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Talking to terrorists doesn’t help

G. Stavi
Sunday October 14, 2001

The Daily Planet received this letter addressed to Councilmember Dona Spring regarding a statement on terrorism. 

I was born in (what was then called) Palestine in 1941, grew up with many Arab friends, studied and lived in the United States since 1966. I do understand why so many Americans are so misinformed about the forces that shape and motivate people in the Middle East to do terrible things to each other and the steps that one can take to avoid the disasters. The main problem is that our assumptions of “cause and effect” or “action and reaction” is invalid, because of our cultural and other differences in our basic thinking. We can't assume how terrorists will react even to our most primitive attempts to communicate with them. They read red in our blue. 

They expect us to think and act like them. They want to teach not to learn. Look at Sadam Hussein; he could have had it so much better just for trying to get along. We do need to minimize confrontation on any level and use a very strong hand when we find ourselves against the wall. America is against the wall. "Soft power" may be interpreted as a weakness - and will invite more killing. Any signal that you may give to the al Qaeda that there is a “force” in this country, which is “on their side,” will endanger our freedom a lot more than one can imagine. They may interpret dissent as an approval of their acts. Please, re think your position on this painful subject. 

 

G. Stavi 

Berkeley 

 

Ed note: Spring maintains that she was misquoted in the Daily Cal and did not say the United States was a terrorist nation.