In response to the several recent anti-Israel articles published in the Daily and various accusations slung around campus, I would like to encourage all readers to do some objective research before jumping on the bandwagon.
The impassioned speakers and persistent organizations on campus often rely on emotion rather than fact to make their case. Of course, as columnist Scott Laderman pointed out (“So-called Friends of Israel are anything but,” Oct. 22), the crass Israeli sense of humor does not help to make their case.
Unfortunately, Laderman has not realized this sense of humor has been developed as a mechanism to cope with living under constant threat of death. It does not reflect in any way the actions of the Israeli government and people.
If Israel is such a racist place, why is it the only place in the Middle East where Arabs have the right to vote, and why are Arabs filling many prominent seats in the Parliament?
Meanwhile, Yasser Arafat has already executed approximately 400 Palestinian political dissenters and Christian Arabs. He also forces families to give up their children to his cause.
Actions speak louder than words. It is time that we, as Americans, start paying attention to those actions. If Arafat, Palestinian authorities, Hamas and the various organizations that make their voices heard on campus were truly pro-Palestinian rather than strictly anti-Israel, we would already see peaceful coexistence.
I have never met an Israeli who does not long for the day when there will be an independent Palestine. The one problem is that all of the key Palestinian leaders and organizations have only two goals: To kill all Jews wherever they are found, and to dominate the entire region, including Lebanon, Syria and Jordan.
A peaceful future for their people has never made the list. Why has supporting these organizations become such an appealing cause for so many “liberal” college students? Before demonizing the Jewish, Arab and other students who support Israel’s right to exist, at least take a few minutes to find out why Israel is the land we love.
