To the Editor:

The column by Chaim Bloom ’04 (“America too soft on Arafat,” 3/27) displays an ignorance of the Middle East issue. If he were sleeping outside what was once his home and watching as the invader came and went, keeping him and his family out of their rightful home with guns, would he have the courage and the fortitude to not only refrain from expressing any anger but also to negotiate with the invader with a smiling “non-violent” manner?

I cannot for the life of me fathom how people are willing to sanction the return of lands to a people after 2,000 years, yet oppose the return of occupied Palestinian lands after only 30 years.

James Mbugua

March 28, 2002