On Israel and ‘Root Causes’

 

According to today’s Hamasophiles, Gaza’s leadership is justified in their terror attacks against Israel because “Zionists stole their land.” Before that, the British “stole their land,” which they seem to forget.

Of course, the Brits stole the land from the Ottoman Empire in the first world war. Well, kind of. The sultan decided the region wasn’t populated enough, so he imported Arab Muslims from other regions, such as Yemen and Syria, creating many of today’s “Palestinians.” In other words, Gaza’s ancestors stole it from the Arabs, Jews, and Christians who already lived in the region.

The Ottomans stole it from the Egyptian Mamluks, who inherited it from Egypt’s Ayyubids, who had stolen it from Frankish Crusaders. Those short-lived Christian rulers had stolen it from Fatimid Caliphate, which was preceded by several other caliphates. Which had stolen it from the Byzantine/Roman Empire.

Before that, Rome stole it from the Jews, who stole it from the Greeks, who stole it from the Jews, who were given it by the Neo-Babylonians, who had stolen it from the Assyrians, who had stolen it from the Jews.

People who rely on root causes always stop the historiography the second they discover a group they don’t like. Funny how that works.

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  1. Zafar Member
    Zafar
    @Zafar

    Hartmann von Aue (View Comment):

    Repeating blood libels, that Jews did the killing of Druze and Lebanese in the war in 82  and lies about well poisoning  do not help your case.

    Sigh.

    From the link:

    There were 17,825 persons killed and another 30,203 wounded during the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, according to a detailed survey of police and hospital records conducted by the independent Beirut newspaper An Nahar.

    The newspaper, the most respected in the Arab world, said today that the highest death toll occurred in southern Lebanon where 1,709 civilians and 5,862 troops from the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Syrian Army and Lebanese private militias were killed. The figure for Beirut and its suburbs was 5,515 killed, but no breakdown between military and civilian deaths was available.

    Sabra and Chatila are in Beirut.

    (Anyway, there are at least two really excellent Israeli films about the 1982 war: Lebanon and Waltz With Bashir.)

    Wrt poisoning wells, you can take it up with the (Zionist) historian Benny Morris.

    “Vilifying Palestinians for being human” … uh, no. I’m attacking those among them who are Islamonazis

    Dude, if Israel keeps bombing Palestinians in Gaza (or the Lebanese in Lebanon) chances are that the victims will blame Israel rather than Hamas or Hezbollah.  That’s human nature.

    Whether those doing the bombing wear a uniform or not seems unlikely to change that.

    • #31
  2. Zafar Member
    Zafar
    @Zafar

    lowtech redneck (View Comment):
    The PA/PLO ‘failed’ before they began by giving the Palestinians false hopes or expectations about the refugees

    You could say that about the Oslo Process I guess.

    • #32
  3. Charles Mark Member
    Charles Mark
    @CharlesMark

     Israel has managed to create a multi-ethnic, prosperous State which has offered a refuge to Jews displaced by Europeans and Muslim countries. With its significant Muslim minority, it has proven that co-existence within borders can work, even if it is strained from time to time. 

    If Palestinians could learn from this example, and create a State with a Jewish minority which has similar status to the Muslin minority in Israel, and would engage diplomatically and economically with Israel, there could be peace and prosperity for all. 

    Palestinian rejectionism is the root cause of the conflict, and is exacerbated by the use of Palestinians as pawns by Iran. 

    • #33
  4. Western Chauvinist Member
    Western Chauvinist
    @WesternChauvinist

    Charles Mark (View Comment):
    Palestinian rejectionism. . . 

    . . . and envy. The West, generally, is under attack because of its prosperity and success. And a lot of it is coming from inside. The Left and its allies are all about envy and resentment, which is why Palestinians can never make peace with Israel no matter what Israel offers. 

    • #34
  5. Western Chauvinist Member
    Western Chauvinist
    @WesternChauvinist

    Jon Gabriel, Ed.: Before that, Rome stole it from the Jews, who stole it from the Greeks, who stole it from the Jews, who were given it by the Neo-Babylonians, who had stolen it from the Assyrians, who had stolen it from the Jews.

    Yes, and the Jews first stole it from the Canaanites, but you don’t hear them complaining. . .

    Of course, most of them were displaced — right off the planet. 

    • #35
  6. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Zafar (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):
    Yabut how is defending Palestinian Rights meaningfully countered by a take down of Hamas? It’s a misdirect, possibly unconscious/unintentional, but a misdirect nonetheless.

    How is it done without taking Hamas down?

    I won’t argue, but that would take more than a ‘take down’. Can Hamas be taken down without taking Palestinians out? That’s the question.

    No, because they use human shields – they hide among their people and even place their people in situations where they will be killed, all done to hinder the military operations of the more civilized Israelis. It is time to blame Hamas for their tactics and for Israel to conduct the war as it must to win.

    • #36
  7. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    TBA (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):
    Yabut how is defending Palestinian Rights meaningfully countered by a take down of Hamas? It’s a misdirect, possibly unconscious/unintentional, but a misdirect nonetheless.

    How is it done without taking Hamas down?

    I won’t argue, but that would take more than a ‘take down’. Can Hamas be taken down without taking Palestinians out? That’s the question.

    That depends largely on what percentage of Palestinians are Hamas.

    No. Israel is in no position to sort them • only Palestinians can do that.

    • #37
  8. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Zafar (View Comment):

    TBA (View Comment):

    I won’t argue, but that would take more than a ‘take down’. Can Hamas be taken down without taking Palestinians out? That’s the question.

    That depends largely on what percentage of Palestinians are Hamas.

    Indeed, and why. Hamas is a result, not a root cause.

    Edited to add:

    It’s worth asking why Hamas has grown in influence. When the Oslo Accords were signed it was the Left leaning secular PLO that was dominant in Palestinian politics. The PLO still runs the Palestinian Authority, but has just about zero influence. How did that happen? Why?

    (And why think about it? Because it would be a lot better imho if Israel was dealing with the PLO in Gaza rather than Hamas. The situation today in Gaza was inevitable, frankly, once Hamas attacked Israel, took hostages and killed civilians. It has to be more than a battle for fickle Western public opinion. But what?)

    anti-Semitism is the root cause. After the massacre, the way to end it is to wipe out Hamas.

    • #38
  9. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Zafar (View Comment):

    lowtech redneck (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    TBA (View Comment):

    I won’t argue, but that would take more than a ‘take down’. Can Hamas be taken down without taking Palestinians out? That’s the question.

    That depends largely on what percentage of Palestinians are Hamas.

    Indeed, and why. Hamas is a result, not a root cause.

    If that were true, the Anatolian Greeks and East European Germans (among many others) would be so obsessed with murdering Turks or Russians that they would also be a sick and dysfunctional society unable to cut their losses and make the best of their circumstances.

    Hamas is the result of ideology, indoctrination, and choices, not the inevitable result of past and current events.

    But Hamas’ dominance was not inevitable.

    It was made inevitable by Israel’s forbearance. Time to kill or be killed. There is now a state of war. There is no going back. Let’s hope the war doesn’t spread.

    • #39
  10. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Zafar (View Comment):

    TBA (View Comment):

    If you want to say that Palestinians are the victims of their own government I’m not going to fight you.

    They’re spoiled for choice.

    Probably the only solution to the problem of an elected government that forgets to have new elections is…Israel.

    ?

    All your solutions are irrelevant after the massacre. A state of war exists. 

    • #40
  11. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Zafar (View Comment):

    Hartmann von Aue (View Comment):

    Repeating blood libels, that Jews did the killing of Druze and Lebanese in the war in 82 and lies about well poisoning do not help your case.

    Sigh.

    From the link:

    There were 17,825 persons killed and another 30,203 wounded during the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, according to a detailed survey of police and hospital records conducted by the independent Beirut newspaper An Nahar.

    The newspaper, the most respected in the Arab world, said today that the highest death toll occurred in southern Lebanon where 1,709 civilians and 5,862 troops from the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Syrian Army and Lebanese private militias were killed. The figure for Beirut and its suburbs was 5,515 killed, but no breakdown between military and civilian deaths was available.

    Sabra and Chatila are in Beirut.

    (Anyway, there are at least two really excellent Israeli films about the 1982 war: Lebanon and Waltz With Bashir.)

    Wrt poisoning wells, you can take it up with the (Zionist) historian Benny Morris.

    “Vilifying Palestinians for being human” … uh, no. I’m attacking those among them who are Islamonazis

    Dude, if Israel keeps bombing Palestinians in Gaza (or the Lebanese in Lebanon) chances are that the victims will blame Israel rather than Hamas or Hezbollah. That’s human nature.

    Whether those doing the bombing wear a uniform or not seems unlikely to change that.

    Irrelevant. They are at war.

    • #41
  12. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Western Chauvinist (View Comment):

    Charles Mark (View Comment):
    Palestinian rejectionism. . .

    . . . and envy. The West, generally, is under attack because of its prosperity and success. And a lot of it is coming from inside. The Left and its allies are all about envy and resentment, which is why Palestinians can never make peace with Israel no matter what Israel offers.

    Exactly. The success of the west creates a stark contrast with the failed Islamic societies.

    • #42
  13. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    TBA (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    TBA (View Comment):

    If you want to say that Palestinians are the victims of their own government I’m not going to fight you.

    They’re spoiled for choice.

    Probably the only solution to the problem of an elected government that forgets to have new elections is…Israel.

    ?

    When they erase Hamas, Palestine can choose new leaders.

    In normal wars before the 20th century, the victor assumed the spoils, controlled the land, and dictated the governance.

    • #43
  14. Paul Stinchfield Member
    Paul Stinchfield
    @PaulStinchfield

    Red Herring (View Comment):

    Western Chauvinist (View Comment):

    Charles Mark (View Comment):
    Palestinian rejectionism. . .

    . . . and envy. The West, generally, is under attack because of its prosperity and success. And a lot of it is coming from inside. The Left and its allies are all about envy and resentment, which is why Palestinians can never make peace with Israel no matter what Israel offers.

    Exactly. The success of the west creates a stark contrast with the failed Islamic societies.

    Toxic envy is a common human sin. But the Koran magnifies this by declaring that non-Muslims are inferior and that Jews are particularly contemptible naturally inferior creatures. Thus, non-Muslims succeeding in commerce and scholarship and war shames Muslims. Christian and Jewish prosperity has been a recurring motive for Muslim pogroms against “infidels”.

    • #44
  15. Paul Stinchfield Member
    Paul Stinchfield
    @PaulStinchfield

    Red Herring (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):
    Yabut how is defending Palestinian Rights meaningfully countered by a take down of Hamas? It’s a misdirect, possibly unconscious/unintentional, but a misdirect nonetheless.

    How is it done without taking Hamas down?

    I won’t argue, but that would take more than a ‘take down’. Can Hamas be taken down without taking Palestinians out? That’s the question.

    No, because they use human shields – they hide among their people and even place their people in situations where they will be killed, all done to hinder the military operations of the more civilized Israelis. It is time to blame Hamas for their tactics and for Israel to conduct the war as it must to win.

    Zafar keeps dodging this key point.

    • #45
  16. Miffed White Male Member
    Miffed White Male
    @MiffedWhiteMale

    Zafar (View Comment):

    from the river to the sea…

    Means lift the occupation.  That’s what it means.

    No it does not.  It means the elimination of Israel.

    • #46
  17. Miffed White Male Member
    Miffed White Male
    @MiffedWhiteMale

    Zafar (View Comment):

    Dude, if Israel keeps bombing Palestinians in Gaza (or the Lebanese in Lebanon) chances are that the victims will blame Israel rather than Hamas or Hezbollah.  That’s human nature.

    Whether those doing the bombing wear a uniform or not seems unlikely to change that.

    And what about the Israelis who are the targets of the rockets routinely launched from Gaza?

    • #47
  18. Scott Wilmot Member
    Scott Wilmot
    @ScottWilmot

    Red Herring (View Comment):
    Exactly. The success of the west creates a stark contrast with the failed Islamic societies.

    Paul Stinchfield (View Comment):
    Toxic envy is a common human sin. But the Koran magnifies this by declaring that non-Muslims are inferior and that Jews are particularly contemptible naturally inferior creatures. Thus, non-Muslims succeeding in commerce and scholarship and war shames Muslims. Christian and Jewish prosperity has been a recurring motive for Muslim pogroms against “infidels”.

    Yes. Islam is the problem. The bad actors in the area (Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, Qatar, Yemen) do it in the name of Islam. When will the world acknowledge this? Instead, our weaklings in DC worry about “Islamicphobia” as our idiot President calls it. 

    • #48
  19. Paul Stinchfield Member
    Paul Stinchfield
    @PaulStinchfield

    Paul Stinchfield (View Comment):

    Red Herring (View Comment):

    Western Chauvinist (View Comment):

    Charles Mark (View Comment):
    Palestinian rejectionism. . .

    . . . and envy. The West, generally, is under attack because of its prosperity and success. And a lot of it is coming from inside. The Left and its allies are all about envy and resentment, which is why Palestinians can never make peace with Israel no matter what Israel offers.

    Exactly. The success of the west creates a stark contrast with the failed Islamic societies.

    Toxic envy is a common human sin. But the Koran magnifies this by declaring that non-Muslims are inferior and that Jews are particularly contemptible naturally inferior creatures. Thus, non-Muslims succeeding in commerce and scholarship and war shames Muslims. Christian and Jewish prosperity has been a recurring motive for Muslim pogroms against “infidels”.

    And even more shameful than being defeated in war by those “inferior” Jews: Being killed in battle by Jewish women!

    • #49
  20. Old Bathos Member
    Old Bathos
    @OldBathos

    You left out the Philistines, the Hittites and the Egyptians.

    Peaceful engagement with Israelis instead of opting to follow overly corrupt leaders of a death cult could have elevated the entire region and make borders irrelevant to quality of life. The Palestinians consistently choose poorly. And when they danced and passed out candy to their kids on 9/11 they forfeited any and all claims on my sympathies.

    • #50
  21. Bryan G. Stephens Thatcher
    Bryan G. Stephens
    @BryanGStephens

    Miffed White Male (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    from the river to the sea…

    Means lift the occupation. That’s what it means.

    No it does not. It means the elimination of Israel.

    Zafar is confused by the actual  words said by them. 

    It is like reading Mein Kamph and interpreting it generously. 

    • #51
  22. GrannyDude Member
    GrannyDude
    @GrannyDude

    Zafar (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):
    Yabut how is defending Palestinian Rights meaningfully countered by a take down of Hamas? It’s a misdirect, possibly unconscious/unintentional, but a misdirect nonetheless.

    How is it done without taking Hamas down?

    I won’t argue, but that would take more than a ‘take down’. Can Hamas be taken down without taking Palestinians out? That’s the question.

    Can the Palestinians have what they want without taking Israelis out? That’s another question. 

    • #52
  23. TBA Coolidge
    TBA
    @RobtGilsdorf

    GrannyDude (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):
    Yabut how is defending Palestinian Rights meaningfully countered by a take down of Hamas? It’s a misdirect, possibly unconscious/unintentional, but a misdirect nonetheless.

    How is it done without taking Hamas down?

    I won’t argue, but that would take more than a ‘take down’. Can Hamas be taken down without taking Palestinians out? That’s the question.

    Can the Palestinians have what they want without taking Israelis out? That’s another question.

    If all the Jews left I suppose they would be ‘satisfied’. 

    • #53
  24. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    TBA (View Comment):
    If all the Jews left I suppose they would be ‘satisfied’. 

    Not a chance. If alive, they could come back.

    • #54
  25. Paul Stinchfield Member
    Paul Stinchfield
    @PaulStinchfield

    TBA (View Comment):

    GrannyDude (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):
    Yabut how is defending Palestinian Rights meaningfully countered by a take down of Hamas? It’s a misdirect, possibly unconscious/unintentional, but a misdirect nonetheless.

    How is it done without taking Hamas down?

    I won’t argue, but that would take more than a ‘take down’. Can Hamas be taken down without taking Palestinians out? That’s the question.

    Can the Palestinians have what they want without taking Israelis out? That’s another question.

    If all the Jews left I suppose they would be ‘satisfied’.

    They would continue to murder Jews in every part of the world. Just as they would continue to teach their children to hate Jews and seek their annihilation.

    • #55
  26. Zafar Member
    Zafar
    @Zafar

    Miffed White Male (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    from the river to the sea…

    Means lift the occupation. That’s what it means.

    No it does not. It means the elimination of Israel.

    If Israel’s existence depends on the occupation.  Does it?

    Miffed White Male (View Comment):

    And what about the Israelis who are the targets of the rockets routinely launched from Gaza?

    They surely blame Hamas.

    • #56
  27. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Zafar (View Comment):

    Miffed White Male (View Comment):

    Zafar (View Comment):

    from the river to the sea…

    Means lift the occupation. That’s what it means.

    No it does not. It means the elimination of Israel.

    If Israel’s existence depends on the occupation. Does it?

    Miffed White Male (View Comment):

    And what about the Israelis who are the targets of the rockets routinely launched from Gaza?

    They surely blame Hamas.

    Define “occupation.”

    • #57
  28. Zafar Member
    Zafar
    @Zafar

    GrannyDude (View Comment):

    Can the Palestinians have what they want without taking Israelis out? That’s another question.

    The PLO definitely can (hence Arafat signing the Oslo Accords), Hamas…claims it can, but who knows?

    As for why we’re where we are 30 years after Oslo was signed:

    Rabin was assassinated (a la Sadat) a year or so after signing, and then it was ‘campaigned against Oslo’ Netanyahu who was the  ‘negotiating’ Israeli PM.  All while his governing coalition was dependent on parties that were deeply opposed to any compromise on borders, refugees or Jerusalem.

    For easy reference:

    On September 13, 1993, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Negotiator Mahmoud Abbas signed a Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements, commonly referred to as the “Oslo Accord,” at the White House. Israel accepted the PLO as the representative of the Palestinians, and the PLO renounced terrorism and recognized Israel’s right to exist in peace. Both sides agreed that a Palestinian Authority (PA) would be established and assume governing responsibilities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip over a five-year period. Then, permanent status talks on the issues of borders, refugees, and Jerusalem would be held.

    Fwiw the PA is still officially committed to recognising Israel and sorting out (1) borders, (2) refugees and (3) Jerusalem.  Likud, however, is committed to NO Palestinian state.

    Hence, imo, Hamas. 

    Amira Hass, the only  Israeli journalist to have lived and reported from Gaza, lays it out.

    • #58
  29. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Zafar (View Comment):

    GrannyDude (View Comment):

    Can the Palestinians have what they want without taking Israelis out? That’s another question.

    The PLO definitely can (hence Arafat signing the Oslo Accords), Hamas…claims it can, but who knows?

    As for why we’re where we are 30 years after Oslo was signed:

    Rabin was assassinated (a la Sadat) a year or so after signing, and then it was ‘campaigned against Oslo’ Netanyahu who was the ‘negotiating’ Israeli PM. All while his governing coalition was dependent on parties that were deeply opposed to any compromise on borders, refugees or Jerusalem.

    For easy reference:

    On September 13, 1993, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Negotiator Mahmoud Abbas signed a Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements, commonly referred to as the “Oslo Accord,” at the White House. Israel accepted the PLO as the representative of the Palestinians, and the PLO renounced terrorism and recognized Israel’s right to exist in peace. Both sides agreed that a Palestinian Authority (PA) would be established and assume governing responsibilities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip over a five-year period. Then, permanent status talks on the issues of borders, refugees, and Jerusalem would be held.

    Fwiw the PA is still officially committed to recognising Israel and sorting out (1) borders, (2) refugees and (3) Jerusalem. Likud, however, is committed to NO Palestinian state.

    Hence, imo, Hamas.

    Amira Hass, the only Israeli journalist to have lived and reported from Gaza, lays it out.

    The PLO wasn’t serious, either. 

    • #59
  30. Red Herring Coolidge
    Red Herring
    @EHerring

    Zafar (View Comment):

    GrannyDude (View Comment):

    Can the Palestinians have what they want without taking Israelis out? That’s another question.

    The PLO definitely can (hence Arafat signing the Oslo Accords), Hamas…claims it can, but who knows?

    As for why we’re where we are 30 years after Oslo was signed:

    Rabin was assassinated (a la Sadat) a year or so after signing, and then it was ‘campaigned against Oslo’ Netanyahu who was the ‘negotiating’ Israeli PM. All while his governing coalition was dependent on parties that were deeply opposed to any compromise on borders, refugees or Jerusalem.

    For easy reference:

    On September 13, 1993, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Negotiator Mahmoud Abbas signed a Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements, commonly referred to as the “Oslo Accord,” at the White House. Israel accepted the PLO as the representative of the Palestinians, and the PLO renounced terrorism and recognized Israel’s right to exist in peace. Both sides agreed that a Palestinian Authority (PA) would be established and assume governing responsibilities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip over a five-year period. Then, permanent status talks on the issues of borders, refugees, and Jerusalem would be held.

    Fwiw the PA is still officially committed to recognising Israel and sorting out (1) borders, (2) refugees and (3) Jerusalem. Likud, however, is committed to NO Palestinian state.

    Hence, imo, Hamas.

    Amira Hass, the only Israeli journalist to have lived and reported from Gaza, lays it out.

    BS

    • #60
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