‘Dangerous Deception’

We are shocked and dismayed by the cartoon which appeared on the Op-Ed Page on July 24, with the caption “A Palestinian a day keeps the PLO away.”

This is not the first time that Conrad has produced biased and insensitive artwork. He distorts and trivializes the nature of the conflict in the West Bank and Gaza by focusing on an end result (soldier shooting a person) rather than on its roots (Arab rejection of Israel) or even on its immediate cause (violent attacks on military personnel). It is revealing that Conrad did not choose to picture an Israeli soldier with his face smashed in by a brick, or an Israeli fire-bombing victim, scarred for life by severe burns.

The calendar and the caption, together with the soldier’s aggressive stance, imply a sense of purposefulness--as if Israel were actually planning to lodge itself in this tragic dilemma. Conrad chooses to ignore the background of current events--i.e. Israel’s 40-year struggle against Arab hostility, terrorism and outright invasion--instead, grotesquely portraying those events as the calculated shooting of civilians to achieve political ends.

We urge you to present all sides of the issue and not trivialize the tragic events in the Middle East.

CATHY R. MENDELSON

President, Los Angeles Chapter

American Jewish Committee