There is a voluntary action program called Project Children between Northern Ireland and the US where you take kids out of that kind of enviroment for the summer and place them with an American family. The kids are nominated by their teachers and ministers, being identified for their leadership potential. They try to show kids that its possible to live peacefully in a diverse society. The Irish American band Cherish the Ladies played a fund raiser near here a couple years ago to help fund its mission.
I guess the difference in situations is that the IRA and its counterparts are increasingly fringe groups. Unfortunately, when I see Hamas and Israels elected government, I wonder if most people there are willing to make the necessary sacrifices to achieve peace. I've never heard of a similar program to Project Children between Jews and Muslims. The Irish troubles had to be solved in America as well, since Americans were funding the terrorists. Do American Jews and Moslems have the will to stop the flow of money (from all sources)which supports terror? It seems the two situations have some key differences, one funding route being different with American taxes being part of the problem....
|