Before October 7, there were organizations working to bring young Israelis and Palestinians together, socially, to know each other as people. There were budding economic ties between Israel and the Arabic nations. Those are some of the reasons for the attack, in fact. They couldn't stand to see peaceful ties and nascent friendships.
Before October 7, there were organizations working to bring young Israelis and Palestinians together, socially, to know each other as people. There were budding economic ties between Israel and the Arabic nations. Those are some of the reasons for the attack, in fact. They couldn't stand to see peaceful ties and nascent friendships.
Netanyahu has a long dark history of at least fairly covert machinations which set up the conditions for October 7, and had just recently begun to stage a take over of the full reins of power much as is happening in our country, but with alterations in accordance with the differences in our governmental structures. He clearly knew the judiciary was key.
I seem to have gotten myself "in trouble" and ignored by one of the prime newsletter authors by opining shortly after October 7 that we should provide all the defense Israel required, and offense that could be used in a carefully applied manner, but nothing used to indiscriminately flatten Gaza and civilians. Interestingly, my best friend since early childhood who is an American practicing Jew finds no real airspace between our opinions. That's just one person, but one I know would feel entirely free to enlighten me as needed. They feel closely aligned with pro-peace Israelis, have quite a bit of anger against West Bank "colonizers" and feel strongly that Netanyahu has badly damaged Israel's legitimacy in the world's eyes and must go. They viewed him in much the same way they view Trump... as do I.
Which brings me to the point that although I utterly deplore the violence and "accidental" loss of civilian life in Gaza, believe the behavior of the IDF in Gaza reveals a degree of "attitude education" poisoning too many who have been forced to participate in the violence as part of the IDF, and am disgusted by those Israeli citizens who force Palestinians off generational land, kill their flocks which are their livelihood in a harsh land, and take what is not legally or rightfully theirs, I try hard to remember there are Israeli citizens who are as horrified by all this as I am. I try very hard (and often enough probably fail) to remember to distinguish between Netanyahu and Israel or Israelis as a whole, where fairness calls for it. Probably I relate because of four regrettable years of seeing the world revise their opinion of America due to Trump. I do think, sadly, Netanyahu is discrediting the whole nation of Israel in the world's eyes, and that like America under Trump a nation's leadership can taint the morals and worldview of some subset of the population. They need to get rid of Netanyahu and we need to finally rid ourselves of Trump.
As an American practicing Jew myself, and a strong supporter of Israel at its best and its middling, I agree with every word you wrote.
Many of the people murdered on October 7 were peace activists who had continued to work for peace with their friends in Gaza despite the many obstacles. Vivian Silver, a friend of friends of mine, was at first thought captured; then discovered to have been burned to death in her home. Killing peace activists may have been one of Hamas' goals in the attack.
Friends of mine in Tel Aviv spent most of their Saturday nights for half a year at the anti-right-wing protests, which drew hundreds of thousands of Israelis. Now the protests are on behalf of bringing the hostages home and ending the war in Gaza.
Oh, I am so sorry. I remember her in video and remember how they found her, and that was horrible beyond words, beyond imagination... an enormous loss to the better world we could be.
Before October 7, there were organizations working to bring young Israelis and Palestinians together, socially, to know each other as people. There were budding economic ties between Israel and the Arabic nations. Those are some of the reasons for the attack, in fact. They couldn't stand to see peaceful ties and nascent friendships.
Netanyahu has a long dark history of at least fairly covert machinations which set up the conditions for October 7, and had just recently begun to stage a take over of the full reins of power much as is happening in our country, but with alterations in accordance with the differences in our governmental structures. He clearly knew the judiciary was key.
I seem to have gotten myself "in trouble" and ignored by one of the prime newsletter authors by opining shortly after October 7 that we should provide all the defense Israel required, and offense that could be used in a carefully applied manner, but nothing used to indiscriminately flatten Gaza and civilians. Interestingly, my best friend since early childhood who is an American practicing Jew finds no real airspace between our opinions. That's just one person, but one I know would feel entirely free to enlighten me as needed. They feel closely aligned with pro-peace Israelis, have quite a bit of anger against West Bank "colonizers" and feel strongly that Netanyahu has badly damaged Israel's legitimacy in the world's eyes and must go. They viewed him in much the same way they view Trump... as do I.
Which brings me to the point that although I utterly deplore the violence and "accidental" loss of civilian life in Gaza, believe the behavior of the IDF in Gaza reveals a degree of "attitude education" poisoning too many who have been forced to participate in the violence as part of the IDF, and am disgusted by those Israeli citizens who force Palestinians off generational land, kill their flocks which are their livelihood in a harsh land, and take what is not legally or rightfully theirs, I try hard to remember there are Israeli citizens who are as horrified by all this as I am. I try very hard (and often enough probably fail) to remember to distinguish between Netanyahu and Israel or Israelis as a whole, where fairness calls for it. Probably I relate because of four regrettable years of seeing the world revise their opinion of America due to Trump. I do think, sadly, Netanyahu is discrediting the whole nation of Israel in the world's eyes, and that like America under Trump a nation's leadership can taint the morals and worldview of some subset of the population. They need to get rid of Netanyahu and we need to finally rid ourselves of Trump.
As an American practicing Jew myself, and a strong supporter of Israel at its best and its middling, I agree with every word you wrote.
Many of the people murdered on October 7 were peace activists who had continued to work for peace with their friends in Gaza despite the many obstacles. Vivian Silver, a friend of friends of mine, was at first thought captured; then discovered to have been burned to death in her home. Killing peace activists may have been one of Hamas' goals in the attack.
Friends of mine in Tel Aviv spent most of their Saturday nights for half a year at the anti-right-wing protests, which drew hundreds of thousands of Israelis. Now the protests are on behalf of bringing the hostages home and ending the war in Gaza.
Oh, I am so sorry. I remember her in video and remember how they found her, and that was horrible beyond words, beyond imagination... an enormous loss to the better world we could be.
thank you