m, they identify with people who oppose oppressive regimes, and I tend to believe they focus their anger on the United States."

That's logical. The U.S. has consistently supported Israel rather than forcing the Israelis to settle fairly with the Palestinians, and most of the oppressive regimes in the Middle East are American allies, including for some years Saddam Hussein's.

This somehow got lost in the 9-11 Commission's final report, and the American people were stuck with President Bush's false and ridiculous claim that we were attacked because "they hate freedom."

That the Palestinian problem is the core issue in the Middle East isn't news to anyone familiar with the region. Osama bin Laden has explicitly cited the Palestinian problem as one reason for attacking the U.S.[ Neither Osama bin Laden nor his people attacked the U.S. It was the Bush regime, stupid! PHB ]

And don't fall for the ploy that the Israelis offered the Palestinians "everything they ever said they wanted, and they rejected it." At the meeting at Camp David during the Clinton administration, the Palestinians were asked to renounce the right of all Palestinian refugees to either return or receive compensation. The Israelis also refused to supply maps showing a definitive border for the Palestinian state. "Not to worry," the Israelis said, "We'll work that out later." Nobody in his right mind would accept such a deal.

Yasser Arafat, who had always been lousy at public relations, made the mistake of leaving without explaining the reason for rejecting the deal. That left Clinton and then-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak to characterize the agreement to suit their propaganda purposes.

Nor did Arafat go home and start the second intifada. That's another propaganda ploy. Arafat went home intending to continue the negotiations after consultation with his advisers. In the meantime, Ariel Sharon took a thousand of his security people and marched up to the third-holiest site in Islam, the Dome of the Rock, and proclaimed it Jewish property forever. That sparked a peaceful demonstration by the Palestinians. The Israelis shot dead a number of them, and that is what sparked the second intifada. It also propelled Sharon to the prime minister's office.

If the United States treated Israel as it does every other country, none of this would matter. But the U.S. loads the Israelis down with weapons, gives them billions of American tax dollars, supports their occupation of Arab lands and protects them from international actions by wielding its veto in the U.N.

You can believe this, or you can join the president in his fantasy. But know this: You can bomb, shoot and bulldoze the homes of Palestinians from now until doomsday, and until they receive justice, you will forever be a target of terrorism. The Israelis have been killing people, taking their land and putting them in prison for more than 60 years, and they still don't have peace. Nor will they ever until they deal fairly with their neighbors.

As long as you are stupid enough to allow a small country to drag us into its unending quarrels, then by all means quit whining about the price we will have to pay.

It was no accident that three Israelis were seen dancing on the roof of nearby building as the planes hit the twin towers. They had nothing to do with it, [?] but they recognized that it would make the American government easier to manipulate. You can always count on Israel to keep you well supplied with enemies.