would be an effective model for global

e, I travelled from the Galilee down to Jerusalem, stopping lace bridesmaids dresses to hike, tour and convene with locals along the way.The Birthright program is derided by some as a Zionist-indoctrination scheme, though I believe the air of the tour depends largely on the organization through which you experience the program.Canadian Israel Experience, through which I travelled to Israel, is reputed to be among the least assertive in this regard, and indeed, my trip leaders actually encouraged us to observe and discuss the less venerable qualities of Israeli culture and political action.That said, the intention of the trip is certainly not to turn participants off of Israel.People of my generation living in Israel grew up with midnight door-knocks and military raids or the threat of suicide bombings, depending on where they lived.Before the erection of the West Bank barrier, which started during the height of the Second Intifada, Israeli society was subject to the constant threat of suicide bombs on buses, in malls, supermarkets or on the streets.At its peak in 2002, when Israelis my age would have been in their early teens, 452 people were killed in suicide attacks, according to the Israel Security Agency.forced to yield to spontaneous midnight visits from Israel Defense Force soldiers at their front doors.This generation, now grown, is struggling both with the very grave concerns of national land claims, military service (or resistance thereof) and traumatic childhood memories, along with figuring out how they can move out of their parents home in Israel s exorbitantly expensive housing market and how to decide what to study in university (I speak mostly of the Israeli experience, obviously).Indeed, it s a funny thing to have a conversation with a uniformed Artillery Corps soldier about her weekend plans, and to see a picture on her Samsung smartphone of the emblazoned dress she plans to wear to her cousin s wedding.than when I sat down with a 22-year-old Air Force Intelligence officer who was travelling with our group, who casually told me about coming out to the other soldiers in his unit.told me about the relative acceptance elegant bridesmaid dresses he had experienced as a gay man from his country, his religion and his army.When I told my unit, that night I went to the showers by myself because I didn t want the guys to feel uncomfortable, he said.Later, they asked where I was and I told them I went to shower by myself.They said, Why would you do that?To them, it wasn t a big deal.In the next breath, G described his family s long military history, and later, the issue he takes with Haredi exemption from mandatory military service in Israel.Then we talked about World Pride in Toronto.Israel is a peculiar place, for you can forget about the last 66 years (and beyond) of turbulence and bordering instability when you see a couple making out off of Ben Yehuda Street in Jerusalem and spend a couple hours eating ice cream at Betzet Beach south of Rosh HaNikra.But when you climb Mount Bental in the Golan Heights and hear bombs going off in Syria, or stare down a soldier s M16 in a rest-stop bathroom, or pass by a Jerusalem bus marked with a banner that reads Bring Back Our Boys (in reference to the three abducted Israeli teens), you become acutely aware of just where you are, and how quickly things can change.The difference can indeed be equivalent to just one 11-hour plane ride.From the searing pain of those dark days after September 11, 2001, to the moonless Pakistani night when she watched Americans catch up with Osama bin Laden from the White House Situation Room, Hillary Rodham Clinton s speech at the Sheraton Centre in Toronto Monday had the flavour of both a retirement retrospective and a presidential campaign.The former First Lady, Senator from New York and U.Secretary of State, and likely 2016 Democrat presidential contender, Ms.Clinton spoke of America as a country that is at its best when it engages with the world with purpose and principle.She described the rights of women and girls as the great unfinished business of our time modern bridesmaid dresses at the top of America s diplomatic to do list.She took pride in the ceasefire in Gaza, the sanctions on Iran, and standing up to China s over-reaches at sea and in the global economy.She spoke especially of the rescue of Chen Guangcheng, the Chinese civil rights activist who in 2012 fled house arrest for the U.Embassy in Beijing, setting Ms.Clinton on a diplomatic high-wire act.He was injured, he was in danger, he asked for our help, she said.He had come to the one place he thought stood for freedom.He now lives with his family in New York City.She would not be baited on the Keystone XL pipeline question, but she bluntly criticized Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for worsening the crisis now gripping his country, by refusing American troops, coveting only materiel and weapons, and alienating Sunnis from his government.We need more partners and fewer adversaries, and we can never afford to take a trusted friend for grantedAnd she recalled the tense and hilarious moment when President Barack Obama pulled her aside at a nuclear summit in Prague to tell her she had something stuck in her teeth.That is a true friend, she said, and spoke frankly of her fondness for her former bitter rival, and their first meeting after he won.It was like an awkward first date, like teenagers who know each other, but warily, she said.She dodged specific questions on the Keystone XL pipeline decision, but praised Canada as an ally, with whom America shares a bond that would be an effective model for global relationships.We need more partners and fewer adversaries, and we can never afford to take a trusted friend for granted, Ms.RelatedChris Christie says ‘you bet’ he could beat Hillary Clinton after poking fun at bridge scandal on Tonight ShowHillary Clinton hasn’t made a mistake since 2002, according to new book written by Hillary 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