farmdoc's blog post number 491

I’m a pessimist. Yep. A cup-half-empty man. It’s just the way I’m built. I reckon. But in relation to the conflict between the Islamic nations and Israel, it’d be difficult to be anything else but a pessimist. It all seems so very entrenched and intractable. But just when it seems hopeless, a ray of hope shines. Last Wednesday Sweetheart Vivienne sent me this link. As the article says: ‘A joint Israeli-Jordanian-Palestinian biofuel project will alleviate thousands of tons of organic agricultural waste and produce one million barrels of biofuel’. The project’s brokered by three peace foundations – the Peres Center for Peace, the Wittenberg Center for Global Ethics and the Amman Center for Peace and Development. It’ll help the environment, create jobs, and reduce oil imports. But much more importantly, it’s a joint project that’ll only work if all the parties co-operate. And if – no, when – it works, its impact will be felt far and wide by individual farmers, agricultural cooperatives, regional organizations, and ultimately the Israeli and Jordanian and Palestinian populations. As the article’s ending says: ‘So there will be a new source of energy: One that comprises layers of peace, trust, understanding, environmental and financial gain. Imagine how your car could run on that’. It reminds me of two sayings: ‘It’s always darkest before the dawn’ and ‘From little things big things grow’. Amen.