Fusce congue odio at orci malesuada sodales. Phasellus posuere scelerisque dolor, eget dapibus tellus aliquet at. Nunc et mollis mi. Morbi ultricies blandit risus, feugiat volutpat justo elementum eget. Vivamus nec nisi diam. Nullam vehicula enim sollicitudin purus rutrum a ultricies tortor dictum. Aenean metus ante, vulputate eget luctus id, mattis at nulla. Maecenas pulvinar, nulla sit amet mollis sollicitudin, lectus sem vehicula magna, id gravida nunc arcu ac magna. Sed sit amet quam non quam ullamcorper pretium eu nec lorem. Quisque semper hendrerit nisl eget malesuada. Integer euismod, dui ac elementum facilisis, enim dolor hendrerit eros, non placerat turpis est vitae metus. Quisque dictum, urna at luctus vestibulum, leo eros porta velit, a facilisis nunc libero non ligula. Integer dignissim felis eget dui imperdiet tempus ac non lorem. Cras in urna mattis diam lobortis aliquet tempus quis libero. Aliquam erat volutpat. Vestibulum lectus urna, adipiscing at interdum vitae, suscipit nec mauris. Integer pharetra elementum lectus id ultrices. Vivamus fermentum dolor at augue iaculis euismod.

Pellentesque ipsum urna, imperdiet sed aliquam eget, semper pellentesque dolor. Ut tincidunt velit eu enim faucibus sit amet gravida lectus convallis. Nulla tellus lorem, ullamcorper in interdum ac, molestie a justo. Sed placerat bibendum ipsum, viverra viverra orci rutrum vitae. Pellentesque convallis est mattis felis accumsan mollis. Mauris pulvinar scelerisque gravida. Vestibulum risus est, sagittis non iaculis et, cursus non dui. Pellentesque eu sapien non tortor cursus ullamcorper non vitae felis. Morbi purus ligula, condimentum vel faucibus a, ullamcorper eu tortor. Vivamus nec tortor nisl. Duis pretium pretium vulputate. In eros magna, euismod euismod accumsan eget, hendrerit non sem. Quisque accumsan dolor at dolor facilisis ultrices. Sed eget lacus a ante aliquet tincidunt a et magna. Donec molestie elementum vestibulum.

Suspendisse nec risus non velit bibendum mollis. Phasellus sit amet ante vel mauris vehicula feugiat. Vivamus at nisi metus. Donec bibendum imperdiet sapien, placerat egestas lorem posuere at. Pellentesque vehicula urna vitae mi consequat suscipit. Quisque nibh mauris, tristique quis mattis a, interdum non diam. Nam nec sapien nisi. Sed vestibulum ipsum ut nisi sagittis dictum. Donec nunc ipsum, consectetur eu pretium et, dictum at nisl. Nullam mollis dignissim urna, quis hendrerit quam tincidunt vitae. Duis ut sem est. Mauris ipsum magna, commodo eget accumsan ac, dignissim quis sem. Quisque vel accumsan augue. Fusce feugiat, dui in condimentum viverra, urna felis volutpat dolor, ac aliquam ipsum sapien eu tortor. Aenean magna diam, ornare quis elementum auctor, vestibulum sed metus. Sed mauris erat, elementum nec semper vel, tincidunt eu metus. Vivamus at arcu eu arcu vestibulum ullamcorper. Vivamus dui diam, fringilla quis tincidunt sed, gravida a ipsum. Curabitur sit amet mauris leo, sit amet blandit lorem.

Vivamus sit amet ante justo, ac lacinia sapien. Donec ut quam lacus. Nulla et nibh orci. Quisque non elit elit, non vestibulum ante. Mauris quam nibh, ultricies nec luctus eu, molestie a quam. Curabitur lacinia tincidunt mi non tempus. Phasellus tempor purus ac tortor tempus vel congue magna varius. Nullam ut nulla risus. In in nulla felis, eu bibendum ante. Nullam ultrices, dolor sit amet venenatis ultricies, sem massa iaculis mi, sed aliquam urna lorem in augue. Quisque porttitor tempor turpis eu aliquet. Aenean nisl metus, sagittis tincidunt volutpat id, mattis ut neque. Duis rutrum augue non risus ultrices lobortis.

“Yes, ‘rockets’ did go out,” says Dr. Tarazi, referring to Hamas rockets fired into Israeli towns, “and we felt sympathy for any Israelis hurt by the rockets.  But, if someone hurts you with a pin, you don’t cut off his head.  You ask WHY the person tried to prick you with a pin. Consider that people here are trapped in a prison and there is a shortage of everything.  No one can repair anything. People wanted borders opened so that goods could come and go.  After six months of closed borders, people are frustrated.  Now, one side declares a cease fire, they say nothing about opening the borders, nothing about withdrawal, and yet they want NATO to help tighten the siege.”

“I hope President Obama will be much better than George Bush concerning these things,” said Dr. Tarazi.  “Human beings that have such a strong army should be civilized and not behave like a terrorist group.  Fanatics can be expected to use terror, but a democratic state shouldn’t use fallacious statements as an excuse for massive killing. A state which does this should be brought before an International Court of Justice.”

“And yet,” he said, “we must experiment with ways of love. We are trying, with Jewish people…by feelings and actions.  We need to succeed.  We need to live together.  We are trying to be in good relations with all the partners, all the views.”

“The strongest weapon all over the world is love,” says Dr. Tarazi, adding that he has always believed this and has said this to his colleagues, whether Muslim, Christian or Jewish, throughout his career.  He recalled declaring this same belief at the Eretz border crossing, shortly after the Israelis launched “Operation Cast Lead.” He had been among the 200 Christians who were chosen (800 had applied) to cross the border and celebrate the Orthodox Christmas holiday with family members in the West Bank. When the attacks began, he ended his holiday and hurried to the border, knowing he must return to his work
and his family.  At the border crossing, he greeted soldiers, “Merry Christmas.”  Soldiers answered, “Do you have weapons?”  “Yes,” Dr. Tarazi replied, “I have the strongest weapon of all, the weapon of love.“

No less a person than the President himself has reminded us that (aside from breaking the racial barrier) his election is not so much the desired change as a chance to work for it.  This is no small thing, that we now can work for it (to put it in perspective, just remember President Bush’s advise to us after 9/11: ‘go shopping, take the kids to Disneyland’).  Even more significant, if somewhat less public, he himself also said that we the people have to make it possible for him to live up to the full interpretation of his own promises.  At a small fundraising event in New Jersey about a year ago, he himself told the story of how A. Philip Randolph, the civil rights activist and union organizer asked FDR to grant the largely African-American railroad porters the right to organize, whereupon the new president said ‘I’m convinced that it’s a good thing: now go out and make me do it.’  (The Railway Labor Act came into law in 1934).

So let’s take the President at his word.  We private citizens of progressive communities like Berkeley (or West Marin, where I now live) have a greater role to play in the direction of our country than we have had for many dismal years — probably greater in proportion to our numbers than many other locations across the land.  How shall we play it?

First, by appreciating what the President has already done.  For eight years we have been living through a national version of those Stanley Milgram experiments on ‘obedience to authority,’ where a national authority figure reassured unsuspecting people from all walks of life that it’s OK to torture.  President Obama pulled us back from that disgraceful abyss with a stroke of his pen.  And he framed it brilliantly: “we’re going to defeat terrorism on our terms.”

Second, by not condemning him for what are undeniably many and harsh disappointments — the silence on Gaza, the refusal to stop drone bombings in Afghanistan (in which 22 innocent people have recently died), his encouraging speech at a Caterpillar plant in IL over the objections of human rights groups and others (Caterpillar supplies the machines that illegally level Palestinian homes, in one case crushing to death an American peace activist), and of course the ringing words of his inaugural address that America is “ready to lead” again.  If you’re like me, you don’t want anyone to be world leader any more; if there’s any leading to be done, it should be toward acceptance that the world a multipolar system; even, dare we say it, toward a real international community.  Am I disappointed?  Yes, but I’m also trying to be realistic.  Public figures, elected by majorities, are not expected to be prophets of a vision that only a tiny minority can understand, much less desire.  In this sense, to be political is to ‘swindle’ at least some of the people much of the time. Instead of calling him a cheat for not giving us everything we want, and doing it right away — which will only deprive him of badly needed support and further terrify his (and our) considerable opposition — let’s appreciate what he’s up against, give him the benefit of the doubt (which is a good idea to give everyone, while we’re at it), and get to work.

Which is my third point.  I understand that in my own town, Tomales, 80% voted for Obama.  I’m ecstatic — but I’m also thinking about the 20% who didn’t; who, let’s face it, are probably 80% of many less blessed locations between here and the Atlantic.  We have to reach out to them; and we can.  Some years ago I was having a rather tense discussion about terrorism and how we had provoked it ourselves with my politically conservative brother-in-law.  At one point he blurted out, “Well, I don’t think we’re so terrible!”  I put in, “Stan, this has nothing to do with being good or bad; it’s about how we are going to live safely in a world with lots of different people.”  His anger deflated immediately, and I’m not even entirely sure he didn’t vote for you-know-whom in November.  So go to coffee shops, or bars, to the next cubicle (if you’re lucky enough to still have a job), and talk to people who disagree with you, always being aware that they have the same moral feelings that we do, if they apply them differently.  Take a workshop in compassionate listening or nonviolent communication, if it doesn’t come naturally to you, and enjoy the conversation. Explain your own values with confidence, but at the same time reassure them that there is a place for them in the new world.  Above all, don’t make them feel guilty (they do already), and don’t gloat.  That’s the surest way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

It’s not the President’s job to convince Joe the Plumber that the new world will be good for him.  It’s our job.  Let’s remember what awaits us if we fail.