The insanity of force as a governing philosophy

Fulbright scholarships canceled for 8 Gaza students

You've got to read this story to believe it. I can think of no other single more clearly counterproductive policy by the Israeli government than this in solidifying enmities against Israel, other than the occupation, about which Israeli conservatives seem to be digging their heels in, at this point, or the killing of innocents, which is policy for Hamas. So Hamas rationalizes killing innocents, and Israel rationalizes imprisoning Palestinians in Gaza, and Hamas and Islamic Jihad rationalize terrorizing Israeli citizens, and Israel rationalizes its occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem. And on and on and on.

And innocent Israelis and Palestinians, like these students, are subjected to the killing and repression of their governments or non-governmental terrorist actors, with no way out. And these governments and terrorist groups ask them coldly, if they dare protest, "What are you going to do about it?"

The one hope that the world has amidst its ugly and repressive ways is democratic engagement - education, thought, communication, free expression, debate, discussion, freedom of choice, learning about one another, understanding, compassion, friendship, family, love, wisdom - and the Israeli government shuts all of that down for a few Gaza students who could bring all of that back with them to this godforsaken situation or work for greater understanding and peace between Israel and Palestine from outside of Gaza, if they, quite reasonably, choose not to return. The one real hope that Israel and the Palestinians have for resolving their differences honestly, decently, and peacefully - to allow their children to seek and create a better future - and Israel and Hamas choose to repress and imprison these people instead.

This is what force as a governing philosophy looks like, for those who were curious about rationalizing it in liberal democracies, by the way. We so take our freedom for granted, we often need a healthy reminder of just how poorly force and repression as a governing philosophy have served humanity for much of its existence. And what it looks like to try to kill, imprison, and leverage our problems away rather than learning how to handle them better together, as much as possible.

This is no way to govern. It is no way to live.

And it is a legacy we must end.