You Can

You can:

• keep #AllEyesOnRafah but still want peace and security for Israel, too
• support a people's/nation's right to exist and thrive in peace without excusing the violent actions of those claiming to defend it
• separate the behavior of a regime from the will of its people
• support an ideology, a policy, a political party or person without demonizing and threatening those opposed
• defend an organization or group while condemning bad apples within it
• protest against or in favor of something/someone without becoming belligerent, violent, and/or destructive
• have an opinion or belief which is not based on fact, as long as you understand the difference
• acknowledge the facts even when they contradict your feelings
• stand by while others do something you dislike and disagree with, if no one is being hurt by it
• refrain from trying to be the center of attention
• measure twice and cut once
• learn from history
• focus on problem-solving over finger-pointing
• indicate that you plan to make a turn or change lanes in your vehicle by using your turn signals ahead of time
• say what you want and accept the consequences
• have a thought (or reasonable facsimile thereof) without immediately blasting it out to the world via social media
• take a moment to verify whether something is true before posting or sharing it
• remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool, rather than talking and removing all doubt of it
• consider other experiences and points of view, even those you can't understand
• change your mind, and acknowledge it
• apologize when you're wrong and still retain your dignity
• admit that most things aren't black and white, but have shades of grey
• acknowledge someone's accomplishments and misdeeds, without them canceling each other out (see: shades of grey)
• let it be
• compromise and negotiate
• agree to disagree, without being disagreeable
• put together a list like this without relying on AI

2018-02-13

Maybe Ahed Tamimi could've picked a better way to resist the Israeli occupation of Palestine than slapping, kicking, and throwing rocks at soldiers, but she's already been jailed for almost two months, and could face months or even years more if convicted. Maybe Israel needs to shake its fist at the truly violent offenders, and acknowledge that its own heavy-handed actions in the Palestinian territories breeds frustration that results in this kind of response. She's a teenager who's seen family arrested and killed by Israelis. Of course the people of Israel don't want to see their soldiers "assaulted," but the people of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip don't want to see their citizens, their fathers and mothers and children, assaulted, imprisoned, and killed, either.

Neither the Israelis nor the Palestinians should want to indoctrinate Ahed to believe that the only way to respond to injustice, real or perceived, is through extremism. And hiding the court proceedings doesn't help Israel's standing at all, even/especially when the court claims it's in the defendant's best interests despite her attorney arguing otherwise. The situation needs to change, for Ahed and all the Palestinian children and all the Israeli children.