"A lot of us are scraping the bottom of the barrel," one Jerusalem-based reporter admitted. And what's at the bottom? Momentous questions to Boucher like this one: "Is Buddy still at Camp David, and how's the chemistry between Buddy and the delegates?" Boucher, showing he's a true diplomat, responded, "That's out of my jurisdiction. You'll have to ask the White House." Bow wow.
Herewith a few more scraps:
Where Is Emily Post When You Need Her?
Seating arrangements replaced menus as the main journalist focus.
When White House spokesman Joe Lockhart disclosed that Barak, Arafat and
Clinton all sat at the same table for dinner, the world had to know who was
talking to whom. Lockhart carefully recounted, "Each was separated by two or
three people at least."
A fender bender on the road to peace?
There was a minor collision
involving
two of the golf carts that many participants use to travel around the camp's
spacious grounds. Two delegates were involved, but it was not, officially, a
diplomatic incident.
...and those that don't know, talk.
Realizing they've got a captive
audience of news-starved news hounds, a number of Israeli and Palestinian
officials not part of the official delegation have been holding forth on the
acceptablity of compromises that may or may not have been offered. Call them
roving freelance international pundits who can't get on "Charlie Rose." Earlier
in
the week, an Israeli cabinet member, Michael Melchior, was giving interviews in
Thurmont, and Hanan Ashrawi, a well-known Palestinian figure, was giving press
conferences back in Washington. But the White House drew the line when Limor
Livnat, a member of the Likud party, which opposes Barak, showed up to lobby
reporters in the press center and complain about what she thought Barak was
doing. She was firmly ushered out of the building. Lockhart said she and others
could talk to reporters. "We just prefer they not do it here."
Let us eat cake.
Local residents have set up an informal canteen in the
Thurmont Elementary School filing center where they sell muffins, donuts, sodas,
snacks, sandwiches and pieces of pizza from Dominos. Best bet: little cups of
fresh-picked local blueberries, just 25 cents.
There goes the neighborhood.
Although the Thurmont residents have been
friendly and welcoming to the press corps, they know their visitors. Upon
arrival, everyone is given a sheet with elaborate instructions on where not to
park, and details of the towing policies and fines in effect. Inside, the school is
plastered with warnings not to smoke, with signs pointing to the designated
smokers' area outside in the back. But relations took a turn for the worse when
some Arab and Israeli reporters allegedly took down the American flags from some
of the classrooms.