Awkward Utopia

Two UESers gave speeches today at the Gators for Israel Rally. First was Zach Moller, the VP of North Florida for the Florida College Democrats, speaking on behalf of the Democratic Party. He mentioned President Carter and President Clinton’s attempts to broker peace in the Middle East, then focused on Seeds of Peace. He was followed by a representative of Congressman Cliff Stearns, John Konkus, who is District Director for the Congressman. He ably represented the conservative perspective on the crises vexing peace in the Middle East. Then I spoke, and you know who I am. The others spoke for a decent amount of time, so I decided to cut my speech in half. Keep in mind I wrote it write before showing up because of short notice to come.

Here it is:

Good evening! My name is Christian Waugh and I am President of the Law School Republicans. Thank you for coming, and also, thank you to Erika and especially Emily for organizing this event. If we could give them a round of applause. [Applause.]

I’d like to re-affirm all of Zach and John’s comments, and especially the optimism that Zach spoke of for peace in the Middle East, a sentiment shared by both parties here in the USA.

First, a little about the Law School Republicans. We are a group of about 60 law students whose primary concern is supporting liberty. As part of that mission, we support Israel. Last year, for instance, we obtained over 100 signatures for this petition in The Alligator. [Applause as I show a copy of the petition.] Every year, members of our organization attend the AIPAC Policy Conference. AIPAC is a very important organization that supports Prime Minister Olmert and his government as they make difficult decisions that will hopefully lead to peace.

Many people are not aware of the sacrifices that Americans made so that Israel might secure the blessings of liberty for its people as well. About 3% of the Defense Force in the start of the War of Independence was American — totaling about 1,000 persons. One of the early immigrants to the country, operating under the Right of Return, was Simon Agranat, who grew up in Chicago and went to law school in Chicago. He would later rise to become Chief Justice of Israel’s Supreme Court.

Agranat’s greatest hero was another son of Illinois: Abraham Lincoln, who, as it turns out, was a Republican. Lincoln and Israel’s leaders have fought some of the same struggles. They each have had to preserve their country against foes who might be friends or family. They each had to strengthen a democracy riven by conflict and despair.

It is these common experiences, and our common identity– that we are freed-loving democracies– that brings our countries close together. Indeed, Israel is an American value. [Applause.]

Perhaps even more relevant, Lincoln and Israeli leaders have been confronted with the task of unifying people of diverse ideologies and ethnicities to arrive at a more perfect union. The task for Israel, of course, is even harder. They must unify people of diverse ideologies and ethnicities to arrive at two more perfect unions.

In June of 2002, President Bush became the first American President to call for a two-state solution in the Middle East. Though this solution is not without cost, the cost from failure would be far greater. It is therefore incumbent upon us to remember General Douglas MacArthur’s words:

It is my earnest hope, and indeed the hope of all mankind, that from this solemn occasion a better world shall emerge out of the blood and carnage of the past — a world dedicated to the dignity of man and the fulfillment of his most cherished wish for freedom, tolerance and justice.

It is up to us to make sure that 100 years from now, people look back and say that we did our best to make peace, so that all the children of mankind may enjoy the blessings of liberty. Thank you.

As you might imagine, I was delicately told when invited that I might want to tone down the rhetoric for the speech, as it was meant to bring people together, not win a debate. State Representative Larry Cretul followed me and gave a good speech. It was nice of him to come, making for 3 out of 4 speakers identifying as Republicans! I think there were about 80 people who came to the rally.