Money just greases the axle. Idealism is the strength of the world's religions, the impetus for historical movements like the emergence of Communism and democracy, and the moral foundation of nations. Ideas move men. Neither facts nor pragmatic considerations have the same power. Man seeks a link to eternity through what he perceives as truths that transcend the limits of his own finiteness.
Peace is such an ideal.
The inspirational force generated by the idea of peace was demonstrated once again at the mass rally in memory of Yitzhak Rabin on the anniversary of his assassination. Cynically manipulated into a partisan show of support for Labor party policies that were repudiated at the polls, the event still succeeded in drawing tens of thousands of Israelis, moving them with songs of peace. There are odes to peace in almost every language. Security considerations are a brake that reality applies to a dream's momentum. They cannot move people to endure the hardships of standing up to a world hostile to Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem or to an armed PLO ready to open fire on soldiers and civilians whenever its demands are rejected by Israeli negotiators.