South Korea objects to harsh sanctions on the North. Israel cooperates with the Palestinians. Avoiding a confrontation now only exacerbates the problem later.

It is counter-intuitive to suggest that peace efforts don’t bring peace but rather that only militancy does. The communists believed that people cooperate for the common good. The problem is, neither Arabs nor Soviet peasants perceived their good the way their benefactors did. Arabs want and Soviet peasants wanted only one thing: land. Not peace or prosperity, but land. The land they consider rightfully theirs. Israelis and the Soviet workers offered reasonable terms and good compensation for the land; that didn’t work.

Are Arabs stupid, unable to realize how good the peace deal is for them? Were Jews stupid when we refused Uganda and fought both Arabs and the British? A man is not only a stomach but also a mind. To fill the stomach at the expense of one’s raison d’être is a bad trade.

Trade land for peace? How about selling a wedding ring for a good price? Some things are just not for sale. The Israeli government is ready to accept its thirty pieces of silver, a worthless peace treaty. Arabs, however, define “the land” differently—all the land of Palestine. Possibly in stages, but all the land. Older Arabs remember the sustenance economy, but the new generation doesn’t value the economic benefits of gathering up the crumbs from Israel’s table. They want neither money nor peace but land. Jews agree to peace without land; Arabs want land even without peace. Jews want to sell our inheritance, the land of Israel, but Arabs don’t want to buy it. They just want it. Strong wishes often materialize.