Which is wiser: Lebanese Prime Minister (PM) Nawaf Salam talking with the President of Iran, which uses Lebanon as a battle ground, or the dozens of UN delegates who boycotted the the Israeli PM’s speech, even if their countries may not be impacted by war?

History repeat itself from year to year. Indeed, once again, several UN delegates representing different countries left the room before Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech in the name of Israel (https://tinyurl.com/26ufapse). What did they achieve by doing so? Whether they like Mr. Netanyahu or not, and regardless of approval or condemnation of Israel’s war actions (and reactions), why can’t they know how to listen to an opponent?

If at the General Assembly meeting of the United Nations, we do not take the time to listen to each other, when and where will we do it? How can world leaders find ways to solve conflicts if they do not behave like skilled diplomats? And can we then blame lay people for treating each other with direct hostility or with indirect hostile ways, like ostracism and avoidance, because of different worldviews?

Thank Goodness, there is a real diplomatic leader, like Mr. Salam, who took the time to speak to the President of Iran on the sidelines of the UN meeting. Courageously, he expressed his country’s demand not to be “an arena for regional wars, after Tehran-backed Hezbollah drew it into the Middle East conflict” (https://tinyurl.com/3jc49z87).

Maybe those delegates who left the room without listening to Mr. Netanyahu could have learned from the Lebanese diplomat some wisdom. Even with their passionate support to the Palestinian cause, they could have stayed in the room to either take notes or to ask challenging questions. By doing so, they would offer more efficient support to the Palestinian delegation, as needed now or later post-war. They would also learn to put themselves in the shoes of another country’s leader (in this case, to see the world through Israel’s lens) to better defend, or update, their perspectives.

Bambi does not know about you, dear readers, but at her age and stage of life, she is sick and tired of immature ways of dealing with deep issues affecting the lives of millions of innocent people. In her mind, she clearly sees that, as humans, we have a joint social responsibility to find non-violent communication strategies, especially among leaders and nations. If a UN Assembly meeting does not know how to foster such diplomatic spirit anymore, we have all the reasons to question its utility, the selection of delegates, and the training in best practices or mentorship they may receive in their careers.

To conclude this post, after reading it, if you think that Bambi is defending the Israeli PM, you are clearly wrong. If you understand that she is questioning the treatment that Israel gets at the UN in comparison to other countries who resort to similar or even worse military or moral acts, you are right. On the latter, she agrees with Mr. Netanyahu. She knows this because she listened to his speech, contrary to the UN diplomats.