Excellent commentary, Peter. I agree completely with your analysis. When this is over (hopefully soon), let's hope the light wins over the dark of both sides, although I am pessimistic. Hugh
Thank you Hugh for reading. Like you, I am pessimistic in the short and medium terms. In the long term I permit myself to hope that moderate Palestinians can eventually safely emerge as leaders, and reject the calls for the annihilation of Israel, and that a more moderate Israeli government will be ready to engage with them. At the moment all this is, sadly, just wishful fantasy.
Thanks Galen for your comment, and acknowledgment of the complexity of the situation.
Yes, this was a difficult piece to write, navigating my anger over Hamas' diabolical, meticulously planned atrocities; and the anger with those who now happily gloss over the horrors.
A bit late reading this, Peter. As always, thoughtful and heartfelt, an honest search for an empathetic road through this terrible morass. I will share.
Thank you Paula for your response. There is certainly no easy way out. At this point one can only dream of peaceful solutions that now seem like wishful fantasies. Yet ultimately, moderate and empathetic hearts and minds must prevail. The alternative is dreadful.
Peter, this is an excellent and heartfelt piece of writing. Thank you. I'm sharing on my fb page.
I've lately been reading WW2 history of the war in Europe, and part of it has been the dispatches of Ernie Pyle, who wrote over 700,000 words between 1942 and 1944. (The Iliad: 176,000 words; War and Peace: 576,000.) He was the voice of the infantryman, and brought the war back to the civilians who had no idea. Ernie rotated out of Europe and picked up the Pacific beat where he was killed. He was a writer soaked in the horror of it all. I wanted to share a quote with you, and thought it would be good if you had a little background. Ernie Pyle wrote: All we can do is fumble and try once more - try out of the memory of our anguish - and be as tolerant of each other as we can.
Thank you Richard for reading this piece, and for evoking Ernie Pyle. I can relate to the imperative he felt to bear witness to the horrors, and through his writing to (sounds trite, but what could be more valid?) try to make the world a better place.
Thank you Joan for your response. This is a terribly difficult situation and it was a hard piece to write.
Regarding "both sides", I hasten to clarify that my empathy is for the innocent victims on both sides, certainly not for Hamas that perpetrated the meticuously-planned massacres.
Thank you for writing this article Peter. The words you have written so eloquently mirror my own thoughts and feelings about this terrible conflict. Your empathy and compassion for all the innocents suffering in this conflict shines through like a light. If only everyone could share your compassion this world would be a much better place. Alas, like some of the other commenters, I don't feel optimistic right now. But writers like you can help change minds, and maybe someday we'll get there
So well-written, Peter, and we're on exactly the same page. It's been somewhat paralysing with the emails I receive from family and friends in Israel and what's happening here in Toronto. Although it's hard to be hopeful, we dare not lose hope. A clear resolution, however, doesn't seem to be on the horizon. At the very least, it's an opportunity for us to be grateful for all that we have right now.
Thank you, Peter, for this compelling and moving piece of writing.
Indeed: "simple decency and compassion"! I often think that there's a lot in the atmosphere that surrounds us, that militates against those simple qualities. We're surrounded by pseudo-leaders like Trump, or Bolsonaro of Brasil, or Netanyahu and the leaders of Hamas, who clearly don't give a fig about their own people; as well as by the daily assault of noise in the streets and on broadcast media. It's more work to behave in a compassionate and decent way when everything in your nervous system feels overwhelmed by bad adrenaline.
Thank you, Peter, for this compelling and moving piece of writing.
Indeed: "simple decency and compassion"! I often think that there's a lot in the atmosphere that surrounds us, that militates against those simple qualities. We're surrounded by pseudo-leaders like Trump, or Bolsonaro of Brasil, or Netanyahu and the leaders of Hamas, who clearly don't give a fig about their own people; as well as by the daily assault of noise in the streets and on broadcast media. It's more work to behave in a compassionate and decent way when everything in your nervous system feels overwhelmed by bad adrenaline.
As always, Peter, carefully thought out and fair. There are no winners in a war, period. Will we ever outgrow the compulsion to annihilate one another before we blow ourselves to smithereens? Probably not, but it is worth contemplating and it is certainly worth striving for.
Thanks for your thoughts, Manuela. In the short term, a terrorist group like Hamas that is dedicated to the annihilation of a country, and ignites a war through planned massacres of civilians, absolutely must be stopped. But there are certainly no long-term winners in these wars; leaders and demagogues are not typically great students of history.
Thank you Sandi for your comment about the writing! To answer your question, I doubt that we will be able to "put Humpty Dumpty together again" for a long time. Yet I do permit myself to dream: that sometime in the (unfortunately distant) future, sane heads and empathetic hearts may yet prevail.
Thank you Ross for your comment. Yes, the written word can be powerful indeed. In any event, it is our only weapon and we must use it to stand up for human decency.
Excellent commentary, Peter. I agree completely with your analysis. When this is over (hopefully soon), let's hope the light wins over the dark of both sides, although I am pessimistic. Hugh
Thank you Hugh for reading. Like you, I am pessimistic in the short and medium terms. In the long term I permit myself to hope that moderate Palestinians can eventually safely emerge as leaders, and reject the calls for the annihilation of Israel, and that a more moderate Israeli government will be ready to engage with them. At the moment all this is, sadly, just wishful fantasy.
Peter, a very thoughtful piece on an incredibly difficult topic.
This quote sums it up so perfectly:
Yet even without true empathy, just simple decency and compassion will do.
Thanks Galen for your comment, and acknowledgment of the complexity of the situation.
Yes, this was a difficult piece to write, navigating my anger over Hamas' diabolical, meticulously planned atrocities; and the anger with those who now happily gloss over the horrors.
A bit late reading this, Peter. As always, thoughtful and heartfelt, an honest search for an empathetic road through this terrible morass. I will share.
Thank you Paula for your response. There is certainly no easy way out. At this point one can only dream of peaceful solutions that now seem like wishful fantasies. Yet ultimately, moderate and empathetic hearts and minds must prevail. The alternative is dreadful.
Peter, this is an excellent and heartfelt piece of writing. Thank you. I'm sharing on my fb page.
I've lately been reading WW2 history of the war in Europe, and part of it has been the dispatches of Ernie Pyle, who wrote over 700,000 words between 1942 and 1944. (The Iliad: 176,000 words; War and Peace: 576,000.) He was the voice of the infantryman, and brought the war back to the civilians who had no idea. Ernie rotated out of Europe and picked up the Pacific beat where he was killed. He was a writer soaked in the horror of it all. I wanted to share a quote with you, and thought it would be good if you had a little background. Ernie Pyle wrote: All we can do is fumble and try once more - try out of the memory of our anguish - and be as tolerant of each other as we can.
Best wishes, Peter, see you soon.
Thank you Richard for reading this piece, and for evoking Ernie Pyle. I can relate to the imperative he felt to bear witness to the horrors, and through his writing to (sounds trite, but what could be more valid?) try to make the world a better place.
Powerfully written, Peter. If only everyone had your empathy for both sides of this dreadful war. Thanks for writing through the tears.
Thank you Joan for your response. This is a terribly difficult situation and it was a hard piece to write.
Regarding "both sides", I hasten to clarify that my empathy is for the innocent victims on both sides, certainly not for Hamas that perpetrated the meticuously-planned massacres.
Thank you Rob for your thoughtful comment. I couldn't agree more.
Thank you for writing this article Peter. The words you have written so eloquently mirror my own thoughts and feelings about this terrible conflict. Your empathy and compassion for all the innocents suffering in this conflict shines through like a light. If only everyone could share your compassion this world would be a much better place. Alas, like some of the other commenters, I don't feel optimistic right now. But writers like you can help change minds, and maybe someday we'll get there
I have enjoyed reading your thoughts Dr Newman. Thank you for sharing.
You are an inspiring humanitarian, Jimmy, and I'm honoured to have worked with you in Uganda.
So well-written, Peter, and we're on exactly the same page. It's been somewhat paralysing with the emails I receive from family and friends in Israel and what's happening here in Toronto. Although it's hard to be hopeful, we dare not lose hope. A clear resolution, however, doesn't seem to be on the horizon. At the very least, it's an opportunity for us to be grateful for all that we have right now.
Huge hugs!
Thanks, Alan, the only thing that makes me happier than a positive comment is a positive comment from a teacher!
Yes, as hard as it may be in the present moment to be hopeful, we can't afford to lose it for the long term. I think our innermost souls depend on it.
Thank you, Peter, for this compelling and moving piece of writing.
Indeed: "simple decency and compassion"! I often think that there's a lot in the atmosphere that surrounds us, that militates against those simple qualities. We're surrounded by pseudo-leaders like Trump, or Bolsonaro of Brasil, or Netanyahu and the leaders of Hamas, who clearly don't give a fig about their own people; as well as by the daily assault of noise in the streets and on broadcast media. It's more work to behave in a compassionate and decent way when everything in your nervous system feels overwhelmed by bad adrenaline.
Thank you, Peter, for this compelling and moving piece of writing.
Indeed: "simple decency and compassion"! I often think that there's a lot in the atmosphere that surrounds us, that militates against those simple qualities. We're surrounded by pseudo-leaders like Trump, or Bolsonaro of Brasil, or Netanyahu and the leaders of Hamas, who clearly don't give a fig about their own people; as well as by the daily assault of noise in the streets and on broadcast media. It's more work to behave in a compassionate and decent way when everything in your nervous system feels overwhelmed by bad adrenaline.
Peter, my words won't help but I do hope that yours will. Thank you for this and for the Globe piece.
Thank you May for your encouragement. Words, support, and donations are our only weapons.
So touching as usual Peter!
Thank you for writing about such a tragedy. So hard to believe. :(
Thank you for your comment, Haleh.
In your own work with victims of torture, you have been an inspiration to many with your humanity.
As always, Peter, carefully thought out and fair. There are no winners in a war, period. Will we ever outgrow the compulsion to annihilate one another before we blow ourselves to smithereens? Probably not, but it is worth contemplating and it is certainly worth striving for.
Thanks for your thoughts, Manuela. In the short term, a terrorist group like Hamas that is dedicated to the annihilation of a country, and ignites a war through planned massacres of civilians, absolutely must be stopped. But there are certainly no long-term winners in these wars; leaders and demagogues are not typically great students of history.
Beautifully written. We are living in a Humpty Dumpty world. Do you think we will ever be able to pick up all of the “peaces”?
Thank you Sandi for your comment about the writing! To answer your question, I doubt that we will be able to "put Humpty Dumpty together again" for a long time. Yet I do permit myself to dream: that sometime in the (unfortunately distant) future, sane heads and empathetic hearts may yet prevail.
I do share your optimism. It is my hope that your dream will be the reality.
Good piece! The written word is powerful and you are doing what you can. It will make a difference!
Thank you Ross for your comment. Yes, the written word can be powerful indeed. In any event, it is our only weapon and we must use it to stand up for human decency.