Today I am so glad that I am not a father.
How could any parent explain to their child the scenes we have witnessed this week?
I cannot begin to imagine how you can explain to children, gangs of angry men on motorcycles dragging bodies by their ankles through the streets, like we witnessed in Gaza City.
I don't know about you... But to me that's not war, its cold blooded murder. They are not soldiers, they are not freedom fighters, nor are they rebels with a cause. They are nothing more than cowards with guns.
My entire life I have known nothing but conflict in the Middle East. For me, Beirut was NEVER compared to Paris. Iraq was never a sight to behold, Israel never a peaceful religious state, nor was Iran friendly ally. For me these have forever been places in the nightly news where bombs are detonated and lives are lost. These are places that we in the western world learn at a young age to fear.
No matter if it is an Arab or Israeli death, the despair is no different. Ask an Arab mother or an Israeli father- What was it like to lose your son? What was it like to lose your daughter?
Their answers will be exactly the same. The worst part for parents is, whether your Arab or Israeli - when your child dies fighting for this cause, you know they died for nothing.
What I know of the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict you could fit on the back of a postage stamp. Neither do I pretend to be as knowledgeable a 'Miss Universe' contestant when I speak on matters such as world peace.
But people not familiar with the history ARE the ones who should be talking about answers... This region of the world, now more than ever needs people with objective eyes. I can promise you there will never be peace in the Middle East until all past deeds are forgiven and forgotten.
Forget the peace talks, conferences and the summits... The more complicated the issue, the simpler the answer is. Everyone just needs to chill the bloody hell out, relax, and say "starting from now, we all live together". Any grudges and you may as well not even try. Peace will only come when there is a secular Israel. A place where Muslims, Jews, and Christians all live together under common law, common peace, and are free to worship as they see fit.
It works in the Commonwealth, why can't it work there? Forget the history and move on as one people, despite your diverse religions; nationally they can all unite as one state, filled with citizens of diverse faiths, who band together with the national purpose of being the guardians of the Holy Lands. I'm sad to say it, but the onus is completely on the Palestinians. They need to put their arms down, then Israel will follow suit. I hate to be blunt, but if the Palestinian people don't forget their past, they simply will not have a future.
The Israelis will never allow Palestinians live without restriction or fear until they stop the violence within their ranks. As we have seen, the Israeli Defence Forces are well equipped, highly disciplined professionals. They're not dragging bodies and shooting wildly into the air.
There's nothing romantic about warfare. However there is some degree of honour when an armed military face another armed military. Terrorists however are the lowest forms of cowards. Too frightened, too scared, too afraid to attack an armed military force, they attack mothers, fathers, children... Those unarmed and unable to defend themselves fall with the bullets and bombs. It's incredible though, these moronic imbeciles never realise that every murder they commit as an act of terrorism that strengthens Israel's resolve to never surrender.
Okay... Put it this way... I used to get so frustrated watching Wile E. Coyote as a kid.
Every afternoon, I would see him come up with another plot, another scheme, and another crazy plan to finally beat the Road Runner. He'd always think; "this time is it, I'll get him!" Yet time and time again, he failed.
While his persistence was admirable, I just used to wish Wile E. would just give up already! Doesn't he know that he's getting nowhere?! When he would fall off a mountain, drop an anvil on his head, or blow himself up with ACME TNT, it was proof that rather than catching the Road Runner, he was just harming himself!
Sometimes you just have to say 'enough is enough' and call it a day. For the Palestinians, all they ever do is harm themselves. Their brutal, cold and heartless attacks of terror and intimidation do nothing but hurt their cause; it's time for them to let it go. I know that sounds harsh, I know that sounds unfair, but it is simply the way it is- The Palestinian nation state is a lost cause. And hostilities against Israel only prolong their victimisation. They've been beat.
The continuous violence in this region has to stop. Because when you have been fighting a nation for 64 straight years and losing- Wouldn't you think it is time to try something else?
Am I the only one that remembers that the Palestinians had their chance at having a homeland and they blew it? Why are we not making a bigger deal of this? Israel was born along with another nation state- Palestine. Yet only Israel remains strong.
I feel that most of my generation does not realise that the day the State of Israel was formed in 1948, SIX neighbouring Arab nations declared war. Imagine a Jewish people who had just faced the horrors they had faced at the hands of the Nazi's being threatened yet again with extermination, only this time at the hands of Palestine, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Iraq?
Palestine had their country, yet they refused to exist alongside Israel so they paid the price. Complaining now is like a gambler trying to get his money back after he's bet the house and lost.
Could you possibly imagine how peaceful the world would be right now if the Arabs had just recognised Israel's right to exist? For one; today there would be a nation called Palestine, and the biggest rivalry between the two states would involve an annual soccer series not shootings.
Instead, we have seen countless wars between Arab nations and Israel- At every turn, Israel has survived. Surely it might be time to rethink this strategy.
And the only way to do it is to forget the past, start again, and call a 'do over'... The greatest minds of the Twentieth Century failed bringing peace to the Middle East... Maybe we need to try something else... So I know I was only joking, but maybe adopting Miss Universe contestants to draft proposals for peace wasn't such a stupid idea after all!