I
reiterate that this Blog is not intended to be a "me, too" type media
organ. I post on it when I (A) am
inspired by an event or an idea to express myself; (B) have a clear vision or a
definitive conundrum; and (C) believe that, at the moment, nobody else in the
world is expressing the view in quite the same way as I am.
Of
course, I do have some very strong and unabashedly pro-Israel sentiments
regarding the current conflict between Israel and Hamas. But, until now, hundreds if not thousands of
like-minded authors have already expressed essentially what has been coursing
through my brain on the matter; until now, I have had nothing material to add.
But
now, I wish to express a sentiment which has gotten little if any traction in
the media, mainstream or otherwise.
The
Hamas government now in Gaza was elected by the people of Gaza through the
democratic election process. While the
quality of the ballot-casting and vote-counting in the process may or may not
pass muster by what, until now, have been the standards in America (which, in
turn, may or may not be fulfilled in any given electoral district in any given
election), it nevertheless is a reflection of the collective sentiment of the
denizens of Gaza. And this sentiment is
not limited to the ballot box. Gaza
Arabs do willingly support and willingly collaborate in many of the Hamas
policies and activities, including and especially those policies and activities
that are hostile to Jews. And make no
mistake about it -- Hamas and its retinue would not hesitate to do the same to
the people of America if geography and logistics were conducive to it.
Israel
should, of course, make reasonable efforts to minimize civilian casualties to
the extent it can do so while protecting its own people, civilian and
otherwise. And I hasten to note that many of the casualties reported by Hamas,
the UN, and/or the media as being civilians were in fact active combatants in
the service of Hamas.
And, of course, much of the tunnel construction work was done by child slave labor -- Hamas using Arab children to do the work. Where are the anti-sweatshop people on this one?
But the people of Gaza are now in a situation
in which they had a hand in making.
I would like to see a peaceful resolution of the current situation in Gaza. The reality, however, is that the Arab world typically gets itself into an unstable situation, asks the West to extricate it from that situation, and then stymies all Western attempts at resolution. This pattern is once again replaying in Gaza.
And
so, while I certainly do not advocate the intentional directed killing of
civilians in Gaza (regardless of whether by Israeli operations or by Hamas
operations), neither am I overwrought with extreme guilt or pity for those
civilians in Gaza who are victims of collateral damage by Israel's efforts to
protect its residents from the excesses of Hamas emanating from Gaza.
Labels: Democracy, Gaza, Islam, Israel, Terrorists
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