Folks, I published this with Common Ground News Service. Here is a version of it from the Bali Times.

A Practical Path to Justice and an Independent PalestineAugust 16, 2010

By Rabbi Marc Gopin

The creation of an independent Palestine has been a dream dashed many times, but there may be a practical path forward emerging from a surprising place. I often heard the phrase “business is business” growing up in the 1960s among gritty American Jewish immigrants; my father said it all the time. It reflected old Jewish instincts to do whatever it takes to survive and feed “the family,” even when it meant dealing with people who disliked you – a lot.

What floored me is when my Palestinian partner, Aziz Abu Sarah, with whom I recently founded MEJDI, a social enterprise (business designed for a social goal), told me exactly the same words from his father! Aziz’s family and mine are not involved in our new business venture, but every innovation has implications for the political situation in Palestine, and we seek advice and reactions. I have been shocked by the positive reception in my right wing family to the idea of honest business as a bridge. And every time I asked Aziz, “Are you sure your family is ok with Jews and Arabs doing business given their terrible troubles? They know how Jewish I am?” The answer came, “Business is business.”

I feel very much at home with people who love their families, who see the virtue of work, who when facing an unjust situation recognise that practical and ethical people sometimes prevail. Sometimes honest work eases the way to a sane political vision that overwhelms self-destructive patterns of enemy systems and wounded peoples.

There is a lot of good news on the business front. There is a Palestinian prime minister, increasingly popular, who is revolutionising the infrastructure of Palestine, preparing for prosperity and statehood. Saudi Arabia, the most conservative state in the region, has just announced a US$400-million project for Ramallah. Many Western countries are pouring in huge funds for the private sector.

Will these investments benefit most Palestinians? We are all haunted by “the last time,” by the Oslo years of large funds – and large corruption. But thankfully a recent economic conference in Palestine, which included an American presidential delegation headed by Senator George Mitchell, slated $950 million for small- and medium-sized businesses.

My partners and I at MEJDI want more, however. We argue that more is needed to place justice at the centre of Palestine’s future, and to discourage an investor tendency to make a few wealthy and most miserable. All the incoming funds are good but we should explicitly support socially responsible business in Palestine.

Although there is no ultimate solution for Palestine without an end to the Occupation, small businesses are needed to form the backbone of a viable state. Small businesses generate a middle class that depends on the rule of law and democratic values, whereas countries supported only through large corporations and government control rarely emerge as democracies. Palestinians deserve a democracy at the end of their long struggle.

Here is an example of what we are doing as a social enterprise. We are pioneering both tours and academic seminars where almost every dollar spent is going to support and patronize businesses with a clear reputation for fair wages. Profits are also re-invested in lecturers and tour guides who are well known activists for positive social change.

This is just one example of the intersection of small business empowerment and social change. Our other major innovation is the distribution in the West of products made by poor but innovative Palestinian small businesses paying only fair wages. I have learned after 27 years of peace activism that ignoring inequality and poverty is disastrous and it violates every tenet of the region’s religious traditions and values. The un-sustainability of the average Palestinian family makes old ways of coexistence work inadequate. Serious attention to fair wages, however, and financial support for Palestine’s social change activists help engender support for Palestine’s nascent non-violent struggle.

Generations, even centuries, of Muslims and Jews, built mutually prosperous and equal relationships; we are merely recovering their legacy. There have been many times of misery in the long history of the Christian, Jewish, Muslim relationship, but there were also many good times, golden ages. Honest business based on good wages and equal relationships may be one glue that has bonded Middle Eastern cultures before, and may help make inevitable the political path forward towards a just and equal two-state solution.

Rabbi Dr. Marc Gopin, author of To Make the Earth Whole, is a principal of MEJDI LLC (www.mejdi.net).

via A Practical Path to Justice and an Independent Palestine.

The creation of an independent Palestine has been a dream dashed many times, but there may be a practical path forward emerging from a surprising place. I often heard the phrase ‘business is business’ growing up in the 1960s among gritty American Jewish immigrants; my father said it all the time. It reflected old Jewish instincts to do whatever it takes to survive and feed ‘the family’, even when it meant dealing with people who disliked you – a lot.

What floored me is when my Palestinian partner, Aziz Abu Sarah, with whom I recently founded MEJDI, a social enterprise (business designed for a social goal), told me exactly the same words from his father! Aziz’s family and mine are not involved in our new business venture, but every innovation has implications for the political situation in Palestine, and we seek advice and reactions. I have been shocked by the positive reception in my right wing family to the idea of honest business as a bridge. And every time I asked Aziz, “Are you sure your family is ok with Jews and Arabs doing business given their terrible troubles? They know how Jewish I am?” The answer came, “Business is business.”

I feel very much at home with people who love their families, who see the virtue of work, who when facing an unjust situation recognise that practical and ethical people sometimes prevail. Sometimes honest work eases the way to a sane political vision that overwhelms self-destructive patterns of enemy systems and wounded peoples.

There is a lot of good news on the business front. There is a Palestinian prime minister, increasingly popular, who is revolutionising the infrastructure of Palestine, preparing for prosperity and statehood. Saudi Arabia, the most conservative state in the region, has just announced a 400 million dollar project for Ramallah. Many Western countries are pouring in huge funds for the private sector.

Will these investments benefit most Palestinians? We are all haunted by ‘the last time’, by the Oslo years of large funds – and large corruption. But thankfully a recent economic conference in Palestine, which included an American presidential delegation headed by Senator George Mitchell, slated $950 million for small and medium sized businesses.

My partners and I at MEJDI want more, however. We argue that more is needed to place justice at the centre of Palestine’s future, and to discourage an investor tendency to make a few wealthy and most miserable. All the incoming funds are good but we should explicitly support socially responsible business in Palestine.

Although there is no ultimate solution for Palestine without an end to the Occupation, small businesses are needed to form the backbone of a viable state. Small businesses generate a middle class that depends on the rule of law and democratic values, whereas countries supported only through large corporations and government control rarely emerge as democracies. Palestinians deserve a democracy at the end of their long struggle.

Here is an example of what we are doing as a social enterprise. We are pioneering both tours and academic seminars where almost every dollar spent is going to support and patronize businesses with a clear reputation for fair wages. Profits are also re-invested in lecturers and tour guides who are well known activists for positive social change.

This is just one example of the intersection of small business empowerment and social change. Our other major innovation is the distribution in the West of products made by poor but innovative Palestinian small businesses paying only fair wages. I have learned after 27 years of peace activism that ignoring inequality and poverty is disastrous and it violates every tenet of the region’s religious traditions and values. The un-sustainability of the average Palestinian family makes old ways of coexistence work inadequate. Serious attention to fair wages, however, and financial support for Palestine’s social change activists help engender support for Palestine’s nascent non-violent struggle.

Generations, even centuries, of Muslims and Jews, built mutually prosperous and equal relationships; we are merely recovering their legacy. There have been many times of misery in the long history of the Christian, Jewish, Muslim relationship, but there were also many good times, golden ages. Honest business based on good wages and equal relationships may be one glue that has bonded Middle Eastern cultures before, and may help make inevitable the political path forward toward a just and equal two-state solution.
Published in Common Ground News Service, http://www.commongroundnews.org/article.php?id=28228&lan=en&sid=0&sp=0&isNew=1

Professional Development Seminar in Citizen Diplomacy

with Rabbi Dr. Marc Gopin and Palestinian peacebuilder Aziz Abu Sarah

Based in Jerusalem with day trips to neighboring cities and Holy sites

• Contact: Scott Cooper or Becca Grimm at ‘crdc@gmu.edu‘ or 1-703-993-4473 (USA)

This seminar will be a combination of theory exploration, training, and concrete practice in the field. Based on Dr. Gopin’s most recent theories in To Make the Earth Whole: The Art of Citizen Diplomacy, the course will create space for participants to understand and measure in a new way the dynamics of their own potential impact on war and peace. It explores:

1. The theory and practice of positive incremental change and citizen diplomacy
2. A central case study from the Middle East
3. The philosophical and spiritual ethics, East and West, of decision making in conflict interventions.

Along with the study of theory, role plays and simulations, the course will involve direct engagement with Israeli and Palestinian nonprofit and for profit change makers, both secular and religious. There will be on the ground engagement in both Israel and Palestine, while inside the classroom and on tour.

Dr. Gopin will be joined by the CRDC’s Director of Middle East Projects Aziz Abu Sarah.  Mr. Abu Sarah will co-lead many of the trainings and manage the tour component of the course.  Mr. Abu Sarah brings over 10 years of experience in Palestinian-Israeli peacebuilding and Middle East tourism.  Most notably, he was the Palestinian Chairman of the Parent’s Circle – Families Forum, a joint organization of 500 Israeli and Palestinian bereaved families who work for reconciliation within and between their societies.  He also worked with organizations such as All For Peace Radio and Al-Tariq: The Palestinian Institute for Democracy and Development (which he co-founded).

The seminar will be based most days in Jerusalem, with CLASS TIME, TRAINING, AND EXCURSIONS planned on alternate days.

Considering the sensitive nature of the practice component of this work, students will be asked to submit a CV as well as a statement of their qualifications and goals in order to apply for this seminar.

Includes:

• Approximately 25 hours of class time
• Meetings with several Palestinian and Israeli peacebuilding organizations, officials, relgious leaders and business people
  • Organization include: Parents Circle – Bereaved Families Forum
• Hotel
• 2 meals per day
• Transportation
• Tour guide
• Visits to Bethlehem, Ramallah, Jerusalem and Hebron
• Can be taken for credit through George Mason University in Arlington, VA**

Price:

• $2780.00 (airfare not included)
  • Subsidies available for local Palestinians and Israelis to participate – please contact CRDC for more details

Dates:

• May 27 – June 4th 2010

Location:

• Jerusalem

Course Description:

• http://crdcgmu.wordpress.com/education/

Syllabus:

• http://docs.google.com/View?id=ddjpxvx7_20djtkntcr

**3 credits graduate or undregraduate – price $3180.00 instead of $2780.00

By Mallory Huggins

The Mason Spirit, a magazine published for the George Mason University community, featured Marc in its Fall 2009 issue as part of a piece about various faculty members who have “create[d] a stir with their expert opinions and groundbreaking ideas.” The article and the photo that ran alongside it are below.

Thanks to the Mason Spirit for recognizing the efforts and accomplishments of Marc and the CRDC as a whole!

By Cheryl Duckworth, PhD

Could peace education have done anything to prevent the shooting at Fort Hood?

Can peace education help to prevent the violent loss of life, such as we all witnessed recently at Ft. Hood? I believe that it is an essential piece of the puzzle. People offer various explanations regarding why a soldier murdered fellow soldiers. Some are pointing to Maj. Hassan’s Islamic identity or possible extremist views. Others point to his impending deployment to Iraq or sense of humiliation and social isolation. Since we know that very few behaviors are motivated by just one cause, I think it’s likely that all of these dynamics interacted.

Why do I think that peace education could have prevented such a violent act? At its core, peace education nurtures two vital skills, which are problem solving and relationship-building. Peace education also challenges stereotypes and resists the easy, pat explanation for someone’s behavior. It fosters people who view themselves as part of a whole, and centers on the values of equality and tolerance. In this way, it is the ultimate “anti-extremist” education. Had Maj. Hassan had the opportunity to participate in peace education at some point during his schooling, it’s possible that he would have not been able to dehumanize his victims as he did.

I don’t wish to minimize the possibility of mental illness here; it’s real and requires a mental health professional. If such details emerge about Maj. Hassan, they should be taken seriously. But students of peace education (and I consider myself still a student, even as I’m also a teacher) learn and practice nonviolent communication and should be able to articulate the cultural and historical narratives of various identity groups. They should also be able to articulate the narrative of their own national and social background so that their own cultural assumptions become visible to them. When successful, of course, this results in at least the beginnings of intercultural understanding.

We (the human race) repeatedly make the mistake of thinking that “basic” skills like cross-cultural communication, building relationships or problem solving are either not that relevant or something that people pick up along they way. Or if they don’t pick it up, they’re not going to. Peace education to me is so powerful precisely because it challenges this mistake; these skills can and must be taught.

©Aziz Abu Sarah and Marc Gopin

Two years ago, Aziz joined a panel of Palestinians speaking to Jewish rabbinical students about the Palestinian point of view. Among the speakers was a Palestinian-American businessman who moved to the West Bank after Oslo, hoping to invest in a developing area. He shared his experience working with the Palestinian telecommunications company Jawal, and his job with the new Al-Wataniyah Company that was to compete with Jawal in the mobile market.

Just recently Al-Wataniyah sent a letter to the Palestinian Authority, asking the government to pay back the company’s registration fees plus 200 million dollars in investment damages. The company is demanding these remunerations because Israel has not given them the airwaves to start the company, even though in 2007 the Israeli government agreed to allow the company to operate after long negotiations and the interference of former British Prime Minister Blair, the World Bank, and American officials.

The cost of this failure is hundreds of millions of dollars and over 3000 potential jobs in the West Bank. This is a lost opportunity for Palestinians, but it is just one example of the Palestinian Authority’s lack of control over its own air waves, water and other national resources. All projects must be approved by the Israeli Administration, which makes it look as though the Palestinian government is operating as an arm of the Israeli occupation. This lowers the credibility of the PA in the eyes of the Palestinian public.

After Mr. Netanyahu won the elections in February, he promised to work to improve the Palestinian economy. However, so far there are no indications that there will be any changes in Israel’s policy in the near future. This is crippling to the PA, as economic development is a critical aspect of national stability and is intertwined with the success of a viable Palestinian state. The lack of growth in the Palestinian private sector is quickly crushing Palestinians’ hope for the future. As a whole, this damages the PA’s effectiveness, since the Palestinian government will never be able to enforce the rule of law if there is no prospect of prosperity for its citizens.

These economic policies and the continuation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are mutually detrimental to both the Israeli and Palestinian communities, and are creating a perfect nest for future extremists. Unemployment in the Palestinian Territories is increasing and is often over 30%; the poverty rate is at 68%, according to the UNDP. Educated and successful Palestinians often find themselves forced to leave the Palestinian territories, leaving behind poorer and more frustrated communities.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict also stunts economic growth in Israel’s industries. Consider that Egypt had 12.8 million tourists last year, while Israel had only 3 million tourists. This is only one of many examples. In addition, Many investors are still hesitant to invest in Israel because of the political instability in the region.

Although economic hardship threatens to exacerbate the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, economics can also speed the end of the conflict. Business cooperation on an equal and empowering basis, that focuses on businesses, such as tourism, that employ thousands of people, not just enriching a few, can be a catalyst for further collaboration between Israelis and Palestinians.

We propose to the Obama Administration that, in addition to pressuring the sides for rapid progress at the political level, they also strong encourage, even insist upon popular, people to people, business initiatives between the two sides. A synergy will be created that will naturally create grassroots pressure from private businesses in support of peace. Also, once a peace agreement is reached, economics will continue to play a large role in maintaining peace. Any peace agreement between Israeli Jews and Palestinians must maximize equal business cooperation between the two sides, and should not bring a total divorce between the two communities. We have witnessed business partnerships become the key to new friendships at a profound cultural level, in addition to creating prosperity for everyone.

An Israeli friend of Aziz used to be strongly right wing, and they often disagreed on politics. However one thing he always said, “If there is peace we will be eating with golden spoons as a sign of our prosperity.” The reality is business opportunities and financial growth speaks to everyone and presents an appealing future even to those currently opposing the peace process.

“Our best protection is to communicate with the people we are most afraid of.”

By Kobi Skolnick

Before becoming a peace activist, I spent years as a settler in the hills of the West Bank, planting trees and cultivating the soil. Some of my family and friends still live there, and I remain deeply connected to them. For this reason, as the Obama administration’s new policies unfold, I am of two minds. I understand the settler perspective, but I have a second view that comes from years of experience working for peace.

My two perspectives are reflected by millions of people in the world. After Obama’s speech on June fourth , one group rejoiced, but for others his words were a dark cloud. For the first group, their hearts were filled with excitement, but others felt the tight grip of fear and distress. Some looked at his words and saw an opportunity to reduce violence, while others saw the speech as a vehicle for more violence. Some saw it as an expression of their deepest values, while for others the speech challenged the very core of their belief system. One group embraced Obama as compassionate, while the other heard in his words an anti-Semitic attack against their sons and daughters.

Is there a bridge between the two perspectives?

For the settlement community, Obama’s speech was the worst news in years. President Obama is living in fantasyland– he doesn’t understand the realities of violence and the hostility directed at the Jewish community. For the Rabbis in the settler community, Obama’s speech goes against the divine design, religious mission, and redemptive plan of the Jewish people. It is a speech whose conclusion means expulsion from their homes after many years of building a flourishing society.

Although this point of view may be difficult to accept, it is important to understand and even strive to empathize with the settlers. It is an impulse of intellect to explain, blame, or define justice in a way that fits one’s point of view, but all too often this impulse only leads to less understanding and more conflict.

I chose to highlight this point of view because looking back, I realize that for years there has been a lack of true empathy to other points of view among our diverse communities. Our instinct is to try and classify one other and group people into boxes: he/she belongs to the right or left, this person is right or wrong. However, this prevents us from listening empathetically to other viewpoints.

As a former settler, I can say that settlers have been hit hard; they lost many dear people and have been living in fear. The memories of friends and family members killed in the conflict are a daily presence in their lives, and the result is not just the building of physical outposts, but also the building of outposts in their memory. From their perspective, the enemy is alive and right around the corner, and proposals for peace have only resulted in more death and loss of loved ones.

I believe that behind burning trees and other intimidating messages from young settlers, there is something deeper going on. From a non-violent perspective, this violence is a tragic expression of unmet needs. This is not unique in the case of settlers – sadly, many people all over the world act this way when they find their deepest needs not being met.

Thankfully, we now find ourselves in a historic moment. After years of labeling one another and taking a strong stand for one side or another, there is an opportunity to meet the needs of millions of people with all of the complexity that this implies. However, the solution must begin with the shedding of preconceived ideas and judgments about each other, and the understanding that all of us are part of the same community– humanity. Inside each of us is the ability to acknowledge and connect with human pain and suffering regardless of ideology.

Millions, if not billons, of people in the world want peace.  However, the definitions of what that peace looks like have kept us apart. The people who think differently are not “Jew-haters.” Nor is President Obama anti-Semitic. In his speech, Obama spoke on behalf of millions of people who want to see peace between Jewish Israelis and our neighbors — a peace that can be achieved through non-violent methods.

We all want to be seen and understood. We all want to contribute to the well being of others and ourselves. Let us celebrate life together despite ideological differences. Let us pour more water on the seeds of life and peace. In this way, we can use understanding and compassion to bring about an end to the conflict.

“The last of human freedoms is the ability to choose one’s attitude in a given set of circumstances” Viktor E. Frankal

Many voices were clamoring to be heard this past week as President Barak Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Washington to discuss the future of Israel and the Palestinian Territories. At this important time, Israeli Kobi Skolnick and Palestinian Aziz Abu Sarah came together to produce this joint letter, aimed at showing Israeli and Palestinian solidarity toward a new era in Middle Eastern policy.

Open Letter to Prime Minister Netanyahu and Barack Obama
Kobi Skolnick writes:
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, when I was young I stood with the crowds in the Holy City and listened with admiration to your voice as you spoke against the peace process. I screamed at those who were trying to pursue peace and called them traitors. When Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated, I couldn’t help but dance joyfully in the streets. I was overwhelmed with happiness, because I had spent many years actively organizing against the Rabin-backed Oslo Peace Process. Your speeches encouraged me, your strong words empowered and inspired me, and your mission gave me purpose in life.

A few years later, I found myself along with many other Israelis fighting in the West Bank, trying to kill and being shot at. During those years I personally lost many dear friends in the conflict, so when I recently heard Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon say that your new coalition government is looking for a new approach to the Middle East peace process, I felt compelled to write you now as an old supporter. I listened to you then; will you hear me now?

***

Aziz Abu Sarah writes:
I still remember the day you, Mr. Netanyahu, won the elections in 1996. That day was marked with sadness and fear for the Palestinian people. Just a few months later I found myself marching with many others in protest against your government’s decision to open the tunnel in Jerusalem’s Old City. A few students from my high school were killed at these demonstrations, and I became angry and bitter with you. For me these were additional heartbreaks in a long line of tragedies– I had already lost my brother Tayseer to the conflict when he was badly wounded inside an Israeli prison, and I could not see any glimpse of hope.

Years have passed since then, and I have become convinced that the way forward is for, Palestinians and Israelis, Arabs and Jews to work together for a better future. I have moved beyond my anger and hatred to the point of seeking the end of a bloody conflict, and now I hope to join my colleague in this call for a new way.

***

We are writing this letter together as an example of two extremes that met in the middle with hope and vision for a peaceful Palestine and Israel. We are in a time of politicization of religion; Some Rabbis and Imams are capturing the minds and hearts of our youth through empty slogans and extreme interpretations of religious books that lead to hatred, violence and destruction. Our experiences have taught us that both sides must stop embracing radicalism in order to achieve a real peace.

As a prime minister you have the ability to shift policy in Israel. Many expect you to support such radical groups, yet we hope and appeal to you to surprise us with the common sense to understand the reality on the ground. We believe that violence is often the tragic expression of unmet needs. More people resort to violence when their lives lack hope, vision or ability to provide basic needs for a family. The current siege on Gaza and the hundreds of checkpoints in the West Bank promise a short term security solution; however, this situation feeds and strengthens radicals. In places like Gaza, radical groups will only get stronger and succeed in recruiting more people unless there is tangible progress the quality of life and in the peace process. We hope you will be able to see beyond the short term solutions proposed by security officials, and seek a lasting agreement that will guarantee peaceful existence for Israelis and Palestinians. We hope you can lead by crossing the lines of self interest toward supporting the regional interests of all people in the Middle East.

Prime Minister Netanyahu, along with US President Barak Obama you have the tools to block the support of extremist groups and help President Abbas do the same in the West Bank.

We would like to offer few ideas that you can support:

1. Develop a mechanism and an educational system that would counter radicalism and extremists in Israel and support President Abbas doing the same in the Palestinian territories;

2. Publicly support grassroots activities and increase the possibility for cooperation between Palestinians and Israelis;

3. Allow the movement of Palestinian peace supporters to Israel and Israeli activists to the Palestinian territories, as these meetings break stereotypes and counter extremism;

4. End the blockage on Gaza and ease the movement of Palestinians within the West Bank;

5. Support creating the International Fund for Israeli Palestinian Peace, which will finance the work for peace in both communities (International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace Authorization Act of 2009, H.R. 1605);

6. Restart the negotiations immediately where they have stopped and follow the roadmap plan, including the Syrian track.
We are encouraged with the engagement of President Obama in the Middle East peace process, and appeal to you to continue your focus on forming a practical Middle East peace. Our hope is that you will approach the Palestinian-Israeli conflict with a new spirit, determination and will to end the cycle of violence that has left permanent scars in the lives of countless men and women, and bring freedom and security to our people.

American Islam

The recent U.S. report on Muslim engagement was crafted carefully by a very bipartisan group in which I played a role, but this article argues that it strongly favors Obama’s foreign policy.

U.S.: Bipartisan Group Urges Deeper Diplomacy with Muslim World

WASHINGTON, Sep 24 (IPS) – In an implicit indictment of President George W. Bush’s “global war on terror” and the hawkish pronouncements by Republican candidate John McCain, a bipartisan group of nearly three dozen U.S. leaders called here Wednesday for Bush’s successor to place much greater emphasis on high-level diplomacy — including direct engagement with Iran and Syria — in dealing with the Middle East and the Muslim world.

In a 152-page report, the group, which included former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Bush’s former Deputy Secretary of State and McCain adviser Richard Armitage, also called for any new administration to work “intensively for immediate de-escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and a viable path to a two-state solution.”

“U.S. leadership in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is critical not only for Israelis and Palestinians, but also for U.S. relations with Muslim countries and people worldwide,” declared the report, entitled “Changing Course: A New Direction for U.S. Relations with the Muslim World”.

“It would be hard to overstate the symbolic significance of the conflict, and the U.S. role in it, for Muslims in the Middle East and around the world,” it stressed, adding that Washington might also reconsider its efforts to isolate Hamas, particularly if it maintains its current ceasefire with Israel in Gaza and reaches a “mutually acceptable resolution” of its conflict with the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah.

The group also urged Washington to reassess its relations — or lack thereof — with armed Islamist groups, such as Hamas and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, throughout the region on a case-by-case basis according to specific criteria, such as their popular and electoral support, their willingness to halt the use of violence, and whether they have some interests that are complementary to those of the U.S.

Under current law, direct relations between the U.S. and groups included on the State Department’s “terrorist” list, including Hamas and Hezbollah, are banned.

The report, the product of a series of meetings of prominent foreign policy, business, religious, military and non-governmental figures sponsored by the Search for Common Ground and the Consensus Building Institute and calling itself the “Leadership Group on U.S.-Muslim Engagement”, comes on the eve of the first televised debate between McCain and his Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama. The debate, which takes place Friday, will be focused on foreign policy, and the Middle East and the “war on terror” are expected to be central to the proceedings.

The McCain campaign has been decidedly more hawkish on both fronts, stating explicitly that he would be prepared under certain circumstances to pre-emptively attack Iran’s nuclear facilities and mocking Obama’s position that the U.S. should directly engage Iran and Syria without preconditions on a range of issues and at a very senior, possibly presidential, level.

Just last weekend, two of his surrogates told the right-wing Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) that McCain would not become actively engaged in Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts and would discourage Israel from negotiating a peace agreement with Syria that would return the Golan Heights to Damascus. Obama has taken precisely the contrary positions.

In that respect, the new report clearly takes Obama’s side. “To drive and coordinate regional diplomacy and signal the seriousness of the U.S. commitment, the Leadership Group recommends that the next President and Secretary of State provide consistent, sustained leadership at the highest levels, and empower senior U.S. officials to explore potential bilateral and regional security agreements with all governments in the region,” it said, adding that “Dialogue and negotiation with Iran are particularly important given Iran’s direct involvement in both Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and its potential to assist (the U.S.) in Afghanistan.”
“The point of the report is to engage, engage, engage,” noted one member of the group, Marc Gopin, an ordained rabbi who teaches religion, diplomacy and conflict resolution at George Mason University outside Washington.

What was particularly remarkable about the report was that it was adopted by consensus that included some prominent right-wing figures, most notably Richard Land, a top figure in the Christian Right associated with the Southern Baptist Convention, as well as two influential former Republican congressmen, former Dallas (Texas) Mayor Steve Bartlett, and Vin Weber, who currently serves as the chairman of the quasi-governmental National Endowment for Democracy (NED).

The group also included two prominent individuals closely associated with the so-called “Israel Lobby” – Tom Dine, a former head of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), and Dennis Ross, a co-founder and consultant of WINEP, a think tank created by AIPAC, who was also a top Middle East negotiator for former President George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

The report stresses that the alienation between the U.S. and the Muslim world derives both from problems within the Muslim world itself — where the U.S. is seen as allying itself with and supporting authoritarian regimes that frustrate their citizens’ desires for political and economic change — and from U.S. policies, particularly its staunch support for Israel in its conflict with the Palestinians and, more recently, its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Most Muslims’ primary concerns are about what the United States does, not what we are,” said David Fairman, the report’s main author and project co-director.

The report calls for the adoption of a “four-pillar” strategy for reversing anti-U.S. extremism in the Muslim world.

The pillars include resolving ongoing violent conflicts from Palestine to Pakistan through greater use of diplomacy; improving governance in predominantly Muslim countries by promoting non-violence, pluralism, reform, and engagement with parties that are committed to the same principles regardless of whether they are secular or Islamist; promoting economic growth; and improving mutual respect through exchanges, encouraging more in-depth and accuracy in U.S.
media coverage, and using the Muslim-American community as a bridge a bridge between the two worlds.

The group, which met with senior foreign policy legislators Wednesday morning, called for the next president to spotlight the critical importance of improving U.S.-Muslim relations in his Inaugural address and immediately affirm the U.S. commitment to ban all forms of torture. By next April, it said, it should initiate a “major effort” to resolve regional conflicts in the Middle East, with respect to Iran and Israel/Palestine.

In his public remarks, Land, a major figure in the Christian Evangelical movement, stressed the importance of elevating diplomacy in resolving violent conflicts in the region. “By changing our approach,” he said, “we will…help to reverse the widespread perception that the United States is at war with Islam.”

He also endorsed engagement with Iran on a number of issues, citing with approval Winston Churchill’s famous statement, “Jaw-Jaw is better than war-war.”

Just last week, five former secretaries of state, including Albright and three who served Republican presidents — Henry Kissinger, James Baker, and Colin Powell — endorsed negotiations with Iran without preconditions.

In the context of major global conflicts, where everyone is analyzing what is right or wrong, black or white, left or right, it has occured to me that the definition of reality sometimes gets lost in the mix.

Here are few definitons of reality occording to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary

‘Reality’

1: the quality or state of being real

2 a (1): a real event, entity, or state of affairs reality> (2): the totality of real things and events
reality> b: something that is neither derivative nor dependent but exists necessarily

Imagine for just a moment if headlines coming out of the Middle East read like this tomorrow….

Today thousands of Arabs, Jews, Israelis,
Palestinians, Seculars and Religious, Christians, Muslims,
Druze, young and old gathered to dance, to cry, to share, to
laugh, to work, to play and ultimately, to live together for
three days just a few miles outside of Jerusalem.

Doesn’t sound like reality does it?….

If your answer was something like, “no” or “how naïve,” I’m here to say, “quite the contrary!” In fact, I’ve seen it with my own two eyes!! The passage above describes the seventh annual “On the Way to the Sulha Gathering,” a three day gathering of locals aspiring to create a new reality by preparing themselves and their neighbors for a life of mutual respect and trust. I’ve been there the last two years.

Watch it yourself:

Welcome to reality

Would you like to learn more about the Sulha Peace Project? Contact either Gabriel Meyer or Ihab Balha through their website, www.sulha.com