Soccer Dad

Ahead of the curve with meryl yourish

Meryl

I find it difficult to believe that he didn’t have some kind of Western help, what with the language in the column being completely, well, Westernized. Yes, yes, yes, newspapers have styles that you are expected to follow, but I would lay odds that Haniyeh didn’t write a quarter of what we see in the op-ed pages. I would love to see the drafts that went back and forth on this one.

James D. Besser

The Haniyeh editorial was “clever and well done — and ambiguous on some points,” said Edward Abington, a former State Department official who has lobbied on behalf of the PLO. Chief among those points: the question of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.

“You could read it either way,” he conceded.

The op-ed prompted rumors that the Hamas leadership had hired a public relations firm to make its pitch.

Abington said he doubted that, saying it would be illegal under current anti-terrorism laws for an American firm to advocate on behalf of the group, he said. But he agreed that the Hamas leader is getting some expert help.

“Haniyeh has a media unit comprised of American-educated Palestinians,” he said. “They’re the ones writing this kind of stuff.”

No it apparently wasn't the Carter center. And it wouldn't be legal to provide PR for terrorists for pay. But for free, it's OK. Still the observation about Western catch phrases was right on.

Meryl

Proportionate: Dead Jews.

Disproportionate: Any act of self-defense by Jews.

Letter to the editor of the Washington Post by WARREN H. MILBERG

Most nations urging such restraint also frequently characterize Israel's response as "disproportionate."

The implication is that the attacks by Hamas and Hezbollah are "proportionate."

Technorati tags: Hamas, Hezbollah, Meryl Yourish.