The July 19 letter "Not with our money," protesting Israel's earlier demolition of a home in Gaza (and, sadly, the death of Rachel Corrie), is an example of how readily some people have accepted the myths circulated by the Palestinian governments.

The house was demolished because it was used for terrorist purposes, as the terminus of a tunnel for smuggling armaments with which to kill Israeli civilians (especially students). Second, does the letter-writer know whether or not the driver of the bulldozer could even see Ms. Corrie? If the blade blocked her vision of him, then she must have known that he couldn't see her. And, third, the Hamas government of Gaza has repeatedly stressed that their goal is not just to destroy Israel, but to kill all Jews, including me. This is the root cause of the continuing conflict.

Lawrence Slifkin

Chapel Hill