409Z Assignments
No True Peace Without True Peace
Regarding Israel-Palestine, an unworthy sermon
AP Photo/Abed Khaled
“So ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are: for blood it defileth the land: and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it. Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit [...]: for I the Lord dwell among the children of Israel.”
KJV, Numbers 35:33-34
​
Unbridled carnage, biblical in scale and form, once again consumes the Holy Land.
A century ago, a prodigal son returned, eager to claim his father’s home. He had endured immense misfortune, but he was fit, resourceful, worldly; he was more than a match for his brother, who had remained home, working the land for as long as he could remember, and now resented this sudden return to prominence. Neither recognized the other; both were afraid. Does it still matter who struck the first blow?
A century of struggle has passed; the hand of the prodigal is at his brother’s throat. Will he tighten his grip? His brother thrashes wildly– and would he not?
The recent violence in Israel and Gaza makes one thing clear: true, lasting peace must finally be established, or the horrors of this feud will never be contained without the destruction of at least one of its participants.
A time will have to come in which Israel makes a serious attempt at peace, worthy of Rabin’s memory– to appeal to the best elements of Israeli and Palestinian society, and to persevere despite the inevitable attempts of radicals among both nations to derail the process.
Palestine, for its part, must come to acknowledge that those who eagerly blur the lines between self-defense and senseless bloodshed are the equal of its oppressors– they have nothing to offer but a defilement of the nation and its dream.
Logic offers each two paths; morality offers only one.
At present, this may be unthinkable to many, and it cannot be forgotten that the murder of more than a thousand Israelis on October 7th represents the most violent single day in Jewish history since the Holocaust.
But what does the collective future of Israel and Palestine offer without reconciliation? You see it already in countless photos, past and present– lifeless bodies, anointed with blood and dust, like remnants of an unholy ritual. These images are ubiquitous and, so far, inevitable.
That which was done to the people of Israel indicates extraordinary malice. It cannot, however, be used to justify the Israeli military’s treatment of the citizens of Gaza. Nearly three thousand Palestinians, two-thirds children, are dead as a consequence of Israel’s bombing campaign. Neither a thousand more, nor the erasure of Hamas and Gaza with it, will redeem Israel’s losses. This kind of loss cannot be erased; all too many know that nothing will make this absence whole.
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
There are indeed murderers now among the people of Gaza. And, effectively, there are murderers also among those launching bombs into their cities. Is one not potentially a murderer if they risk destroying an entire family to kill another among them who had killed their own? The unspoken policy of retributive violence enacted by some in the Israeli military upon Palestinian citizens seems now to have yielded precious little good.
What will Palestine want in exchange for its three thousand dead? Should it trade brutality for brutality?
It seems there often comes a point in long-standing conflicts in which moral judgements, especially those regarding causation, become functionally irrelevant. Both sides are convinced of the justness of their cause and actions; their enemy, of course, is fundamentally wrong. Thus an immoral act done to their enemy for the sake of some greater good is acceptable, perhaps even righteous; if their enemy follows the same logic, however, it is an unforgivable violation. We lose sight of our terrible hypocrisy, and our enemy loses sight of our humanity. The only choices become reconciliation, or partial if not complete annihilation.
These are not original thoughts– they are deeply embedded in the stories and moral codes of practically every culture. It is time, once again, that those of good intent remember and embody them.
Israel must be the first to extend its hand. It is by far the stronger party, undoubtedly having more to offer and more withheld. An unequivocal end to the settlements in the West Bank would represent a meaningful show of goodwill. Enshrining the equal rights of ethnic Palestinians within its own borders would likewise indicate its seriousness.
Palestine must take that hand, if it is sincerely offered. Both states should cooperate in forging one united and reformed Palestinian authority that can effectively represent its people and their interests, defend itself from radical elements, and work as a full if not yet fundamentally equal partner in creating the future both nations deserve.
Most things that ought to be done cannot yet be done without severe complications, and truly little that is worth doing can be done quickly. But something meaningful must be done to inaugurate a new peace, and soon, or else greater suffering will doubtlessly follow.
Even the best path forward invites danger: assassinations, attempted coups, terroristic displays of rage that recall the worst of past events. The lack of a resolution guarantees worse still. We cannot afford to neglect this fact any longer. Those who still believe in peace and co-existence must look to strengthen their ties, and find new ones among their long-lost brethren.
There are fervent enemies of peace on both sides, and these are the only rightful adversaries.
​
https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-photos-00440f8b0919300bcea7033f536a989b
​
https://ochaopt.org/data/casualties
​
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67133803
​
https://www.timesofisrael.com/for-years-netanyahu-propped-up-hamas-now-its-blown-up-in-our-faces/
​
https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2022-04/fs_2204_milex_2021_0.pdf
​
​
Russian Losses in Perspective
Despite discrepancies in reported deaths from the Russo-Ukranian war, the numbers indicate losses at minimum resemble the worst among past conflicts
The following audio segment is from a short, impromptu interview with my sister. Since graduating from Stony Brook University, she's been working from home for a family law firm based in Manhattan. She'd originally planned to become a psychologist before taking this job, and I was curious to hear her explain her sudden change of heart. As it turned out, it wasn't such a simple thing to explain; neither were the editing tools in Adobe Audition, so it's probably fair to say we both learned something from the process of creating this piece.
Also, I should note that her "office," which I used to call the living room, is located about a dozen feet from the kitchen, so hopefully you don't mind a bit of unintentional ASMR. Without further ado, here's Megan Clemente:
Charting This Mortal Coil: A 24hr Breakdown
