Posted on 07/25/2002 5:14:32 AM PDT by SJackson
Edited on 04/22/2004 11:46:49 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
Earlier this week, Israel succeeded in killing Salah Shehada, a savage Hamas mastermind, and one of his top aides. A dozen Palestinian civilians died in the attack, including members of Shehada's family. The civilian deaths may be lamentable, but they also were justifiable. A terrorist leader used his relatives and neighbors as shields, and they died with him. Their deaths were Shehada's fault, not Israel's.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
...but I am hearing 'similar sentiments' from others on the tube...
...Fred Barnes on Brit Humes newshour (+ someone else, but his name escapes me).......
...but Barnes, the WSJ & others are voicing this, and rightly so.
At this point, Israel and the West generally have to go on estimates of the attitude -- and changes to the attitude -- of Palestinian "civilians." Yes, yes, I know that's an increasingly nebulous category. I've said as much myself. But if Israel remains committed to sifting the terrorists out of the larger population, as police do with criminals, they have to try to stay tuned in to what their operations are doing to the larger population's opinion of them. That would only become irrelevant if Israel had fixed on a policy of extermination -- and, God bless them for their forbearance, they haven't done that yet.
The great difficulty here is that it's all but impossible to get hard information about Palestinian opinion of the terrorists in their midst, or of the Israeli operations against them. Anyone who speaks his mind has to be aware of the Arafat regime's proclivity for executing dissidents. As a result, assessments of the temper of Palestinian society are pretty much guesswork.
All the same, the war for public opinion and allegiance is as important as the war of bullets and bombs. We learned that in Vietnam. The Israelis must remain mindful of it.
Freedom, Wealth, and Peace,
Francis W. Porretto
Visit The Palace Of Reason: http://palaceofreason.com
After Fred Barnes expostulated on why the bombing was justified, citing many of the facts listed by the WSJ, C C Connely from the Washington Post began a list of reasons why the bombing was wrong. She was curtly called to task by Brit Hume.
C C was a clueless professional spouting leftist drivel that carried to logical conclusion meant she cared not for her own life if any active defense was required. Better to allow an enemy to kill you than take any action against him.
The attack occurred in a heavily populated residential area at a time when most would be home. I would say that the Israelis should be commended on a precision surgical attack in which there were so few civilian casualties. But the Israelis should also show regret for the loss of life even though such an action was necessary.
Exactly.
Why this public breast-beating and hand-wringing by Israel?
Any question or comment by anyone, press or superpower alike, should be handled with the same answer:
"When the similar and deliberate killings by "palestinians" and other Muslim Mass Murderers are put through similar scrutinity, we will be happy to discuss it."
Until then you can go pound sand..."
Thank you for this brief but clear citation.
This ought to short-circuit some doofus liberal brains...
Why did the Allies win WW I and WW II ? Because we destroyed our enemies. Why have we lost all subsequent wars ? Because we failed to destroy the enemy.
If we leave the Israelis alone, they'll win this war. There will be no peace unless there is a clear winner...
You are so right! And more, after the war Germany undergone the denazification process, and Japan was under complete US control as well. The results are: complete Attitude Adjustment. No more threats from Germany and Japan. They are now our better allies. Nothing like that happened in Israel after all the victories.
Very telling excerpt from What Occupation?:
In sharp contrast with, for example, the U.S. occupation of postwar Japan, which saw a general censorship of all Japanese media and a comprehensive revision of school curricula , Israel made no attempt to reshape Palestinian culture. It limited its oversight of the Arabic press in the territories to military and security matters, and allowed the continued use in local schools of Jordanian textbooks filled with vile anti-Semitic and anti-Israel propaganda . ... Israel's restraint in this sphere ... turned out to be desperately misguided. Click to continue
Welcome to Free Republic.
Most people inform themselves before posting gratuitous opinion here.
Unless you are merely exercising your new persona.
Are you aware that returning here with a new name after being banned is painfully transparent?
Assuming you're talking about Palestinian public opinion, Israel faces the problem that irrespective of her actions, opinion is moulded by the the PA controled media and educational system within the territories. I think Israel's ability to impact it is limited at best.
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