November 17, 2000

A Resounding Rock in Flight

Edward Said throws a stone, and people notice.

When the Columbia University literature professor hurled a rock at an Israeli guardhouse from across the Lebanese border in July, he said it was an innocent, exuberant response to news that Israeli soldiers had ended their occupation of southern Lebanon.

Last month Columbia declined to punish him, saying he was protected by academic freedom. Is throwing a stone the same as a political statement? Is it an act of naked hostility? We