[Wall Street Journal Europe] Gunnar Heinsohn - Violence and bloodshed are commonly seen in lands such as Gaza where at least 30% of the male population is in the 15-to-29 age bracket. In such "youth bulge" countries, young men tend to eliminate each other or get killed in aggressive wars until a balance is reached between their ambitions and the number of acceptable positions available in their society. The reason for Gaza's endless youth bulge is that a large majority of its population does not have to provide for its offspring. Most babies are fed, clothed, vaccinated and educated by UNRWA, which is benevolently funded by the U.S. (31%) and the EU (nearly 50%). Unrestrained by such necessities as having to earn a living, the young have plenty of time on their hands for digging smuggling tunnels and firing missiles at Israel. By generously supporting UNRWA's budget, the West unintentionally finances a war by proxy against the Jews of Israel. If we seriously want to avoid another generation of war in Gaza, we must have the courage to tell the Gazans that they will have to start looking after their children themselves, without UNRWA's help. This would force Palestinians to focus on building an economy instead of freeing them up to wage war. The writer heads the Raphael Lemkin Institute at the University of Bremen, Europe's first institute devoted to comparative genocide research.
2009-01-16 06:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive