One Year's Difference

Last year, Stuart Stuart Pilichowski of Mevaseret Zion had a letter in the IHT, sister publication of the NYTimes, on Nov. 11 reacting to a Tom Friedman NYT op-ed:=

As we in Israel commemorate the anniversary of the death of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, a man who fought all his life on behalf of peace and Israel, I can state that Israelis desperately yearn for a peaceful settlement to the conflict with the Palestinians. Furthermore, Israelis are prepared to make serious, painful concessions.

It hasn’t been only American initiatives advancing the peace process. The latest major examples were the dismantling of Israeli settlements in Gaza and the withdrawal from Lebanon. All Israel received in return was rocket fire on its civilian population.

Israel cannot do it alone. It takes two to tango.

On Nov. 17, he had one in the NYTimes:-

Roger Cohen’s column recounts an amalgam of Israeli-Palestinian missed opportunities and frustrations. No one is more frustrated than those of us in the Israeli public, who so often thought we were on the verge of a settlement with the Palestinians only to have our hopes dashed.

While the missteps and blunders are indeed plentiful enough to go around, Israelis ask themselves: “I’ll continue hoping for a resolution to the conflict even with a Palestinian Authority plagued by internal conflicts and I’ll even offer up more land, settlements and some peace of mind, but why do the Palestinians continue teaching anti-Semitism as part of their educational curriculum? Why do they deny a Holocaust that wiped out a third of my people about 70 years ago? Why can’t they admit my historical rights to biblical lands?”

This year, he has another letter reacting, yes, again to Tom Friedman's latest piece, but note the difference in tone:-

To the Editor:

Re “Saudi Time,” by Thomas L. Friedman (column, Sept. 8):

“Peace” is a state of being all of us aspire to; I especially do living in the Middle East and more than ever during this holiday season for both Jews and Muslims.

And while I’m all in favor of the current direct talks between the Palestinian Authority and Israel, I make no pretensions of being optimistic and joyful even if this road leads to a signing ceremony on the White House lawn.

A cultural shift must take place — by both peoples — in order for a real peace to be celebrated.

What a difference one year makes.


- - -