It’s only one day beyond the news of Sinwar’s death in Gaza. It’s far too early to know what impact that event will have. Thomas Friedman has just published his second Op-Ed in the New York Times in as many days. He said that since Sinwar and Netanyahu were opposed to a ceasefire; now that Sinwar is gone, it’s time for Netanyahu to be Churchillian and make peace. It’s as if he said: Bibi, you wouldn’t make a compact with the Devil; now that he’s gone, why do you refuse agreement with his uncompromising demands left behind. Right ball; wrong court!
Over this entire year, I have been concerned about the ongoing war in the Middle East and it’s impact not only in Israel, (the home of part of my family), but also here in the West — the United States, Europe and Australia — places I call home and places that Sondra and I enjoy visiting in our well-deserved retirement. I worry about the rising anti-Zionism (with anti-Semitism) that seems to parallel an increased level of demonstrations on our streets and on college campuses.
Last Monday there was a large, loud Pro-Palestinian march in New York, in front of the New York Stock Exchange. It was obviously well-organized. Five hundred demonstrators showed up; most wore identical anti-Israel red t-shirts (sized?); and they chained themselves to the front door of the exchange. Two hundred were arrested. During that time the market apparently functioned without a tremor.
It reminded me of my days as a psychiatrist working at a private psychiatric hospital in New York City in the 1980’s. Every now and then, a small number of people, claiming to be ex-psychiatric patients, (probably true), would show up in front of Gracie Square Hospital, a five story white building on East 76th Street. In the sense of an ex-appendectomy patient claiming to be a survivor of a lethal scalpel assault, they would designate themselves as ‘survivors’ of inhumane psychiatric torture. With police in attendance and cameras nearby, they would chain themselves to the front door of the hospital. Barely missing a beat, the medical staff, myself included, would continue our work.
I have always recognized a profound sense of disconnect between the mind-set of those demonstrators, chained to the hospital’s front door, and my work inside. I did what I did, not only for a living, but for the regular (but by no means universal) gratification I received from the patients I served and tried to help. I knew there was an unbridgeable gulf of belief between the chained demonstrators and myself; however, I knew viscerally and logically that I was doing the right thing, as best I could.
In a similar fashion, I believe Israel — even with Netanyahu — is doing the best it can do. The media says that the narratives of Israel and Palestine are both valid and equal. In contrast, I have never wavered in my belief that the bulk of the Palestinian narrative, focused solely on their suffering at the hands of Israel, is entirely the result of their own behavior, in a cause-effect formulation. They are fortunate to have as their enemy, cousin Israel and not their brother Muslim. October 7th, occurring along the borders of Gaza and Israel, despite its over-the-top atrocities, is more like an intra-religious Muslim struggle, (in a cladistics sense), than something unique between the Abrahamic creeds.
Today, the media seems to say that the public view of the Israel-Palestine conflict here in the US is little changed from yesterday and protests continue unabated. However, my subjective sense says that these demonstrations in the street and on college campuses are dying down and having less impact.
I asked myself: what’s going on here in the US and in the world? I have a granddaughter who has just started college. How worried should I be?
I decided to put the question to ChatGPT. Although Chat is not designed to tell me what is ‘true’ or not, it is the best non-political, objective source I have access to at present. (It may change.) As such, I believe it is best positioned to give me an idea whether my sense of things is in accord with reality.
So I asked, “Chat, what is the current status of pro-Palestinian (anti-Zionist) activities on the campus of Cornell University?”
Chat mulled it over for a good 3 to 5 seconds, (a long time in Chat time), and answered with a listing of recent demonstrations on campus, indicating they are well attended and wide-spread. It mentioned that perhaps at Cornell, like other college campuses, the focus was shifting to the ‘pushback’ by college administrators restricting demonstrations, using their rule making powers as well as the community’s laws and regulations. ChatGPT’s answer concluded, “The university administration has expressed disapproval of the vandalism and reiterated that acts of property damage will not be tolerated, with public safety measures and investigations now underway to address the incidents reported during the first days of the semester. This situation underscores the sustained and escalating tension around the issue on campus this academic year.”
I decided to put the same question to my granddaughter, just starting her first year at Cornell and gushing with love of her experience. My most objective baseline reading of my granddaughter is that she is 90% Freshman, 8% young idealistic progressive and 2% zionist.
I texted her a copy of my question to Chat and its answer. I asked her to look it over and indicate whether “the Chat response agrees with your impressions as a freshman. Has any of what Chat reports impinged on you and your friends in any way? Of course, I would welcome any other thoughts and ideas you might have on the subject.”
It took 3 days but (with some further prompting) my granddaughter finally saw my text. Here is her answer (in its entirety):
Sorry didn't see this. I'll respond right now.
I haven't really noticed any of the pro Palestinian activity. It's not as pronounced as ChatGPT is making it seem.
So, even though it’s only one day beyond the news of Sinwar’s death in Gaza, I think things are moving in the right direction, perhaps slowly, even glacially so. I’ve always optimistically subscribed to MLK’s positive formulation that, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." I’m sure there’d be no quibble that justice cannot be justice without reason.
Another thoughtful article from Dr. Rosen.