Israel’s response is VERY disproportionate — on the basis of intent. Hamas’ goal is the complete and utter extermination of the state of Israel. (Read Hamas’ charter.) Israel’s intent is to get them to stop shooting.

If I walk up to someone three times my size and kick them in the shins and slap them in the face, I will not expect them to refrain from kicking my ass.

”Proportionate” is based on the idea that things should go back to the status quo. In this case, it means Hamas will cut back to only a couple of rockets and mortars a day. Sorry, NOT ACCEPTABLE.

J.

“Israel blames Hamas for primitive homemade rocket attacks on the nearby Israeli city of Sederot. In 2001-2008, these rockets killed about 15 Israelis and injured 433, and they have damaged property. In the same period, Gazan mortar attacks on Israel have killed 8 Israelis.

Since the Second Intifada broke out in 2000, Israelis have killed nearly 5000 Palestinians, nearly a thousand of them minors. Since fall of 2007, Israel has kept the 1.5 million Gazans under a blockade, interdicting food, fuel and medical supplies to one degree or another. Wreaking collective punishment on civilian populations such as hospital patients denied needed electricity is a crime of war.

The Israelis on Saturday killed 5% of all the Palestinians they have killed since the beginning of 2001! 230 people were slaughtered in a day, over 70 of them innocent civilians. In contrast, from the ceasefire Hamas announced in June, 2008 until Saturday, no Israelis had been killed by Hamas. The infliction of this sort of death toll is known in the law of war as a disproportionate response, and it is a war crime.

http://www.juancole.com/

Who, I believe, still holds at least one or two Israeli soldiers hostage.

Nope. Never saw that coming.

J.

“Israel knows too that Hamas would like to drag Egypt into it. And, who knows, it might work. At some level someone in Egypt is complicit in smuggling weapons into Gaza. Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, the main opposition party, still looks at Hamas as its Palestinian branch. Iran and Hizballah have been soliciting Egypt’s cooperation in more help for Gaza. Will Egyptian President Mubarak be able to hold the line, keep a lid on Gaza, when Israel itself can’t?

Count on it, Israel will do something to change the status quo in Gaza… what Israel sorely misses is the capacity to strike fear into its neighbors, deterrence. Lebanon is second on the neighborhood triage list.. The only reason Hizballah has not responded more forcefully is that the time is not right. But a war in nearby Gaza might just be the perfect time.”

http://www.time.com/time/world…..78,00.html

As predicted, “Iran Orders Muslims to Defend Palestinians”: “Echoing Khameini and Larijani’s hints, Borujerdi called Egypt out by name and censured the Arab nation for being the primary obstacle to Iran’s attempts to send aid to Gaza.”

http://www.ynetnews.com/articl…..19,00.html

http://www.nkusa.org/

Is this what you are part of? I do my research.

http://www.masortiyouth.org/noam

There are peace groups within Israel that horrified by what is happening. I am sure that you know that. Do you think that they are wrong? They certainly know what reality is. They have lived their research.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITI…..ef=topnews
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200…..us_mideast

Found this by Pelosi on Nov. 5/08. She says Obama must govern from the middle. If he goes too far left it might cause the loss of seats in 2010.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITI…..cnnSTCText

For December 28,2008 at http://www.zmag.org Znet site one will find two articles that are directly addressed to Israeli genocidal ambitions and Israeli conduct of past 36 hours in Gaza.

To be found at the Znet site,under 12/28 entries–

First article,titled “Stop The Massacre In Gaza–Boycott Israel Now!” was submitted by BNC on 12/28.

Second article,titled “Gaza Massacres Must Spur Us To Action” was submitted by Ali Abunimah on 12/28. A short excerpt from this article below–

” What the media never question is Israel’s idea of a truce. It is very simple. Under an Israeli-style truce,Palestinians have the right to remain silent while Israel starves them,kills them and continuess to violently colonize their land.”

— above excerpt from “Gaza Massacres Must Spur Us To Action”

What I would like to put to soon to be American President Barack Obama are three questions regarding where he stands on what Israel is doing to/in West Bank and Gaza based on above excerpt.

President Obama–are you for starving a people,killing a people in order to violently steal and colonize their land?

President Obama–will you go to Gaza in first week of your being American President–fully independent of any Israeli interference or meddling and see Gaza for yourself?

President Obama–will you do this?

President Obama can either display true moral/ethical authority or he can do more of what war criminal SOS Rice and all other Bush/Cheney regime war criminals have been greenlighting Israel on over and over.

If President Obama rises to this moral/ethical call to action good for him and all Americans.

If he does not then he becomes an American war criminal on Jan.20,2009 and he cannot escape his decision based on “not knowing” what Israel is doing or has done to/in West Bank and Gaza.

It is this simple.