lifetime is suddenly faced with the reality that three of his precious daughters and his niece have been killed. How do we expect him to behave or even how do we expect others like him to behave in this emotional state. Will the people of Gaza want to avenge these deaths? Will Israel realize that this has gone too far? Will there ever be peace amongst these people or this will just be a continuous cycle of "an eye for an eye?"
I think that wars would change and the outcomes would be different if everyone saw everybody else as a human being. Maybe if people cared about other people and their families and realize that they are suffering too, then the world would be different. I think the reason that people do not care is because they have to do their job or they feel obligated to do it, not just for their families but for their country. Also if people actually cared then some of the terrorists might still be alive.
Before I read this blog, I have never heard of Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish and I have no idea who he is. But after watching 2 clips with my tears running down my cheek and read more articles about him, I was shocked and sad at the same time. This is the big deal. People just haven’t realized this because it doesn’t seem real to them. But when it comes to people who they can relate to, especially in this case, they watched this happening live on TV, many people can feel Dr. Abuelaish’s pain and start to wonder why are we keep killing each other and innocent civilians? Finally, Israeli started to think about the killing of more than 1,200 Palestinians and questioned that humans use civilian as human shields.
I started to think why people use violence as an answer. There are many other ways we can try and negotiate with each other. Why don’t we try to make peace with each other? If they killed us first, killed them back is not an answer. It will only kill more and more people. Iraqis are just human like us. I never agree with US war in Iraq, as an outsider, so I couldn’t really say much. From reading other people’s comments on this blog entry even surprised me more. There are people who still believe that war with Iraq is the best way for US. But is it really? This is not just about killing each other, it is so much more than that. I agree with professor Richards that “how would it be possible to kill others if we didn't see them as less human than us?” It is hard to imagine Iraqi’s pain if you don’t have any connection with them, but I see them just as equal as us. I see them as a human trying to survive from the war.
I strongly believe that all war is unjust. In war, soldiers kill people who have done them and their nation no harm and they are killed in turn by soldiers on the opposite side of the conflict. Noncombatants, including children, die in war, even if every effort is made to avoid killing them. Mistakes are made, and people die. I think that if we all truly want to stop war, we can. We always heard the phrase everyone can make a different, but we haven’t made any different because we haven’t start. And again, all this war wouldn’t happen if we don’t see different between each other. I learned so much more about races in this class. I realized that people judge each other by appearance and look. Right after 911, anyone who look like he or she is from middle east thought to be terrorist although they might be a U.S. Citizen. Like I said on my previous comment, when people start to see no different in each other, that’s when we can all live peacefully without worry about races.
As Americans, we do not know war; war is a battle fought on foreign soil, with foreign enemies, and foreign civilian causalities. I think that war is a very peculiar aspect of our world today, and it is difficult to explain to people living in the United States. A majority of the people living here today have never experienced war first hand, only through the likes of television, radio, newspapers and other mediums and of us have ever experienced a war on our own homefront, yet I’m sure if we did, we would have a whole new outlook on it.
Personally, I think war is ridiculous and proves nothing except who can get the most money, to supply the most weapons and who can kill the most people. To me, this solves absolutely nothing. I was brought up learning that if you have a problem with someone, fighting is not the answer; you need to talk to that person and tell them what the problem is. I know that this may sound naïve, or unrealistic, but I think that if we had better “talking” relations with our “enemies” than a lot of this war could have been eradicated. Bombing and shooting people serves no purpose in our society, the pain and grief that it causes to people that have no ties or relations to the enemies is unforgiving. I think that if our government would take a stance and stop the fighting and start the talking, we would not only be out of this war, but I would also dare to assume that our economy would not be doing as poorly as it is today.
I think that the only way that Americans would be able to see and feel the pain of the innocent’s suffering during wartime would be to actually experience it themselves, which I hope would never have to happen here. If war were being fought in our backyard, instead of overseas, it would be a totally different story. I think that the sad truth of this is that we, as Americans, have really lost our sense of imagination. Not that we would want to dream about losing someone we care about during a war, but I believe that it all relates back to our nation of instant gratification. We need to be shown things on the news the moment they happen, we need to pick up our food from a drive-thru so we can eat it right then and there, if there is a line we bitch and moan. If our nation would just slow down as a whole, I think we would really be able to see the bigger picture.
Not only as a person, or as an American, but also as a Jew I grieve for everyone who has been going through the horrific ordeal in Israel. I pray for peace, and hope that these two enemies can reach an agreement that will stop the fighting, and start the living.
My cousin recently returned home from serving a year in Afghanistan as a scout on the U.S. army. While he was there my family and I sent him care packages, and in one of them I sent him a toy wind-up rubber band airplane just for fun, never expecting him to actually fly it around his base. Two weeks ago he sent me a video that his friend took of him flying the little plain out of a military tower in Najil. The message he sent along with it said that it made the day for a couple of Afghan kids. My eyes welled up with tears as I watched my cousin flag his arms and whistle from up in the tower to get the attention of two children walking along the road far below. As he thrust the plane out into the sky, his friend attempted to follow its flight with the camera out over the rugged landscape. Then he turned the camera back on my smiling cousin and I became aware of the huge gun anchored to the railing next to him in the tower, along with endless ammunition to feed this weapon. Suddenly I was struck by the fact that he was at war fighting the very people whose children he was excited to entertain.
In seeing this video, I came to the realization that it doesn’t matter how well you know or respect someone when you are in these situations. Although my cousin did not know these children as well as the Israelis knew Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, I know that he did not want to hurt them any more than they wanted to hurt the doctor. It breaks my heart to think that the same tower that the little toy plain was flown from to brighten the day of two young children also holds the machinery to kill those children, their parents, brothers, sisters, or friends. Even more frightening is the thought that the same soldier who flew the toy plain could be called upon to operate the weapon at his side against these people.
Even if fighting armies knew the stories behind the faces of each of their opposing soldiers, this could not change the violent way controversies are settled in this world. I think many times we realize the individuality of these people and wish for peace between us. At the same time, the men flying the planes into the twin towers did not think about the lives they were about to take, or if they did it still didn’t stop them from carrying out the attack, just as the pilot flying over Nagasaki and Hiroshima did not withhold from releasing the bombs on the cities below. If a soldier were to hesitate before pulling his trigger because of sorrow for the life which he was about to take, he would undoubtedly lose his own life. What I am trying to say is, even if one person, army or country were to stop and think about the cruelty in the violence they were committing, that does not mean their opponents would also draw back their weapons. It is for this reason that I believe no matter how many Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s lives we allow to be dismantled, the violence will never end.
War is getting less personal. Not only are governments telling the public less about what is going on, but sometimes even the soldiers don’t know what is happening. Now a days people can sit in their living room and go switch back and fourth between ‘The Simpsons” and the war in Iraq. You can even take your pick on what channel you would like to watch it on. This brings me to my next point. The media had an overwhelming responsibility to the public about what they show and say on TV. They have to understand the fact that most people are going to accept it as true. I have a friend who has a father in Iraq, he says the media completely smears what is going on there. Now turning to the Gaza conflict, not only is the doctor an amazing hero and beacon for peace, but so is the newscaster who picked up his phone. His simple but righteous act brought the bombs, bloodshed, and bodies into the living rooms of everyone watching. People immediately could understand the destruction that their military is causing. I am not saying that Israel didn’t have reason to enter Gaza, because they did. When you are dealing with terrorists, I think you just can’t play their game. As a better people, we have to show responsibility to in innocent people. If we don’t, we are just like them, killing innocent people. Now back to the media thing, I really think that legislature has to be passed about what they report. Some pricks in an office somewhere shouldn’t be deciding what they want America to believe. They have way to much power, power the rivals the governments. And you can’t make the defense that “well you don’t have to believe everything they say.” Well how the hell am I going to figure out what is going on. I know this is lofty thinking, but what the hell. And it is so visible, flicking back between Fox news and NBC is laughable. Whoever is deciding what to air is just picking the parts to prove themselves right to justify the size of their own tiny dick. I think that media people should have to take an oath, just like doctors take the Hippocratic oath before they are allowed to practice medicine. With a media position comes power, knowledge, and influence, they should not be allowed to tells us whatever they want, I just want the truth. And how about a few nice stories, help me believe that there are good things going on in this world every once in a while. I am from Baltimore, and I have no desire to watch the local news, because all you here about it the three latest teen shootings in the city, I might flick it on at the end to catch the fluff piece.
We live in a world where war is not an uncommon thing. To turn on the news and hear reporters talking of fighting between two nations is a relatively normal thing for us to witness at this point. Our nation’s wars have been taught to us from an early age and while it is important to know of our country’s history, there is no subject teaching that war between two sides is not that way to handle a dispute. To think that in order for one side to get what they want out of a conflict, innocent people must die in battle seems absurd. Granted, we have gotten to a point in the world where if that was not the solution, even more destruction could occur. If one side was to be the example and not fight back, would that make a difference? Would that pave the way for future generations to follow? But then who wants to be that first nation that sits and takes the blows instead of fighting and possibly ending the battle sooner rather than later. But isn’t that what we have been taught growing up? If someone is making fun of us or being mean, we are to ignore it because when we don’t respond they will eventually get bored and stop. Does the same apply to nations of millions of people? Can a whole nation ignore another nation as to avoid war? I have no idea.
The story of this Doctor is a powerful one. Both sides know him and the horrible thing he witnessed and they feel compassion. Could this be a solution to the hate in our world? I think that it is safe to say that when we know a person’s personal story and have an idea of who and what they are as a person, we are slower to judge to them. When we know little about a person or a situation, we are quick to create their own stories and judge on things we have no idea about. If we were to learn of others before placing judgment, peace may slowly bloom in places we least expected. If we could start by spreading this among children at a young age, in schools, the world could slowly being to change. As I am studying to become a teacher, I am learning about new ways of speaking to children in classrooms that leaves out negativity and competition. Feelings are shared and respected and absolutely no judgment is placed on anyone. If people could adopt this mindset a peaceful movement could begin to spread and who knows what changes would take place. By nature, I believe that we are compassionate and loving people, but as we grow up we are tainted by the hate and judgment that is all around us. If only we could learn to respect one another’s differences and live without placing judgment, what a different world this would be.
You know, that is perhaps the question that comes up in my mind whenever I think of a human conflict of any type. What if we knew each other?
I mean, past the history, the associations, the opinions, the commentary. What if we really knew each other?
I truly feel for Dr. Abuelaish. To lose your family is one thing, but to lose 3 daughters, a niece and a wife to the same conflict is catastrophic. Not only that, but because he is a Palestinian working in an Israeli hospital he is bombarded by news services requesting his reaction from loosing cherished family members. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been going on for quite some time and an end does not appear imminent. Through this whole news story I feel that some core human emotions were touched. If you are an Israeli who was involved with bombing this poor doctor’s house or just an Israeli in general you have to feel guilty for this man who has done nothing but preach reconciliation between two warring nations. The quote that really reached to me was the fact that the Dr. Abuelaish commented that he hopes the loss of his three daughters is the last deaths that have to occur in this conflict. This story really brings human emotion and feelings into the forefront of this conflict. Many times news services only report what was attacked and who was bombed and how many people died. But, rarely do news services touch on the human emotions as much as this story did. I can admit that when I see news stories about any war I just see it as somewhat normal. I never actually put myself in the shoes of the living people who are affected by the deaths that are being reported on the news. I must admit that doing that for this story was very eye-opening. Many religious practices preach the golden rule of treating others the way you want to be treated. Putting myself in Dr. Abuelaish’s shoes, I’m not sure that I could be as calm and collected and preaching peace between both sides. I would be filled with so much hatred for the opposition who caused so much harm to my family. It was also refreshing to see Dr. Abuelaish’s colleagues being so supportive in the fact that this Israeli-Palestinian conflict needs to come to an end. Thinking about the US’s war with Iraq I never thought about how our troops are doing the same thing when it comes to bombing innocent civilians. Thinking about how Iraqi civilians are being killed solely because our two countries are at war is sickening. I feel that those who are put in the decision making positions need to show more compassion. How did the US react when 9/11 occurred? While none of our attacks are on that large of scale on other country’s civilians, we still are killing civilians. If everyone could see life through the eyes of the father who just survived a plane crash to hug his 5 year old daughter again, I feel that humans as a whole would be better off.
I feel that at the heart of all the atrocities one person imposes on another pride can be found. Where does the ability to declare one person subhuman come from? Where does it originate? Why are we capable of such things? I believe the answer lies in an individuals self-conceited pride. A selfish pride which allows us to put others below us and consequently putting ourselves above them. We are programmed to be selfish beings, our entire world is constructed in a way that we can achieve massive material wealth without ever needing to rely on someone else. There are certainly many factors involved when it comes to this issue of pride which could be culture, fanatical religious institutions, upbringing, or whatever. But I do think that whatever has caused this pride, it is pride which gives us the ability to physically see another human being but not actually see him or her. If our world were completely absent of this selfish pride things would certainly be much different. War would be rare and our daily interactions with others would probably be more pleasant and constructive. All types of discrimination would disappear overnight. Women could get piss drunk and naked and pass out on the couch of some fraternity and the worse things she would have to be concerned about is being sharpied. Our lives would be full of grace for one another and we would take the time to thank our janitors and trash collectors and not just our doctors and dentists. We would not only stop purchasing clothes made by sweatshop workers but we would travel to these countries and show them love. Dictators and tyrants would tremble at the thought of such an idea, the idea that other people around the world actually care enough to do something. People would be greatly involved in their governments and the wealthy would gladly share with those less fortunate and the poor rejoice at such generous acts. If the everyone viewed everyone as equal a bizarre love should sweep our world and for probably the first time in history, peace would be enjoyed. However, to hope for such things is a dream that few people have dared reach, but it is those few people who give us such wonderful hope for humanity, people like Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, Ghandi, and Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish. It would be an amazing thing if we could all have the tremendous amount of love that these people display for their fellow man, friend or enemy. I don’t believe that our world will ever see such love, at least not in my life time, but perhaps in time we will. My hope is that we start small with our daily interactions with one another and through that something larger might emerge.
When two nations are at war, it makes sense to de-humanize the enemy. When you de-humanize the enemy, the pain isn’t as deep when you kill. When the enemy is viewed as an animal, guilt and shame do not hang around as long and not as intense. If we were to view the enemy as humans (with lives, children, homes, concerns, dreams, hopes, values), it would be considerably harder to kill them and add to the statistics. In war, people turn into numbers and statistics. No one ever takes into effect that those numbers have valuable, humanistic importance. For example, take a look at the Holocaust numbers. The number of people killed in the concentration camps during World War II was around 6 million. When I first heard that number, I knew it was a large number, but it’s so large that I still cannot comprehend. I have a feeling that I will never be able to fully understand the true value of the number deaths that occurred. I was reading an article on how this teacher wanted to get her students to understand the value of human life that was destroyed. She had her students collect 1 million paper clips. That is only 1/6 of the number of people killed, but she wanted to stress to her students just how big this loss of human of life really was. It took the class the majority of the year, but they were able to collect 1 million paper clips. Unless you can get the actual number physically represented in your hands, you will never be able to comprehend and understand the statistics surrounding human death.
Going along the lines of not understanding the statistics of war and destruction, the actual enemy is also not understood to be a real person. There is a quote in Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers said by Faramir.
“The enemy? His sense of duty was no less than yours, I deem. You wonder what his name is, where he comes from, and if he really was evil at heart. What lies or threats led him on this long march from home, and would he not rather have stayed there... in peace? War will make corpses of us all.”
It almost makes me wonder why anybody would want to leave peace and march into battle and war? I know that many do it to protect the homeland, but to what extent does protection last and destruction begin? Why is it that it is the generals and the officers make all the decisions about going to war, but they don’t do the fighting? They get to sit at their comfortable home and watch as other men and women fight and die. That doesn’t make much sense. Because they don’t have to fight, do they disregard all human life. That stroke of their pen just killed many soldiers and civilians. Is that right?
While I do agree that seeing the faces of the innocent people who are being hurt by our war in Iraq can have an impact on us to some degree, I don’t think that it would change everything all that much. Back in 2003, 65% polled by CNN believed that the war in Iraq was a good idea. Fast forward 5 years and the opposite is true: over 60% of those polled oppose the war. In the media every so often there are stories about innocent lives being lost or negatively affected by the war. But I don’t think that’s why so many US citizens now want the war to end. And even if it was, it may not make much of a difference anyway. It is ultimately up to our government and the military to decide what is going to happen over in Iraq, not us. And while this sounds extremely pessimistic, it is true.
Government officials probably do not often watch the news, or read the newspaper, and base any decisions off of these terrible accounts of what is going on over in Iraq, or wherever it is we are fighting at the time. No, the decision to pull back our troops from Iraq is based on a more selfish reason; wanting our family members and friends back home where it is safer; this just so happens to make it possible that other innocent people actually living there can be safe too. I feel very sorry for everyone over in Iraq who are just trying to get by and are unnecessarily put in danger by this war, and stories like Dr. Abuelaish’s affect me a lot, because I cannot imagine what it must be like to lose someone I love that way. But the more selfish part of me wants this war to end because I don’t want my family members to be at risk while overseas fighting in this war.
One major reason Obama was elected president over McCain, in my opinion, was because he promised to propose a plan to pull back our troops from the war in Iraq, whereas McCain planned to continue the war. And we as American citizens finally had our time to make our opinions known and do something about it. If so many of us oppose the war, we are going to elect the president who vows to provide a means that we approve of. But if it hadn’t been election season, would this have mattered? Americans have been opposing the war more and more throughout the last few years of Bush’s term, and it didn’t make much of a difference. All we could do is wait and bide our time until he was gone and when our voices would be heard.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s unique position in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict gives him the power to help make a change through the remorse felt by his friends not only from Gaza, but in Israel as well. The tragedy brought upon him and his family is something of more value than war. It enables people to look deeper into the meaning of war and realize that innocent children and families are being torn apart. We are all connected in a sense that we are all human, and no matter what the circumstance, it is unjust for anyone to feel the kind of agony which most people can’t even imagine to feel what Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is currently going through. I think the fact that we are all human, that we are all related and connected somehow, plays a significant role in the importance of what happened to Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s family. It is absolutely heartbreaking to think that “a man who works for peace, who builds bridges between worlds” has to cope with the calamity of witnessing three of his daughters and one of his nieces be killed by Israeli bombs while praying bedside to his other critically injured daughter in the hospital. Considering his exceptional reputation on both sides of this controversy, I think it is correct in saying that he is the one man who now has the power to make a change as he has already impacted the lives of many. Regarding the disaster brought upon Dr. Abuelaish, people forget about the differences of Israelis and Palestinians, but look at this situation as one friend to another, regardless of the designated group you happen to belong to. There is nothing that justifies what happened, but I believe that everything happens for a reason. Therefore, this catastrophe will aid in this conflict somehow. We are all human, and that is what it comes down to. Additionally, if we could apply this to our everyday lives, the world would be a much better place. Unfortunately, that is easier said than done. As children, we have all been taught to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and see how they would feel, so why can’t we do that as adults with more insensitive issues? Everybody has some kind of pain they deal with, however, we often ignorantly disregard that pain and disregard that anyone else feels any kind of pain as well. This is the issue at hand, one person is always better than another or feels more pain than another, but in actuality, we are all human. We are all connected. Everybody would treat people with more respect you could see yourself in others, even if you “hate” them. After all, that is probably when it is most important and would make the biggest difference.
It is extremely depressing to watch the you tube videos of the violence occurring in Israel. I could not imagine losing an immediate family member, let alone three. Family is such an important part of my life. With my brother joining the United States Air Force five years ago, my parents as well as my whole family were very anxious because of it being at a time of war. He had to go over seas for four months on and four months off. He travelled to Kuwait and Kutar. Luckily, he was fixing planes and not in any battle zones. He is currently out of the Air Force and happily married. He did not have to deal with any post depression disorders or any other problems.
The thing that strikes me the most about the war our country is currently in, is that we are in a war against violence and terrorism, however, in the process we are causing those problems to Iraqis. I don’t understand the concept of wars, and that may also have to do with the fact that I am a non-confrontational person and I strive for peace. Wars only result in deaths and sorrows, and this war specifically contradicts what we are fighting for.
Whether it is the Israeli-Palestinian war or the United States-Iraq war, innocent people are dying and I feel like more people should think like the way you were saying, to put themselves in the other persons perspective. If the world wasn’t so ignorant and more people actually cared about people besides themselves, I feel as if we wouldn’t have as many wars or issues.
We would treat people that we hate extremely different if we were to take a step in their shoes. Fighting is not the answer in ending our war on terrorism and it isn’t the answer to ending the Israel-Palestinian war, however, what is the answer? What can we do as countries to stop wars? Is there a such thing as a peaceful war?
Wars not only cause deaths and grief, they also cause lasting effects on the families that lose a love one or even the soldier that shot that person. My family friend was in Kuwait, and had to kill many people and once he came he was very depressed and often saw things that weren’t there. He was once caught in the park rolling around in his camouflage as if he was at war. He attempted suicide and luckily he survived. But as a friend it was horrible to see this happen to such a good guy, who was trying to help our country.
I hope that someday we can live in peace; however, that is a very far fetched idea. As for now, I can just pray that the United States will soon be out of the war.
I’ll tell you what I don’t see when I look at Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish: I don’t see a Palestinian hell-bent on violence against Israelis, I don’t see an Arab terrorist upset about western globalization, and I don’t see a middle-eastern radical sworn on revenge for what happened to his family. I’ll tell you what I do see, I see a grieving human being. A man who’s family was swiftly stolen from him in a disastrous event. To lose three children, let alone one, in one fell swoop tragically proves how things can happen to the best of people and at the worst of times. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish was not a terrorist or a blood-thirsty radical ready to kill on command. He was a Palestinian doctor working with Israelis to help find peace in years of fighting and bloodshed. A man that has the foresight to realize that to progress will come from war, but instead from compromise. Yet he lost three daughters and a niece in the Israeli cause.
I truly believe that such a horrific event happened to such a righteous man can change the face of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict altogether. Great public upset will rise from these actions and the Israeli government will have to answer. Could this even eventually lead to peace talks? No one knows for sure, but what a horrible circumstance for Dr. Abuelaish.
This event puts a world of perspective for me on the war in Iraq. I realize that these catastrophes to innocent families happen all the time in our war against terrorism. Don’t get me wrong, every terrorist alive can burn in hell. But what I recognize is that Iraqi citizens get caught in the cross-fire all the time. People just like Dr. Abuelaish lose family members just the same. What we as a nation must do is look at the individual victims not as middle-easterners who have nothing in common, but as fellow human of planet earth. They eat, drink, sleep, and suffer a tragic event just the same as any American would. I know at least for me up until watching the video that accompanied the blog that most Muslims that hate Americans and that on the call of God they’ll turn to terrorism to prove it. But whether that is or isn’t true, what is true is that they live and suffer just as we do when bombs blow up on their houses.
To think what a difference it would be if we could look at Iraqi’s not as enemies from the other side of the world and start looking at them knowing that they have families and jobs and hobbies just as we Americans do. We probably have a lot more in common with them than we think.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s story is one of many. I find it truly unbearable that the one and only time I’ve heard of the Palestinian losses during the beating that Israel put civilians through is a story of a Palestinian man gracious and caring to the Israelis. Can American media not simply talk about the average Palestinian man? Must it relate to Israel in some way? Its sick how today’s media counts how many rockets are launched and how many Palestinians die, just so that the numbers seem equal. How many rockets kill, is my question. Old rockets, probably imported by Hamas from other Middle Eastern countries (all which have inferior technologies) cant do much damage as compared to the bombs dropped onto Gaza blindly. Lets be honest before we start criticizing that last sentence as well my fellow Americans. Israel is truly bombing blindly. As illustrated in Abulaish’s story, his family died because the Israelis targeted where they live. The likelihood that militants were actually there firing is incredibly miniscule. Let’s also not forget when Israel bombed a UN school. The UN gave Israel information about where there stuff is located, and the Israelis still managed to bomb the school, killing innocent children.
I completely agree with Mulvey in the idea of paralleling the thought of analyzing the aspect of considering one’s own enemy as one’s own friend. As an American who has lived abroad however, I have always been forced to do such a thing. In the war against Iraq, one of my friends lost his Grandparents. In the war in Lebanon when Israel attempted to get rid of Hamas, I had friends stuck in the country, with bombs dropping in and around there homes.
I can completely relate to the story of Abuelaish in more than the most obvious ways, and war is truly an unfortunate event. However, it is necessary in some ways. I feel the need to put emphasis on the word “some.” In the case of Israel and Gaza, I don’t feel it is necessary at all. Gaza, the victim has never put any serious threat upon the superpower that is Israel. Sure Hamas has been there, to stand up for the Palestinian people as they have no army, but the US sees them as a terrorist organization, so what good can they possible be doing for a country not even recognized by the United Nations.
There are times where war is necessary however. In today’s day, with Obama threatening Pakistan with the thought of military force being put upon the country itself, it is anything but unnecessary to back down and let America do what it wants, where it wants. In this case, Pakistan has every right to start a war with the United States if they don’t respect the rights and demands of the Pakistani people, that of which is portrayed through its government to the International community. I at times, hope just to see what would happen if America were to wage war with a country like Pakistan. Being that it is Muslim, it is already viewed as a terrorist country, however Pakistan has one of the largest armies in the world, and they happen to be holders of nuclear weapons. Of course, this is a wish I would not want to really see through, but nevertheless, would like to see what happens hypothetically.
After reading the blog entry, “The grief of war comes full circle” I felt badly that I had not thought about this topic more often, the topic that so many people and so many families are directly affected by the cruelty and inhumanity of war. I hear about the war conflict going on in Gaza and the war in Iraq or the wars of the past and I feel badly for the people that are hurt or killed but when I see a specific example, it really emphasizes the point even further. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is not someone that I know personally, which makes it difficult for me to sympathize with his struggle. Only when I relate it to my own family do I begin to feel a portion of his pain. However, this is so selfish of me to do so because I should be able to see him as another person and stop looking at my own life and look at his. I should be able to feel some of his pain on the sole fact that he is feeling pain. The view of having to relate the situation to my own family is egocentric and is not the best way to look at a situation like this.
However, maybe this is the root of problem that causes these situations. As Laurie Mulvey states in the blog, we need to be able to see ourselves in others. I think this makes sense because if we are able to do that and realize that we are all a part of humanity together, then we would not want to hurt someone else because we would feel their pain if we tried to do so. So maybe we do have an egocentric mindset, but instead of changing our society, we could use it to an advantage. If we see ourselves in someone else, we would not want to harm them because in a way we would be harming ourselves.
It is not fair that a good man like Dr. zzeldin Abuelaish has to have his family taken from him. Maybe these situations can be prevented in the future if we can train ourselves to realize that there is more to this world than our own personal views and selves. We live in this world together as a people and by grasping that concept, maybe we can move toward more peaceful living where a doctor, trying to help people, does not have to have see his children killed before his own eyes. We can start to change how we live and treat each other. By doing this we can start to see the world from other people’s eyes. By doing this we can start to take away judgments and see how we live in a world together, not separate. It starts with us.
Although it would be very touching to see the war through the eyes of the Iraqis, and recognizing the struggle on their side, it would not serve much purpose. As citizens, it does not necessarily matter what we think or if we sympathize for our opponent at war. The only thing that really matters in regards to this subject is what our government thinks, and that means what our commander and chief thinks. Now although it would be nice if our president was a humanitarian, it is not the case at all. This war with Iraq is about oil, plain and simple. America is very oil dependant, and until recently, we had a oil thirsty man in charge of our country. It’s not about revenge about 9/11 because if it was then we would be in war with Afghanistan, not Iraq. It would make no difference whether we could see the war from the eyes of the Iraqis. The Middle East, and specifically Iraq is going to remain a problem to our country until we can either develop an alternative to oil or find somewhere else to get our oil from. Americans have already expressed their disapproval in the war, and it was to no avail. It is all dependant on our leader, which until now was an unsympathetic George Bush. Now Barack Obama has taken over, and leaving Iraq is starting to seem like a much more realistic result. It is easy to blame Bush for everything, and most do. Americans don’t always take the time to realize that we are the ones who elected (and reelected) George Bush. So this is ultimately our fault.
Believe it or not, some attempt has been made through the media to make us see through the eyes of Iraqi citizens. For example, the show Baghdad High was aired on HBO. This show handed cameras to four citizens of Baghdad- a Sunni, a Shiite, a Kurd, and a Christian- and then asked them to document their lives. Each of them filmed their senior years in high school. The show was surprising in many aspects. Despite all of the fighting and killing going on in the streets of Baghdad, the four kids led somewhat normal lives compared to ours. They passed their time by playing sports, studying, shooting the breeze, and listening to some of the same music we do (i.e. 2pac). Although their streets were in mayhem, they shared the same goal as we did as seniors in high school: getting into college. They rarely discussed politics and the American presence in their nation. They weren’t all depressed kids with no hope like I figured they would be before viewing the show. They were high-spirited adolescents somewhat similar to teens in the United States. Although I could identify with these guys after seeing the show, it didn’t change my stance on the war because I was already against it. All I could really do was vote for Barack and continue to hope that we can find a way to get out of their somewhat soon.
After reading this article, and sitting in at least one of the classes of soc 119, I have now realized how structured my life is when I was younger. I never really thought about it until Sam said to ‘leave your mom or dads your grandparents or siblings beliefs inflicted on you at the door’. The truth is you are more likely to take up the viewpoints that your parents hold true for yourself without second guessing the other side or what you as a person really believe about a subject. Example: I grew up in a structured environment thinking that marriage should be between a man and a wife. I never thought to second guess this or find out what I truly believe as a person because this is what I was told all my life growing up from others around me. Even though now I still believe that marriage should be between man and wife, I can say why I feel this do to what I believe and not do to what others want me to believe. All this ties into what the article was saying about What ‘Bringing Everyone to the Table’ Really Means. Either because of race, religion and so on, all past presidents brought their own viewpoints to the White House believing that these ideas or way of life were what was best for the United States. In some cases the president’s own personal beliefs were why they were elected to become president but that does not mean that we should forget the other side to all the others in the country who so not agree with what someone thinks. I respect Barak Obama’s decision to have Rick Warren to deliver the opening prayer at the president’s presidential inauguration. What he is trying to show the country is that even though he, Obama, does not believe in many things that the minister does preach we should not be ignorant to the opinions and beliefs of others just because we don’t see ‘eye to eye’ in some instances. I for one was surprised when the article showed that 52 percent of California was pro same sex marriage. It would be dumb to have a president ignorant of that statistic. Everyone in race, religion, beliefs and so on should all have a spot at the table to voice his or her own opinion on what they feel is right. Truthfully, even though many believe it was a folly to appoint Warren into the inauguration, I feel that it was a strategic and effective way to give voice to the people in this country who may never had their views heard before. He earned a lot of respect from many.
To think that some are suffering so much and all we find to say is that victims are normal in conflicts and necessary to move forward is getting old. The only reason why so many evaluate the situation in such a way is because they often know no one who is directly involved in the conflict. I used to think that victims were something that we cannot really focus on too much because there is no other way to solve problems, but these videos, which show us first hand experience of someone’s tragic loss put some things back into perspective.
The Palestinians and the Israeli have been fighting for over 100 years, haven’t there been enough victims? Or yet again is it not time to change our conception on how to resolve conflicts? We say that history has never shown us anybody that has gone through a liberation or development without having ‘some’ sort of casualties but is it not time to take our own advice, and learn from history rather than exactly repeat what has already happened. The problem with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is that the two sides are not trying to understand each other’s point of view. A friend of mine who lives in Kuwait told me the other day that at her high school, professors were not allowed to teach students about the holocaust. That fact alone can have huge impacts on the future of this conflict. How can the younger generations of the Middle East be prohibited by the government to learn anything about the history of their enemy, which, in turn might help their understanding of the “other side” and shed light on some of the more violent reactions that Israel might have taken. I am not justifying either side but that is an example of why there is a constant misunderstanding between both nations.
I think we easily, in particular the younger generation, take a skeptic approach to any dispute, which doesn’t help solve anything. Many in this conflict decide to associate themselves 100% with one side of the argument or the other. Especially in Europe, people are rallying against Israel and the more extremist activists are burning down synagogues and carrying out hate crimes against members of the Jewish community. What else than perpetuate ignorance and suffering, do those actions do? I cannot understand how people can be so inconsiderate. Most of them do not even know what most of the conflict is about, people even in the Middle East do not get all the information, so how can they consider themselves knowledgeable enough to make an ‘informed’ decision about who is right or wrong. Furthermore when it comes to death, how is the life of a Palestinian more important than that of an Israeli and vice versa? How can these people that want justice be so disrespectful of the other side loss of life? Here again I am referring to those millions of outside actors demonstrating all over the world in violent manners. We have the luxury of having an outsider’s perspective, of being able to calm two irrational players and what do we do? we pick sides!
I was recently watching The Patriot, you know, that wonderful movie with Mel Gibson about the American Revolution. As I was watching this very long movie I couldn’t help but notice how stupid their fighting style was. The Red Coats and the Americans would both stand in this huge, open field facing each other. The drums of war would be beating on both sides and men would be waving flags to help remind each other what they were fighting for. The rest of the men would be caring one shot bayonets and preparing themselves to take a life. The Patriot does a great job of depicting how much all these men want to shit there pants because they know someone on the other line is aiming a gun at them. I can only imagine what it would really be like to be in there position. To hear the drums stop and know its time to be a man and kill someone who is the same age as me. To kill someone who has a family that loves them and is waiting for them to return home. So many lives would have been saved had everyone just tucked their tails and run, but obviously that didn’t happen. They killed each other from long range by blowing huge holes in each other with their massive bayonet bullets. My thought is that maybe if we still fought this way, out in the open starring out opponent down and seeing all the fear and life in their face, wars would be fought a little less. In today’s world, you can kill someone from miles away, never seeing their face, never hearing their screams of pain. Today, killing has become so removed. The person who is pressing the button to drop the bomb from the plane above a family’s house will never know who they actually killed.
I know its unrealistic to think that just because you are standing in front of someone and can see their face and all the fear in their eyes that killing would stop. As much as we all hate it, it’s a kill or be killed world when conflict arrives. However, the reality is that the people who actually suffer the most from the fighting are the innocents who get caught in the cross fire, like Doctor Abuelaish’s young daughters and niece who were tragically killed by a bomb. Why can’t we all just make love not war! The only pain in the world would be broken hearts, not lost limbs and dead bodies. I hope one day that conflict can be resolved in a peaceful way and we can make amends for all the lives that have been killed in the quest for power.
Christine McMeekin
Death is one of the most frightening ideas anyone can think of. For me myself, it is one of my greatest fears. Mainly, the fear of the unknown is what makes it so terrifying. Although yes I do believe my religion, and what they say happens to you after death; however, what about those people who don’t know what happens? To think that they must hold an idea with them that no one in the world can share from his or her personal experience. It’s petrifying, and even puts a pit in my own stomach. Any loss of a loved one is one of the most unbearable experiences you can encounter. Even the loss of a friend, or a friend of a friend, or just even someone that you know of can be a heart wrenching experience. Unfortunately, Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish had to feel the ultimate severity and impact of such an encounter. As a matter of fact, he had to experience multiple losses at once, a life-changing situation which many have never and may never fully encounter. Words cannot describe the pain and agony that he must be feeling. Watching the videos of his personal reaction sent chills up my spine, and to think, I would not even have known of him if it had not been for this journal. I do not know him personally, and yet I feel for him. Anyone who heard of or witnessed this incredibly heartbreaking story must have felt a similar reaction as well. It is disheartening to think however, that in reality many may not feel these emotions too. It is hard to think that there are those out there who do not care for or sympathize with someone in a situation such as this. I feel like unless it happens to oneself, no individual will choose to care as much, and that is the totally wrong mindset. This leads into the idea of war. War is a touchy subject, and feelings vary from person to person. It is incredibly unlikely for us to have a world where everyone shares the same beliefs. If it were that way, every Miss America’s dream of having world peace would come true, right? It’s hard to tell. However, that is not the reality. Many feel that because someone has a differing belief they deserve to be killed. For me myself, I cannot see how this is right. What is the use of killing innocent people? Hopefully one day we all can come to our senses and realize the value of human life. Killing not only affects the victim, but their friends and family, everyone who that person has touched and made an impact upon, and sometimes even just random people who care of feel for that person (along with many others I may not have mentioned). Random people just like me who cared for Dr. Abuelaish’s situation. All in all, it should not take this story about Dr. Abuelaish in order for people to feel moved, or to see that this is reality.
The Grief of War Comes Full Circle: The Essence of Race Relations
Countries of the world are constantly at war, whether it be over land, religion, politics, or money; wars have plagued the planet for millennia and continue to this very day, but what are we really fighting about? What is it that makes a man travel across the world in order to take away a complete strangers life? Clearly, war is an attempt to solve conflicts and/or differences in the world, an attempt to “fix” issues, but who is to say that one way is better than another, that one man’s idea is the “right” way of doing something. We go to war; we justify the killing of human beings, because we convince ourselves that these people are in some way deserving of death. In order to prevent the killing of innocent people, we, in turn, kill people. This is seemingly the paradox at hand. If we could only see ourselves in the shoes of those we fight, if we could realize that they, despite, race, religion, skin color and a million and one other variables, are people too, we might come to the realization of how backwards war actually is. People are divided into hundreds of races but when it comes down to it we are but one race, and that is the human race! We all have our differences but in actuality, they all seem rather petty in the grand scheme of things. Thus, if we had the mentality to take a moment and relate with those we are fighting, realize that we are but one and the same race, this is the first step in reasoning out issues, rather than fighting about them.
Obviously, we do not live in a fairy tale world. The chance that people will come to see their enemies as equals and eventually friends during our lifetimes is unlikely, but we can always hope for a brighter tomorrow, because only when we can walk a mile in another man’s shoes can we truly appreciate what he has experienced or has to offer. Furthermore, as absurd, as it may sound maybe it would be better if we were all blind, because if this were the case, we would have to base our entire perception of others off of what the mind had to offer as opposed to physical attributions. This would at long last take away the biases presented when one individual looks at another and perhaps at long last we would be able to put our minds together not as different races, but as people and the possibilities that would arise would surely be amazing, swift and great. If we as humans have the potential to fly to the moon or perform brain surgery, as individual nations upon putting our minds together it is almost too much to grasp the potential opportunities that may come to pass. And so when we see someone who looks different than us, when we fight with people from a country across the wide sea I would implore citizens to consider the fact that the same crimson blood runs in their veins, we are all people and although our ideals, religions and skin colors may vary if we can see past all this the windows of opportunity will surly stretch as wide and luminous as the stars span across the night sky.
I think it’s great that Obama is including people that are different into the table so to speak, but I think it’s a little too soon to tell if that is in fact his plan or if invite to Rick Warren to the inauguration was just a one time show of good faith to keep good on a promise. I that he has a few Republicans in his cabinet, but I’ll be interested to see if he really does use those people to their full potential. I know that may seem that I’m being pessimistic to people but in truth I’m just a bit skeptical. As was stated many politicians have stated in the past that they would bring in other people to the table and they never did. I’ll be interested to see that if a year, three years into his term, or if Obama gets elected for a second term if he still feels that way.
However, with that said I give a lot of credit to both Obama and Warren for leaving their minds open and trying to work together. This country is so divided right now that we as a people we are a divide nation. I did not support Obama myself during the campaign and I never felt like I could freely express my views especially to friends or in class discussions for fear of ridicule. We as a people and a country should never have to defend our beliefs or views in this country, we should able to respectful disagree with each other, yet lately that seems to be a power that we have lost in this country no matter what side of the table you happen to be on. I think that is partly why this country is in the state that it is in. Problems were never addressed because people felt they didn’t have a voice and that will just continue to happen if things don’t change. I think if Obama really does mean what he says about bringing everyone to the table then this country can only get better and we will once again become a place where people can say what they want to say and voice their concerns without fear. By bring Rick Warren it shows that the president is trying to heal this country and make it and it’s people whole again and I respect that. However, I think we still have a long before this country is back to the way it use to be and I think it take more then one invite of a conservative preacher and a few cabinets members to prove, at least to me that Obama is serious about bringing everyone to the table and listening to their ideas.
We honestly think that people should calm down. Rick Warren is Rick Warren and President Barack Obama is President Barack Obama. They have similar ideas on things and then they have different ideas on other things. President Barack Obama is not having Rick Warren come deliver a speech about his own personal opinions and thoughts on the lgbta community. Barack Obama just invited him to come give an opening prayer at the presidential inauguration, nothing more or less. Just because Barack Obama is friends with Rick Warren, doesn’t mean that he agree with all his views on things. I am sure everyone has at least one or two friends who they have so much in common with, but there are still one or two things that your friend does, believes, or says that you hardly agree with. It is inevitable, no one agrees with another person on everything.
I personally think all people are created equally no matter what.
No matter there choices in life, or sexual preferences, everyone should be treated equally. People are so afraid of change. The world would be so boring if everything stayed the same and if we were all the same. We want to say that we are a diverse country, but at the same time we don’t embrace change and other people’s differences and preferences. I think that homosexuals should have the same benefit of getting married as heterosexuals do. I also think they should reap the same benefits also. Marriage should not be based on the gender of the individuals getting married; it should be based on the love between the individuals which only they can measure. Change is a great thing and we need to embrace change in all ways possible. Everyone will not have the same ideas, opinions, beliefs, skin color, etc. and this is one of things that makes us the greatest nation around.
I totally agree that President Barack Obama is doing what he said he would by bringing everyone to the table. It takes a president to be in the same presence and be so close with some one whom you disagree with on some things. The reason I say president is because a president has so much power that he does not have to allow or speak to anyone who doesn’t have the same views as he does to be in his presence, let alone be at his inauguration.
President Barack Obama is a great person and will be an even better president. He is going to make great changes to this country and eventually I think everyone will have to respect him. By Barack Obama being president the Americans will not be the only people that will have a chance to grow, but Barack Obama will also have a chance to grow.
This story about Dr. Abuelaish is so compelling because it puts a face to the conflict in Gaza. When we are across the ocean from all of these wars and bombings, it is easy to just put them out of our minds, but when you see things such as those news reports about Dr. Abuelaish and his family, it reminds you that these are real people-- people with lives and family and friends just like us. If anyone I knew lost four family memebers at once, as Dr. Abuelaish did, the mourning would be long and terrible. Many families in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Gaza are experiencing similar tragedies while we sit on our couches and watch our sitcoms without a second thought of the life loss across the Atlantic.
After September 11th, I heard many people say "we should just bomb them all," refering to many of the countries in the Middle East. The deaths that occured on 9/11 were horrific, but going across the world and just retaliating in the same manner is ridiculous. Will it really alleviate our suffering by massively killing the loved ones of others? Sure, the terrorists from 9/11 may have been born in some Middle Eastern countries, but if we throw a bomb over there, it will destroy thousands of innocent people. Can we fault them just because they were born into a country which produced a few radicals who participated in terrible acts on American soil? It is not their fault, and they should not be slayed because of it. That logic is like saying if someone from your hometown shoots up a convenience store in a nearby city that the people of that city should exterminate your town, despite the fact that most of the population probably never met that man or had any influence on his life. These ideas just create more violence and more sorrow.
What makes Dr. Abuelaish's story even more tragic is that he spent his life helping Israelis and working toward peace in the region. If even the guards at the border between Israel and Gaza can accept Dr. Abuelaish, then why is it so hard to believe that the people of these places can get along; we are all just people who hold our friends and family close to our hearts and want to prosper in life. Wouldn't it be easier to maintain these relationships and attain life goals if we could work together as a world people, unconcerned about land, religion, or ethnicity? There will always be violence, so these ideas are fairly unrealistic, but if we take a step back and look at our so-called enemy as a person just like us, as our neighbor or brother, then I think that there would be some more compassion and maybe a greater consideration for the lives we are destroying.
So here is the deal. Individuality is an accepted idea, as it should be. Everyone is different and race justifies that, as does brown eyes, green eyes, blue eyes, blonde hair, black hair, and even no hair! We are all human, a fact that most of the time people tend to forget, because people are fickle and without meaning to, they can also be hypocritical. For example, there are avid supporters of equal rights for all, yet when they get in small arguments with their friends they can struggle with looking at it from both sides, a necessary course of action. They see the argument from their point of view, regardless of whether it’s about who lost the remote or issues within gay rights or desegregation. They may fight for equal rights, but they can lose sight of the same equality on a smaller scale.
We all know what disappointment feels like, what it feels like to be surprised, how being happy and knowing it is one of the best feelings in the world. Therefore, we all have the capability of being hurt, and we all are guilty of inflicting that feeling on others.
However, this can be cut down significantly. Almost like the “golden rule” or the rule of reciprocity, if people think about a situation from the opposite or different point of views, most of the time problems can be avoided. Granted, that is not saying that every problem between every different group can be easily solved because there are ethical dilemmas out there with no right answer. However, on a smaller scale than say the Israeli and Palestinian war, it takes strength of character for someone to stop and pull themselves out of the narrow-based thinking that is creating the conflict they are involved with, and think “ok this is how I am feeling because X did this, but how and/or why did X do that? How are they feeling?” By being able to overcome your anger, hurt or any negative emotion to think about the situation is a difficult thing to do. In fact, it’s a lot easier said than done. I know growing up I was that friend who always played devil’s advocate when my friends were fighting. It drove all of my friends crazy, but eventually though they still grew angry at me for it, a lot of them admitted that really by looking at it from the other side, the only reason they were still angry was because they felt like they were supposed to be.
The point is, yes, we are all different, and not only on the outside. We have different styles, personalities, and beliefs. Yet, we all share the same emotions. That is one of the common grounds on which every human can relate. In the blog, you said “How differently would we treat people…if we could actually see the shared pain we all carry within?” It is the simple matter of taking a step back and thinking “well if I was in their shoes…”
It is truly hard t put your self into someone else’s situations. After watching the videos about Dr. Abuelaish it is hard to picture us living in a world like that. I feel that as we all sit in our dorm rooms or apartments in the small town of State College we don’t always realize what is going on around us. I think it is hard for us to see what others have to deal with everyday and the terror that goes on around the world.
I think also that we do not look at others in the world fairly or in the right light. We are all living our own lives and its not fair that other come into ones life and take away something so special like children for no reason. Having our troops in Iraq I feel is wrong. We should want to help them and make their country better for them to live in and a safer world for us all to live in. However I do not think that we should have to be there fighting and killing humans and having our troops be killed. We should be able to do things in a more peaceful manor.
This question, “And what if we step back and apply this to the way we war with one another figuratively? How differently would we treat people who we hate from a distance if we could see ourselves in them, and if we could actually see the shared pain we all carry within?” really make me think about what we are doing and how was treat others. It is truly hard to put yourself in someone else’s situations. To make one think about others than themselves it really making people think hard because no one wants to be anyone else. If you could get everyone in countries to think about others that they “hate” I think it could make a big difference. No one wants to think about their own family and friends being hurt and killed and that’s what some people do to each other.
I agree that we tend to view those we are at war with simply as “enemies” rather than actual human beings like ourselves. Most cultures and societies believe that their way of life is the correct one, and that all others are immoral or unjust. I think that part of the reason that we feel this way is due to the portrayal of other cultures in the media. Most war movies glorify the American side of war and depict our enemies as savage animals. According to these movies, the other side is unjust in their reasons for killing and fighting, while America has decent, ethical reasons to kill. One must admit that he or she feels satisfaction when on of our own takes down an enemy plane or shoots a soldier and this is not entirely our fault. We are trained to feel this way. The victorious music, the slow motion, the development of the characters we are following – all of these elements contribute to how we feel towards the enemy.
Although one may argue that we are supposed to feel pride towards our country, and support soldiers fighting for democracy, I feel as though it is wrong to root for the death of our enemies. It is unfair because as you said, our enemies are people just like us, with families and friends waiting for them to return home. They are frightened and young, and may not know exactly what they are fighting for. What they know is that they have a duty to support their country in times of war.
Very few movies and television shows portray the other side with a sense of humanity. They are not given a voice, their characters are not introduced to us, and we can not sympathize with them. Movies such as “Saving Private Ryan,” “We Were Soldiers,” and “Behind Enemy Lines” force us to identify with our heroes, the Americans. There are a few exceptions, however, such as the recent “Letters From Iwo Jima” and “Apocalypse Now.” “Letters from Iwo Jima” is told to us in subtitles, from the Japanese point of view. We see the Second World War through the eyes of the Japanese rather than the Americans for once in cinema history. By the end of the movie, I found myself feeling sympathy and sorrow for the Japanese who lost their lives or their friends in the war. The characters were presented as actual human beings, many of whom were forced into war against their will.
It felt a little strange to identify with these people and hope for them to live, but at the same time it was an eye opening experience. It revealed to me that we have been extremely biased in our perception of who is heroic and who is evil. It showed me that we must recognize that our enemies are just like us, with the same desires and motivations, and the same fear of dying.
I cannot even imagine the pain and suffering that Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is facing. It is hard to watch someone you care about die, but to watch it happen first hand, right in front of your eyes, must be unbearable. Every day, thousands of people, around the world, die due to war welfares. The worst part about the situation is that the people who are killing others do not think about the victim’s family. Not only are they killing an individual, but they are killing the spirits of many others that are closely associated. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is a prime example. He worked his entire life to give peace and save the lives of others. He taught his children to love every one, no matter who the person was. He was very highly regarded in Israel and Gaza. People trusted him. And for someone to kill his children and niece in his own home is heartbreaking. He was a man, who wanted violence to end, but there were obviously people who did not think of Dr. Abuelaish as a “master of his work,” and wanted him to suffer. People made false accusations that there were military militia in Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s home, and they were firing from the home, and the military outside fired back to “defend” themselves. Maybe, just maybe, if the people, who were killing others, saw that their actions were unjust and heartbreaking; they would be apologetic for their actions. I believe that no matter what we try to do or say, our world will never be the utopia we want it to be. There will always be a war going on some place in the world. People fight over irrational things, and politics dictate our actions when it comes to war. Jerusalem, Israel has been in war for thousands of years, and it will probably never end. When we have dictators like Muhammad Ahmadinejad, who want Israel wiped off our maps, peace will never be possible. How is peace possible with everything going on in our world? How can we learn to get along with religious radicals who want everyone dead who does not believe in their faith? It is impossible. As much as I would love to see everyone get along, I just cannot believe it will ever happen. If it could, Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish would be a good start to a new world. He has belief that most human beings do not. I believe he was put on earth to make small changes that can hopefully lead to bigger changes. I hope that one day we can get along with each other, but we have a long way to go. It certainly will not be in our generation or our children’s children generation.
One thing that, in this day in age, sets the united states apart from most other warring nations, is that we don’t aim to kill. Of course the fact that we have military forces deployed across the world can send the message that we force our culture upon others conquering or occupying them. In a way there is some truth in that statement, but the only part of our culture that we “force” upon others is our definition of equality and democracy. Along with our allies, the united states is committed to spreading democracy, but we don’t simply kill those that disagree with our ideals.
Our involvement in foreign nations, Iraq and Afghanistan in particular, is fueled by our desire to bring equality to the people of the world who have never experienced it. Perhaps the united states brought “war” these nations, but we certainly did not bring violence or hate; both existed there before. So before we can try to relate to the “hundreds of thousands of grieving Iraqis” (who may or may not actually exist), we should focus the trees, not the forest.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is a tree. A tree in the forest of the Gaza strip. His story represents many Palestinians as well as many Israelis in the region who have been changed for the worse by the conflict. Of course his story hits home. Parents can relate to thought of losing a child (or children!). Those who lobby for peace can relate to the struggles of someone trying to reverse the tragedy of war. However, here we are; thousands of miles away. Sitting at our laptops watching these 3-minute clips, pretending we care, but only writing 450 words so we look like a good student. We really don’t relate to these people. How many American college students have lived a civilian life in a war zone? I certainly haven’t, and I don’t know anyone who has. However I have heard stories from my father, would spent my senior year of high school in Afghanistan. He saw the people. The civilians, many of which, he told me, despise Americans. But why?
They don’t hate the American forces occupying portions of their country. Would you hate someone who gave you shelter, education, healthcare? They hate you. And me. They hate your mom, your uncle, your cousins, your friends, your life. We lived like gods compare to much of the world, and we will never truly understand suffering until we live like the people we pretend to relate to. And I’m not talking about spending a year on peacekeeping mission, or working as a doctor in a war zone. I mean being one of them. That’s something none of us can do. So to the blog author concerning the “shared pain we all carry”; that’s lovely and poetic and all, but its simply not accurate. I share absolutely no pain with Dr. Abuelaish. I can’t.
People should all be treated equal no matter what they look like or how smart they are or who they know. Although this sounds great it is not the way the world works. People get father in life and gain more fame because they look a certain way or because they have a father who was a Hollywood actor. People are not given the same chances as someone else because maybe they do not look the part or someone doing the hiring does not like someone in their family. People are not treated equal in the world and it will never change.
Although people can say change is happening, the movement of an African American President in the United States has brought many black youth hope for a better future it does not change the fact that they are still looked as differently a different race other than white. I think changes can be made and great strides are working towards bringing all races together to be one unit but it will never be fully treated equal or not judged based on race.
The clip of the doctor is very, very sad. A doctor lost three of his children due to war. To become a doctor it is not easy, you have to put in hard work and have a passion to want to help people. That passion has lead him to want to help and unite people, this same passion is what could be said to bring about his death. I think the cell phone call is very sad, you can see the news person react and not know what to do to help his friend. Once a face is put to the person behind the call it really hits and you understand that it is just not an empty voice but a father, a leader, a person trying to change and do well that is being under attack.
War will always go on. You can not stop war, people will always fight. You can talk and agree on policy but war will break out at some point in time. It is a shame that the fighting has cost this man pain and his daughters. The war we are fighting and having a plane crash brings about fear of leaving your loved ones. You can never live in fear but you have to be able to react and think when a time of need comes about. The pilot of the plane that landed in the river stayed his path and reacted and because he was cool under pressure he saved lives and will forever be looked at as a hero. Just like the people fighting in the war for America they might not agree with the cause but they will always be looked at as a hero just like the doctor, standing up for what they believe in and fighting for a cause.
I agree with the fact that the grief of war does come full circle. While watching the video I was truly inspired by the doctor and his strong belief, but I was also discourage by the atrocity witch plagued his family. This is a Palestinian doctor working in an Israeli hospital, a man who believes in peace and breaking barriers, but he had to see his three daughters and niece killed, plus one daughter and another niece seriously injured by an Israeli bomb, the people he was trying to help. While watching the broadcast and looking at the performance of an enraged man who stood for peace, made me think about the concept, bad things really does happen to good people and why. Many times things like this happen to test how strong a person faith is or is it to just push them toward the path of wrong doing? I know if my wife passed away and my three kids plus niece were killed in a bomb blast by the people that I am supposedly trying to help, I would go crazy and maybe pick up arms. Some people rely on events like this to keep their faith while others might just go crazy thinking about the situation.
For someone who have witnessed firsthand the emotionally and physically damages witch a war can cause, I can relate to the Palestinian doctor and the emotions that enrage him. I have lost very close people to the violence of war. I try not to think about it because I know its God’s will, and dwelling on the past will only hurt you in the long run. Even though the Palestinian doctor is very hurt he seems like a man with a very big heart and I know he will still push for what he believes in witch is peace. People would now listen to him more attentively when he talks about peace between Gaza and Israel because he has lived through a very devastating event. People would understand him and see where he is coming from. I really don’t think he should give up his campaign for peace in that area because he now has an upper hand and a more sympatric approach which states that “yes this situation has affected me, and I know the pain that exist every day this war continues.”
I for one definitely see myself in the doctor place, and I think this whole situation with the war and bloodshed would have been avoided if America would have intervened. If the Bush administrator would have intervened, instead of supporting the Israelites and giving them the say so to destroy innocence people then massive lives would not have been lost. Now that Bush is out of power let’s see where Israel is going to get their weapons from or if they would have that much power in the Middle East.
Having an emotional connection can definitely have an impact on a war. But how big an effect does it have? It makes it harder, but does it stop the war? Civil wars have gone on forever, pitting families and friends against each other. These connections make the wars more gruesome, but they don’t stop the wars. In a way, this makes wars worse. When wars are so split and have no connection at all, the only hard part is when one side loses someone. But how much harder is it if you cant stop the war and you lose when someone from either side is taken? Wars are strange creatures. While we often know the reason why they start, many times we lose track and don’t understand why they continue. They just go on and we expect them to. It becomes a part of normal life and no one does anything to stop it. It why wars last for so long. How often does a war start and stop within a year or two? By the first or second year a goal could be reached or a deal could be made. Enough damage is done to realize the magnitude of the problem. Yet, wars go on.
This is a very sad story that anyone can sympathize for. You tear up just hearing this man’s agony. Whether he was known in Israel or not, people would have connected with this man if his experience was caught on live TV. Unfortunately, even if 80% of the people involved in the war would like it to stop, the other 20% could do enough damage to not only continue the war, but to bring the 80% into it by involving them personally. Israelis and Palestinians have been fighting forever. This story my change the feelings of some people, but is it enough to start the end of the war? I don’t think so. Because of the nature of their feud, there may not be a way to stop the fighting. It isn’t just personal, it’s religious and because of the religious factor of this war, there just isn’t an easy answer. Maybe a story like this that both sides mourn will make a dent, but it simply can’t be enough to stop it. But what if more personal stories were to come about? What if more people were connected by both sides? Then, I believe, a difference could be made. Unfortunately, there aren’t many men out there like this one who have a true connection to both sides.
Sadly, a story like this only continues to show the magnitude of the feud going on between Palestine and Israel. Yet, when the war continues, this story will only be a sad chapter in a long book.
The tragedy that occurred with Dr. Abuelaish and his family is one that should wake up the world. It goes to show us that even a person who devotes his whole life to trying to promote peace cannot even escape the wrath of war. Because of the bombing that "mistakenly" was aimed directly at his house, the Doctor questions what he has lived his entire life for. The bombing must have made him feel like everything he has done for his society has had no effect of the people around him, and it was all a waste of time. It is sad to think that people of a “civilized” society can only revert to archaic forms of war to settle their differences. I wish there could soon be a time where people of different cultures and societies can learn to cope with their differences in ways other than bombs and guns. I feel like the people who organize these “terroristic” events neglect to think about the consequences of their actions. They forget to think about the children now without parents, the parents who lost their child, and uncles and cousins being lost to a war in which they are not a participant. The pursuers of war do not take into consideration how it would feel if it were their families and friends that were feeling the effects of unneeded violence, or maybe they are committing the “crimes” to get back at someone(s) who already hurt their family. If the circle of violence never stops, eventually all people of the world will fall victim to the violence of war.
In such an advanced society, people should learn to deal with each other’s differences, and learn to embrace them. Hypothetically, just because my roommate may be Christian and I’m an Atheist does not mean that I should hate her with every ounce of my being. It would be completely ridiculous to perform acts of crime against her because our views on life our different. It is the same with terrorist attacks. Yes, the people who actually committed the crimes of 9/11 are completely in the wrong, but is the President right to send the US armed forces to invade a country that had nothing to do with it. Is it right that after September 11th, people would refuse to see the Arab Americans for who they were instead of what they looked like. I’m not going to deny that when getting on an airplane after the tragedy, I would be semi-scared when an Arab man would come onto the same plane. I should not have been, the security is tight enough to catch any weapons, but I was scared. I know I was being completely naïve, but I’m sure most people were thinking the same thing deep down inside. Now, I have lost that feeling, but it is sad the media had such a strong influence over what I was feeling.
Dr. Abuelaish is a living testament to the fundamental message of love. Through is selfless actions, personal suffering and courage, he exhibits a form of love that can be seen as the compassion inherent in all human hearts.
The fact that Dr. Abeulaish has the ability to look beyond his own ethnic background and see an ultimate tie, our common humanity, is astounding. He is able to see the Israelis, effectively the usurping enemy to most Palestinians, as humans. He sees them as people—mothers, fathers, children—and not as the enemy, not as different or innately evil from birth, or as an inhuman species worthy only of eradication. This may sound extreme, but the seeds harrowed by nationalist and ethnic ideas are deeply rooted; once sown, it is often impossible to remove entirely. And most often, people do not want to remove them, because they often become as ingrained in the human mindset as seeds become a part of the Earth—seemingly inextricable and a natural, “truth” of existence. The Palestinian and Israeli conflict is one manifestation of such roots that lead to conflict, lead to hatred, lead to violence, lead to war. And, the fact that one man can see through these binds is truly remarkable.
Perhaps to some people this isn’t such a difficult task. However, I doubt it. Think about it—how difficult is it for us to forgive someone who hurts us? Not to downplay our own lives, but on the grand scheme of things, our heartbreaks and fights with roommates are minor. Yet, to us, they are the world and our differences are so that we cannot overcome them. We won’t get over it, we hold on to them for years. We move out of apartments and hate our “old” roommates. Ex-boyfriends or girlfriends take on all the evil of the world. If we are able to rationalize that they are lacking some fundamental human trait crucial for existing with other people, then they become the “other.” They are just too different. We are just too different to get along.
How are these situations different from rationalizing an outsider as inhuman? Furthermore, would you or I be strong enough to not direct hatred toward a general population, as in Dr. Abuelaish’s case, when the “others” were responsible for the deaths of your own children?
Dr. Abuelaish is hope that one day the conflict in Israel will end. But he is so much more than that. He is a living example that we, as human beings, are capable of love and peace. I cannot think of a brighter future.
The story of Palestinian Doctor Izzeldin Abuelaish is an extremely effective example of just how important every single person’s life is in this world. I know that sounds like a generalize sentence, so that is why I’ll say it again to stress the gravity of the situation. Every single person’s life in this world.
This is one of those rare situations in which one person’s story is heard by a larger-than-normal population. If this were an average man who had just a handful of close friends, only this handful of friends would ever learn of the agonizing pain this man has experienced. Furthermore, only this handful would truly feel the loss of the young children who lost their lives in this tragedy. And yet due to a number of circumstances, a much larger part of the world has learned of the pain and sadness that Dr. Abuelaish has experienced that day.
Even then, not even the whole world has learned about this tragedy.
This was one story from one man in one country on one continent. We don’t even learn the stories of the young children whose lives were cut short. And beyond this, there are still a number of people experiencing these types of tragedies every single day, and yet many of their stories are never heard.
This type of idea comes to me every single time I am travelling. Walking, by car, especially in airports – every single time I pass so many people where I only see their face, maybe a few seconds of their habits and tendencies. Maybe I will hear them say a few words to yet another face in the crowd. But the reality of it is, every single person has their own life. Their own history, their own emotions, their own trials, their own joys, their own despairs. Unfortunately, in this world of more than 6 billion people, one will never learn even a sizeable fraction of the many stories people could share about themselves. So many lives’ experiences go untold just due to the sheer number of people on this planet.
Sometimes when I think about the enormous amount of lives and experiences that I personally will never learn about in my lifetime, it starts to hurt my head a bit. I know that just have the heart-to-hearts with my very close friends, learning about their histories and futures, has been enough to keep me thinking for days. These are people who can be so different from one another based on personalities, looks, and backgrounds, and yet we are all still part of the same species: homo sapiens.
In the most macro sense, we are just six billion creatures living on a rock. But also, we are six billion unique stories.
The grief of war does come full circle and no I’m not talking about warring countries or nations, or warring politicians, but of the race war, that after thousands of years, still has yet to end. Even now, as America has been blessed to be presided over by a black president, there is still a war among the races. It amazes me how so people, even after so much has changed, still maintain their racial ignorance and bigotry. The biggest problem is the lack of knowledge that many people have. Many people remain racially ignorant because they are never really presented with the opportunity to relate with people of other races. This is where the concept of race relations comes in to play when it comes to helping people to be less ignorant about race. Race relations present people with the opportunity to talk about racial issues in a setting that they may not be able to obtain under any other circumstances. Race relations allow people to discuss racial issues such as stereotypes, racial questions, family issues, issues in the media, or any other racial issues that they may have wanted to know about but that they never head the opportunity or the heart to truly ask. Many people have racial questions but they are fearful of what people may say should they ask that question. The media has made it so that people are fearful of racial issues, when they should be embracing the racial issues instead. This is why race relations is becoming such a viable resource. It allows people, especially students at the university level, the opportunity to express their feelings about issues that affect them everyday at that level. It has truly become a venue in which many students have expresses interest and it is quickly becoming one of the most popular venues at the college level. But until everyone is allowed to experience the opportunity to relate about race, there will always be those who are ignorant about race.
I’m writing this week’s journal about my reactions to the wars going on and how race relations play an important role in the world. Ever since the war on terror, more Americans have become involved in either supporting or going against the war. It was controversial entering the war in Iraq, and has remained that way to this day. There are still people who believe we should be fighting in Iraq, and there are still people who think we should pull out. However, in the recent years, there has been an increasing amount of people who believe we should vacate Iraq as soon as possible. With Obama in power now, we should see something happening within the year. I believe under his power we will finally vacate Iraq and continue to protect ourselves on our own surface. I believe with the money we save from being overseas, we can use that money on Home Security and beefing up our security system in America, rather tan ineffectively “protect” ourselves overseas. The biggest problem the government faces is the political stances they face when they support or go against the war. Many do not want to lose their seat over how the people will react to their decisions. If only they could spend a day with families who have lost loved ones in the war on terror, then they would change their mind. I believe that the harm caused to families is not worth fighting over. Even in Iraq we cannot comprehend the pain and suffering we are causing the native families. With bombing everywhere and stray bullets it is unimaginable how many families we are affecting on a daily basis. Over in Israel and Palestine another war is being fought. The main topic of the blog is about Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish. The main deal with this is about how he is one of the most respected people in Israel and is a doctor. He has done tremendous work for Israel, and recently has talked about how there should be peace between the two countries. However, just the other day he lost three of his own daughters and a niece to the fighting. It is so tragic that the man who wants peace between the countries lost so many loved ones at one time. A couple other of his relatives are in the hospital being treated as well. I think it is impossible for one man to change the entire world, but I think it is very feasible for one man to have a great impact in one country, preferably two. Since he is so respected by his people I feel that their government will in some way realize what is happening between the two countries and try to stop the fighting. It sounds so juvenile to ask for world peace, but I honestly think that world peace would better the country. Yes it would have its economic effects, but just socially I believe the world would be so much better off. It’s ridiculous how many families are being torn over fighting and wars.
In the past, there have been many wars, from World War II to our current war with Iraq. There have been wars within our own country, the revolution and the Civil War. All of these conflicts have a similarity relating to the blog about Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish: casualties of war. According to the videos and the statements from the blog, Dr. Abuelaish has lost three of his daughters and a niece to the bombing in Gaza. Wanting nothing but to help people and peace for all, Dr. Abuelaish has become another victim, indirectly, of the casualties of war. Though he was a man of good intentions and tried to see everyone as human, his view has drastically changed. But who can blame him? Personally, I think many people may ignore the fact that a war is going on or try to stay as far away from being a part of it as possible. They do not realize that lives are being lost until it happens to someone they know, to a friend or family member in the service.
Taking a look at the movie “The Patriot,” starring Mel Gibson, he plays a farmer with a family of about seven children in the Revolutionary era. He tries to keep his family out of the war and his boys from enlisting in the army. He makes a bold statement in a courthouse meeting with many of his fellow countrymen, explaining how the war isn’t going to be fought overseas or in a far away country. It will be fought on their own land, on their farms and properties, amongst them. Later in the movie, however, he is challenged when the fight is brought upon his family and his son is killed. Mel’s character changes his perspective of the situation rather quickly and actively goes against his initial statement that he will leave his family and himself out of it, and wait for it to pass over. This example is quite similar to Dr. Abuelaish’s situation, and helps to show the ignorance or isolation of some people to the war at hand.
Recently, I attended the lecture by Arun Gandhi during Martin Luther King, Jr. Week. His lecture was about his “Lessons from Grandfather,” since his grandfather was the great Mahatma Gandhi, who was one of the greatest leaders to demonstrate non-violent means of protest. The key ideas were to find ways of solving conflicts through peaceful means, while getting your point across. I think that when people realize that our enemies may have families and children just like us, and once we try to stop judging people by race, we will have a world as Gandhi had wanted, with peace. Great examples from Arun Gandhi during his lecture were his statements about how the Israeli/Palestine conflict has been going on for countless years without resolution, with a history of violence. On the other hand, we now have an “African American” president and the struggle from slavery to now have been slow but there have been numerous protests using non-violence. The main idea I am trying to impose is that I feel a deeper look into the lives of our enemies and seeing that they are people like you and me may help restore peace in the world.
Ross Carpenter
Response to “The Greif of War Comes Full Circle”
This is such a terrible story, and reading the story itself actually answers the questions that Sam poses to us at the end of the article. What I mean by this is that there are tons of people dieing in Iraq and in the middle east; soldiers, men, women, children, everyone. However, most of us probably do not take this idea all that seriously until these statistics have a face. That is what is happening here: Dr. Abuelaish’s daughter is the face that many of us haven’t had until now. Watching that video and hearing him rage in sadness in horror really puts things into perspective. We tend to not worry about things until they are in our face; that is when they hit home. It is a sad truth that for most of us it’s difficult to really face problems when they don’t have personal references to us or see a story or an article on a problem that really touches us.
Let me share a related example: everyone is familiar with Thon. It is a big deal, it raises tremendous amounts of money for such a good cause. However I have a friend in my fraternity who I’ll call Joe and Joe spent the first two years of college hating Thon (as many people do). Critics of Thon and Joe alike say many things like it’s a competition, people don’t really care about the cause, and they just want to win. In my opinion people can look at it whatever way they would like because in the end we go out and raise over 6 million dollars for cancer research, so if it has to be competitive, so be it! Anyway, Joe never liked Thon and thought it was stupid until one life changing moment. We made Joe go to an event where he would meet our Thon child face to face. Let me just say he fell in love… seeing the poor little girl with cancer really touched him and turned him 180 degrees. Ever since then, he goes on every canning trip, he goes to Thon events, and I would not even be surprised if he ended up dancing his senior year.
If we could all be exposed to faces and situations that could suck us in to all aspects of life, the world would be so much different. No sane human could kill another if they had seen them kiss their children goodbye before they went off to war. The unfortunate truth is that this is an impossibility, we will never get to this point. People will always remain blind to problems in the world and there is nothing we can do to change this dilemma.
Dr. Abuelaish’s story is a tragedy. His story is like many. So many others have the same story: Isrealis and Palestines. I am Jewish and am a strong supporter of Isreal and their actions. But when I hear stories like Dr. Abuelaish’s it pains me. No one likes war. The tragedies of war should never happen. War should be a last resort for any country. This story is like so many from any war. As the United State we do not have many of these stories hit home. We do not have war on our soil so personally we do not experience war tragedies like this. Israel on the other hand their war is being fought on their soil. They feel the pain of these tragedies everyday.
We as a country have become so desensitized to death and war solely because it is not fought on our soil. So many countries are completely different. My roommate is from South Korea and he experiences war all the time at home. It is not popularized by the media but North Korea tries to invade South Korea all the time. All of his best friends are in the military because of South Korea has mandatory 2 years military service. He will be going to the military next year and will not be returning to Penn State until 2011. He said, “I will be back in 2011 unless I get killed or something.” That was such a sad statement. He said he has had friends killed and family members killed too. We as Americans do not usually feel this pain because we do not have mandatory conscription. Israel has the same type of mandatory conscription for men and women. Israelis feel the pain that the South Koreans feel. Fighting on your on soil is something that Americans haven’t seen since the Civil War. Most likely we are one of the only countries that haven’t experienced war on our soil in the past 150 years.
As John Lennon said in his famous peace song,”All we are saying is give peace a chance.” We need to follow his words. Israel and Palestine have not tried to give peace a chance since Israel became a country in 1948. They have never tried cohabitance. Even though I am strongly in favor of Israel having their own country and kicking the Palestinians out. I think that if at the beginning they tried to peacefully habitat together it would of worked. But since all of this blood has shed peace will not work in that country. Their has been to much deeepseeded hatered of each other for peace to work now. If something doesn’t happen in the country in the next few years stories like Dr. Abuelaish’s will continue to happen everyday.
I cannot even imagine what Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish must being going through losing three children and a niece so violently in such a short period of time must be impossible to bear. This man is one of the few people that is actively working to find a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and despite his efforts to end the violence it found its way to his front door. He is one of many people, both Palestinian and Israeli, who has had to suffer through the loss of one or many of their family members. If he was a Palestinian man who lost family in the conflict the Israeli people would not have even heard about it. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, however, is a public figure both in Palestine and it Israel. The pain that he experienced, as shown in the video clips, is so heart breaking.
People from Palestine and Israel all grieved with him over his loss, which is perhaps the first step towards the resolution of this long conflict. The people of Israel can finally see that the people of Palestine are losing innocent youth in this conflict, and that they experience the same grief at the loss of a loved one. This tragedy finally gives a face to the people whom they are fighting. It is true that in all war people see the opposition as the “enemy” and the “aggressors”. There would be no way to justify any war if this was not the case. What most people do not realize, or chose to ignore, is that to the other side they are the “enemy” and the “aggressors”. They see the opposing side as some faceless and emotionless entity, not as families or fathers or mothers or sons. It is in this refusal to empathize with other people who are different that is truly the source of all violence.
Intolerance is what causes conflict. Do we fear people who look different, have different ideals, or live a different lifestyle than us? Is intolerance the result of fear and misunderstanding? On some levels, I would say yes. When you do not understand other people, it is hard to identify with them, and so different people become just a group, they lose their individuality. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish fought for peace, and is loved and respected in both Palestine and Israel. He has a face, and this is why people mourn his loss with him. He is no longer so different and intimidating, he is a person just like them.
His loss is extremely great, and yet through his suffering one can only hope that some good, or realization of the wrongs that they’ve committed, can come from this horrible tragedy.
Putting a human face to the horrors of war will always be a sobering experience for those who otherwise would be adamantly in support of it. The modern day strategy of war, where command can be thousands of miles away and completely disconnected from the troops they are directing, results in a chessboard effect. Soldiers become nothing more than pawns, civilians the squares the pieces must fall on. It is a reality of modern day warfare that life is treated with less importance than it would be in regular life, and sometimes our technology becomes a more important commodity than human lives. So when there is an occurrence similar to that of Dr. Abuelaish’s experience; one where the media breaks the norm and actually reports reality rather than playing the part of assorted talking heads, and in so doing shows a human face representing an abstract concept such as war, of course it will have a profound impact.
Everyone knows that life is precious, so war must be justified through belittling the other. As it says in the blog, “how would it be possible to kill others if we didn't see them as less human than us?” This is the foundation of war: the declaration that our ideas are more “right” than the other’s ideas, more specifically that the other’s ideas are wrong, and the other side is so wrong, that taking human life to prove we’re right is fully justifiable. But even just seeing the other’s suffering isn’t enough, because we can say that we knew that was happening, and it is what is has to be. Dr. Abuelaish incidentally was able to rise even above that justification, because he was one of us, but also one of them. He took the fundamental divide that separated the two sides and abolished it, because he was both.
So what if we did know the faces, families, and stories of our “enemies”? It would be impossible to see them as enemies. It would be impossible to perform that lynchpin of war: violence. Because rather than seeing those rockets flying into Baghdad and destroying buildings that most likely have enemies in them, we would see those same rockets obliterating homes, destroying neighborhoods, and killing family and friends. It would have been hard to justify going to war with Iraq. Rather than saying, “we don’t mean to kill civilians, but we can’t tell the difference between friends and enemies,” we would say, “only those responsible can die. There is no other way of approaching this.” Of course, if that was true, we might not have been able to justify going to war at all, and it is hard to argue that Saddam Hussein’s regime of terror and violence had to end, for the sake of the Iraqi people who suffered every day.
If we saw the true face of war, there is only one thing certain: we would never be certain about anything.
Seeing the faces of innocent people who have just lost the lives of people whom they love is an in-comprehensive feeling. Hearing the Palestinian doctor on the phone, someone who served both Israeli people and Palestinian even through conflict, was heart wrenching. I do not quite understand why countries who feel the necessity to drop bombs in the neighborhoods of those not involved in fighting. What does it accomplish? No innocent death can be justified by the conflict of two countries. If more people could witness the pain of people like Dr. Abuelaish, they would see that war is not the solution to conflict.
Our occupation in Iraq may seem outrageous to some and justifiable to others. We are at war with a country that did not threaten us in particularly in any way. The belief of nuclear weapons ended up resulting in the death of many Iraqi and American lives. What does the death toll have to reach in order for us stop? Why can’t we let them live their own lives? Furthermore, Our Iraq war would be different if more people could witness the pain of those suffering. I believe that we would still be occupying their territory, but there would be less casualties. Iraqi rebel groups would not be so angry as much as they would be disappointed. They would see it more as an annoyance than as an invasion. Moreover, this can never be accomplished, especially in developing in countries because of the lack of technology. In the United States, we can access videos in thirty seconds like the one of Dr. Abuelaish on CNN and it will affect our ethos. On a rare occurrence, someone who watches the video will try to send the message further somehow, maybe even start an organization striving for peace. In reality, nevertheless, most people will watch it as if it were a movie, think about it for a day or two, and then completely forget about it.
If this message of suffering was received well, warring with each other would be decreased. Domestic violence could be prevented much more easily too. The widespread message of peace could outweigh all of the gang, drug related violence that plagues today’s society. The use of guns could also be curtailed with more awareness. We could re-examine those whom we think that we hate from a distance and ask the question, where does this hatred stem from? Bias and general disliking of another often makes us think that it is justifiable for us to hate another person. Additionally, religion and race both serve as the premise for the divide of people. While it would be optimistic to say that we could end international and domestic war by spreading messages like the one of Dr. Abuelaish, it is not out of the question and it is up to us to realize this.
The commonly used quote, “It is easy to say but difficult to do” is definitely true when it comes to many situations, especially this one. When our own country and then even worse, our own family is affected, most of us only wish for some kind of revenge upon the people who did this to us. It is easy to say that we should stop and think about this how harming those people would affect their families after seeing what they have done to ours. This is difficult to do when your own home is attacked. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish probably never even imagined that his own three daughters would get killed and others injured after all that he has done his entire life—help other people and believe in peace. His entire life’s beliefs are tested all of a sudden with the shock of his three daughters being killed all at once. Looking passed this despite your entire life’s belief system only becomes extremely. Such an incident can change the best of the people. We all know that the right thing to do in a way is to look at our country’s enemies as people who have families just like ours and are going through losses just as country has. If we keep on taking revenge and hurting innocent people on both sides, it is going to make it extremely difficult to ever even getting close to achieve world peace. The famous words of Dr. King “Why can’t we all just get along?” say it all. If someone kills me, then my family member kills that person’s family and then back and forth more and more people just keep on getting killed exponentially. In the end was the revenge in the very beginning even worth it? Each revenge leads to more and more people getting harmed and killed. If there was no first revenge, many families would have probably not lost parents or kids or any loved ones. One of these families that got affected due to someone else’s revenge could have been your family. Basically, I am not saying that we should just sit on our behind and just watch innocent people get killed and not do anything about it, but I am saying that we should think several time before making any stupid decisions and think of ourselves in other peoples positions. As I said before, it is easy to be said than done. One thing is that all this that I have been saying is what should be done in order have a “better world” and so that more people could be happy. I cannot say that I would not wish something bad happen to the people who harmed my people. For example, each and every time that the bomb blasts took place in India numerous times in just the past few years, made me want to wish the worst upon the people who did this to the people of my country. Just thinking about the numerous innocent lives that were taken, only made me want to hope for revenge upon those terrorists, but then what would be the difference between me and them anymore? The recent blasts in Mumbai made my heart cry like none other just as it did for every person, especially people of Mumbai (like myself). I may say things like all the people who did this to us should be killed, but if this were to happen, it would happen with the stake of even more innocent people on the line. Yes, something needs to be done but not in the way that usually comes to mind. As I said, it is all easy said, then done. Just think, in the end is it all even worth it…
With war, people’s parents, brothers, sister, sons, daughters, friends and innocent people die. People fight against each other. To actually kill someone else people have to get into a mind set that those people are horrible and that they don’t deserve to live. It is the only way some people can take away someone else’s life. In the case of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Israelites hate the Palestinians just like the Palestinians hate the Israelites. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is a Palestinian who works with Israelites. He is trusted by the Israelites who hate where he was born, Palestine, his nationality. The Israelites trust a Palestinian. Many trust him with their lives. So if the Israelites can trust Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish why not the other Palestinians? What makes this one man so different? Yes, he wants peace and wants to help fix this fight but does that mean all the other Palestinians want war? I think not. It is the way both countries were brought up, hating each other, probably only hearing the bad. So, to each other the other side of people are worthy of killing because they aren’t like them or that is what they believe. So if someone who is from the other side and who you actually trust is hurt is that justified? Or is Dr. Izzeldin Abuelasih not considered a Palestinians? If he is not considered a Palestinian, which he is, why was his home targeted? I do not believe Dr. Izzledin Abuelaish was targeted because he is Palestinian, I think he was targeted because he wants peace. He has always been a man of this kind, and he brought his children up this way, as well. People just do not want to see peace, which is why someone “saw” military militia in his home. Or I could be wrong, and people did target him because he is Palestinian, and they do not want a Palestinian making peace with Israelis. It will probably never be known. Contrary to my hopes for this world, I do not seeing our world making peace anytime soon. And if at all possible, Dr. Izzledin Abuelaish is making the first step. He lives in a world, where he should be hated. Rather he is trusted and saves the Israeli people.
As the Israel people watch as someone they trust and believe in, hurt by there own killing, one would think it would lead to a little insight how they are actually killing people and not just bugs or something. Does his pain show everyone is human? Or does his pain show that war is only about people dying? His pain portrays the spiritual downfall of his own being. Anyone in his position would lose control, and ask themselves why not me. At least I would.
When one thinks about the brutality of war, they often forget to think about all the innocent people and places that are affected. Many innocent people are killed in wars for no reason. They just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Stories about women and children along with many soldiers getting killed are on the news every night. The same goes for buildings and landmarks when a war is occurring. Many homes are destroyed by bombs and bullets due to crossfire. Wars make nations unsafe and many uncomfortable because the thought of one of these misfires or car explosions could happen at any moment.
I thought the idea when nations are at war they often think the opposition is wrong and less of a human being. We have our views on the subject and they have theirs. We think our way is the only right way, and they think the complete opposite. We are a different culture and have different beliefs and customs then them. We are exposed to different things than they are. Because of this fact, we cannot fully understand where their point of view is coming from. We think our way is the way it is, and do not take time to think about why they think what they do. We don't want to put ourselves in their shoes.
The story of Dr. Abuelaish is tragic. He seemed like an nice, educated guy who had a loving family until one day everything changed. Three of his daughters and one of his nieces were killed by Israeli bombs. I believe that is my worst fear; having my family killed, and let alone for no reason. They were those in the wrong place at the wrong time. They never know when a car is going to explode nearby or if a missile is going to crush their home.
I personally do feel bad for the innocent people in the middle-east who have to deal with this on a daily basis. They do not deserve this. It is immoral. It would be very difficult for an average American like myself to put myself in their shoes. I could not possibly understand what goes through their mind and what they have to deal with on a daily basis. It is something we need to think about and be thankful for what we have.
We need to treat one another with more respect. There is absolutely no reason why a 5 year old little girl should be blown to pieces in crossfire for something she had nothing to do with. We need to keep Dr. Abuelaish and his family in our prayers and pray that nothing like this happens again. We need to increase the peace, and have this topic be something of the past.
I find it amazing how Dr. Abuelaish, even after three of his daughters and his niece were killed, could still say that he hopes this is the last of the killings and it ends with his family. Even with all that he is going through he is still a promoter of peace. I think about the war in Iraq and wonder how many promoters of peace did our soldiers kill while bombing or raiding civilian towns. For me, it truly does bring a face to the numbers of war victims we hear about. I’m used to hearing the numbers, never names and never faces. In one of my communications classes, we looked at how the media portrayed the Vietnam War and what they chose to leave out of their coverage. The footage they left out were dozens of Vietnamese children running away from U.S. soldiers and mangled bodies on the ground. It made me feel sorry for those innocent lives that were destroyed by war. Similar innocent lives are being lost everyday in Iraq. Sam made a good point as well saying that we all got to know the faces of the survivors of flight 1549 that landed in the Hudson River. Yes, it is truly amazing how the pilot landed the plane in water successfully. He did a great job and should be praised for that. However, it is a sad thing that we as a society remember their names and faces better than we can remember those lost at war. Maybe because too many are lost. Or maybe just because war has become so banal to us that it does not faze us anymore. The war is away from us, not on our own territory. If the war were to hit home, like 9/11 did, then I think our society would treat it differently. We would know more and want to know more. I think if we would see ourselves in Dr. Abuelaish’s position then this war would be a lot different. We would feel the effects of war a lot more. We would understand how the families of fallen soldiers feel. The United States does not see war at home. We do not have to fear bombs falling on our homes and raids coming into our towns. Today’s society does not know what that is like. I think there would be widespread panic if that were ever to become a reality to our society. I wonder how we would view war then if that were ever to happen to us. I wonder if we would not enter into war so lightly. I hope more of us can promote peace like Dr. Abuelaish has, even after the murder of his daughters and neice.
I really connected with the content in this blog. I drove to Florida over spring break, and while everyone was sleeping in the car I was listening to NPR. The reporter was interviewing a journalist from Gaza. He was describing what the town he lives in was like at that point- all the windows in houses were blown out (in their coldest month of the year), but once he said that they had to do bomb drills with their children, much like Americans do fire drills, I started to cry. It’s terrible to think that any human should have to live like that.
I think that part of the reason we’re still in this war is because the American public is unaffected by it. Unless you have a friend or relative overseas, odds are you aren’t even sure what’s going on. If we really were able to connect with the enemy everything would be different. Not only would we not be fighting this war there would be many other wars that wouldn’t have occurred or escalated as they did. To be able to connect with the “enemy” Americans would have to have a completely different mindset. I’ve been studying Orientalism in one of my classes. Edward Said suggests that the West perceives the people living in the middle east/east as fundamentally different then themselves. This perception is shown dramatically through the American media and Hollywood. Most portrayals of Middle Eastern people in movies show the individual as a terrorist or an abused woman. While the media reports mostly on suicide bombings and terrorists. Africans are included in Orientalism, which explains why we’re able to sit back and watch Darfur, and neglected to act for so long to the Genocide in Rwanda. But, it’s not just in other countries that we fail to recognize tragedy. Recently in the news they’ve reported up to two dozen boys missing from a Somali community in Minnesota. Can you even imagine the uproar we’d experience if 24 white kids from a rich community just up and disappeared? And when the FBI investigated this situation they announced to the media that they suspected the boys had joined a Somali terrorist group and feared that since they all had passports they were planning an attack on the United States. That doesn’t exactly help the Oriental image.
So, if we really are going to be able to connect with the enemy we need to change ourselves. We should start showing “Orientals” in a positive way. I’m not sure this psychological transformation is possible in America, but maybe with time people will catch on that we really are all the same, and share the ultimate goals of survival and happiness.
When tragedies come our way, we often experience something that we never expected to come our way. Even if that tragedy can make a difference in a small or big way, we can tend to focus on what is happening now. The now is the feelings, the hurt and the sadness that comes from a loss. It is often hard to see it, but some good comes out of the worst things that we can imagine. There is always a positive way to look at things, even if we choose not to see it. It is all about the choices we make daily. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish has suffered a great deal when it comes to loosing loved ones, but through his loss peace might be found. In other words, change might happen between the Israeli and Palestinians. The situation between the Israeli and Palestinians leads me to talk about the way human beings are.
Human beings are extremely selfish, we tend to think about ourselves and what can benefit us before we think about lending a hand. The concept of considering others better than ourselves can be an easy simple thing, but we all do the contrary, consciously or not. As stated in the blog “how would it be possible to kill others if we didn’t see them as less human than us?” We are all capable of doing wrong all we have to have is the opportunity to act in such a way. (Don’t get me wrong we can also do good, but it’s about the choices we make on a day to day basis). We have to constantly be fighting against evil in this world; true world peace can’t be accomplished, but change can happen. The answer to peace is being selfless, taking the actions necessary to love, care and think about others better than ourselves.
What do we gain from acting out of evil intensions? Or being in a state of mind that “I” am better then “he, she, them”? If the world could empathize or experience what others have experienced then “ignorance” wouldn’t exist. We wouldn’t treat others humans’ beings like unequal but rather as an equal.
This question was asked in the blog “how differently would we treat people who we hate from a distance if we could see ourselves in them, and if we could actually see the shared pain we all carry within?” On a daily basis we are all guilty of treating other people badly whether it is a harsh comment or just a simple thought. Experiencing something through someone else’s shoes would make many of us realize how judgmental we are.
For some reason, it is always those who try to do the most good in this world end up suffering the most. What Dr. Izzeldin went through is devastating. Despite the change he is trying to begin and trying to enforce, his family still became a horrible victim of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Can you imagine? Losing three daughters and a niece all at the same time? After all his work for peace…he only wanted to be a link to both worlds.
It is hard to look through enemy’s eyes – to see what it is like in their world. It is hard to even consider what kind of suffering they are going through, when we are constantly reminded of the suffering inflicted on us. As the blog says, “there is often little compassion between warring people, little willingness to recognize the humanity in one another. After all, how would it be possible to kill others if we didn't see them as less human than us?” People’s (and nation’s) stubbornness to communicate and compromise is killing lives everyday. Innocents are suffering because of a war no one wants to be in.
The blog entry asks us, what if we can apply seeing “the other side” to our own wars. If we can manage to do that, maybe we would be more compassionate people; maybe there would be more understanding in this world. Unseen similarities lie with each and every one of us. If people realize that we all suffer the same way, under the same pain, then people would be able connect with each other in way never before.
Approaching someone who is different from us seems to be difficult. We are too hung up on the differences; convincing ourselves that other people can never understand and building barriers we do not want broken. By blocking ourselves, we block out learning about others, as well as the possibility of others learning about us. We become are stuck in our own side, never considering how much we are similar with those on the other side of the fence.
We need to start having an open mind. We need to look past appearance, race, countries, and any other “physical” characteristic we have labeled upon each other. We need to have more understanding, more compassion, more respect and more awareness. Because once we gain full perspective of the lives we touch, we realize how much it reflects our own. And maybe, little by little, what used to be the grief of one side will be the grief of the whole – and the whole will work together to end the grieves of all.
Dr. Abuelaish’s story is a very emotional and touching one. The situation is tragically ironic: Abuelaish, a proprietor of peace and love, lost several daughters and a niece to the same Israelis he was seen as a friend to. The fact that he was accepted in Israel enough to get through medical school and even work in an Israeli hospital shouts optimism and hopefulness, but the fact that Abuelaish had to be a victim of the hate he has been trying to prevent shouts betrayal. No innocent citizen of society deserves to be a casualty of these unprovoked attacks – especially for a family that prides itself on peace and love. In an area of ethnic warfare, it truly takes courage for a man to step forward and try to resolve a seemingly unbeatable conflict. With so much segregation and ethnic hate, it’s hard to be the first person to speak up or try to bridge the gaps. Therefore, Dr. Abuelaish can be attributed as a hero, a peacemaker, and some might even argue a modern-day Gandhi.
But what I find most appalling about this story is Dr. Abuelaish’s outlook on the tragedy since it occurred. Surprisingly, Dr. Abuelaish is looking down at the incident with optimism, and he hopes that this will be one of the last attacks to occur as a result of the Gaza and Israeal conflict. After reading through various comments on the blog, it seems that many others feel the same way – personally I find it very hard to even comprehend that he will remain working in an Israeli hospital among Israelis. I believe I would have a tremendously infuriating time living along side people that consider themselves your enemies. Although it must be noted that from an American perspective, it is very hard to take in exactly what Dr. Abuelaish faces every day in Gaza. We as Americans, especially in recent years, experience a lifestyle nothing like Middle Easterners in the middle of warfare. Racism exists here in the United States, this is true, but as a whole we simply just do not face the hatred that Palestinians and Israeli’s face every day.
Dr. Richards asks in his blog, how would “our” Iraq war be different? How would we be different? The truth is, there is no way to answer this question – there’s no telling how “our” Iraq war would we be different because we are not even close to being on the same level as the Palestinians and Israelis today. It is so difficult to apply a concept like this to our own wars because the attacks and amount of casualties every day is astonishing in the Middle East. So as Americans it’s tough and almost unreasonable to compare ourselves to the tragedies they face on a daily basis – and I think I speak for others when I say I can only imagine the pain that Dr. Abuelaish is feeling right now.
Constantly we here about our American troops dying in Iraq. Every day the people want out of the war. We feel we did everything we can and now there is only negative results to get out of the war rather than the positive ideas that Bush had in his head. Hopefully Obama will do something about this since he is what our world needed, as most Americans voted. But seriously, it is pathetic that people just like you and I die every day because some man wants you to go fix another part of the world. But more harm is being done to American society then good. It is because Bush believed that we were too deep in the war to just back up and we might as well finish the job. WHY?
That means just more and more people are going to die. Do you think that if George Bush were to witness his children and other family members die on the fields in Iraq, we would still be there? That would be hard to believe. If he speaks for the best of the American people, then what in the world is he doing?
Imagine if race did not exist. We believed that whites were just as important to the world as Arabs. Sounds ridiculous right? Well back during slavery, they never believed that blacks would be considered human, but now we have a “black” man running our country. Things are clearly getting better. And hopefully soon enough we will realize that race is just a security issue for the American people. It is stupid. Life is short and every human being deserves a peaceful life.
There is no reason for the war in Iraq or war in general. If we come to realize this along with the rest of the world, that race is just for us to feel protected, then war, fighting and negative ideas will be gone. What if I told you, I could prove God did not exist? What if religion had no purpose? Well it doesn’t mean anything but a symbol for the people to feel safe in the world. We the people obviously evolved in the world. But even if I could prove this, millions of people would deny the facts because they would realize there is no purpose in the world and that we are all going to die. This religion and race plays such a big part in everything. But really if we can get over the fact that the world is divided by color, religion, culture and anything, then we can realize that if you get to know anyone, Arabs, Israelies, Cubans, Asians, etc, then we will have no reason to attack one another.
In reality there is no true justification for Palestinians and Israel’s launching rockets into each other’s territories. Though if we look deeper into this issue we would come to realize that the loss of life in such wars is undeniably preposterous. Innocent people being targeted in which majority are women and children. They even targeted a UN school in which several children died. In their defense they said that the militants were attacking the Israeli’s from these locations so they had to take them out.
Unfortunate hate has been spread amongst the Palestinians and Israeli’s due to consistent skirmishes. From the Palestinian side Hammas was throwing rockets over to Israel’s side and innocent people were dying there too. The loss of life in any situation is condemnable especially in war where the strikes are very carefully pre planned ahead of time.
Losing a loved one is probably the worst feeling in the world. If we all start thinking this way the world would be a much more happier place. But everyone isn’t as noble and peaceful. There will always be extremists out there who will try to disrupt the peace. No doubt thousands of innocent civilians have died in the Iraq and Afghan war and it is very sad. Though this war was important but it still doesn’t mean that we can allow innocent civilians to be killed. This is some what like the Darfur incident. Thousands and thoughts of people being killed mindlessly and no one is accountable. Everyone knows about it but no one actually cares enough to raise their voice.
When Hitler’s army on his orders committed Genocide the world spoke and everyone took action against the mass murder of Jewish people. Why don’t people in this era say anything? Are they scared of the government perhaps? There have been cases where the government has gagged several human rights activists for being a bit too out spoken is the U.S. but since when did freedom of speech become limited?
It is too good to be true if we start to feel each other’s pain. Though if someone loses a loved one we grieve with them but with no doubt it not comparable to what the person who actually loves them feels. Love is a very subjective term and feeling it for someone else is almost impossible. But if we were to then this world would no doubly be a better place. Everyone would understand what it feels like to lose someone who you hold very dear to you heart. Hitler wouldn’t have committed those hate crimes, the KKK wouldn’t kill black people just because they were black. What if someone in their family got killed. We need to put ourselves into others shoes to realize what the world is like.
"How would Palestinians find justification for launching rockets into Jewish civilian neighborhoods?" I'm one forth Palestinian my grand father form my father's side was a Palestinian Christian from Bethlehem on the west bank. that being said, the Jewish Palestinian Conflict is just one many arisen from ignorant and irresponsible border and state creation of the European nations. The Jewish population within Palestine before it arrived into English hands was only 7% of the overall population(60,000 Jews to 731,000 Arabs in 1914). The creation of the illegitimate state was born out of terrorist Zionist group Irgun and Lehi that bombed public places with the full intention of killing unarmed Arabs in order to create the Zionist state of Israel. The first movement of Zionism didn't occur till as late as 1884 when the first 14 (fourteen) Jews (Eastern European) landed in Palestine. These Europeans of the Jewish religion established the state with support of England to suppress the Palestinian people. Now 2009 millions of Palestinians are who were ripped out of their homes and land 42 years ago are still refugees in the world largest prison Gaza. ON the West bank apartheid was once again surfaced. In 2006 when Palestinians from Gaza and the west bank both voted for the legislative body that represents Palestine they overwhelmingly vote for Hamas (against Israeli State) over Fatah (agrees to work with Israel). This election displeased Israel because it legitimized Hamas a political group that they had succeed in painting as a terrorist group had just be confirmed by millions of Palestinians by DEMOCRACY that they were a ligament political party and the one that best represented Palestine. incensed by this Israel broke the cease fire in November of 2008(THIS IS NOT DISPUTED ITS IS FACT). In turn Gaza returned fire the only way they could with quassam rockets. Dr. Abuilaish is just one of many who have their relatives dead because of the constant indiscriminate firing of Israeli troops upon Gazan homes, mosques, and UNITED NATION SCHOOLS AND HOSPITALS. I have very strong opinions when it comes to inhumane acts, in fact just over 50 years ago Jew were imprisoned in the Warsaw ghetto killed indiscriminately in concentration camps by Nazis. BUT HOW CAN I HAVE ANY FAITH INHUMANITY WHEN IT THE SAME PEOPLE KILLED DUE TO THE HOLOCAUST TURN AROUND AND COMMITTED THE GENOCIDE OR THE ERADICATION OF A PEOPLES FROM THEIR BORDERS!!???
IF I COULD GIVE UP MY LIFE SO THAT PALESTINE COULD EXIST AND IT PEOPLE WOULD NOT BE KILLED INDISCRIMINATELY I WOULD.
Applying the Israeli-Palestinian War to our war, both wars might occur with difference reasons, but they have the same result that civilians are the victims and the residence are destroyed. We might think that truly understand the consequences of the war, however, do we really know what how feel like to live in fear every moment of our lives and never know when it is going to end. Iraqis are people who live in that fear in their own homes. Home, which is should be the safest place but now US soldiers are walking around their homes with guns. Imagine, if we live in our homes, try to live our lives and one day, there are thousands of armed soldiers show up on the street. And all we know is those soldiers are coming to take our resources. According to Sam's Class on last Thursday, the media plays strong roll in this war. For example, Americans and Iraqis do not know what really US Government after for at the first place. There were many cover stories came out from the media such as US Government has to take down the dictator in Iraq, has to find nuclear weapons and Iraq had involved in 9/11 attacked in New York. Currently, the propose of war is starting to come out from the dark, oil becomes to be the reason for the war.
It is not our president fault to sent the troop to Iraq, but our country have to protect our interest in oil. However, is it the right way to protect of interest, is it worth it to sent our people to die over sea. At that time before decision about the war was made, it must be really hard decision for the government to decide the decision. If we did not sent the troop to Iraq at the time, we might not have the chance to keep our interest. Currently, the damages have been done, many people might blame on the former president, the president that do his best to help our nation. Additionally, the new president is in the office, many people might admire him right now, if he has the same situation as the former president people might dislike him as well.
When I remember back to 9/11, I recall the live horror I watched from the moment the second plane crashed into the towers until late into the evening that Tuesday. Never before had I felt so heartbroken and tormented over the tragic events of that day. Following the 11th, news broadcasts singly covered the breaking news concerning the attack.. Putting personal heartache at family and friends involved in the attack on the twin towers aside, I found it incredible the amount of personal grief I felt for the thousands of people who lost their lives and lost their families.
War has since broken out between the United States and the Middle East. We’ve lost countless men and women to unnecessary violence. In addition to that, thousands of innocent civilians: men, women, and children are being killed mercilessly. How can anyone condone the condition we are in?
Like many others, I am influenced to see these people as our enemy; to think that every single citizen believes and is proud of the violence against our country and is proud of what their part of the war stands for and does. To put it into perspective for myself and view them as a country full of highly different people and cultures such as the United States, it churns my stomach to see that they are suffering beyond what we could ever contemplate. The violence is happening on their homefront, far from the comfort of our front doors. It’s not fair to selfishly concern ourselves with personal convenience when it’s ending innocent lives in the Middle East. We’re all human, aren’t we? What gives us more of a right to life than anyone else?
The Doctor’s story is heartbreaking. I could put my Dad in his position and imagine the mourning he would endure. Losing your daughters to Israeli bombs and having your home targeted for reasons unknown is horrific. For a man who promotes peace and does all he can in medicine, why should his home have been targeted?
I think it’s easy for many Americans to watch or read the news, see videoclips such as this, and go on with their day only having acquired a bit more knowledge in current news. Imagine the time it would take to consider every loss a person or family has suffered and then maybe we can “bring everyone to the table” as Obama has said and decide where we are going from here.
I understand that war has its strategies and purposes, but never will I condone the nauseatingly numerous killings of innocent civilians. Maybe we think they look different. Perhaps they speak languages we don’t understand. They practice their choice of religion, just as we do here in America. How can we justify so many lost futures? When it comes down to it, we are all HUMAN.
The Grief of War Comes Full Circle: The Essence of Race Relations
I find it amazing how people simply kill other people without thinking twice about the problem. I think that each person should think for himself or herself and agree with themselves before going ahead and doing it for a country. Even though it means fight in the name of your country, but seriously how is it fighting in the name your country when there’s no harm being done to your country? Most of the people in the world just want peace; they’re fed up with all of this. The images of kids, women, men and old people drowning in blood. Parents seeing their families, relatives and friends are being killed in front of them. They are being hurt from both sides. Whether it’s in Palestine or Israel, the United States or Iraq each one is getting hurt and leaving in sorrow. It’s hard enough to leave your family to a place that is viewed as uncivilized in the TV. And the Iraq people watching their country being invaded by Americans. This explains the sociology class; we just were in on Thursday. People should stop viewing this from one obstacle. They should research and educate themselves to see different obstacles. If the media is filtered or just shows propaganda, the Internet has many websites that have different opinions on everything. Youtube has different videos that view speeches, protest, images and interviews that make you understand and see the different obstacles. We should be able to teach ourselves and put ourselves in another person’s shoe.
We are all the same; we are all going through the sorrow and pain. The Iraq war is not different. We could be different by maybe standing up for what’s right. We can stand up for ourselves and for others. We should talk among one another and negotiate everything. We should show people how things are really and how different people feel. We should expose the truth. The truth that is hidden because of the media. The truth of how we are the same. The truth is that we are all fed up and see this war as useless. In the beginning, it was lie to save the Iraqis from Saddam but now its nothing-just going after the oil. Now it’s truly just the heartache that’s living in both nations. The pain that lives in the hearts of the Iraqis family that live in fear and in the hearts of the Americans leaving their family members to a senseless war. It’s truly very hard to live in Iraq. A religious group in Iraq kidnapped my uncle. He was kidnapped because he was an opinionated writer. His family had to pay a ransom for him to return. My Aunt had her son murdered in front of her. The radical Muslims that are in Iraq are killing the American soldiers. At the end of the day, members of the family goes home and cries themselves to sleep because of what they see. That is how we ARE the same.
I’ve always had a strong dislike for violence and war. Every violent war that I have ever learned about has involved lies, the killing of many innocent people, and greed that has manifested into full-blown hate. There is no other explanation for it except that people do believe their own group to be better, more human, more worthwhile and more meaningful than the enemy’s group. One loses all logic on the pursuit of selfish desires and fears. He views himself separate from everything and everyone else. He makes up excuses allowing him to destroy life in many forms. In his own mind, the people who he is killing have lives that are less important than his own. Not to mention the lives of their own friends and family and lovers and teachers and priests and leaders. But when you place a friend or family member or teacher on the other side, those people don’t look so different anymore. And wait, killing these people could actually hurt you because one of them is your friend. This person made a deep impact on your life and has taught you a few things, but you are pointing the gun at them. And at their daughters and mothers and brothers. And then you say wait, this other person is kinda like me. He has feelings like me and would sure be sad like me if his son was blown away or his community was destroyed. This is when we remember that all people have love and want the same things for themselves and their families and friends. They want happiness and safety, peace and friendship. Just like us. We get so caught up in our differences and in our competition for material things that we forget the underlying fabric that ties us all together. We forget that we are sharing this consciousness and this Earth whether we want to or not. It’s sad that it takes a peacemaker’s three daughters to be murdered for people to open their eyes. But there is always a bright side; at least something is to be learned from the tragedy and it triggered a step in the right direction in the mindset of the people involved in the Palestine/Israel conflict. There is a cool quote that I found in my Yoga book that is pretty applicable here.
“Han Shan, that great and crazy Chinese poet a thousand years ago, said we’re all like bugs in a bowl - all day going around, never leaving their bowl. I say that’s right - every day climbing up the side, sliding back down over and over again.
Sit in the bottom of the bowl, head in your hands…cry…moan…feel sorry for yourself. Or - look around…see your fellow bugs…walk around …say, “how ya doin’?” Say, “hey, nice bowl!””~ David Buttfeild
We’re all just bugs in a bowl and we’re stuck in the damn bowl. So let’s just get along and make it easier and more fun for everyone.
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