Said shows poor judgment. (Letters to the Editor).

David Barsamian's fawning introduction to his interview with the ever-slick Edward W. Said (November issue) is barely worth the effort of refuting, but I would like at least to take issue with his assertion that the great professor has been "pointing toward a future where peace is possible." Said was always one of the loudest attackers of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process of the 1990s, and I would hope that The Progressive's readers remember that just last year, when Israel unilaterally withdrew from southern Lebanon, Said allowed himself to be photographed at the border fence hurling a large rock at Israeli soldiers. Professor Said is not a man of peace, but a brilliant propagandist for Palestinian terror and a genius at manipulating the progressive instinct to stand up for the underdog.

Martin J. Gidron
Salisbury, Maryland

I am surprised that the interviewer let Edward W. Said's distinction between Palestinian terrorists and the terrorists that bombed the World Trade Center go unchallenged. There is little distinction between the two. Both attack civilians to address what they consider unjust acts. The fact that one is poor and the other middle class--as stated by Mr. Said--does not further justify their actions. It is this type of distinction that allowed us to go down the slippery slope of supporting, arming, and training the Afghan "freedom fighters."

Amy Cohen
Brooklyn, New York