Very Late Response to Readings from Week 2

Here is a list of what caught my attention so much in this week's reading that it warranted a highlight AND a star and why these quotes piqued my interest:
From Jeremy Pressman's article A Brief History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

• "As a result of the war, approximately 650-700,000 Palestinians became refugees mostly as a result of Israeli expulsions, military offensives, and massacres and the resulting panic and fear."--The media always seems to pay more attention to Palestinian suicide bombers than Palestinian refugees. Refugees are forced to leave their homes, family, friends, and possessions as a result of violent action.
  
• In the years following the war in 1948, "Arab infiltrator killed hundreds of Israelis, including approximately 200 civilians. During the same period, Israel killed 2,700-5,000 "mostly unarmed" Arab infiltrators and expelled more than 10,000."--fighting violence with violence only creates more violence. In such a holy place, there are so many unholy actions.

From Jerusalem Then and Now by Mick Dumper

• "While the Western name Jerusalem derives from the Hebrew (and before that Aramaic) word Yerushalaim (city of peace), in Arabic the city is known as al-Quds al Sharif (the noble holy place) and Bait al-Maqdis (house of sanctity)." I never had heard of the Arabic names for Jerusalem. In a city named for peace, violence, and sanctity, there is too much violence.

The articles by both Rubin and Khalidi provided a thorough account of the history of Jerusalem. It is interesting how someone's background can affect his or her representations of history. Many people have the misconception that history is comprised of undisputed facts, however, history too can be changed and affected by people's perspectives. Rubin ends his history of Jerusalem in 1976 and chooses to leave out contemporary conflicts. Ignoring the years between 1976 and when he published the article, provides reader with a skewed version of Jerusalem's history. One of the reasons I am so excited about this class is that we will be presented with multiple perspectives--both Palestinian and Israeli. It is necessary to understand both perspectives to realize the truth.