When the White Man finds a Wog he Likes. You have to give it to the White Man. Really. I mean, when he finds a wog that he likes, he really really promotes him/her. Look at the case of Sari Nusseibeh (or how Hirsi Ali's book was elevated to the New York Times' bestseller list weeks after her arrival into the US, and how she has instantly become as American as banana cream pie). In one week, I have read TWO reviews (promotions, really) of Nusseibeh's recent book in the New York Times: one in the daily section, and today in the Book section. And the review is glowing, of course. Nusseibeh is willing to jump, if ordered to do so by the civilized white man. And he is willing to promote classical Orientalist generalizations about Arabs, if that will increase funding for his well-funded university amid the squalors of Palestine. And Nusseibeh, he wants you to know in his book, is impressed with the "idealism" of the Zionists. But then again: maybe Nusseibeh has not walked in a refugee camp to see first-hand the impact of Zionist idealism. But my favorite line from the review by Leon Wieseltier (notice that in the US, fanatical supporters of Israel, with no qualifications or training in Middle East studies, become born experts on the Middle East--just witness the "expertise" of National Security Council person, Elliott Abrams), is this: "These sterling opinions are proof not only of Nusseibeh’s extraordinary intelligence..." For me, this line says it all; it is classic. Notice that the intelligence of the natives--as rare as it is--can only be certified and identified by the White Man. And notice the formula that Wieseltier offers: that intelligence is a function of the opinions that one holds. So let me guess: It is smart to praise the idealism of Zionists, and it is dumb to admire and support Palestinian struggle for liberation. Am I right, o "literary editor" of the New Republic--whatever that means? I never notice the "literature" of the New Republic, unless you count the gems of Martin Perez and Hassan Fattah as "literature." And notice that the wog is expected to strictly stick to the path charted by the White Man, and to not deviate from it. Despite the fawning praise for the book in the New York Times, Wieseltier says this: "And his account of the war of 1948-49 is grotesque." And Wieseltier's account of the "invasion of Arab armies" of Israel would not even include the simple fact that the ratio of Arab armies to Zionists in 1948 was 3-1 (in Israel's favor).