9 thoughts on “Conflagration in Middle East as Israel Attacks Lebanon – Tikun Olam תיקון עולם إصلاح العالم
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  1. >Yes, certainly Israel has the right to ‘protect itself.’ But how in heaven’s name is blockading an entire country either defensive or ‘protective’?

    I don’t know, General, why don’t you tell us how to defend and protect a country?

  2. why don’t you tell us how to defend and protect a country?

    That’s what this entire blog is about. If you read what I write about the conflict you’d learn what my prescriptions are. If I were a Shin Bet director, defense or prime minister we’d be in negotiation w. Mahmoud Abbas for a final status resolution of the conflict. No kidnappings. No Katyushas or Qassams. That’d be a far cry fr. where we are now.

  3. What’s so disappointing about your commentary is the absurd one-sidedness and naivete of it. What do you *really* think is going on in Lebanon? What NPR tells you is going on? Or is it that hard to see the greater geo-political forces at work here? Do you think a bunch of bearded fascists and their burka wearing side kicks came up with their own missiles capable of hitting Haifa? UAVs loaded with explosives? 12,000 Katyushas? Clearly there must be greater forces at work yet you seem to only be able to blame yourself, the Jews and Israel. Your self loathing peacenik philosophy has already led to the deaths of hundreds and the further empowerment of a philosophy, Islamofascism, that threatens our entire civilization.

    Also, you misunderstand the attitude of the Arab world. These people understand only force. They are not like you. They don’t care about their kids. They have been force fed and socialized hatred since birth. Making nice with them doesn’t work and Israel (and Europe) have proven that repeatedly. They need a punch in the mouth when they kick you. Israel has played the conciliatory, make peace card over and over. It has just made things worse. You can sit in your Seattle house safe and quiet and preach your pacifist pap all you want but common sense says that this is not a war that Israel started but it is one, if you care about the existence of a Jewish state in the future, that they need to win decisively.

  4. Your naive comments are startling. I must say — I’m probably not the first — that calling your site Tikkun Olam is incredibly arrogant for it arrogates to yourself a moral superiority and implies that those who support Israeli conduct support wounding the world. Abbas took no steps to stop suicide bombings and only condemned tactics not their immorality. Though deemed a moderate, he has never stated that he supports a two-state solution and a Jewish Israel, always supporting a full right of return. Israel regrets civilian deaths and Israel’s reaction may well be over the top. But you have consistently failed to provide a realistic approach – how to stop the Hamas rockets, for example. No other country would have stood idly by and permitted such attacks to go unanswered. If Israel engaged in a prisoner swap, why wouldn’t that lead to additional kidnappings, etc. and more swaps. I too worry that things may get out of control, but it is quite clear that in times of crisis Israel has few allies other than the U.S. Tikkun Olam is not a Jewish suicide pact.

  5. calling your site Tikkun Olam is incredibly arrogant for it arrogates to yourself a moral superiority and implies that those who support Israeli conduct support wounding the world

    PUH-LEEZE! You’re doing the dramatic equivalent of chewing the scenery. My blog’s title speak to my values & the mission of my blog. The title makes no reference to Israel whatsoever. Go read my About Me pg. & look for any connection I make bet. the 2 ( you won’t find one).

    he [Abbas] has never stated that he supports a two-state solution and a Jewish Israel

    You don’t know shit fr. shinola. He’s the leader of Fatah which endorses the Oslo accords which specifically refer to a 2 state solution. Where’d you come up w. this stuff?

    you have consistently failed to provide a realistic approach – how to stop the Hamas rockets, for example

    Oh dear, oh drear. Read the damn blog if you want my prescriptions. I’ll do you one better than describing how to stop the rockets. I’ll tell you how to resolve the entire conflict. Announce you’re entering into final status talks w. Abbas immediately. That’d bring all the other crap up short right quick. Of course, it’s a bit more complicated than that. But if you want my full prescription for peace it’s right there in my previous posts. Do a search and you’ll find it. I didn’t say I expect you to agree w. it. Just that I have provided a ‘realistic approach.’ In fact, my approach is reasonably close to the one that will eventually bring peace to the region when it finally does come.

    If Israel engaged in a prisoner swap, why wouldn’t that lead to additional kidnappings, etc. and more swaps

    Israel HAS engaged in prisoner swaps before. This is nothing new. The policy of refusing to negotiate a prisoner swap which Olmert has introduced is a radical shift from traditional Israeli policy. Kidnappings happen because the wider conflict is so deeply unstable. If Israel didn’t throw gasoline on the fire with targeted killings & heinous murders of innocent civilians, Israel wouldn’t provoke the massive escalation which we’ve seen.

    too worry that things may get out of control,

    I’m pleased to know that. You should worry. They already are out of control & things can only get worse.

  6. NT:

    you seem to only be able to blame yourself, the Jews and Israel.

    Not on your life, buddy. I don’t blame myself and I don’t blame “Jews.” Of course, I blame Israel as I blame Hamas and Hezbollah. You seem to have left all that out of your slipshod bashing of my position.

    Your self loathing peacenik philosophy has already led to the deaths of hundreds and the further empowerment of a philosophy, Islamofascism, that threatens our entire civilization.

    Let me guess where you’ve been spending your time online: Little Green Footballs? Frontpagemagazine? I always admire the grandiosity of delusion of such a paranoid world view.

    you misunderstand the attitude of the Arab world

    And I do so love it when the LGFers try to ‘educate’ us about the “attitude” of Arabs. They’re just so full of enlightenment it almost hurts to watch the shining light of certainty in their eyes.

    They are not like you.

    Indeed they’re not. Somewhere between the lizards and simians in the evolutionary chain.

    They don’t care about their kids.

    Certainly not. Those photographic images I feature here of Palestinians mourning the deaths of their parents, siblings & children are mere crocodile tears. We all know that Arabs eat nails for breakfast and spit bullets at the first Israeli they see.

    They have been force fed and socialized hatred since birth.

    I can’t believe the cogency of this guy/gal’s argument. What a gift s/he is to this debate. Certainly Arab’s have been fed hatred with their mother’s milk (I think we can agree that they did HAVE mothers, can’t we?), while we Israelis and Jews are fed a diet of nothing but love for our neighbors.

    They need a punch in the mouth when they kick you.

    And such a master of diplomacy. Why don’t you run for prime minister? Israel needs someone with your sophistication to manage its policies toward the Palestinians.

    Israel has played the conciliatory, make peace card

    Yup. Those bombs raining down on Beirut have happy faces and “Make love, not war” painted all over them.

    common sense says that this is not a war that Israel started but it is one, if you care about the existence of a Jewish state in the future, that they need to win decisively.

    No, insanity says this is a war that Israel can or will win. “Common sense” says that this is a war that Israel cannot win just as we cannot win in Iraq and the could not win in Vietnam. Common sense says we must negotiate a way out of this mess. Even Israeli generals and Shin Bet directors are saying this (if you’d bother to read their words here). Are the generals and spooks talking “pacifist pap” too?

  7. Richard,

    Just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate your blog. I’ve learned an enormous amount from Tikkun the past few weeks.

    Don’t let the trolls get you down.

  8. Thanks Peter for yr. encouragement. As for the trolls, it comes with the territory. They’re all very distressed by the violence in Israel and either looking for like-minded souls w. who to take comfort or else looking for the enemy to attack. In the former case, they’re rudely brought up short by someone who cares about Israel but hates its current policy; & in the latter I guess they come to the right place to dump the trash.

  9. Tears came to my eyes at breakfast this morning while reading the L.A.Times. The article referred to the broken dreams of Beiruth citizens who have painsakingly been restoring Beiruth to its former glory as the Paris of the Mideast.

    Israeli bombings, as of this date, the 16th, has destroyed 50 bridges in the country. How is this supposed to bring back the prisoners held by Hezbollah? How long will it take, and how much will it cost to rebuild them?

    Iarael, with its overpowering military might, is the neighborhood bully that I recall from my childhood.

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