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Read other letters about this article
"To us, hitting our enemies once in a while feels like a necessary behavior in a tough neighborhood."
That's certainly how Germans felt. Like Israelis, they alienated, then attacked neighbors. It seemed great fun, with few consequences, for a while.
"most Israelis believe it's impossible to survive in the Middle East without resorting to occasional aggression."
True. Bullies often feel that way. In fact, it's what makes them bullies. The problem is it tends to make their victims seek revenge.
"Israel's military operation against Hamas...enjoys strong public support among Israel's Jewish majority."
Germans "operations" against Jews received strong public support, too. Was that wrong? If so, why?
"Amos Oz, a moral compass for Israel's peace camp...gave his blessing to the war."
Priest and others in Germany blessed bombs...and probably Zyklon-B canisters, too. The world once thought that bad. Now Israel says it was cool.
"Hamas and its smaller proxies have targeted Israel's towns and villages near Gaza for several years..."
Because for 7 decades Israelis, having stolen Arab lands, rejected peace in favor of endless war to drive Palestinians out of even more of the Levant.
"They kept rocketing even after Ariel Sharon evacuated Israel's settlements and forces from the Gaza strip in 2005."
Sharon’s move was a ruse. He sealed the borders, like warden removing guards from INSIDE the prison, the better to control things from WITHOUT. He then moved settlers to the West Bank. It was like Nazis leaving Warsaw's ghetto, then blaming Jews for the uprising when only 71,000 were left (from nearly a half-million). Israel now says us the Nazis were morally correct. Whodathunk?
"Israel appeared helpless against a primitive weapon, which killed relatively few people, but disrupted life for hundreds of thousands."
Poor babies. Why not let ungrateful Arabs eat cake? Israel disrupts Arab lives by smashing factories, uprooting trees, stealing land and water, flying drones overhead to preclude sleep, assassinating political opponents, etc., etc. etc. Like Jews in Germany, Arabs are seen as vermin by Israelis who abuse them with impunity.
Germans felt justified in oppressing Jews for the same reasons Israelis feel justified: They had power, blamed the demonized Other, and felt "good" venting anger on them.
"Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government has built its case for attacking Gaza…by showing restraint for a long time..."
Germans were similarly “restrained. First they passed laws, then moved Jews to ghettos, then used the forced labor there. All during the process they harassed, beat, humiliated, and killed Jews. Only at the end did they commence "Operation Juden Upinsmoke." Israel now says Germany’s moderation was honorable.
"Hamas, with its Islamist ideology and Iranian alliance, has very few friends."
Dream on. It's Israel that has few friends. (And rightly so.)
"note the lazy pace of diplomatic efforts to call a cease-fire."
That happened during the Holocaust, too. No country was in a hurry to stop killing Jews. Even after Germany’s surrender, no one wanted a Jewish “homeland” in their country. Israel now says it understands why.
"Egypt...gave Israel a green light to crush Hamas."
Egypt is a dictatorship "owned" by America. I thought Israel respected only democracies? Plus even Israeli generals know they can't crush Hamas because Hamas offers resistance to occupation. Other groups act meek, like Jews in Germany who willingly went to death camps after helping to round-up each other. Right?
" the current war serves a deeper need for Israelis: recovering from the trauma of our debacle in Lebanon in 2006."
Imagine: The IDF finally faced actual fighters and ran. In the past it had sucker-punched, using superior force. Facing competent enemy forces on the ground they were routed. Today they attack civilians with planes, missiles, tanks and artillery. The bomb schools, mosques, UN centers, etc. It's a blood-thirsty rabid dog of war. Hopefully it will get its clock cleaned again.
"The only way out of it is to go for another round and hope for better results."
Yeah, either that or choose peace.
So what happens when the inevitable blowback occurs? You think men and women who had relatives killed will “forget”? You think the millions of Muslims (who “don’t count” to America’s myopic media) aren’t going to exact revenge? How long before suitcase-size nukes, anthrax-spreaders, etc. enter Israel? How long before Israel consulates and icons get bombed around the world? What happens when others subject Israelis to the mercilessness they displayed?
Israel has shown, yet again, its contempt for Muslims and civilians. It is a democracy, meaning its civilians direct the military, making them more complicit than in autocracies. In effect, Israel has put targets on all its citizens, taunting the Muslim world to attack them…just like it attacks their civilians.
"Israel is fighting an Islamic group that grew from a small terrorist organization to a quasi-state"
Hamas was created by Israel to counter Arafat. Learn your own history.
"the enemy hit Israel's population with rockets..."
Only after Israel broke the truce by not unsealing borders and continuing to attack Hamas DESPITE the truce. In Lebanon, the IDF routinely violated Lebanese sovereignty to antagonize Hizbollah.
Germany invaded Poland claiming Poles had attacked a border radio station. In fact, Germany staged that event. Similarly, Israel stages events to provoke reactions because it NEEDS war to steal more and more Arab land.
"This time, the military planned and practiced in advance."
Doing so while publicly saying it sought peace. Cowards!
"And most important, the enemy is weaker this time..."
Of course. Israel only fights weaker enemies. From its view, the only mistake in Lebanon was not knowing the enemy was stronger than assessed. It was shocked, shocked to find Arabs can be both tough, disciplined, and smart.
"Hamas is encircled in the small enclave of Gaza, where Israel controls the gates."
Wow. How mighty the IDF is! It weakens a people, then attacks them, claiming to be "brave." I bet German soldiers felt brave, too, burning Warsaw to the ground. Again, Israel says the Wehrmacht was right.
