New species:
Mirror lamprey

[Re: “Horse and buggery,” by Matthew Hays, July 19]

1. The Mirror’s latest degradation-promotion (bestiality) is lamprey-like: sucking the life out of us in order for it to vaunt itself in competition with other, similar publications. That fish is killed in the Great Lakes to prevent good fish from decimations.

2. Human life is more important than fish, and so, violent retribution from your type is not unlikely should their justified outrage be given illegal and free range. “The loss of the sense of sin is this century’s sin”—Pope Pious XII. And still more so, today’s: I sure hope that the Montreal Mirror will soon stop its suicide s(p)in-out.

>> Simon Dismas Quigley

Back to the battle

[Re: Letters, July 19] I’m reluctant to even get involved in this ongoing back-and-forth argument between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli readers (both of whom, it seems, need to get a better handle on the facts), which is why I’ll keep my own opinions to myself. But, I do feel it necessary to point out, just in case some others are unaware and to avoid this tidbit being misconstrued as a point of sympathy, that the assassinated “blind and paraplegic” leader, mentioned in a previous letter, is actually referring to Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. He is the founder and leader of Hamas—a group that, despite being recently democratically elected as the Palestinian leadership, is by design a violent, anti-Semitic, anti-Israeli terrorist organization that is responsible for countless suicide bombings, attacks and rocket shellings, which targeted, and resulted in the deaths and injuries of, Israeli non-combatants.

>> Ari Shechter

[Re: Letters, July 19] John Dirlik, this is the second time that I feel compelled to answer your propagandistic accusations of Israel, which always rely on omitting basic evidence in favour of conveniently partial statements. I was threatened into silence by a phone call from a cowardly believer of your cant in 1975 and truly say: try to send a braver one after me, now that our children are independent adults. At least, stop denying the recorded statements of many Arab leaders, including: Hitler’s guest, Haj Amin al-Husseini, his Soviet-backed, Romanian-trained Egyptian-Palestinian agent provocateur Yasser Arafat and his political accomplices; as well as those of “the blind paraplegic” Sheik Yassin and the current, Hamas-led, “government” of Gaza. 

These individuals, and other misguided publicists like yourself, seem to thrive by loudly insisting they are the sole representatives of the Arab Wafk and that Beduin caravan-robber, Muhammad, who expelled the Jews from Arabia when they refused to pay him homage and/or tribute. Since 1948, this action was repeated by all Arab states when they lost wars on the nascent and thriving state of Israel.

I must observe that “heroic terrorism” and UN support of Muslim civilians who fled from Israel under threat of treatment as traitors by their self-proclaimed liberators, like the Syrian, Iraqi and Egyptian armies, has led to the continuing, lamentable Palestinian victimology that you and Carl [letter writer Carl Aboud] try hard to hide by repeated accusations of injustice against Israel. Your naïve audience might come to different conclusions if the published letters actually contained all the historical facts, conveniently omitted from the rants, or some disclaimer about their lack of accuracy and completeness.

I am still concerned about possible terrorist actions against me and/or my family.

>> Ron Heller

[Re: Letters, July 12] This is in response to Kenneth Solomon Weinstein’s diatribe about how anti-Semitic the letters to the editor are. How typical for this type of commentary.  Whenever there is criticism against the Israeli government policies towards the Palestinians, the Zionists of this city man the barricades with their tired cries of anti-Semitism. Most people have wised up to this tactic, and in crying wolf, Kenneth is doing a great disservice in the fight against anti-Semitism.

If the Israelis do not change their policies, there will be more bloodshed in the “territories.” Harper and his ilk (who take their orders from CanWest) should turn down the rhetoric and formulate a balanced Mid-East policy. Canada used to be known for her balanced Mid-East foreign policy, however, with this government (which is owned by Zionist masters), this has been changed, as we saw last summer when Israel bombed the city of Beirut destroying the infrastructure and lives of the Lebanese people. We have now developed a reputation of being pro-Isreaeli instead of pro-peace. Pity.

>> John Dawes