Headline News: Israeli PM visits US again; More US soldiers killed in Iraq, Palestinians bomb another café…

Peace in the middle east? Now that is a contradiction of terms! As a mediator and former litigator this nonsense irks me to no end. I have been an advocate for justice most of my life and I’ve learned that disputes can be resolved without confrontation. But before there can be resolution there must also be a change in attitude.

The middle east is a classic case of sibling rivalry that has been going on since Cane and Able, Isaac and Ishmael. Call me cynical (I prefer the term realist) but no government, treaty or peace initiative can make it work until people finally realize it is they who must change. As simple as this may sound it is absolutely true.

Unfortunately for some it is a road less travelled for it is far easier to succumb to our lower nature than rise to our better self. It requires a change of mindset and the heart, and mankind will never have peace in the middle east (or anywhere else for that matter) UNTIL we decide that love and tolerance are preferable to hatred and revenge. And that’s the bottom line.