From the Beginning

I was born in Afula, Israel, and immigrated to Canada at the age of three. I've lived here for almost all of my life now; although, I can't help but feel that warm and tingly sensation every time I'm on a plane and I hear those calming words over the loud speaker saying, "Welcome to Israel." I am a Canadian, but also an Israeli at heart. I drive like a maniac, I eat hummus with everything and I absolutely despise cold weather. So, sometimes I wonder, what the heck am I doing here? Perhaps there is a greater purpose for me.

I recently completed my MA in International Relations and it turned out to be the most fulfilling of all my degrees. I was always interested in the Middle East, but over the course of my MA I undertook a new challenge. I decided that for my thesis/major research project, I would go where no man has gone before (figuratively speaking of course). I crossed disciplines, fusing together international relations theory with aspects of psychology and applying them to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in order to investigate the role of emotion in the region. Once I began this task I realized how incredibly difficult it was, which is probably why it hasn't really been done before. However, I decided to stick with it and in the end I completed a paper that I am proud of. I know that there is so much more that can be done on the issue of emotion within the conflict, so I am going to continue what I started.

I decided to create this blog in order to begin what will hopefully be a career in further research, writing and analysis of the Arab-Israeli conflict by discussing the serious, and sometimes comical, politics and news of the Middle East. I hope that you will join me for this wild and exciting ride!