I am writing this letter in response to the appalling letter by Lara Halaoui that was published in the Mar. 18 edition of The Chronicle. I can't understand why people have such a hard time understanding the simple cause and effect relationship between the bombings and Israel's decision to close off its borders. Halaoui has a hard time distinguishing between a defensive and an offensive measure; the only time Israel closes its borders is when there is a bombing. Any other nation would do the same to protect its citizens.
I just spent the past five months studying in Israel and I've never seen a country experience such as a bombing so tangibly. You could feel the sorrow in the air. The fact of the matter is that practically everyone uses the bus system; soldiers use it to travel, and everyone has a son or daughter that has served, or is currently serving, in the army. When an event like this happens, therefore, it hurts everyone to the core.
So no, I do not condemn Israel for protecting the people of Israel. I do condemn people who are proud of their loved ones blowing themselves up as part of their political ideology, in the process of killing as many innocent Israeli citizens as they can. It boils down to a simple point: The Palestinians need to gain control of who is representing them, stop the brutal killing of innocent people, and Israel's borders will remain open. I do not deny the hardships that the Palestinians suffer when the borders are closed, but the fact remains that these suicide bombers come from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. I pose the question to Ms. Halaoui: How many innocent deaths are worth the closing of the borders? I'll tell you what any Israeli will say: just one.
If she wants to discuss the true hardships that the Palestinians suffer, then she is addressing her complaints to the wrong people-she should be appealing to the terrorists.
Dana Miller
Trinity '97
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