Daniel Lubetzky

Something big has already happened, and something bigger and historic could come during 2008, and yet a region buried in sorrow and skepticism is not paying attention.

It is striking.

President Bush’s visit to Ramallah was literally a historic moment: the first time ever that a sitting American President visited this city which is currently the seat of the Palestinian Authority.

And yet nobody seemed to notice.

I was in Ramallah yesterday, and barely anyone was talking about Bush’s visit.  To the extent people noticed it is because the day prior streets were blocked and a couple hundred demonstrators against Bush and the US Administration were a bit too-forcefully dispersed by the PA.

In Israel, all newspapers cynically mocked Bush and Olmert as being disconnected or disingenuous, and most people just ignored or didn’t even know that this historic Presidential visit was taking place.

It is so easy to complain and criticize and question and belittle.  It is so easy to raise doubts and be cynical.  And there are plenty of valid reasons to be skeptical and to question the commitment of many of the leaders to the finishing line.  But not only does pure fatalism get us nowhere – it is also not warranted given the visible facts.

The leaders are doing something!  They are trying to strike a historical deal within a defined and bold timeframe of a year.

The time has come for citizens to put their skepticism aside and do their part.

It takes more effort to do something positive than to just dismiss others’ efforts.  If people say they want a better future, they have a responsibility to help bring it about.

The time has come.