Operation Cast Lead

This post is a bit overdue, because the Israeli bombardment of Gaza began nearly a fortnight ago. As usual, Israel has received a ridiculous amount of criticism for actions that are perfectly acceptable under international law - that is, unless initiated by the Jewish state. The criticisms are so obnoxious and predictable, they come from the same quarters and say the same shit. To put it succinctly: every single time Israel acts to defend itself, it is acting immorally and disproportionately. Sure, it is understandable that the Israelis should defend themselves from the incessant rain of rockets cascading upon them from Gaza, but they should do so in a more restrained manner so as to limit civilian casualties.

What they neglect to mention is that Hamas is a pussy organization that hides among civilians. They boast about their toughness and about Israel's supposed weakness, but when Israel comes calling, the first place these cowards head is into the most densely populated area they can find. In fact, they launch their rockets from those very locations, knowing that any Israeli response will kill and injure civilians. So, Hamas fires rockets at the civilians of the western Negev, and do so from highly populated areas (the Gaza Strip itself is one of the most densely populated areas on the face of the earth). This is a war crime in two ways: firing upon civilians and using other civilians as human shields. Yet for some reason the world seems blind to this.

Well, it isn't so much "for some reason". I know the reason. It is unadulterated anti-Semitism, cloaked in so-called "anti-Zionism". As the British historian Paul Johnson, a great philo-Semite and author of A History of the Jews (a magisterial work) writes, "Scratch an anti-Zionist and you will find an anti-Semite." It is just a very convenient disguise. Yet, sometimes it is exposed, such as the recent demonstration in Fort Lauderdale, at which pro-Palestinian demonstrators urged Jews "to get back to the oven" and screamed about nuking Israel. This story has received relatively scant attention from the media, but I can guarantee that if there were pro-Israeli demonstrators screaming about nuking Gaza or the West Bank, it would be all over the news. This was not just a demonstration against supposed Israeli belligerence, but rather a castigation of all Jews. What do the military activities of the IDF have to do with Torah scrolls and synagogues in Belgium, which have been desecrated in recent days in response to the military op in Gaza? Nothing, except that the IDF is composed of mostly Jewish soldiers. So, because Jewish soldiers in the Middle East are engaged in military action, it suddenly becomes legitimate to attack European Jews whose only link to said Jewish soldiers is their Jewishness. Even if one found the attacks in Gaza to be immoral, which I most assuredly do not (they are long overdue), the rationale of the violent acts in Europe is nonsensical. Yet, most sadly and frighteningly, it is par for the course for Muslims around the world.

No other nation on earth is expected to adhere to the ridiculous standard of perfection that Israel is, not even the United States although we come close. More insults are hurled Israel's way when they act in a perfectly legitimate, defensive manner, than when Hamas engages in suicide bombings and rocket launchings. I did not see any marches or demonstrations on behalf of the besieged Israelis of Sderot and surrounding environs. Because no one fucking cares. No one cares except maybe some Jews and their conservative Christian friends. And the latter are not even recognized by the former but are rather shunned. LOOK: all of the anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism that matters comes from two groups: Islamist murderers and their idiot liberal apologists. That is it! Neo-Nazism is a fucking joke: there are like 9 adherents to that ideology and they are largely marginalized.

China took over Tibet 50 years ago and no one cares. Millions of Sudanese are being slaughtered and no one really cares. Sure, they say they do but when is the last time you saw worldwide protestations against the Khartoum regime? Russia asserts its dominance by raping Georgia and everyone is prepared to make the whole situation Georgia's fault. Russia went into Chechnya in 1999 in such a destructive frenzy that I am not sure there are any cockroaches left in Grozny. But the Russian government has the audacity to criticize the legitimate Israeli response, calling it disproportionate. And the world hardly seems to recognize this arch-hypocrisy. There have been more UN resolutions against so-called Israeli belligerence than against any other country in the world, including China, North Korea, Cuba, Zimbabwe, and a host of other nations with unsavory regimes. The United Nations has an entire department dedicated to the Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), which is either the most ineffective department in the history of humans or superb in its actual intent to keep the Palestinians in squalor to deepen and perpetuate anti-Israeli feelings both in the region and worldwide. I vote for the latter. The United Nations: a good idea poorly executed. It's a waste of time. It is so corrupt and useless that I don't understand why anyone should care what it has to say anymore.

Israel needs to shrug its shoulders and say a big "Fuck you" to a hostile world. Otherwise Operation Cast Lead will have been a huge waste of time and human life. Israel cannot afford another 2006 Lebanon-like failure, otherwise it will deter no one. The whole world already hates the Jewish state: there is no difference whether they act or do not. So they must continue their offensive until Hamas is sufficiently weakened. If they accept an ineffective cease-fire, as they always do in their hopeless attempt to assuage world opinion, the Israelis will be only weakening themselves and strengthening Hamas, which will make it seem that terror is the way to go for the Palestinians, rather than moderation. This is not to say that Fatah is moderate - only in this fucked up part of the world can such an organization be considered such.

There is only so much that a country should be expected to take. That Israel restrained itself for this long is pretty impressive (albeit mistaken). Yet no sooner do the Israelis act than all the talking heads begin their blathering anew about how such violence sets back the peace process. A "peace process" with one party desiring to destroy the other is not worth the paper it is written on. Israel needs to destroy Hamas before any meaningful peace can be established, if it can (and I have my doubts). Arafat seemed moderate to much of the world because they fell for his duplicity (telling the Western world one thing, the Arab world his true intentions). The Second Intifada was pre-planned and no matter what Barak had offered at Camp David in 2000, there would never have been an agreement. The Palestinian leadership gets off on its constituents' misery. The more miserable the Palestinians, the better the excuse to demonize Israel. If there was ever an effective peace, the Palestinian leadership would have to act responsibly, as any leaders of a sovereign state must. Israeli occupation and "genocide" and "apartheid" would no longer be an excuse. This responsibility is not welcomed in these quarters - it is easier to blame the Jews. And so long as it is the Jews you are blaming, you will find sympathy around the world.

Israel is damned if they do and damned if they don't. If they don't, they place their civilians in unacceptable danger (as happened to Sderot). If they do, then they are called bloodthirsty warmongers. They really cannot win. Hamas wins either way: if Israel does nothing, Israel is seen as weak and Hamas as strong. If Israel attacks, then Hamas can hide among civilians, knowing that Israeli bombardments will kill some civilians, which will turn the world against Israel.

The entire world, with the exception of a few countries, hates Israel with a demented fury that is reserved for it alone. How much more can it increase this hatred if they continue with Operation Cast Lead? Because the whole world hates Israel anyway, they might as well go for it because their security as a sovereign nation is more important than what a bunch of self-important, ignorant leftists have to say on the matter. As for the Palestinians - they hate Israel for even existing. Unless hatred for Israel has an 11 knob, like Nigel's amplifier in This is Spinal Tap, there is not much higher it can go.

Succumbing to world opinion has accomplished nothing. It accomplished nothing when you retreate d from Gaza and when you half-assed your war against Lebanon. Fuck it. Get 'em.