An Open Letter to the Israeli and American Governments

An Open Letter to the Israeli and American Governments:

I write you this letter today with hopes that it will assist you in breaking the cycle of extreme violence and Co-creating a more Peaceful World. On behalf of all Citizens who desire a more Peaceful World, I offer you what I feel are the most effective ideas for initiating the PeaceMaking process:

Step 1) Acknowledge that there IS a cycle of extreme violence and that it DOES have the potential to be broken.

Step 2) Acknowledge that people are not born as violent extremists, but are born into environments that teach them to fear and hate.

Step 3) Ask what you can do to help break the cycle of extreme violence Worldwide.

After taking these 3 steps, the answers you come up with may vary. My hope is that some of your answers will include the following:

*We must Announce to the world that we are AWARE of this vicious cycle and that we INTEND to do whatever we can to break this cycle Worldwide.

*We must Announce to the world that we would rather CATCH violent extremists (when possible) RATHER than killing them, because we are determined to break the eye for an eye cycle and help the World recover from its addiction to extreme violence. Furthermore, we must acknowledge that this preference to CATCH them is also intended to set a good example for all the children of the World, INCLUDING the children of violent extremists.

*We must invest more in high-tech non-lethal weapons. We must use this technology to avoid civilian casualties, and to catch (rather than kill) violent extremists when possible.

*We must understand how fear leads to anger, anger leads to hatred, and hatred leads to the sickness we often label as "evil". We must direct our education systems to teach this understanding.

*We must direct our education systems to spread media content that teaches about Peace, and shows our children examples of people who HAVE healed their addiction to extreme violence.

*We must direct our education systems to not only teach how the gentle and non-violent approaches to PeaceMaking are valuable, but also teach how sports (including boxing and martial arts) can be powerful PeaceMaking tools. These sports allow people to express their aggressive energy and they can help many people recover from their addiction to extreme violence.

*We must direct our education systems to teach meditation methods that are scientifically proven to reduce stress and create inner Peace.

*We must direct our education systems to teach the latest scientific discoveries that show us how we are all interconnected/interdependent and how the way we treat ourselves, each other, all living creatures and our planet, has an impact on ALL of us.

*We must direct our education systems to place more emphasis on creative expression such as music, writing and art.

*We must empower and encourage all people in our World Community to Co-Create media content expressing their ideas about Peace and how it is achieved.

*We must find ways to share media content for Peace, including examples of people who broke the cycle, with violent extremists and ESPECIALLY with their CHILDREN.

*We must acknowledge that extreme poverty is often a cause for extreme violence, and we must do everything we can to eradicate extreme poverty from our planet. Furthermore, we must acknowledge that ALL people on our planet should have access to life's basic needs (food, water, shelter, clothing, health care, education etc.) with the OPTION of working for things beyond the basic needs. We must acknowledge this, and we must work to make it a reality Worldwide.

If you have read this far then THANK you for being open minded enough to consider these ideas. I am aware that there is much more to PeaceMaking than these ideas alone, and I am aware that you may not resonate with each idea completely. However, my HOPE is that you will AT LEAST agree with the first 3 steps, and then decide which solutions are most constructive.

Thank you again for reading, and I look forward to Co-Creating a more Peaceful World with you.

Sincerely,

Yaron Fishman
MyPeace.TV
Founder

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So far, I've sent this letter to the contacts listed below. If you resonate with the ideas in this letter, please send it to them as well, with a note expressing your desire to see these ideas implemented. If you find other useful contact info, please add it this blog.

American Government Contact info:

US Defense Department Online contact form
http://www.defenselink.mil/faq/erms.aspx?SectionID=4

Public Feedback - comments@whitehouse.gov

Vice President's office - vice_president@whitehouse.gov

Israeli Government Contact info:

Online form to reach Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert:
http://www.pmo.gov.il/PMOEng/PM/Write+to+PM/

President Shimon Peres - President@president.gov.il

Public Feedback - Public@president.gov.il

Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs - feedback@mfa.gov.il

Israeli Ministry of Defense - pniot@mod.gov.il

Israeli Ministry of Education - info@education.gov.il