Red Letter Day: How to criticize Israel without hating Jews

6. Pro-Israel activists in the United States are strong. This is obvious and fairly uncontroversial. But if you mention anything about how pro-Israel activists "control" anything, you are treading on the very thin ice of anti-Semitism. And do I even need to mention that the term "Jewish lobby" is anti-Semitic unless you are referring to the vestibule of a synagogue!

7. Israel is not monolithic. There are Israeli citizens, the Israeli Army, the Israeli government, a dozen or so major political parties, settlers, peaceniks, and everything in between.

8. Have I mentioned being consistant? If Israeli occupation is a Bad Thing, shouldn't you save at least a small bit of your venom for Syria, which has occupied Lebanon for twenty years? If oppression of Palestinians is to be abhorred, is it worth mentioning the persecution of Palestinians by the various Arab states like Jordan and Kuwait?   

Burningbird: The Parable of the Languages

At that the floodgates of complaints was loosed, and the noise increased and increased and increased, to the point that squirrels came out of their holes, and birds peered over the edges of their nests. Suddenly the quiet glen was quiet no more.

What about me, said Pascal. I'm only used for training. Training! What good is a language that's only used in school?

What about me, said SNOBOL. No one's even heard of me!

What about me, said C#. I look like Prince!

Bite me! said C.

LISP would have spoken, but it had caught a glimpse of itself in the pond and fell in when it tried to meet itself coming. And Java was too busy trying to clean a bag out of Babbling Creek.