The people of Israel are understandably afraid and seeking justice.

The people of Palestine are understandably afraid and seeking justice.

Fear and injustice have led to decades of violence.

What has that solved?

How will more violence solve the same problem?

Who will pay for this violence?

I can only answer the final question here:

CIVILIANS

It’s the innocent, on either side of the border, who pay the highest price for the actions of the armed.

It’s the goal of Hamas to entice Israel to use overwhelming force, murdering countless Palestinian civilians to stoke hatred of Israel. Israel is walking into that same set-up again, building up its forces in preparation for a massive retaliation for this dastardly Hamas attack on civilians.

At what point can any leader stand-up and say “No more!”

What leader is strong enough to say, “they want us to respond with violence, instead we are going to respond with solutions. We are going to work this problem out, giving some along with finding the solution with which we can all live.“

That is leadership.

Simply responding with ever escalating levels of violence only breeds more violence, more fear, more suffering.

The context of this, and all conflicts, breeds the conflict itself.

Don’t keep feeding that context with more justifications for violence.

Break the cycle of violence.

Break the siege on civilians.

Break free from the history in order to write it yourself.

Be the leader your people need you to be.

Stand up and proclaim “Even though we were attacked, we are going to take the high road, we are going to seek peace, and we are not going to perpetuate this costly, unnecessary, and in-humane cycle of violence.”

That is how to be a leader.

Who’s up for it?