As the year of the Palestinian genocide.
That's the simple answer. And after 10 months of witnessing what is going on in Gaza anyone who believes that what is happening there is not genocide is utterly blinded, be it self-imposed ego-protection blindness, or blindness from truth imposed by selective algorithms of news and fake-news consumption and political manipulation.
The worst part is that, even the most brilliant minds I speak to see no way out, no solution. The cycle of trauma, fear, hatred, fundamentalism, misinformation, and the sheer level of pain and scarcity are pushing people to the limits of their humanity. And what lies beyond their humanity is, literally, animalesque.
I had a profound disagreement yesterday during dinner with a friend about the situation there. I raised my voice, I got emotional. If we can't see a way out from any situation, the very least we need to do is hold the space for dialogue. The collective intelligence and the collective sensemaking of many human minds is our best shot at matching the complexity of the problems we are facing. Be them the Palestinian genocide, climate change, or the great simplification.
I write this today partially because I need to vent, partially because it helps me reflect, partially because I want to make it public and timestamped that I am not oblivious nor condoning of the crimes against humanity being comitted, and partially because I regret not having done so before.
In times of polarization silence is the easiest of answers, but we will be held accountable. Even if only by our own seleves and our own consciousness.