Letters to the Editor, October 5, 2003

Thought readers might be interested in this incredible (grotesque) pictorial of the results of Israeli aggression against Arabs. Here is the link:

Sen. George Allen, a Republican from Virginia, says he has changed his views on Daniel Pipes and his appointment to the U.S. Institute of Peace "in light of statements and writings of Mr. Pipes that have recently come to my attention." Allen says certain writings and comments made by Pipes have caused him "great concern" because they are "insensitive and wrongful characterizations of both Arabs and Muslims around the world."

The infiltration of CIA. agents under the guise as news media is beginning to reach epidemic proportions. Major American news agencies have colluded with the new Department of Homeland Security. The goal in the Department of Homeland Security makes it easier for more dominant information gathering to be greatly augmented. Recruitment is on the upswing sources have revealed.

How about refering to this monster that Israel is constructing in the West Bank as the "Python". It snakes through the WB, slowly surrounding the people there, and once completed will slowly squeeze the life from them.

The problem is not just the wall, it's the Israeli occupation of Palestine and denial of Palestinian rights

As an American, I think most Americans would support a wall built along the green line and removal of settlers outside it. A lot of what I read or hear in the news about the Palestinian cause sounds like they will not stop terrorist attacks and are simply dedicated to the destruction of Israel. That sounds unreasonable to me and so I am not sympathetic to the intifada. But the wall being built in Palestinian territory does not seem like justice.

I think the Palestinian media would be more convincing and have more support in America if they focused on the issue of the wall and published more maps showing the green line and where the wall is being built and why it’s illegal. Mostly I read about terrorist Palestinians killing civilian Israelis without regard to them as individuals which make me very upset. If I saw more news articles about how the Israeli settlers are occupying lands I would be less upset with the Palestinian movement and more sympathetic to their cause. Even on your site it seems difficult to find details about exactly why the Palestinian movement is justified in terrorism (fighting against the occupation is resistance, not terrorism, according to the UN resolutions - Editor).

Why don’t you publish more articles and features on the occupation and use facts such as a map showing the land in contention and highlight that area and show the number of Israelis living in that area 10 years ago and the number living their now. Then if you show some quotes from treaty’s or some other agreement to show conclusively Israel is allowing it’s citizens to violate that agreement it would be very convincing.

I still wouldn’t support terrorism, but hey the cost of the wall is only a couple billion which is small compared to the 87 billion we will spend on Iraq. So for a couple billion dollars you might convince America to build the wall on the green line and finally be done with this terrible conflict.

Of course the down side to the wall is if Palestinians attack after a wall is built it looks even more like an aggressive unreasonable attack. So once it gets built I’m going to be even less sympathetic towards the Palestinians if they still attack Israeli citizens.

Finally if the wall is unfair and the occupation is illegal why don’t you attack people building the wall in unfair locations. If the people building the wall in Palestinian territory get killed repeatedly and the Palestinian terrorist groups claim responsibility and say they won’t kill people building the wall on the green line I would probably think that is more reasonable.

Steve, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is not caused by the wall. It is cause by the Israeli aggression, represented by the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories since 1967 as well as the Israeli denial of the Palestinian rights for independence, compensation and repatriation. The wall is being built to maintain the Israeli occupation and to annex more Palestinian lands.

For maps and details about the conflict, go to the Documents Section. Read my interactive editorials as well as the daily opinion articles about the conflict. In particular, read for the so many Jewish authors, Americans and Israelis, like Uri Avnery. He is Jewish and Israeli but he has no sympathy to the Israeli occupation or the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people.

Palestinians are not terrorists as you described. The resist the illegal Israeli occupation of their country. Resistance is a right for people under occupation, review that in the Documents section.

What do you do, as an American if, God forbid, invaders come to America, slice a territory then build a Wall around it, then they send their armed forces to control American population centers? Do you accept the occupation, the control, or resist them? Palestinians are doing what all invaded nations did throughout history. They are resisting the Israeli aggression and occupation.

Palestinians say that resistance will not stop when the Wall is completed. It will continue as long as there is occupation.

You didn't say anything about the Israeli daily killing and injuring of Palestinian civilians. Isn't that terrorism?

Anyone who truly care about peace and justice should advise the Israelis to end the occupation, dismantle settlements, and give Palestinians their national rights. Describing Palestinians as terrorists while keeping quiet about the occupation and the daily Israeli atrocities does not help Israelis, Palestinians, or peace in the world.

Finally, I invite you to look at the pictures included in the above link sent by L Green in order to judge by yourself what the Israelis are doing to the Palestinian people.

The unfortunate comments of Rush Limbaugh (that Donovan McNabb was overrated because the media wanted to see a black quarterback succeed) illustrate a broader trend concerning how we talk about race in America.

If AM talk radio is any indication, the parameters of what is acceptable criticism has grown by leaps and bounds. Now, at almost any time of the day you can turn the dial and listen in on what would have been considered "racist" speech just a few years ago. In this context, Limbaugh's comments were really quite mild.

In a normal 3 hour program, almost every talk show host will offer his strident opinions about Muslims, the French or, of course, homosexuals. Judging by the phone calls, this seems to resonate with listeners, who are more than eager to share their own dubious theories and prejudices about the negative affects of diversity in America. This is why AM talk radio is euphemistically referred to as hate radio, it is a steady stream of undiluted rage against enemies real and imagined.

This is why Limbaugh felt so comfortable in saying what he did about McNabb (that the media promoted McNabb due to his color rather then his ability.) In his venue, such racist judgments are just more grist for the mill.

We should probably be more concerned about such a popular medium as AM radio propagating attitudes that are ultimately destructive to society. In Germany there are limits to language that can be considered "hate speech". Perhaps, their recent history could teach us something we need to know.

In America we are all guaranteed freedom of speech. That should not imply that speech has no consequences, or that people should not be held accountable for what they say.

None of us is completely exempt from the negative affects of xenophobia, homophobia or racism. These are rivers that flow deeply in every society. They represent the basic instinct in everyone to scapegoat others for the problems and difficulties in their own lives. We should be wary of institutions like AM radio that not only feed these destructive impulses but, that also elevate the ambassadors of division and malice to a level of respectability and admiration.

Limbaugh is just such an ambassador. He was brought down by the subtle bigotry that has characterized his career. His firing sends a clear message to anyone who takes his place that we are accountable for what we say.

Mike Whitney,

Snohomish, WA, USA