Shimon Peres on Peace
Arar Han (RA), Contributing Writer
Issue date: 11/2/04 Section: News
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The war in Iraq, however, stressed Peres, is not seen by the world as a war against Islam. Rather, he said, most people in the free world think that Saddam Hussein was a "catastrophic" leader whose removal has done some good for the spread of democracy. This, Peres emphasized, is a reality that the U.S. can leverage as it leaves behind the "easy" activity of war to the "different story" of making peace. It is important for negotiators of peace to be "hawks when there [is] danger," Peres stated, but to also be "doves when there [is] a chance."
Throughout his talk, Peres sprinkled bits of advice for the mostly undergraduate student audience. "If you want to make peace," he said in one instance, "don't win too much." "Peace is very divisive," he said in another, but take care to not "be like us [in the older generation]." "There is so much to remember," Peres advised, "but make a history of your own because the world is changing." The "right questions always lead to the right answers," he said, adding that he credits his Harvard experience for helping his realize this. "[So] think rather than remember," he concluded, for "you'll always be as great as the cause you sell."
Throughout his talk, Peres sprinkled bits of advice for the mostly undergraduate student audience. "If you want to make peace," he said in one instance, "don't win too much." "Peace is very divisive," he said in another, but take care to not "be like us [in the older generation]." "There is so much to remember," Peres advised, "but make a history of your own because the world is changing." The "right questions always lead to the right answers," he said, adding that he credits his Harvard experience for helping his realize this. "[So] think rather than remember," he concluded, for "you'll always be as great as the cause you sell."