Prosperity versus hate
23 June 2025
For the past 77 years, countries like Iran, Palestine, Syria and Lebanon have faced a stark choice: pursue prosperity or remain locked in hostility. Unfortunately, these nations have chosen the latter, prioritizing their opposition to Israel over internal development. The result has been devastating - economic collapse, loss of life and the forfeiture of a better future for their people.
It’s time for a new direction. The people of these countries deserve leadership that values nation building over confrontation. Reducing hatred of Israel, so it no longer dominates their decision making, would be a powerful first step.
Living in Southeast Michigan, home to the largest Arab-American population in the U.S., I’ve met many Iranians, Palestinians, Lebanese and Syrians who are intelligent, hardworking and successful. I believe that if they chose to build stable, thriving societies in the Middle East, they could succeed. But to do so, they must move beyond hate in their political views.
Today, Iran is in conflict with both the United States and Israel. Why? Primarily because it insists on retaining the capacity to threaten Israel and to develop nuclear weapons. These choices have brought decades of sanctions and isolation, harming the Iranian people far more than any foreign power has.
Recently, an Iranian executive expressed deep frustration:
“The feeling I have is a feeling of 40 years of hatred toward this foolish government,” he said, lamenting the money that had been spent to develop Fordo, a uranium enrichment site that the United States targeted. “All these years of slogans and chest beating, saying we have a strong defense system and that no enemy could ever attack our soil.
“That’s not even counting how much the value of our currency has dropped, how much of our human capital has fled the country, how much chaos has been created,” he added. “The psychological, financial and cultural toll on the country is immense.” Iranian civilians voice fear, sorrow and anger after U.S. attack (22 June 2025).
Iranians, both inside and outside the country, must honestly confront this history and consider a different path. Rather than blaming Israel or the United States for every setback, they can choose to focus on building a stable, prosperous society. They have the talent, education and global connections to succeed. What’s needed now is the will.
There is no better time than the present.
The index to my prior essays (mostly post 5 November 2024) is here.
I have another blog on Cancer and Medicine.
You can also follow me at https://www.linkedin.com/in/nat-pernick-8967765/ (LinkedIn), npernickmich (Threads and Instagram), natpernick.bsky.social (Bluesky) or @nat385440b (Tribel).
Email me at Nat@PathologyOutlines.com.
I also publish Notes at https://substack.com/note. Subscribers will automatically see my notes.
Israelis have a right to live in freedom, dignity, and with autonomy, in peace. So do Palestinians, Iranians, Syrians, Lebanese, and Iraqis without their territories being seized and occupied through wars. Hamas was and is a nasty terrorist organization, but one encouraged and funded by Israel over many years to break the Palestinian Authority's hold on the people, deny a two-state solution, and use Palestinian surrogates to police Palestinians under Israeli military law, bribing them through jobs and perks. Hezbollah was, and is, a terrorist organization, but it was inspired by Israel's occupation of southern Lebanon - its members and activists were always local Shiite Lebanese, even though they were armed and funded by Syria and Iran. Syria and Israel, as well as the US and France, reached a modus vivendi in Lebanon after the war of 1982 and the expulsion of Arafat from Lebanon. Iran's Islamic regime is not popular within the country, and despite recent loosening of the dress restrictions on women and on street music and Western culture, the Islamic Revolution was a disaster for the people and the economy. On the other hand, the regime of the Shah and his Savak secret police were loathed by many in Iran. The war with Iraq, encouraged by the US, didn't help matters. Nor did Iran's foreign adventures. We can only hope for peace and prosperity for all the people of the region, but surely without regional domination by any one country seeking to impose its will by superior military force and driving out another from its lands and homes through mass expulsions and killing.