As the Middle East descends further into chaos, it comes as no surprise that its residents are unhappy. Indeed, a week before Hamas shot its way into control of Gaza, The Washington Times reported that 92 percent of Palestinians are depressed about the violence that wracks their communities, according to a Ramallah-based polling firm. But talk about your self-inflicted malady. Reminds me of that old joke about the patient who complains, "It hurts when I do this — what do you recommend, doc?" Says the doctor, "Stop doing that."

Seems to me that a similar prescription applies here. If you're a Palestinian who wants to overcome violence-induced depression, stop —

1. Ignoring the Golden Rule. If it depresses you to be surrounded by violence and terrorism, then don't support or rationalize such activity against others. By "others," I mean everyone — Jews, Christians, Hindus, Israelis, Americans, Sunnis if you're Shiite, Shiites if you're Sunni.

2. Blaming others. It's not Israel's fault that you don't have an economy or your healthcare is miserable. It's not the United States' fault that you don't have a state. It's not the United Nations' fault that you have no internal political stability. (Well, actually, it is partly the U.N.'s fault. Their representatives treat you like children and you let them.) The problems that you face are largely of your own making. The Israelis have to defend themselves against your predations (and those of your terrorist sponsors), and they still managed to produce one of the fastest-growing economies in the West in 2006. Your society's a basketcase because you foster hatred, you allow the crudest tribalism to prevail, and you teach your children to make the same mistakes you've made. In short, you refuse to do what it takes to join the civilized world. A well-known American comedian opened his act by complaining, "I get no respect." At least he got laughs. You get no respect because you act irresponsibly. Remember, nobody likes whiners.

3. Electing terrorists. You voted for Hamas — a group of gangsters whose charter calls for the obliteration of your neighbor. If you cast your vote for violence, you can hardly complain when you get sprayed in the bloody backwash.

4. Worshiping thugs. Yasser Arafat was a terrorist and a thief. In the latter role, he embezzled hundreds of millions of dollars from you and your neighbors. He left a legacy of violence, political chaos and economic disorder. Still, how many of you have pictures of Yasser Arafat prominently displayed in your homes? During the Persian Gulf War, you supported Saddam Hussein. Why — because he defied the West and financed the families of suicide murderers? Some hero — he was pulled out of a hole, jailed and then hung for his crimes against humanity. Osama bin Laden hides in a cave (if he's alive), preaches a medieval fascism, yet reportedly enjoys a tremendous popularity in Gaza and the Palestinian settlements in the West Bank. How far do you think you'll get on the world stage with role models like these?

5. Antagonizing your neighbors. During the '70s, Israel promoted a plan ceding the West Bank back to Jordan. Ultimately, even Hussein, the king of Jordan, objected. He remembered how the Palestinian Liberation Organization tried to overthrow him in 1970, and he saw how destructive you could be (to yourselves and others) during the first Intifada. He realized that you don't play well with others, and he didn't want the tsuris. When Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza in 2005, you showed your appreciation by using it as a launching pad to fire hundreds of rockets back into Israel. Would you want to be your neighbor?

6. Celebrating death. You may act grief-stricken when a friend or family member passes on to the next world. But you dance in the streets when a Palestinian terrorist blows up a bus full of Israelis or detonates a belt full of explosives, spattering the blood of families on the walls and floor of the hotel in which they were celebrating a Passover seder, or thousands of people get incinerated in New York City. During the height of the second Intifada, when Palestinian terrorists were murdering Israelis every week, a Palestinian polling firm reported that two-thirds of Palestinians supported the slaughter. Such behavior endears you only to other barbarians who, witnessing your reaction, engage in ever-increasing violence.

7. Proving Abba Eban right. Israel's former foreign minister famously quipped that "Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity." When Israel unilaterally withdrew its citizens from Gaza, as mentioned above, it left behind a workable infrastructure — which you promptly destroyed. Why — because it was built by Jews? A greenhouse or a factory is less of a greenhouse or a factory because Jews built it? Would you approach life-saving drugs the same way?

8. Ignoring the peaceful precepts of your religion. I'm no expert on Islam, but surely it can't be entirely about violence, revenge and bloodshed. There must be something in there about the benefits of treating your fellow man with the dignity with which our Creator endowed us all. If not, seek guidance in this area from your Jewish and Christian neighbors.

Because you certainly can try to escape the brutality of your environment, but frankly, if you don't take the above prescription to heart, no one's going to want you to join theirs.

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Samuel R. Lewis writes on current events and is a columnist for UPI's ReligionAndSpirituality.com. His email is {email srlewis65@yahoo.com}srlewis65@yahoo.com{/email}. © copyright 2007 by Samuel R. Lewis.