Israel Warns of New 'Axis of Terror'

I think they are risking the sentiment towards the two-state solution because they do not believe that Israel has a right to exist. They want a one-state solution, with Palestine being that state.

This is so stupid, it makes me so sad.

Does it make you reconsider why you would be sympathetic to them?

No, because the people are still suffering, and I have no doubt that Israel will do something atrocious to retaliate. I'm sympathetic to Israel too, don't get me wrong. It's the actions of a few lunatics on both sides, they are making peace inconceivable.

Jesus Christ, Hamas. Get your @!$%# together.

I've always been sympathetic to the Palestinian cause, but this just kinda came out of nowhere. Don't they understand that things are going their way? That the general sentiment towards 2-state solution and an end to Israeli state terror is increasing? Why would they risk that?

This is so stupid, it makes me so sad.

So you're the Israelis. You have three choices: (1) Launch an all-out attack on the Palestinian people who elected terrorists to run their government and push them into the sea, (2) Launch isolated attacks on strategic assets within Palestinian controlled areas, knowing that occasionally you'll take out civilians who are (often unwittingly) being used as human shields, or (3) Seal off the border and cut off all financial payments to the newly forming government that insists on attacking you.

The Israeli response has generally been some combination of 2 and 3. Israel specifically does not want to push the Palestinians into the sea (or engage in any similar action that might resemble genocide), so 1 is never really considered as an option. Whether or not you like it, 3 is the least that Israel can do. Yes, Palestinians suffer horrible economic oppression when they can't get to their jobs across the border, but the Palestinian people have consistently refused to rise up against the corruption of Fatah or the violence of Hamas and their ilk.

Actions like today's attack only make it clearer that Israel is indeed acting with some level of restraint. The US would have engaged in carpet bombing of Gaza by now if it were in a similar situation...

Pardon my bluntness, but Israel is going to do something atrocious to those who perform the attacks, or help plan them and not innocent civilians.

If Israel bombed a restaurant full of innocents in return you'd have a case, but the Palestinians are the bad guys.... not the victims.

Well, Israel has launched enough rockets into enough apartment complexes at this point that we can't just say they're the "good guys," it's not that simple. If you look at the body count during this intifada, you'll see that Israel has killed 3x as many people as the terrorists have - and you're not gonna tell me that those were all "bad guys." Israel is not above killing 20 innocents if it'll help them get the one guy they want.

I just think the most important thing in this conflict is to keep a level head, and realize that it's not a simple situation with a simple solution.

What is most necessary in Palestine, I think, is education. That is the only weapon that can win against faith. Don't ask me how to implement it, though.

This is so stupid, it makes me so sad.

Mykola - One could read from your comments above that the only reason that the bombing should be condemned is because it is against the best political interests of Hamas. Otherwise, there is nothing wrong with it.

Why would they risk that?

Simple: there goal always has been and continues to be to inflict as much terror, death and mayhem as possible against the Israeli populace. They have never said otherwise.

Yaakov:

I don't mean to imply that the only thing wrong with blowing yourself up in a restaurant is that you're hurting the political opportunities open to those who funded your endeavor.

Rather, it makes me sad because this outburst of violence came during a relatively peaceful lull, and seems to be violence for the sake of violence. This disappointment is further aggravated by the fact that this was Hamas's first chance to come clean and try to be one of the good guys, but they let down everyone that was hoping for a new age of peace.

I don't hope for an unqualified political success for hamas - what I hope for is a Hamas that is politically viable, since it would necessarily be peaceful and open to progressive resolution. This is just bull@!$%#.

why doesn't Israel just take their army and steamroll the Palestinians into oblivion? It would be easy for them. The answer is because Israel seeks peace and wishes to show as much restraint as they can.

I agree with you, but you must admit that by doing so it would start WWIII. Its not restraint so much as it is the prevention of the destruction of the world.

Still, I agree. I think it is becoming obvious that the Palestinians use the ultra left to fight their verbal and political battles in Europe and the U.S., while using impressionable boys to fight their physical battles at home.

I actually know a Palestinian supporter who is getting upset over this and Iran's unwarranted "examination" of the holocaust because they expose the real truth of the issue, which is intolerance and hatred.

Lets just hope the bandwagon, protesting, NYU students learn this soon...

Here's the real question - why doesn't Isreal just take their army and steamroll the Palestinians into oblivion? It would be easy for them. The answer is because Israel seeks peace and wishes to show as much restraint as they can.

Because their paymasters, the USA, wouldn't let them. Israel exists primarily on US aid.

The Palestinians, as the news demonstrates, live entirely off of handouts as well. I suppose that means that they are being controlled by their funding parties?

I agree with you to the point about the actually people wanting peace. I don't think they do.

They elected Hamas.

They know full well what that means in terms of peace and the fruition of it. Hamas is the antithesis of peace at this point, and they were elected by the majority of voters.

What is telling about this is that it wasn't in "retaliation" for anything; it was straight out of the blue. I wouldn't say, as others have, that the Palestinian people don't want peace, but the established trend of Palestinian Gov't doesn't

Is there really a difference? In America we have a president doing things that 50% of the country don't agree with (maybe more but I'm not relying on polls). You have protests, people speaking out, people calling for his resignation, etc. And even with all this backlash, it would still be hard to say that the Americans don't want to invade Iraq but the President does. For better or worse, until he is out of office, he is America.

The same goes for the Palistinian people. The elected a regime that denounced terrorist attacks publicly to the world but praised them publicly to this people (I'm speaking about Arafat and the Fatah party). Then, when they saw that things weren't getting any better, they elected a government that praised terrorist attacks publicly to all. The time for pitying Palistinians is long gone. They dug their own hole. I hope the innocent ones hunker down and survive the military strikes that Israel should move forward with.

Question: Is Russia having second thoughts about sending a few more millions of dollars in support of a terrorist supporting government?

They might when the same terrorists blow themselves up in Chechnya (as if it weren't enough for them already). I can't imagine that Putin's hate for Israel extends beyond his hate for terrorists.

...and still somehow have sympathizers.

It's hard not to sympathize with the Palestinians when Israel acts like a jerk. :)

I don't see how Israel has been acting like a jerk. If anything, they've been too nice at times (not all the time, but in general). They have been trying to broker peace with Palistinians for decades all they get in return is suicide bombings. They keep offering and giving and get nothing in return.

Look where we are now vs. 15 years ago in Israel. 15 years ago, the Palistinian people didn't have a government and didn't have any land. Now they've got their own state practically with their own government. Israel 15 years ago was being suicide bombed constantly and was looking for a way to end the conflict and broker a peace deal. They're in the same position today. Israel has only given and received nothing in return except for empty promises.

I feel bad for Palistinians who are hungry and aren't receiving the medical care they need just like I feel bad for people in similar situations in Africa, South America, and elsewhere. But discounting the humanitarian suffering these people might be going through, I don't feel bad for them at all. They want everything and have given nothing.