My dad finally understood my position on the Israeli Palestinian conflict.

My dad is pro Palestinian and has been for years. He's a good hearted person and really cares about the people. He's very empathetic and has a strong sense of justice. Because of this my dad had been convinced that the Palestinians are the underdogs in the conflict. He feels very bad for them and sees them as victims of Israeli aggression. Nevertheless this past week, something really made him angry. A man went into a synagogue in Jerusalem and killed 7 people in a mass shooting. When my dad learned of this he was horrified. I remember him specifically telling me that "no one deserves to be shot in their place of worship." As someone who has been to Israel, I find my dad's feelings to be very valid. Nevertheless I told him the following. "Dad remember when you said no one deserves to be shot in their place of worship? Well the people who did this see the people in the synagogue as occupiers. It's like a microcosm of what the whole conflict is like. When someone does something like this who do the Israelis blame? They blame the whole Palestinian people. The same thing happens the other way around. When someone does something like this who do the Palestinians blame? The whole Israeli people. The conflict is like this on both sides. So if we see one side as the victims and the other side as the aggressors than we are just perpetuating a cycle of violence and hatred. I think if we see the humanity in both sides than we can find a way to peace." He thought about it for a second than told me "You're right." I don't know if he'll change his position all the way on the matter but I'm really proud of him for understanding the situation better.