PRIME MINISTER BARAK

By Amie Baumwell
University School

Attending my first college lecture, “The Blueprint for Global Relations,” which was centered on political, cultural, and religious identity, was a new and enlightening experience. Dr. Fred Lippman, the Chancellor of the Health Professions Division of Nova Southeastern University, introduced Prime Minister Ehud Barak as “a great man of the world.”  His appraisal of the Israeli diplomat’s “devotion to the peace process,” allowed me to appreciate the incredible opportunity that had been afforded to me. Barak, who spent 36 years in the Israeli Defense Forces, has a “unique perspective for assessing the key challenges,” said Lippman.

Several distinct members of the board of trustees, along with community leaders such as Town of Davie Mayor Tom Truex, were among my peers for the night. Excitement and enthusiasm are two emotions that struck me during the lecture. The crowd actually took an interest in what Prime Minister Barak was saying, which is something you don’t often observe at a high school assembly or lecture.

Prime Minister Barak’s mood was lighthearted, but he still kept the focus on a very serious topic. The engaging, intelligent speaker discussed his vision for a peaceful world, interspersing his serious speech with jokes and asides that had the crowd laughing. The powerful speaker’s hope for the future was evident.

Any high school student can watch the news, or listen to their teachers’ opinions of the conflict in the Middle East. But experiencing a speech by a Prime Minister and hearing a first-hand account of battles and secret-service operations in Israel, sheds light on the reality of events on the news and eclipses distortions of the truth that exist in the media. Experiencing this college lecture allowed me to better understand the “epic struggle,” as Barak called it, that is occurring in the Middle East between two perennial adversaries, democracy and terror.