Behavior modification
Sir, – Re “Why the Left should support settlements” (August 13): Michael Freund makes the case that the Left should embrace settlement expansion because that is precisely what will motivate the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table; his point is well taken.
In the early days of the last intifada, I made the following suggestion to friends and colleagues alike as we agonized over buses and cafes blowing up all around: Continue with the anti-terror efforts, but also announce and implement a policy that every attack resulting in an Israeli injury or death will be followed by the establishment of a new community, perhaps first as a Nahal base in an unpopulated area of Judea and Samaria.
I believe the Palestinian leadership, surveying the on-the-ground consequences, might have pressed for the quick demise of the intifada, sparing the demise of hundreds of our citizens.
In my former profession as a special educator for 31+ years, I learned that behaviors are most effectively modified when there is something tangible to be either gained or lost.
JEFF DAUBE
Director, Israel Office
Zionist Organization of America
Jerusalem