New violence in Israel troubles a father's sore heart in N.J. | NJ.com

My most recent column appeared in the Star-Ledger on Friday, April 15, 2011, New violence in Israel troubles a father's sore heart in N.J.

Originally intended as a political commentary on the Hamas missile attack at an Israeli school bus and the retraction of the Goldstone Report, the column became a personal recollection of my daughter Alisa's murder in April 1995 and the lessons learned since.

Sadly, innocent civilians are again being put in the crosshairs by Hamas and its allies in Gaza. (Thank you, Susie.) And Israel's reaction will be deemed wrong.

Letter to Editor of Star-Ledger

Readers of Terror Victims Voice read my post about an op-ed written by Pete McDonough Jr. regarding the effect of Israeli security checkpoints. I sent a letter to the editor of the Star-Ledger that was printed today. Here's the letter as published.

"Humiliation vs. security

Pete McDonough Jr. writes in “On West Bank, humiliation is constant” (Oct 8): “Ask any Palestinian on the streets of Ramallah to describe his or her life, especially those who travel around the occupied territory, and ‘humiliation’ is among the first words uttered.”

Now, I don’t have any objection to my money going to educate others around the world, and the Palestinians can, in my opinion, use a lot of education when it comes to public relations. However, when that teacher, in this case McDonough, enters the political fray of the Middle East, he’s out of his league.

Yes, there are checkpoints in the West Bank, but McDonough fails to ask why they are there. In case he doesn’t know, they are there to reduce the threat of suicide bombings and other serious attacks in Israel. And by all indications, the checkpoints are working.

McDonough admits that the “conflict is more than anyone could hope to understand in a short visit, even one involving meeting with cabinet ministers and other ranking government officials.”
New Jersey politics may be rough and tumble, as McDonough knows, but it doesn’t result in suicide bombings, ambushes, knife attacks and military retaliation. Yes, the situation is “complicated,” and until he learns the difference between sitting shiva for a murdered terror victim (as I did for my daughter) and humiliation suffered at a checkpoint, I think McDonough would do us a service if he kept his comments to himself. "

Humiliation versus murder, which do you choose?

Pete McDonough, Jr., a former press agent for NJ Governor Christine Whitman, has just returned from the Middle East as an American paid PR consultant to the Palestinian Authority.

His taxpayer paid trip resulted in a column appearing in the Star-Ledger, “For Palestinians, daily humiliation.”

“Ask any Palestinian on the streets of Ramallah to describe his or her life, especially those who travel around the occupied territory, and “humiliation” is among the first words uttered.”

Now, I don’t have any objection to my money going to educate others around the world, and the Palestinians can, in my opinion, use a lot of education when it comes to PR. However, when that teacher, in this case McDonough, enters the political fray, I think he’s crossed the line.

“Travel in the region for Palestinians always involves being stopped at checkpoints, ushered out of their cars and through narrow inspection points before being allowed to go from one part of their country to another.”[“Country?” The P.A. was offered one in 2000 but turned it down.-Ed.]

“As an American with in a consular vehicle, the checkpoints are no bother. If I were Palestinian, I could look forward to possibly being detained and searched for no reason other than my nationality and route of travel.” [The checkpoints exist to stop murderers from entering Israel. Their success is well documented.-Ed.]

“The stories from Palestinians I worked with bear an unsettling resemblance to the tales of racial profiling in states throughout our own country. The profiling in Palestine, though every bit as dehumanizing is omnipresent.” [Young boys and women are recruited as suicide bombers. –Ed.]

“Had I spent the last week working with Israeli officials, I have no doubt that they would have just as profoundly opened my eyes to the daily threats that their own people suffer through. I have no reason to expect that those threats are any less pervasive or pernicious than the humiliation experienced by Palestinians. The Arab-Israeli conflict is more than anyone could hope to understand in a short visit, even one involving meeting with cabinet ministers and other ranking government officials.” [So, he didn’t ask any questions about why the checkpoints exist? –Ed.]

“The situation is even more complicated by the political pressures to which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is subjected by hardliners in his government who insist that he not budge at all on plans to resume the expansion of settlements, and by the irrational demands of Hamas extremists who insist that Palestinian President Mahmood Abbas reject any peace negotiations unless Israelis withdraw completely from any and all occupied territory.”

New Jersey politics may be rough and tumble as McDonough knows, but it doesn’t result in suicide bombings and military retaliation. Yes, Mr. McDonough, the situation is “complicated” and until you learn the difference between sitting shiva for a murdered terror victim (as I did) and humiliation suffered at a checkpoint, I think you should keep your comments to yourself.

Read the full column.

Well, that's what I have to say.

Lockerbie bomber's release - something rotten?

Those of us who follow the health of convicted Lockerbie bomber Abdel Baset al-Megrahi are surprised that the man is alive. After all, weren't we told that he was released from prison because he was dying from cancer and had only weeks to live.

Now there are rumors that oil giant BP might have had a say in al-Megrahi's release. Secretary of State Clinton is looking for answers and Senators from New Jersey and New York are planning to meet British PM Cameron while he is in Washington.

No one seems to know all the circumstances surrounding al-Megrahi's release and it's something worthwhile to investigate. Did BP violate law? Did Scot politicians and government officials? Let's see.

Read the full article from the Star-Ledger, British prime minister to meet with N.J. Sens. Lautenberg, Menendez to discuss Lockerbie bomber.