Words from Palestine

The hotel we are staying in is permeated with an atmosphere of kindness and good will. Neither the rain leaking through the roof and windows nor the insufficient amount of heat coming through the pipes can dissipate the warmth given by the hotel staff. They are as much a part of VitW as we who are on our way to Iraq are. I cannot help but to be reminded of the comforts I enjoy at home such as unlimited warmth in my home and I consider how much my excessive demand for comfort fuels my government’s unjust foreign policies. No matter how much I protest injustice, my lifestyle continues to support it. I hope that my experiences here helps me to live in a manner that promotes justice when I return home.

The newspapers here are filled with talk of war. There are many Palestinian refugees living in Aman. A US led invasion of Iraq will not only cause significant economic stress to Jordan, it may politically destabilize this country. The Jordanian government will be forced between a rock and hard place. If they allow the US to use their land or airspace to launch a military program, they will alienate the vast majority of the population; if they side with Iraq by refusing to cooperate with the US, they risk becoming an enemy of Washington. Jordanians only need look to their eastern neighbors to see what becomes of Washington’s “enemies.”