Mugged by Reality

JERUSALEM (AFP) - Most Israeli Jews have a negative perception of the Middle East with many asking themselves, "What the hell are we doing here?" according to a survey released on Tuesday.

Asked to give the first words that came to mind when thinking about the Middle East, 61 percent of respondents were negative, 20 percent neutral and 19 percent positive, Tel Aviv University’s Centre for Peace Research said.

"These came along with expressions of a general, colourful nature such as: ’a nutcase region’, ’a shitty place’, ’a morass,’ ’I can’t take any more of it,’ ’God help us,’ and ’What the hell are we doing here?’" the centre said.