Letter to Sun-Sentinel
November 21, 2000

Hey, didja hear the one about the Palestinian who walks into a lion's cage and starts pelting him with stones? What if this was not a joke but an actual story in the newspaper? Would we, the readers, not be incredulous as to why someone would do something so stupid and antagonizing? Now imagine the Palestinian had sent in his 8-year-old son to do the same thing. Would the reader not be appalled that the man had put his innocent child in harm's way? Would we vilify the lion in either case?
What if the Israelis, in an attempt to mollify their critics, laid down their guns and instead hurled back the stones thrown by the Palestinians?
Certainly we would read the next day, "Israeli soldiers throw back Palestinian stones, critically injure Palestinian child, 8"
Still not satisfied, let's imagine the soldiers combat the rock-throwers using only water-pistols. Rest assured, the newspapers would proclaim, "Palestinian child, 8, gets sniffles following severe drenching from Israeli water-pistols."
Still unhappy with the world's opinion of them, let's make believe the Israelis fight the Palestinian rocks using verbal insults. The headlines would probably say, "Sticks and stones slightly break Israeli bones, but words critically harm Palestinian child, 8."

- Simon Mirsky