Question: Terrorists only understand force and nothing will stop them except their destruction. How can we negotiate with terrorists?
Answer: The underlying thinking behind this world-view (now embodied in the US by the neo-cons) is so simplistic, one wonders how otherwise intelligent people can spout such nonsense.
Continue reading about Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions – Number Three
Nicholas Kristof column today addresses a more sophisticated variant of the first question I raised. Obviously his mild criticism of Israel’s approach made all the “pro-Israel” types flood his mailbox. Here’s how he phrases the question he received from his readers:
“What else can a country do when it is subjected to rocket attacks and cross-border [...]
Continue reading about Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions – Number Two
When I was young, one of my favorite magazines was William Gaines’ Mad Magazine. In the tradition of great Jewish subversives, Gaines poked fun at all the pieties of middle class American society, provoking young minds to think differently than their elders. One of my favorite sections of the magazine was called “Snappy Answers to [...]
Continue reading about Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions – Number one