In response to the letter to the editor by Patrick Harrison March 24, yes it is the responsibility of the United States to help Israel with its problem in the Middle East. Israel is an ally to the United States in many ways that we see and in other ways that we do not see. I agree with Mr. Harrison that Israel and the United States do not always see eye to eye. All countries have their own agendas.
The attitude of the United States to garner support and acceptance in the Middle East from the Muslim dictatorships has often caused much of the true relationship between the
United States and Israel to be hidden. Israel did offer support during the Gulf War, which the United States declined. Israel supplies much in the way of technical support — in computer security, weapons development and radar system expertise — that is mostly unknown to the public in the United States.
The conflict in the Middle East is more than a battle between Israel and the Palestinians. It encompasses many issues including the difference between Eastern and Western thought, the role of women in society, slavery, child abuse, democracy versus dictatorial rule, freedom of religion and the value of the individual. In every case Israel is the same as the United States.
So let’s not be naive and think that the Muslim world will embrace the values of the West if we only desert Israel. Israel is the front line in this conflict; the conflict that President Bush correctly referred to as a “crusade.”
Mark Goldstein