Letter to the Editor, 9/3/08

To the Editors, ‘ ‘ ‘ The article ‘Israel and America share a colonial past’ lacks factual… To the Editors, ‘ ‘ ‘ The article ‘Israel and America share a colonial past’ lacks factual evidence. There are two points I would like to refute. ‘ ‘ ‘ First, Israel is not a colonial state. Colonization implies two things: Monetary gain and a minority ruling a majority. Israel fits neither of these categories. When Jewish Pioneers began legally buying land from the Syrian landowners, the land was desolate desert and swampland. ‘ ‘ ‘ Israel also cannot be defined as a colonist state because Israelis are the majority in Israeli territory. In Palestinian territories, areas of high Arab concentration are ruled by Arab municipalities. The areas ruled by Hamas or Fatah have their own police force, social services and government. ‘ ‘ ‘ The second point is that Israel has attempted to make peace multiple times, to the point of even being willing to dismantle settlements. How about the Camp David Accords when Ehud Barak offered Yasser Arafat 97 percent of what he wanted from Israel? ‘ ‘ ‘ If it was about settlements, compromises could have been made. Israel has even returned land for the hope of peace, such as the Gaza Pullout when Israeli troops uprooted thousands of Israeli citizens. What Israel got in return is constant rocket fire on border towns like Sderot. Naomi Wischnia Class of 2009