Craig writes about Israeli doctors giving a life saving bone marrow transplant to a Palestinian boy, asks if we could imagine the reverse, and quotes an on-point passage from The Fellowship of the Rings.

Reading the cited story reminded me of a bit from Studs Terkel's wonderful book The Good War, an oral history of World War II. One person Terkel spoke to was an American army doctor. The doctor told a story of treating a young Nazi soldier's injuries. During the treatment, the soldier started to cry. When asked why he was crying, the soldier said "You're an American. I've been trying to kill you, and here you are taking care of me." The doctor then told the soldier that he was a Jew.

The Israeli doctor who will perform the transplant operation, Reuven Or, said the doctors at Hadassah treat patients of all religions.

"For us a human being is the most important thing,'' he said. We don't have any criteria.'' In a place where thousands have died because of their differences, hatreds and history, Or said, "We'll fight all day to save one life.''