Once again, Israel has found itself near the top (eighth out of 147 counties), in Gallup’s world happiness rankings—despite war and political polarization. Gil Troy and Natan Sharansky argue that these remarkable results stem from a strong feeling of collective national purpose. Such sentiments have been sorely diminished in the U.S. (ranked 24th), where

too many young Americans appear to have lost pride in their nation and its story, even though it’s one of world history’s greatest epics—a story of pioneers and immigrants coming together to launch a civilizational enterprise fueled by life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These young Americans have been subject to a campaign of demoralization, whether by woke schoolteachers or the board of the American Historical Association, who have . . . emphasized America’s “systemic” sins rather than the good that America has been responsible for.

In contrast, Israelis feel they are part of Israel’s story and the Jewish story, that of a proud people trying to do better in the world while also bettering it. After repeatedly overcoming oppression, they’ve returned to their homeland to live freely—and happily. . . . With so much to live for, Israelis know what they are willing to die for, too. On the eve of battle, many soldiers write goodbye letters to be read in case they die.

The West needs good tribalism: a healthy commitment to community, connectedness, and history anchors us. It motivates us to defend ourselves when necessary, while inspiring us always to build a better world.

Addressing a recent meeting of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s Central Committee, Mahmoud Abbas criticized Hamas more sharply than he has previously (at least in public), calling them “sons of dogs.” The eighty-nine-year-old Palestinian Authority president urged the terrorist group to “stop the war of extermination in Gaza” and “hand over the American hostages.” The editors of the New York Sun comment:

Mr. Abbas has long been at odds with Hamas, which violently ousted his Fatah party from Gaza in 2007. The tone of today’s outburst, though, is new. Comparing rivals to canines, which Arabs consider dirty, is startling. Its motivation, though, was unrelated to the plight of the 59 remaining hostages, including 23 living ones. Instead, it was an attempt to use an opportune moment for reviving Abbas’s receding clout.

[W]hile Hamas’s popularity among Palestinians soared after its orgy of killing on October 7, 2023, it is now sinking. The terrorists are hoarding Gaza aid caches that Israel declines to replenish. As the war drags on, anti-Hamas protests rage across the Strip. Polls show that Hamas’s previously elevated support among West Bank Arabs is also down. Striking the iron while it’s hot, Abbas apparently longs to retake center stage. Can he?

Diminishing support for Hamas is yet to match the contempt Arabs feel toward Abbas himself. Hamas considers him irrelevant for what it calls “the resistance.”

[Meanwhile], Abbas is yet to condemn Hamas’s October 7 massacre. His recent announcement of ending alms for terror is a ruse.

Abbas, it’s worth noting, hasn’t saved all his epithets for Hamas. He also twice said of the Americans, “may their fathers be cursed.” Of course, after a long career of anti-Semitic incitement, Abbas can’t be expected to have a moral awakening. Nor is there much incentive for him to fake one. But, like the protests in Gaza, Abbas’s recent diatribe is a sign that Hamas is perceived as weak and that its stock is sinking.