Stop the Massacre and begin Discussion on Two State for Israelis and Palestinians to live in Harmony

With the pain and anguish the Israelis and Palestinians are going through at this time in history, let’s not pretend; we know that there are people on both sides of this conflict who, too often, are in denial and conflate the issue at the center of this conflict-Two-States Solution to this seeming never-ending the conflict. I believe this circumvention of the issues and creating circumstances to avoid the real issue, especially by those who purport to be political leaders. Politicians who deceptively create ambiguities as possible deniability to circumvent the real issue, as each side claims to have a higher moral ground regardless of their own contributions to the conflict, innocent people are being slaughtered, especially the Palestinians who believe that nobody cares for them. In this piece, I want to say to the victims on both sides of this conflict, people who do not have any control over what happens to them, and that I know they do not have any power to control the situation. If they do, I believe they would change this terrible situation in the blink of an eye and, more importantly, encourage them to develop a mindset that would give them hope and emotional strength, the desire and need to mitigate the situation to the best of their abilities. I understand the pain and anguish people are faced with in Gaza. I know it’s a nightmare, but I want to introduce you and encourage you to develop what former Stanford University Professor Carol Dweck characterized as a growth mindset. Dweck states, “In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment.” (Dweck, 2015) I apologize to those suffering the unbelievable pain and anguish stemming from human creation; these are the Israelis whose relatives were massacred on October 7th, as well as the Palestinians who are currently going through nightmares; their lights, water among other essentials, disconnected, and I know it’s too harsh, and quite frankly I do not know why people could perpetuate such pain and emotional anguish to innocent people, children and elderly. As a result, people are dying needlessly. Those making these decisions should think twice because neither slaughtering innocent Palestinians nor leaving the Israelis who are being helped as hostages can resolve the issue. When has war ever solved any problem? Rarely, except in a situation like during World War 11, when Adulf Hitler was driven by hate to exterminate people that he did approve to be worthy of life; in that situation, the only thing that could stop him and his henchmen was war, and in such circumstance, there is no choice but war. In this current situation, if there is a negotiation that is leading to results, why don’t they stay the course, which would provide more opportunities to bring those held as hostages back? What’s wrong with that decision? Based on the choices at present, I think that saving those held as hostages by Hamas would perhaps give the best possible opportunities to save lives and not kill anymore, as the current situation demonstrates. To the victims of the Israelis and Palestinian conflict, I ask that instead of being discouraged by criticism and what is happening around you now, I want you to be energized with hope and instilled motivation and inspiration to continuously strengthen your emotional strength through improved skill development to sustain yourselves throughout this difficult time. I encourage you to embrace challenges and persist through the development of strategies that would enable you to overcome the inevitable obstacles that may come your way until things get back to normalcy.