Interesting article on Turkish latest develoments

Hi all,

I have stumbled upon an interesting article by Dani Rodrik, regarding the latest constitutional changes in Turkey, making my doubts on their democratic intents deeper.
Here is the link: Erdoğan’s Choice.


While you are there, take a moment to look into Project Syndicate - there is a very distinguished group of persons writing interesting articles with global perspective.

Enjoy

Despair due the Turkish Flotilla

Quite some time passed since I last wrote.
If you actually bother to check it, my last post was little before the Turkish Flotilla, and the circus it brought.

At first I've decided not to mention this event. The reasoning was that my blog is something very individual, subjective - even private, while this was a news event, one of many events, provocations, used to bring yet another head-line that will be forgotten while reading the next head-line, the next provocation.
The truth was different. This was not yet another event, another provocation that will move on to the endless flow of events eventually creating history. The dust did not clear. The buzz did not stop.

The fact is that Israel acted as always, acting in a rightful way (at least in its own eyes), acting in a way that will be considered by the world's public opinion as yet another act of violence without meaning, without purpose, nor without any justification.
But this time it not ended there, because for the Turkish governing party (you can call me naive, or even optimistic, but I deliberately refrained from saying the Turkish People) this event conveyed an important mile-stone in the way of changing the face of Turkey.
It started by drawing away from any strong and strategic cooperation with Israel (it started before the flotilla, when Turkey demanded that Israel will not take part of a NATO exercise, a demand that led the entire cancellation of this event, perhaps even before), drawing further away from the European Union (after Greece and Cyprus voting prevented them entering closer into the union) and the US.
Moved on by getting (alarmingly) closer to Iran and supporting their nuclear expedition against the world, and last, for now (there goes my optimistic self down the drain...), their change in the Turkish Constitution allegedly making Turkish more democratic, in fact allowing the ruling Islamic party to severely reduce the power of the secular elements in Turkey.

What can I say... bad timing for Israel... but the reason I decided to write a post on it was the personal despair it brought into my individual, subjective and even private perspective over peace.
Direct negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians? why bothering if the world does not really care about the truth, about the facts and events? The result will always be the same - even if all the state of Israel will be Palestinian territory, no Jews in 10 countries in any direction - we will still be blamed for the fact that the Palestinian make the worst possible choices for their future. For the fact they choose revenge over hope, faith over humanism.
For the fact that they throw away any chance of decent life just because this is the leaders they are following, no, sorry, just because it will harm us as well - never mind the fact that they literally pay most of the bill in the end...

Crazy Idea I

As in many aspects of life, also when contemplating peace, or the lack of it, you come across ideas so crazy that there is no chance even contemplating them... This idea is so crazy, that even I wouldn't consider it seriously. Here it is anyway. Beware.

What seems to be the most problematic issue between the Israelis and the Palestinians? Jerusalem.
It doesn't matter that it was one of the most neglected cities in the Kingdom of Jordan when it ruled Jerusalem. However, ever since it was occupied by Israel in 1967 it became the most desired city for all Arabs around the world. But lets keep the reasons aside, lets consider this desire a fact.
Same goes for the Jews all around the world. Ever since there are Jews outside the Promised Land, they have prayed to be back in Jerusalem, build it and build it Temple. But again, lets keep the reasons aside, lets consider this desire a fact.

Since this is such an important and problematic place, not only politically but also theologically for three of the major religions of the world (do not forget the Christians which consider Jerusalem holy as well. Yes, another fact...). Lets all have it. Lets none have it...
What can be the structural mechanism for making Jerusalem shared by all, be taken cared by all, in a peaceful and constructing manner? How can it belong to all, yet not to none?
Make it the center of the world, not just in spiritual contemplation for half or more the population of the world. Make it the real center of the world, make it the center of the international interaction between nations. Make it the center of the establishment responsible for world peace and prosperity. Make it the home-town of the UN.

Think about it. It does sound crazy. But in a weird way it does make scence.
All countries will be equally interested in Jerusalem, not only as a spiritual, theological, theoretical place, not as the time-bomb of world peace, but as an actual place where the things that happen are more important than the place itself. It will belong to all, but none will be able to claim it as its own.
Build the assemblies between the historical buildings, the Mosques, Churches, Synagogues and other thousands-years-old archeological findings, and you will ensure no extremist from any religion will blow it up... at least not without harming part of his own heritage.
Make Jerusalem the center of the international political doing, and the focus will no longer be a place of contradiction and war, but will become a place in which things happens, where contradictions are disputed and war considered or prevented. Not a place of war. Not a place of contradiction.

Who knows, perhaps this renewed institution, with genuine interest in world peace and prosperity is the 3rd Temple awaited so much by the Jewish people.
Who knows, probably I am just crazy.

Interest without Proportion

Haven't you ever contemplated the extreme focus the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict gets in the media all around the world? And I am not talking only in the Western and Islamic regions: It also includes the post Soviet area, it also includes the far east (yes, also in China: people don't understand English there, but they've heard about Israel and it conflict with the Palestinians)
How come that at the edge of the western world (actually, a little further than that), at the edge of the Islamic world, in an extremely small area, with a relatively small population - one on-going conflict, one century old, is considered the conflict that needs most attending, most focus, drives most emotions than any other conflict in the world?...

It does not matter that eventually the area of the conflict is smaller than most countries in the world, heck, it is even smaller than wastelands in most countries in the world...
It does not matter that the size of the population involved in the conflict is smaller than most populations currently involved in conflicts, warfare or that are "simple" negated of any human right.
It does not matter that the casualties and damage are countless in comparison to latest wars conducted by Russia in the last decade, by the casualties in Afghanistan, by the violence and despair in numerous conflicts and massacres in Africa, by the number of deaths inflicted by Tyrannies or religious governments refusing their own people from freedom, rights and prosperity.

All that doesn't matter.
What matters is how wrong the Israeli government conducts itself and its people regarding the Palestinians. How they suffer.
What matters is how wrong the Terrorist groups sent by the name of Islam are in their approach toward the Western world and Israel in specific. How they suffer.

The truth is: it does matter...
But try to imagine, perhaps there is a small, tiny chance that if this conflict didn't have such a "great" rating around the world, if not so many emotions were forced on it by hundreds of media covering stories every day worldwide, perhaps, just perhaps, it would have been possible long ago to settle this thing?...

Origins of Hatred

There is no way to come around it. There is hatred on both sides. And a lot.
Perhaps not all of us feel it, perhaps not all of them feel it, but enough people on both sides feel it, enough to keep the confrontation going, enough to keep a high level of anti-peace atmosphere in too-big circles of the population.
Where does this hatred come from? Is it the same on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
I believe that hatred has two main origins. Both are found in all people. Both are found in both sides of the conflict. Each side has a more dominant reason for his hatred.
These reasons are known as Fear and Revenge.

For most humans, being in a state of fear from a known individual, group or thing for a continuous period of time, will eventually invoke hatred for the cause of fear. Fear is a feeling the human body adopted during it evolution in order to avoid dangerous situations, in order to survive. The fear is a sensation we wish to avoid, a sensation that brings extreme uneasiness to the bearer, a sensation of personal failure - since we were not able to control the situation, since it was not obvious to all, especially to us, that we had the upper-hand in the situation.

This fear, this failure, this awful feeling, is a sensation we learn to hate.

This is what happened to the Israelis relating to Arabs as a whole, or facing them as individuals.
For decades, for more than a century, the Arabs tried to "Convince" the Jews that started building their lives in Israel that this is not a place for them. There were uncountable number of incidents in which the Arabs harmed the Jews or their little possessions in this harsh sun-beaten country. In many cases Jews were killed by the Arabs, many times they were Lynched by mobs. Sometimes it was a single person's enterprise. Sometimes it was organized. It peaked most noticeable in the declaration of independence from the state of Israel in 1948, when the just-born state of Israel was attacked simultaneously by all it neighboring countries and more: By the Egyptians, Jordanians, Syrians, Lebanese, Iraqis and many of the Arabs living inside and outside the new borders of the new country.
Since this peak of assault on the Jews in Israel, with the fresh, horrible realization of the fate of the Jews in Europe during the Holocaust, due all the wars inflicted upon the state of Israel by Arab nations, Arab nation deeds or Arab terrorist organization, the Jewish people all around the world and especially in Israel learned to fear the Arabs... not a numbing fear, but a fear that naturally became hatred.

Many of the Arabs that lived inside the frontiers of the new state of Israel had fled from their homes. Some will claim that they rightfully fled the approach of the Israeli army during the war of 1948. Others will admit they over-reacted, or vainly refused to take part with the Jews in the state of Israel. The result is the same. Tens or even hundreds of thousands of Arabs that lived in the area that became the Israeli State fled their homes to settle in refugee camps to the south and north of the state of Israel. They had left farms, homes in cities for small, crowded refugee camps with not many conditions to enable prosperity. With little chance for a descent contenting life.
They had fled there knowing this will be a temporary situation. That soon the state of Israel will be whipped out by the strong, numerous Arab armies. But they were wrong. And ever since they were not able to get back to their original lives. Some wouldn't, others couldn't.

Since then they started hating the state of Israel, and the Jews all around the world for taking their land.
Over the years, during the 1967 war, the West Bank and the Gaza Stripe were occupied by Israel. Territories including many of the refugees that fled the state of Israel in 1948. Now they were under Israeli law, but not the civil law as for the rest of the Jews or Arabs that remained in the state of Israel. They lived under martial law. They now lived in the state they had fled from. Worst state than they had fled from, since now they had no possessions they left behind, no farms, no houses in the cities, no stores, no citizenship, no status, but only despair. And they wanted retribution.
They have seen how prosperous the lives of the Israelis became. Both of Jews and Arabs that remained in Israel. And they knew deep in their hearts that they could have those as well. That they should have had those as well. And not the Jews.
Then started the confrontations to throw the conquerors outside the Palestinian territories. To be relieved from the ruling of the Israeli state. To be independent. This confrontation brought many casualties to both sides. But mainly to the Palestinians. And they demanded retribution. Revenge.
This revenge, for their pain during the warfare against Israel. For their lack of prosperity. For their lack of vision for the future. For their homes they have left behind.
All this pain, all this revenge, all became hate.

As stated before, fear and revenge fuel hatred on both sides.
Palestinians also fear Israelis. They fear their soldiers. For most this is the only face of the Israelis they see. They fear the Israeli Air Force flying at nights over their homes. They fortresses. They fear their guns and bombs.
Israelis want to revenge the Palestinians for their dead ones. For hurts inflicted on them, their families, ancestors.
But those are the minor causes for the hatred that is fueling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Hatred running so deep that you don't even believe this conflict has an acceptable solution. That causes the talks to start considering maybe talking to one another so hard to get started... So hopeless...

Intro...

Hi,

Thank you for joining me in my private place called mind...
I will start by sharing a little about myself, so you will know where I came from. This however, is no guarantee to where this blog will lead me in the ways of thought, and where it will take you along in the ways of understanding the impediments of peace in the middle-east.

What do you want to hear first? How I describe myself politically? What is my education? The political views at my home while growing up? Don't you think knowing this will make you read my posts in a prejudiced way?
OK, you've been warned... spoiler ahead...

Let's do it chronologically. I am Jewish (usually this will suffice for most prejudices).
My father was politically active as a youth in one of the branches that finally came to be united to the Likud party - the biggest party leading the coalition that nowadays governs Israel. It is defined as "the major center-right party in Israel" (according to Wikipedia. I would rather define them as "light-right". Not much center in them, though not an extremist party as well). I guess that by now you are moving to the next blog, aren't you? but wait... these things are not always hereditary. Mostly are, but not always.

How do I consider myself? well, if I wasn't living in Israel and concerned for my personal security and the security of all my fellow Jews living in Israel and around the world, if I was an European resident for example, I believe I would consider myself a belonging to the left wing of the political spectrum. Perhaps even to the left side of the left. If I lived in the US, I would doubtless be a Democrat. Now probably those that didn't considered moving on to the next blog are considering to do so... you should also wait.

In Israel? well, the combination of my moral believes that all people are equal, that all people are entitled to be free and be respected, and the brutal reality - in which there has not been a single decade in Israel without war or some intensive warfare, all this mixes me up to be in the center. In the middle between Left and Right. In the middle of Western and Islamic cultures. In the middle of Morality and Survival. In the middle of confrontation. In the Middle East.

So, are you looking for some intellectual confirmation for condemning the behavior of Israel as a nation? I don't believe you will find it here. Are you looking for some intellectual confirmation for condemning those condemning Israel just because it is Israel. I don't believe you will find it either.
What will you find? Thoughts. Contemplations, not about the theory of morality - this we can find in many philosophy books and articles long ago published. Contemplations, not about militarism - this we can find in no less books and articles around the globe.
Thoughts, contemplations about pragmatism and survival while not forgetting morality. Thoughts, contemplations about what drives the Israelis, the Palestinians, to where it will take them, us.
Thoughts. Contemplations. Perhaps even hope.
(and some weird ideas...)

This is My Voice of Peace.