U.S. drawn into bad agreement
Editor,
A riddle: When is a terrorist not a terrorist?
Answer: When he's (H)a mas.
I watched and listened to Israeli Prime Minster Ehud Olmert's carefully orchestrated visit and crafted speech while in Washington the fourth week in May. He is clever, he is bright, he has our administration wrapped around his little finger, and he has designs on territorial expansion for Israel and has our support.
He said this: "I am willing to negotiate peace but not until Hamas rejects violence and recognizes Israel. I will not give a terrorist regime a veto over progress or allow it to take hope hostage. I extend my hand in peace to Mahmoud Abbas."
Prime Minister Olmert knows that Palestine cannot comply with his ultimatum. Hamas is a political movement with powerful extremist elements which will, certainly in the short-term, continue suicide bombings and other destruction.
Hamas is not a terrorist organization. They are a political party, as Republicans and Democrats are political parties in America, but they have very strong radical element within their party, much like some rather shady, radical, dishonest, and above-the-law elements within our political parties.
Perhaps in America the radicals are not suicide bombers but they certainly don't represent the values of the party as a whole and they tend to destroy a system of government from within.
How does Mahmoud Abbas of Palestine reel in the radicals and save his country? Israel knows he can't do it in time and is counting on that fact plus the pledge that President George W. Bush made to him when he said this: We support Mr. Olmert's idea to redraw Israel's borders unilaterally if peace talks fail."
The borders will be redrawn to Israel's liking and the U.S. will, once again, be party to fomenting hatred, anger, fear, discouragement, poverty, and hopelessness in a region of the world which is the hot bed of education and training cells of international terrorism.
Well done! And so much for responsible world leadership and diplomacy.
Bob McClellan
Polson