How many rockets need to be fired into Israel before she fights back? At least 500 rockets have been fired into Israel from the Gaza Strip in the past week. Reports say that the rockets are often launched from schools and mosques, making the Israelis look like the bad guy for firing back.
At what point does the international community back Israel and acknowledge that it has a right to defend itself. This type of disruption and harassment must be contained and stopped. No pass for Hamas. In fact, someone needs to go in and give them a solid pounding. Not only is Hamas endangering the lives of the Israelis and the Christians and Jews and Muslims in Jerusalem, but they are endangering the civilians on the Gaza Strip, many of whom are children.
Are there rogue versions of Hamas? Certainly this behavior isn’t sanctioned by the local government Hamas? If yes, then this ought to be a solid reminder to be careful what we wish for. Not too many years ago we all wished for democracy in the middle east. Hamas is duly elected by the people–by the residents of the Gaza Strip. Do you think this is really what they wanted?
Sadly, civilians now have no choice over the current situation at hand. The civilians are going to be the ones blown to kingdom come once the Israeli war machine unleashes on the hooligans who are bombing Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and other Israel spots.
Hamas, meanwhile, represents the height of irresponsibility.
The daily beast:
“Israel fights back”
or, in international speak,
“Israel goes crazy and attacks poor, innocent, sleeping, HAMAS”
Moon, agreed – good post. Israel must consider their own security first and deal decisively with Hamas, regardless of the hypocritical reaction of the (largely anti-Semitic) “world community.”
@Cargosquid
Cargo, you come on here wanting a fight when there is no fight. I heard the same BS and blather out of Mr. Howler.
I think I defined the fight in the thread. No one here is arguing that they do anything differently. We have Israel’s back.
Who cares what anyone else says. Define the aguement, keep repeating it and be louder than anyone else.
I never said that you did not defend Israel. I was making fun of the UN and the news media. All you hear about is “Israeli aggression.” I wasn’t looking for a fight. I was agreeing with you. sheesh.
Well, you usually disagree, Cargo. Ok, the election is over…I will pull in my horns a bit and not see your name and think ….well…you know. 😈
Egypt is calling on Israel to stop bombing Gaza. Maybe they are afraid they will miss and hit them?
There must be a million tunnels running back and forth for arms running.
@Moon-howler
What? Hey! I’ve seen the light. I’m serious. I want every. single. one. of Obama’s policies enacted. Increase both taxes and regulations. In fact find new taxes. I want the GOP to vote “present” because if they vote no they get the blame for failures caused by Democrat policies and if they vote “yes” they join in with those policies. So, vote “present” and let the majority own whatever happens. I’m a fan of H.L. Mencken:
Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.
Can anyone of those middle eastern contries imagine Israel randomy firing rockets into their towns and NOT responding? When is Israel going to stop, no, the question is when will Hamas stop. Their citizens are dying because THEY chose to eff with Israel just a little too long.
THIS is why Israel is reticent to have peace talks, because of organization like Hamas.
This feud will never end until one side is victorious or Jordan and Egypt take back the West Bank and Gaza and control the terrorists. Of course, Egypt is now SIDING with the genocidal terrorists, so Israel has THAT going for them.
Obviously, no nation state with any claim to legitimacy can permit its citizens to be randomly shelled. On the other hand, Israel is totally programmable by its enemies. The people firing the rockets want Israel to respond disproportionately and to inflict civilian casualties in densely populated Gaza. At play are efforts by factions within Hamas to gains ascendancy and actions by Hamas to peel off Egypt from the US and to terminate Egypt’s past role as something of a moderator of extremist actions. Israel will, totally predictably, oblige Hamas by doing exactly what Israel’s enemies want it to do. It will be interesting to watch to see if a cease-fire can take hold before Israel puts in a lot of ground troops. If not, the most extreme factions of Hamas win by losing, Israel loses by winning, Egypt is pushed farther away from any constructive role in the area, Iran’s influence (which generally is not very marked with Hamas) is increased, and we all move backwards.
@Scout
Interesting analysis. So, what can Israel do to win by winning? Or are they stuck? I think that they are stuck. They HAVE to respond.
Here’s a good example of why “civilians” are being killed by Israel.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2012/11/senior-hamas-terrorist-disguises-himself-as-journalist/
In a related note, Israel bombed the HAMAS telecommunications building. Their news people and Israel’s both mentioned that the 4 HAMAS terrorists hiding there were killed. The NY Times spun it without mentioning terrorists.
Why the insistance on labels? Who cares if someone mentioned that they were terrorists?
You quote some rag like the Gateway Pundit and then talk about some other periodical doing ‘spin?’ bwaaahahahahahahahahaha.
Gateway Pundit was linking to the actual news story.
The OTHER story was NOT related to Gateway’s other than it, too, was about terrorists hiding in a civilian building and was not mentioned in the American press but was mentioned in both the Israeli and Arab press. So, yes…the NY Times spun the story. Gateway does too. But Gateway never says that it is objective. And don’t you think that a PROFESSIONAL journal should mention that the target was actually HAMAS terrorists.
Anyway, I’d link it, but the tabs got closed by accident and now I can’t find it. It’s not important.
Not really. I think terrorist is over-used. I would say they were militants.
@Moon-howler
I understand what you are getting at. Militant does not have the same meaning though. I like to be precise when I’m talking about people like this. Technically, a militant can conduct a legal military action. Terrorists cannot. And raining rockets into civilian areas targeting civilians for the purpose of killing them is not a legitimate action.
Terrorist is appropriate in this case. They are targeting civilians for terroristic purposes. They are targeting children. They HAVE targeted children. They preach genocide. They inspire children to be suicide bombers. They hide behind their own women and children.
Terrorist is a great word for them.
How would you describe what happened in Dresden and Toyoko? Isn’t that pretty much what American airstrikes did? They rained incendiary bombs down on civilian populations.
Now, putting an explosive bomb on a city bus in Tel Aviv is a terrorist attack in my mind.
I am not ready to call those firing missiles into Israel terrorists. I personally think that the word has been way over-used and it is close to becoming meaningless. it is replacing the word ‘enemy’ or even worse, ‘armed Muslim’ and I am not ready for that to happen.
So, you’re asking if Dresden and Tokyo were terrorism?
Depends. We were in a total war. In Tokyo’s situation, we had to take out decentralized industry. In Dresden’s, I think it was communications and transportation. Both times, the civilians were not the target. Terrorism is a weapon. Sometimes, in case of war, it’s appropriate.
I can see how you might feel that firing the missiles into Israel might not fall under terrorism. The key is to determine who the target is. Civilians are not normally a legitimate target, especially if there is not a state of war. And HAMAS says that there isn’t a war. So does Israel. Now, if HAMAS was targeting military targets, etc, then I wouldn’t call it terrorism.
There is strong argument made for indescriminant bombing in both cities. Papers have been uncovered at least in Dresden about confusion of civian populations. But, if those don’t work, there is always Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
All cities and towns were industialized for the war effort and that includes American cities. Mom and Pop places became Rosie and Pop. I don’t want to think of us as terrorists. (you will have a hard time convincing me of that when talking about Sand Creek and Wounded knee.)
Don’t you think we have over-used the term ‘terrorist’ and ‘terrorism’so that it fails to convery its original meaning? Terrorism has become blurred because of over-use.