War and Peace

Yes, the over reaching of Israel, has caused many to believe less in the cause...300 plus civilians does not compare to7 in the past 17 months...This latest is an attempt to force the hand of the new Administration but fewer around the World support the Israeli gov't or military....Stop this ....

I have no insight, no solutions and very little understanding.  However, I believe we (the US) are a piece of a whole.  It is no longer an option to retreat behind our shores. Solutions to our problems have to be constructed in the context of a global community.

This is one of those unintended consequences, a side effect of necessary action taken against a terrorist organization not helping the ongoing peace process with the PA. In the end Hamas will just be dust in the wind of history.

Earthpledge.net is promoting an idea to create lasting peace in the Middle East and the world. The first proposal wasn't as clear as it needed to be which caused some confusion. Please take a closer look at this hopeful vision and alternative to the endless spiral of violence escalating in the Middle East and cast your vote today. Thank you. 
http://www.change.org/ideas/view/israel_as_cornerstone_for_a_future_united_states_of_earth
Also, please check out my friend Josep's proposal for human unity:
http://www.change.org/ideas/view/human_union

Well Hamas ran a campaign on change; the way they tried to accomplish that is another issue, but in a time of chaos, who else could the Palestinian refugees turn to? There was hope in Hamas to have their home back.  Egypt could have easily elicited the Hamas attacks by providing the Quassam rockets, I wouldn't have put it past Egypt.

Well for decades the U.S. had funded Egypt. Egypt cooperated with US in joint military actions, in the Iraq-Kuwait war. Desert Storm, defending Saudi Arabia, the Bright Star, etc. Egypt was in military debt of 6.7 billion dollars. President Senior Bush cancelled the debt though. (Flinch now)

Egypt has been funded in times of peace-keeping; between Iraq and Kuwait, and even Israel and Palestine. However, in times when there's no conflict (there's always tensions but it hadn't sparked into a massacre like this for a while) of course Egypt won't receive as much funding. I can say the same about Israel; that if a peace process was finally established they wouldn't receive as much funding from the U.S. PLO probably would have quickened the peace process faster than Fatah, the Arab League..could ever do or has done.

This Gaza Massacre could have easily been stopped by now if Arab Leaders have stepped in; but they're doing little. Cutting off oil to Israel for example could have taken its toll. Jordan or Egypt could have sent in help by now but they haven't.

The tunnels between Palestine and Egypt were used to send aid, and military equipment.

Politics as usual, isn't it? Money is always a rational answer.

Shit, 6 Israelis dead, and 375 Palestinians. 

What you said about Israel giving indirect support to the Palestinian chapter of a Muslim Brotherhood, I believe Egypt also funded a Muslim Brotherhood, at the time when Osama Bin Laden, Zawahiri, pursued it. I'll recollect the book later that claimed that. However, something important to note is that the Muslim Brotherhoods are relatively equivalent to the Freemasonry, or occults in general, trying to preserve certain principals in Islam (like the Priory of Sion and such with paganism). And it's just that. A fraternity. Not necessarily a terrorists organization. It was only one of many of Bin Laden's stops on his way to formin' his what-was little army against the Soviet troops in Peshawar.

“Now, on the heels of the destruction of life and infrastructure in Gaza, expect more support for the extremist elements within Hamas, for Islamic Jihad, and for an outpouring of sympathy and solidarity from around the world aimed specifically at Hamas, not just the Palestinian people.”
Very, very true. Guess who sympathized with Palestine greatly? Who watched the news for hours and cried over this apartheid? Osama Bin Laden, as a teenager. He started praying for Palestine extensively; praying for the safety of the Palestinians. It was one of major factors that raised him into the extremists he is today.

The book I was talking about earlier is the Looming Tower : Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11, by Lawrence Wright.

This is not the case compared to Georgia invaded by Russia.

This is a different scenario when you have a Hamas "terrorist" or "extremist" that want to throw slingshots of rocket and mortar into Israel that is like next door.

Israel is a group of small or medium size town hence some are called settlement.

Hamas broke the truce and then fired the rockets and mortars toward Israel.

Israel never mean't to hurt civilians but they are very protective about using their people to fight which justified the usage of F-16 fighter.

Hamas will refused to stop shooting and said "they will look into it if Israel remove the blockage". I don't think so. Not when you have some suicide bomber that want to walk across checkpoint to blow innocent civilian life.

When it come down to this, it never about racism as there were Saudi people that got hurt by suicide bomber in Iraq. It about blood thirstiness, revenge, and obsession in blindness that prove to be an act of jihad.

Of course... this wouldn't happen if Hamas weren't waken up or took over Palestianian government.

Daoud Kuttab, I don't mind hearing your opinion but I do have a problem if someone throw rocket at my feet. I don't appreciate looking in the sky and around my area because some phsyco Hamas have nothing better to do.

Don't forget Palestinian, you have children and adult that were cheering while waving the flag when 9/11 towers got struck.

That was utter disrespectful!

Don't forget Palestinian, you have children and adult that were cheering while waving the flag when 9/11 towers got struck.

That was utter disrespectful!

"Unexpected consequence"? Hardly! 
If you persecute a people to the extent to which the Israelis have persecuted the Palestinians---taking their homes and businesses, exiling them to refugee camps, then demolishing their houses in the camps, building an apartheid wall while demolishing more homes and businesses, constantly killing civilians while claiming to assassinate terrorists, fencing people off from their farms, jobs, hospitals, schools, and any hope of a life, normal or otherwise, as Israel has, what do you expect? 
Even a mouse, when cornered, will fight to save its children and itself. Over and over, experience has shown that if you push people far enough that they have no other recourse, people will fight. 
And to equate Israel's killing of 300 Palestinian civilians and wounding of 1400 others with the death of just one Israeli in the inevitable retaliation by Hamas is simply ludicrous! 
How is it that one Israeli life (or even a handful) is considered more valuable than the lives of 300 Palestinians and the maiming of hundreds more? What kind of racist, genocidal equation is that?
Let's hope the new American administration is more sensible and fair-minded than that. American policy in the Middle East in the last few decades has been short-sighted at best, heartless and cruel at worst. 
Is it surprising that many people hate us? Of course not. 
We as Americans need to open our eyes and quit funding illegal occupation and genocide (and stop doing the same thing in Iraq and Afghanistan as well). 
The U.S. needs to enforce its own laws, comply with international laws and treaties, and quit backing Israel in flouting international law and defying U.N. resolutions.

Yeah, and don't forget there was a round-up of Israelis in New Jersey cheering and celebrating an hour after both the towers collapsed on 9/11.

That was utterly disrespectful!

Dina, that is a total fabrication, an invention of the Arab propaganda machine. Over 100 Israelis and jews died on 9/11, so why would they cheer.

And it's also false that there was mass cheering in Palestine. It was widely reported, but the reports were misleading, as this report shows:
http://daserste.ndr.de/panorama/archiv/2001/erste7528.html

Extremists on both sides (Bopkas and Yazdani) find it so easy to believe that the other would cheer something awful. That's what makes them extreme: the willingness to believe the worst about the other side, and see only the best on their own.

Thank you Charles, lets all hope that the IDF succeeds in marginalizing Hamas, so that we can get on with the peace process.

No one likes rockets coming down daily on their homes, this must be stopped.

Michael nobody also like to wake up and find his five little daughters killed by an Israeli air stike their ages was 3-5-8-10-12so who is the terrorist?

Mm, that's a good question, Michael ;).

Yeah. More children died in the airstrikes then the total amount of Israelis that were killed this past week. But of course, it's a sacrifice that Israel will not flinch at, is it not?

What's it say about Israel when an Israeli vessel hit a Gaza relief boat with a CNN correspondent and an ex-congresswoman? 

Bombing universities, schools, houses, hospitals... It's terrorism. The definition of terrorism is the use of violence for political purposes.

Talk about a shock treatment.

Following is a CNN report about a Palestinian rocket which kills 2 Palestinian (!!) girls after Gaza border reopened on December 26, 2008:

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/12/26/israel.gaza.border/index.html

Does that make sense to any of you?  Or maybe it was just a rocket fired at children in Israel which went out of course? Would that make it acceptable?

Israel got 300 million dollar technology and they can't avoid hitting civilians

The United States has US$515.4 billion military budget for 2009. Does that guarantee anything?

Mohammed, Dina A terrorist is someone that INTENTIONALLY targets innocents, Israel is doing the opposite, trying its utmost to avoid civilian casualties, if someone accidentally hurts someone, they are not terrorists, the key word is intention. Israel is a democratic, rule of law country and as such does not target innocent people, period.

If you have any suggestion on how to root out Hamas that are intentionally sending rockets in order to harm innocents by hiding amongst civilians without harming anyone but Hamas, I am sure Israel would appreciate it. In the meantime Israel is getting rid of thugs and scum that no one wants on this planet.

They aren't terrorists without weapons, now are they? I still say investigating Egypt would be a priority.

Yes but bombing Gaza--Couldn't it be for political purposes? And with Israel the same. This isn't the first time; Sharon and Arafat are good examples. A peace proposal could have well been established, but with the threat of funds being cut off? Surely the Arab League wouldn't fund Palestine the way it was if there was no more need for aid and military, and Israel wouldn't need funding from the U.S. for technology or military aid anymore. Can you imagine a balanced Palestinian economy? Or a thriving Israeli one without 4 billion dollars a year from the U.S.?

And if we can truly say that the civilian casualties are really "accidents" then I'll say call off the airstrikes and release the land forces. Surely they wouldn't be able to "accidentl" kill children then.

MIchael you are talking about accident are you kidding ? I saw khaled Meshal in an interview in Sky news and they asked him the same question he ansewered i don't have any technology to just hit army of Israel he said if i could i would but there is no alternative  and you saying it's the fault of people elected Hamas may be it's the fault of people elected Olmert

Mohammed, why would Israel target on purpose children? Look at all the bad press just from a few accidents, give me one reason.

If Israel wanted to kill many people in Gaza, they would just have to poison the water, or stop supplying food and medicine, just yesterday 100 trucks with supplies were let in by Israel, you are not making any sense at all.

All Israel is trying to do is stop the rockets, what would you do, answer me?

check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_ILdI9N_AY