Amidst the fear, hate, devastation and violence, of the current Hamas-Israel crisis, presidential candidate Marianne Williamson's sensible brilliance in her message yesterday shines out like a beacon in the fog:
One week ago an event took place that changed the calculus of foreign affairs. The situation in Israel and Gaza right now is extremely perilous, not only for the people of those two regions but for the world.
Black and white thinking will help no one, and has no place in any serious analysis of the current situation. Many truths exist here simultaneously.
Atrocities such as those committed by Hamas against civilians in Israel transgress the most basic dictates of a moral universe. They constitute nothing short of pure evil. Nor did the invasion do anything to promote the cause of justice for Palestinians; if anything, it put the cause of justice for Palestinians back for decades and possibly longer. Hamas is a terrorist organization and this was a terrorist attack. The aspirations of Hamas have nothing to do with striking a peace deal with Israel; their stated goal is the complete eradication of the state of Israel, and they will settle for nothing less.
While it is often stated - incorrectly - that the goal of Israel is the extermination of the Palestinians, in fact the stated goal of Hamas is the extermination of the Jews. Clearly they are trying, and Israel cannot be expected not to respond. No one expected the United States to not go after Al-Qaeda after 9/11, and no one should expect Israel not to go after Hamas. Of course, we did" and of course they will.
But an eye for an eye doesn't just leave everyone blind; in this case it leaves everyone dead. While I have cried for days about an event that exterminated ten times more Jews than died on the night of Kristallnacht, now I am crying with the same amount of fury and helplessness over two million people who live in Gaza, over half of whom are children. Hamas is not the Palestinian people; in fact, Hamas displays dictatorial power over their own people in Gaza. Yet innocent Palestinians as well as Israelis are paying a terrible price for what has happened, and their safety should be as high a priority for the world as should the safety of innocent Israelis.
Humanitarian corridors must be established immediately. The siege must end, and power be restored immediately so hospitals can be more than graveyards. Gazan civilians and foreign nationals must be given safe passage. There are surely phone calls going back and forth among world leaders today - including Europeans and Arabs - seeking desperately to broker some kind of humanitarian solution, to create a ceasefire and restore delivery of water, food and medical supplies.
Hamas has announced it will start executing the 150 hostages one by one if Israel takes military action against Gaza, leaving the hostage's loved ones and the entire nation of Israel in a state of horrifying trauma. No person of good will anywhere in the world wants those hostages executed. The hatred spawned by such insanity would only increase the hostility that already exists between far too many Israelis and Palestinians - two peoples who we should remember lived side by side in peace for centuries, and hopefully will live in peace again someday. One of the tragic consequences of this situation is how many Palestinians and Israelis have worked for years to forge a better way - only to see their dreams of peace be shattered by what has occurred.
As President, in the years leading up to this I would have been far more active on behalf of an effort to broker peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Supporting Israel militarily yet not playing an active role in emphasizing the need for Palestinian justice was a failure of American leadership and a transgression against our own values.
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