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Gamers unite! Your goal? Peace in the Middle East

MARK MACKINNON

Globe and Mail Update

Latest comment posted at 11:46 AM EDT 13/03/07

Armed with only his keyboard, MARK MacKINNON goes online to try and solve the age-old rift ...Read the full article

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  1. Stude Ham from Outremont, Canada writes: Solve the problem to bring Peace in the Middle East??? How about trying to trisect the angle with only ruler and compass?
  2. Rain SCM from Vancouver, Canada writes: At least there is a game that allows others to come up with solutions. I am just wondering if the game is open to truly creative solutions because that is what it is going to take to truly resolve the situation, however, if the aim is to just get a better idea as to the reality of the situation, then that is also a worthy goal. A few G
  3. Ernest T Bass from United States writes: Probably the only way to get peace in the ME is to borrow a quote from the old move Wargames: "lets play Global Thermonuclear War"... ;
  4. Jordan Max from Thornhill, writes: Unfortunately, Mark MacKinnon's "third try" illustrates a fundamentally flawed assumption built into the game by its naive developers. There is no such declaration in Arabic that either Hamas OR Fatah supports a two-state solution - as long as one of them is still a Jewish state. Israel, on the other hand, publicly supports a two-state solution (foolish as it might be). Until Abbas or Meshaal says to their own people in Arabic that they support the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish state, there is no hope for a peaceful resolution.
  5. Dan P from Calgary, Canada writes: I agree somewhat with Rain - the problem with a game approach to a difficult problem is that the game is designed by real people, and unless they chose the cynical option of making it unwinnable, they must program in an algorithm for success. In the real world, there is the possibility that (currently, at least) the 'game' truly is unwinnable (as Jordan suggests). Alternatively, less obvious solutions than simple compromise might be the key - something like a creative response to an unpredictable global event (war, natural disaster, disease outbreak elsewhere? Business or technology breakthrough? etc.), combined with a very strong and charismatic leader who is able to sway people to accept an alternative to the status quo zero-sum game. In other words, if the game designers truly had a winning solution, they would probably be better off implementing it in the real world than making it into a game. As an educational tool, though, it sounds great.
  6. Job of the book from Canada writes: In the Middle East there is only one constant. A strong and forceful hand pauses your enemies. The peace that exists between Egypt and Jordan came after a few wars proved that they could not beat Israel in a military campaign. Iran started playing ball in 1988 after a US cruiser shot down a civilian airliners (U.S claims it was an accident, others claim it was intentional. As far as the point goes it doesn't matter since Iran believed it to be intentional.) the belief that the U.S would continue such aggression lead to hostilities in the area being cooled. In Syria, when revolutionaries moved to the town of Hama and openly defied the government, the army came in and destroyed the town, killing unknown thousands since reports out of the area are sketchy. In Iraq, same song second verse, by flooding farm lands in the south and effectively starving out the people Saddam quelled rising discord that Western forces had sewn there after the first Gulf War. To stop suicide bombers that Israel knew were planning an attack in advance, Israel would phone up the family and alert them to that fact, and then tell them that if the bombing occured their financial holdings would be confiscated, any trade relations they have with Israel would end and a few other things that would make their lives truly harsh. It has worked each time thus far. The Middle East seems to understand violence and force above all else. You want people to start playing ball? You have to be prepared to do something absolutely dispicable. Something along the lines of "one more suicide bombing, and we destroy as much of your leadership as we can find. After that, we destroy your fresh water and electricity. After that, we remove your ability to cross borders for work or trade. After that... carpet bombing?" Do that, and people will start towing the line pretty quickly. Of course no one wants to condone such acts, and for good reason. But if it's just a game scenario, I assure you, that one will work.
  7. seeymore butts from Calgary, Canada writes: Is Jorday max smoking crack? The only two state solution endorsed by Israel sees a group of divided Palestinian enclaves, akin to Native American Reservations of the last century, where the borders, air, and water are controlled by the Israelis. One BIG prison camp. Meanwhile the Israeli's desecrate Christian and Muslim holy sites and hold on to stolen land in defiance of UN resolutions because of USA veto power over security council resolutions. With a nation so full of idiots is it any surprise they turn up drunk and naked tied to a tree wearing sex toys half way around the world? Nope. Must've hid the goat.
  8. Yvonne Wackernagel from Woodville, Canada writes: The only way to stop such a greedy person making hay out of the suffering of the Palestinians because of the Israel's occupation is to boycott this game. GAME? Read President Carter's latest book. Check Google for Jews Against Occupation or for UN Resolutions and find out the facts. This is an illegal occupation and the Palestinians are bombarded by cowards (the Israelis) using American hardware to kill their peope. The Palestinians are RESISTING ILLEGAL OCCUPATION. Please, THIS IS NOT A GAME!
  9. Andrew MacGillivray from Victoria, writes: The obvious solution is to put the recently recalled Israeli ambassador to El Salvador in charge of the peace negotiations.
  10. Arron D from Stanley Cupton, Canada writes: Yvonne, it's nice to see you are willing to work with ALL the affected parties to find a meaningful and long term solution. Msr. Dion thanks you for your support.

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