We have to be careful when we criticize aspects of a foreign culture. It is often a bit presumptuous to do so, and can open up our culture to valid criticisms as well. We are all far from perfect, and we know it.

Having said that, even to the casual observer, it is readily apparent that many women in the Middle East are not treated well, and this may well explain some of the problems in the region. In some Arab countries women can not vote, or can not drive, or can not own a business, or can not even work outside the home. The rule of the Taliban in Afghanistan was perhaps the most blatant example of the oppression that women are subjected to in parts of the Middle East. I'll never forget the image of a poor woman being stoned to death in a soccer stadium, for allegedly engaging in adultery.

All this stands in stark contrast to Muhammad's teaching, and to his example as a man. You may or may not know, but Muhammad's first wife, Khadijah was a very wealthy businesswoman who owned a number of successful businesses. It was she, in fact, who proposed marriage to the young Muhammad, and who encouraged him in his becoming a Prophet, and in his founding the new religion. Later, one of the Prophet's daughters went on to become one of the greatest theologians of Islam. And in his teachings, Muhammad defied the tribal customs of the day and advocated on behalf of treating women as partners, and protecting their rights.

In many respects, strange as it may seem, Muhammad could be thought of as one of the first feminists of the ancient world. When he passed away, however, the tribal customs of the day, including treating women like property, came to be enforced, and became integrated into religious teachings.

What is wrong with marginalizing women in the Middle East? Plenty. First of all, how can you thrive economically if half of your workforce is oppressed and marginalized? Also, keeping women down can make it more possible for ideological extremism to flourish. Who are women? They are the givers of life, and the caretakers of life. They know how to make things work, often using scarce resources. Their families depend on them. They work tirelessly to protect their children, and therefore, they don't have the time or the inclination to incite ideological hate, or to instigate violence. When your job is to care for your family, you are not predisposed or conditioned to promulgate hate. Caring for others does not leave much room for hate.

Women are the givers of life, and the caretakers of life, and as such are uniquely qualified to reconstitute their societies consistent with a Vision of Hope-a Vision of Peace, Prosperity, and Freedom. Empower women in the Middle East, in ways that they deem appropriate, and you will have changed the face of the Middle East.

Investing in female entrepreneurs, for example, makes a lot of sense and will accomplish a great deal of good: women will reclaim their sense of dignity, they will spark needed economic growth, and women and men will work together as equal partners. With economic power women will begin to have a say in political reform and will advocate for their rights: the right to vote, the right to run for office, the right to own and manage a business, the right to work for equal pay, the right to pray with men, the right to participate fully in religious worship, the right to choose a husband, the right to make decisions about her body, and the right to partner with her husband on an equal footing.

As women are empowered economically, and as women's rights are asserted ever more vigorously, then gradually the moderating influence of the feminine mystique will help to dull the sharp sword of extremist positions. As the natural givers of life, and as the natural caretakers of life, women do not have a lot of patience for war and bloodshed, and their rational disposition toward peace can and will become a part of the political landscape of the Middle East.

So Mamas, this may well be the time, before time runs out, to do what it takes, to really protect your babies, and to protect them in a way that will keep them safe for generations to come.

Let me ask you this: What is the one thing that can turn a pipe dream into reality?

The answer: Money.

Let's face it, Selling a Vision of Hope is only a pipe dream at this point. If you ask me, it's as close to impossible as you can get. Lots of people look at it and wonder if we're smoking something. But all that will change once a wealthy financier decides to fund a project on the ground which resonates with hope, and which says to the world that a Vision of Hope could be made real if people choose to make it so. He could fund an industrial zone, or a vocational school, or a hotel on the Gaza coast, etc. Any project of this sort could be used as part of a PR campaign to spread the message that a new era is about to dawn in the Middle East.

Now let's think. Who in the Middle East have lots of money, and who have the greatest vested interest in the future of the Middle East? The answer: The leaders of the Arab world, including: business leaders, political leaders, religious leaders, and royalty. Could these leaders somehow become inspired to Sell a Vision of Hope? In the past, unfortunately, a great deal of money has been used to finance ideological extremism. Perhaps in a bid to keep the peace, and to hold on to power, the decision was made to fund mosques and madrasas in which hate and intolerance were preached and taught. And this is still going on as we speak.

The problem, as perceived by many in the Arab elite, is that when you teach hate, the hate can easily come back to haunt you. In Saudi Arabia, for example, the Royal Family is threatened by Osama Bin Laden's hate, as much, if not more, than the West is. So is it just possible that the Royal Family in Saudi Arabia, and others like them in the Arab world, could be inspired to invest in Selling a Vision of Hope, as a way of leading their people with a vision that keeps the peace by inspiring a sense of hope? Is it just possible that a vision of Common Sense, Economic Investment, and Hope is a better way of bringing a semblance of order to the Middle East? And could such a vision be sold to the leaders who are in a position to decide, and to the people on the street who may be willing to listen? And could all this be done, as transformative as it is, while maintaining social order?

Like Bob Dylan used to say: "The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind. The answer is blowing in the wind."

A good friend asked me recently: Why do you call your project, "Selling" a Vision of Hope? He implied that the word "Selling" has to do with the mundane area of commerce, and may demean the vision in some way.

I thought about it for a while and I came up with two reasons why the word "Selling" is indispensable for our Vision of Hope.

In the first place, the word "Selling" implies that our vision is persuasive-that we are actually able to connect to the man on the street. When it comes to peace, a lot of good people have a lot of good ideas. But how many of them are actually able to sell their ideas on the ground? How many are able to move people so that they actually become inspired enough to take action on behalf of a vision? We want to "Sell" the vision, not just think about it, or philosophize about it, or write about it, or discuss it on a talk show. We want to "Sell" it to the man on the street, and inspire him with a sense of Hope, because in the final analysis, only he is really in the position to make the vision real, to give it substance on the ground.

In another sense, while it is true that the word "Selling" connotes a commercial transaction, in a very real sense, Selling a Vision of Hope is a business deal of sorts. What does the West want? The West wants Peace and a good measure of stability in the Middle East and the Muslim world. What do people in the Middle East want? Most people in the Middle East, except the ideological extremists, want a sense of Hope, a future that they can believe in. So bottom line, here's the deal: The West will Invest in the Middle East as a way of inspiring a sense of Hope, as a way of creating a new reality on the ground, which could one day lead to Peace. In exchange, people in the Middle East will begin to imagine the possibility of Hope, and will work hard toward that end.

Is it really that simple? No. But at the heart of Selling a Vision of Hope is an implied quid pro quo. We will Invest to inspire a sense of Hope, and you will remain open to the possibility of hope, because with hope, all things are possible, even the impossible dream of Peace. And the language to be used in our business negotiations will be the universal language of Common Sense, a bridge between the whole of mankind.

My brother and I were talking the other day and he was wondering how it could be that medical doctors in England could have been part of a terror cell. Doesn’t terrorism, at the very least, violate the Hippocratic Oath? You would think so, wouldn’t you?

My response was that many of us naturally assume that an educated person, particularly a physician, would be less vulnerable to ideological extremism. But that, unfortunately, doesn’t seem to be the case. Al-Qaeda’s number two man, Ayman al-Zawahiri, is a physician. Bin Laden himself is highly educated and comes from a prominent family. Many of the 9/11 hijackers were highly educated and well off financially. And during World War II, Dr. Mengele, who personally and ruthlessly tortured thousands of people during the Holocaust, was a medical doctor as well.

So obviously, education and financial well being do not, in and of themselves, protect a person from succumbing to ideological extremism. In fact, it could well be argued that along with a high level secular education comes the ability to rationalize, which in turn could better enable a person to rationalize the validity of his extremist ideas. Similarly, financial security could liberate a person to pursue his inclinations toward extremist thinking.

Promoting secular education and financial opportunities in the Middle East are not likely to deter the extremists in their pursuit of the ideological imperative. So why bother to promote education and financial opportunity? The hope is that if you empower the vast majority of moderate Muslims, with an education and with a job, and give them a place at the table, a stake in their future, they will then be willing to exert some pressure on the extremists. When you have nothing, and are finally able to grab hold of something good, you may think twice about letting someone else take it away from you. Especially if that person makes no sense to you.

In fact, the moderate majority may well be in a better position than we are to defeat the extremists. When we take the extremists on, we, in effect, augment their power and influence by anointing them as martyrs in the eyes of their own people. However, when the moderate majority takes on the extremists, they can make their will known quite powerfully, and they usually don’t take "no" for an answer. The will of the masses will not be deterred! Empower the man on the street and he will use that power to hold on to what is his.

When the man on the street looks at the table, and there's nothing there except extremism, then that's what he's probably going to buy into. But if he looks at the table, and sees a job waiting for him, he may think twice about jumping onto the extremist bandwagon. The West is well advised to put that option on the table.

Let me ask you this: What do you think is harder, waging war, or making peace? Here’s my take on it. As hard as it is to wage war, making peace is a lot harder. It is harder because in war, you fight for what you believe in, and we all feel pretty good about fighting for what we believe in.

For peace, however, you often have to give up some of what you believe in, for the sake of a greater truth, a truth you can believe in even more, like the welfare of your children, and the survival of generations to follow. And giving up what we believe in, even for a greater truth, is not easy. It’s like giving up a part of ourselves. It can feel a bit uncomfortable, to say the least. As if we are betraying who we are as a people. But such is often the path of common sense, and such is the path we are duty bound to follow, if we are to make sense of our lives.

For peace to happen we have to step out of the box that is us - to get over ourselves, and beyond our differences. Yes we may believe in this and that. And yes we may be prepared to kill and die for what we believe in. Fine. But folks, it’s time, before time runs out, to get over ourselves. It’s time to think outside the box that is us.

Think that maybe, just maybe, there is a truth that is even greater than what you happen to believe in. There is common sense, and common sense tells us that we were put here on this good earth to live - not to kill, and not to die, before our time.

Get over yourselves, and beyond what you happen to believe in, and grasp the ultimate truth that resides within you - the truth that you are a part of and that is a part of you. Get over yourselves and beyond your differences, and come together on what you know to be true, on what makes sense to you.