False Dichotomies

Let me try and place a fly on the wall. I rise at five o’clock in my flat in Jerusalem. The murmurings from Café Bulinat, a secular enclave in the heart of this holiest of cities, spill over from last night. I yearn to be where I was the day before – sitting there with my breakfast while reading the paper. Instead, I am donning the uniform, ready to return to my base. Looking immaculate, I head out. Aside from the hiloni [secular] dilettantes, the only other people out at this hour are the Palestinian street-cleaners and cabbies. I imagine a look of contempt on their faces as I stroll past. Read more