Comment by Mike Renzulli

Entered on: 1/5/2009 9:21:59 AM

It is Hamas, not Israel, that is murdering Palestinians and Gazans and it is Hamas, not Israel, you should be directing your anger and condemnations towards.

If you read my essay, you will see that I cite 2 prior occasions, out of many, where the IDF sent warnings to people to leave their homes since they might be near locations where Hamas weapons caches or terrorist suspects are located.

Hamas, not Israel, is using civilians as human shields to protect its weapons and even its officials from Israeli precision-fire weapons.

I am not saying that Israel's human rights record is stellar nor that the country is beyond criticism. But, like I said in my essay, Israel is doing what a free nation's government should do when its citizens' lives are threatened with force: respond with force.

Comment by Tom W.

Entered on: 1/5/2009 10:46:44 AM

I'm not following your logic. So it was Hamas' responsibility to get all of the civilians out of the way before Israel dropped bombs on them? It's one thing to say that it's okay to kill Palestinian civilians if it means protecting the security of Israeli citizens and call it collateral damage, but Israel still has to accept the responsibility for their own actions.

This is like the man who beats his wife blaming the beating on her for aggravating him.

Comment by Mike Renzulli

Entered on: 1/5/2009 12:39:04 PM

Tom,

No what I am saying is that Hamas is the one indoctrinating Palestinians in the region to be soldiers in their Jihad against Israel and the west. I am sure there are many, if given the opportunity, would leave of their own accord.

However, if the history of authoritarian movements, like Hamas, is any example many who want to leave would be prevented from doing so or killed.

Simultaneously, religion is a central part of the Gaza Palestinian's culture and if the mullahs and government officials are assuring the populace that they will go to Nirvana if they die for the cause of Allah which is to kill the infidels, in this case Israelis, Jews, Americans, etc. and with the possibility of death as penalty for leaving people will have very little incentive to leave.

I would suggest you and others not only read the NY Times article I linked to in my essay on Hamas's indoctrination efforts and Ayan Hirsi Ali's book "Infidel" but also Bruce Bawer's book "While Europe Slept".

Bawer gives a very insightful look into the enclaves of Islamic militants who migrate to European countries and then committ acts of violence and death against non-Muslims while refusing to assimilate in the country.

Ali also talks about this in her book, but Bawer's work is very comprehensive on this subject.

What we are dealing with is another form of Jihad and, while U.S. foreign policy is a factor in many muslim's radicalization, we cannot ignore the overall evidence of the love of death and destruction representative of Islamic militants and countries, like Israel, or non-Muslims being attacked or killed should defend themselves.