New Times / Letter To The Editor

'Democracy' isn't the word I'm thinking of

Shanti Harris

What is going on in the world? After ceaselessly hearing for the past decade of the primacy of “democracy,” my only reaction now is to wretch. When none other than Gilad Sharon (son of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon) writes in the Nov. 18 Jerusalem Post, “The residents of Gaza are not innocent, they elected Hamas ... they chose this freely … ,” one cannot but wonder about votes cast by the scores of lifeless children seen being carried to and fro by parents in flip-flops as they wander around on rubble. Surely those toddlers understand, right?

To read the rest of Sharon’s article is to read the ravings of a madman. This is not to say that Hamas’ political platform and actions are very redeemable in any sense. But to use the word “democracy” in this sense will do nothing except increase the sales of Pepto Bismol to me and anyone else watching and hearing crass displays of jingoism.