Gee, I wish Mudcat could address serious matters with some consistant maturity and consideration. While most do, the nastiest ones seem to dominate. Parties in the Middle East need to disengage, and so do forum flamers. On the other hand, there is plenty of substance in the postings here, and I would like to respond. Mr. Friedman is a respected voice in these matters: did he really post this message? It is a verbatim copy of his Oct. 14th syndicated column. This column is embarassingly titled "Arafat's War," as if Arafat has control of this situation and can disburse angry demonstrators at will. The author knows better, having covered the Middle East for decades. But as an enthusiastic supporter of our continuing war against Iraq, Friedman's commitment to peace and justice is now suspect. Barak has far more control over his security forces than Arafat has over riled individuals, and it is Barak's troops that have been internationally condemned for aggression and overreaction. Mr. Goldenberg makes some reasonable points here (including urgent pleas for good taste, but has no right dceclaring that Palestinians and Jordanians are historically and ethnically identical. They certainly do not see themselves that way! Some biblical references in this discussion are misleading, such as "Arabs moving in after the Hebrews were scattered." The term 'Philistines' (whose meaning has changed over the years) is an Anglicized version of Palestinian, and refers to a portion of the essentially indigenous peoples in the region. They and Hebrews lived together in peace for most of this region's multi-millenial history. Inter-communal violence is largely a recent development, correctly identified by someone here as resulting from big-power interference. Sadly, "peace processes" often unleash spasms of violence before the participants remember what the came to the negotiations to accomplish. For all involved, pray that this is the wake-up call needed to make the tough concessions on both sides that allow peace.