What’s happening in Gaza is just too depressing for words. Israel, a country I once supported whole-heartedly and where I still have friends, is behaving in an absolutely disgraceful and cowardly manner. This is not war. This is genocide.
Israel has, perhaps, the most sophisticated military in the world. The most up-to-date planes, well trained pilots, enough tanks to line them up tread to tread along the entire border with Gaza, and state of the art missiles. Hamas has some glorified fireworks which can’t hit anything except by accident. This is the U.S. Cavalry against the Indians. This is the British marching the Tasmanians over the cliffs. This is an abusive parent who thinks that his kids don’t behave because he hasn’t beaten them hard enough.
This should make every Jewish person ashamed to be Jewish.
I’m not sure what the ultimate solution is but it has to start with a change of attitude. Israelis have to realize that Palestinians are human beings, too. American politicians have to stop giving Israel carte blanche to do anything they damn well please.
The U.S. also needs to stop sending Israel billions of dollars every year to buy weapons. This could easily be balanced by not sending military aid to Saudi Arabia and other countries in the region. As it is, we are just enabling the violence so that a couple of large arms manufacturers can make truckloads of money.
If that same money were spent on building schools, hospitals and homes for Palestinians, instead of equipment to slaughter them, it might be a good start.
The Palestinians, for their part, will have to realize at some point that they are never getting their land back. Scotland is not going to be independent of England again and the U.S. is not going to give Oklahoma back to the Indians, no matter how worthless it is. There is a sort of unwritten statute of limitations on these things.
But the killing has to stop, and that’s up to Israel.
www.gurukalehuru.com 
Willie – you disappointed me with this post.
Don’t get me wrong – I was against this operation, even though I understand the logic behind it and the need to stop the hundreds of rockets that have been indiscriminately fired into Israel .
I just want to mention two sentences:
1. This is not war. This is genocide.
sorry mate, it’s a war, like it or not (I don’t). Genocide is what happened in Rwanda. It’s what the Germans tried to do in WWII. You’re miles off the mark this time.
2. Hamas has some glorified fireworks which can’t hit anything except by accident.
Two Israelis were killed today by these ‘fireworks.’ Many, many more would have died if not for the defenses in homes (reinforced ‘security rooms’) and the skies (the Iron Dome system undoubtedly saved dozens of Israeli lives this week).
I love you, man, but believe me your version of events is unbalanced to say the least.
The common opinion that Israel can do no wrong is rooted in the belief that one side is ‘better’ or more justified than the other. Think about it this way: if there were Palestinians in American positions of power instead of Jews, Israel would not be a country. Full stop. If your country was wiped out 1000s of years ago and you decide to come back and stick your flag in angry sand, you are just asking for it (I mean, c’mon! My DAD is older than Israel). I don’t take sides, both sides are FUBAR. Religious idiots fighting over useless fucking sand. Move out of the fucking desert, smoke a fatty in the rain forest and hug trees. Jesus and Mohammed would both be immensely relieved if y’all took my advice.
-Melvis
I agree with Dan: just because I’m more powerful than you doesn’t mean I’m going to let you keep punching me. At some point, I have to hit back, and I won’t feel sorry if you get hurt.
Don’t punch me and I’ll leave you alone. The Palestinians should learn this.
I mean no disrespect to those Israelis who’ve died, or their families, and perhaps the glorified fireworks comment was a bit flippant, but the score is currently 130-5 and there’s no point running it up. Israel should back off.
Nice post, Willy. In response to Dan’s not agreeing with: this isn’t war, it’s genocide: OK, maybe it’s not Hitler, but it is shooting fish in a barrel, literally. The Israelis built the prison they’re bombing and would be responsible even if the Palestinians didn’t have very legitimate land claims on the other side of the fence. The ‘war’ is entirely asymmetrical. I was dating a Palestinian / Irish chick in Spain 1000 years ago while living in France and asked a (jewish) friend on the ground for an unbiased update: he said, “She threw a rock at me, so I shot her.” That was 1989 and little has changed.
i am jewish and i refuse to feel ashamed