Supporting Democracy and Defending Yourself

Richard Herman (letter, Aug. 13) justifies terrorism and writes that the “Palestinians are using the only weapon available to them, the suicide bomb.” Is blowing up a bus of innocents really the only way to resist injustice? Forty years ago, minorities in our country felt powerless and lacked equality under the law. But the Palestinians, not learning from history, decided not to use the one tool that immediately grants a movement legitimacy: nonviolence. Imagine where our country would be had Rosa Parks taken her seat on that Montgomery bus--and exploded herself.

Robbie Hurwitz

Irvine

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I was disgusted to read how Israel prides itself on being a democratic state while advocating expulsion of terrorists’ relatives (Aug. 13). Why should anyone be judged on the actions of another? What happened to “innocent until proven guilty”? This cannot be accepted and is not democratic.

Muneer Adhami

Corona

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A photo showing the Iraqi foreign minister and his Palestinian counterpart smiling and holding hands ran without comment or analysis (“Iraqi Official Rejects Return of Inspectors,” Aug. 13). Is it a matter of no consequence that Yasser Arafat aligned the Palestinians with Saddam Hussein in the Gulf War? Here’s something for Palestinians to ponder: Chemical, biological and nuclear explosions blow over the West Bank and Gaza, too.

Leopold Rosenfeld

Beverly Hills