The Alterman Universe
This article on Yasser Arafat ("the world's most exalted political prisoner") is, I suppose, the sort of op-ed Eric Alterman would like to see more of in the US media. (It's from the Guardian, naturally.)
Like many such pieces, it is more notable for what it leaves out than for what is in it. The Arafat presented here by David Hirst is a "man of peace" whose conduct earns him no stronger reproach than the bland acknowledgement that his leadership is a bit "wayward and erratic."
"Throughout the steadily escalating intifada," writes Hirst, he "has remained convincingly wedded to the historic compromise enshrined in the Oslo agreement." This mysteriously self-escalating intifada, which by this account seems to have spontaneously arisen of its own accord with no particular connection to Arafat or his policies, rages on, leaving countless dead innocents in its wake. Yet Arafat, "the heroic embodiment of his people's will," warrants extravagant praise for managing to maintain a convincing pretense of loving fidelity to the "peace process." (This is indeed amazing, though the most amazing part is primarily the fact that columnists like Hirst can be so easily convinced.)
There is no mention of the rejection of the Camp David proposals, generally regarded as a clear indication of Arafat's lack of seriousness about pursuing peace and compromise. There is no reference to the familiar pattern of egging on the Islamikaze fanatics in one breath, and calling for a "cease-fire" with the next.
In fact, throughout this long article intended to assert Arafat's bona fides, there is not a single mention of suicide bombing. To examine Arafat without taking note of suicide terror is like gazing upon the Pacific Ocean and failing to notice all the water. Terrorism is not only Arafat's preferred instrument: it is the end as well as the means, the primary aim, the substance, the essence, of his leadership and policies.
Of course, in the Alterman Universe, there is a convenient euphemism for terrorist attacks and the mass murder of innocents: "resistance." How historic. How heroic. Even in Alterman's world of "competing narratives," it is only through the use of such euphemisms and by leaving out important pieces of information that this particular "narrative" (of a gentle man of peace besieged, for no particular reason, by the evil armies of a Jewish Ming the Merciless) can even be articulated.
But even if such "narratives" are successful in creating within the ingenuous reader a warm, cuddly feeling for the grand old man of terror, it is still impossible to avoid the inarguable conclusion of the other "narrative": the tactic of suicide bombing as a means of political "activism" must not be allowed to succeed. Friedman gets it exactly right today in the New York Times:
A nonviolent Palestinian movement appealing to the conscience of the Israeli silent majority would have delivered a Palestinian state 30 years ago, but they have rejected that strategy, too.The reason the Palestinians have not adopted these alternatives is because they actually want to win their independence in blood and fire. All they can agree on as a community is what they want to destroy, not what they want to build. Have you ever heard Mr. Arafat talk about what sort of education system or economy he would prefer, what sort of constitution he wants? No, because Mr. Arafat is not interested in the content of a Palestinian state, only the contours.
Let's be very clear: Palestinians have adopted suicide bombing as a strategic choice, not out of desperation. This threatens all civilization because if suicide bombing is allowed to work in Israel, then, like hijacking and airplane bombing, it will be copied and will eventually lead to a bomber strapped with a nuclear device threatening entire nations. That is why the whole world must see this Palestinian suicide strategy defeated.
But how? This kind of terrorism can be curbed only by self-restraint and repudiation by the community itself. No foreign army can stop small groups ready to kill themselves. How do we produce that deterrence among Palestinians? First, Israel needs to deliver a military blow that clearly shows terror will not pay. Second, America needs to make clear that suicide bombing is not Israel's problem alone. To that end, the U.S. should declare that while it respects the legitimacy of Palestinian nationalism, it will have no dealings with the Palestinian leadership as long as it tolerates suicide bombings. Further, we should make clear that Arab leaders whose media call suicide bombers "martyrs" aren't welcome in the U.S.