Fighting in Middle East

* “A Thriving Israel Grows Weary of Paying the High Price of War” (Nov. 26), about the Israelis’ unwillingness to absorb the casualties in the current 8-week-old “war of attrition” with the Palestinians, is right on. In spite of the Israelis’ military superiority and the hugely disproportionate deaths they are inflicting on the Palestinians, the Palestinians can be seen to have the upper hand in that they are inflicting losses that the Israelis are unwilling to sustain.

The Palestinians are more willing to die readily for their cause because it is a struggle of national independence and a form of protest against the appalling, ghetto-like conditions they live under. The tragic thing is that these two peoples are destined to live next to and interspersed with each other. Moreover, they are essentially ethnic brothers and sisters.

PETER RAMMING

Los Angeles

* The most significant item of Jonathan Tepperman’s Nov. 24 commentary, “Loyalty to Israel Shouldn’t Require Blind Acceptance,” is in its first paragraph: “A Palestinian bomb killed two Jewish settlers and dismembered several children . . . .” Why is it necessary to rationalize and placate the entity that started and continues this mini-war? Why is it that when Israel finally retaliates appropriately the West goes “ballistic” in its reaction to the defensive instead of the offensive action? How long is Israel supposed to wait until it responds?

The analogy to Vietnam is flawed, as that war occurred in a land far from the U.S. whereas this war is occurring on sovereign Israeli soil. The “awkwardness” should only be felt by those who are supporting the wrong side.

URI HIRSCH

Los Angeles