Chamblee54

This content was published January 12, 2009. … In Gaza, Israel continues to extract an eye for an eyelash. … I am not a moral statistician. If this sort of overwhelming reaction is needed for Israel to survive, then so be it. The question does arise, is this war in the best interest of Israel?
There is a feature about civilian casualties by Michael Totten. He supports Israel. He says about the current fuss: ”Innocents as well as combatants die in every war. If you have nothing to object to besides that, then you should oppose the war against Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan for the same reason.” The war may change, but the rhetoric remains the same.
Not everyone thinks the war in Afghanistan is a great idea. It was launched as revenge for 911. Seven years later, there is no easy way out. The people of Afghanistan have been invaded many times, and do not greet invading armies as liberators. They whipped the Soviet Union. This defeat was a factor in the collapse of that “evil empire”.
There is another thing being said about Gaza that applies to Afghanistan. James Fallows writes about “a situation in which short-term tactical victories may lead to long-term strategic defeat”. … Yes, the IDF is winning, militarily. They are also losing the strategic war. In Afghanistan, the Taliban was quickly driven from power, but much of the countryside remains in hostile hands. Al Queda was not destroyed. If the war in Afghanistan spills over into Pakistan, and destabilizes this nuclear-armed Muslim country, the result could make Gaza look like a sunday school picnic.
This content was published January 17, 2009. … There is a featured blog on the WordPress home today called Pak Alert Press. They posted a feature on January 7 titled “Israel Created Hamas to Split Palestine”. The thesis is that Israel helped to start Hamas as a tool, against the PLO and Fatah.
I do not claim to know everything about Palestine. This bit of revisionism does sound a bit far fetched. But the question does arise, what role did Israel play in the creation of Hamas? In the six day war, Israel gained control of Gaza. Israel occupied the territory for a while, and has had a great deal of control over it ever since. What did Israel do to prepare the Gazans for self government?
By all accounts, it was not a friendly occupation. Israel established settlements on Gazan territory, taking up twenty percent of the land. This is in one of the most densely populated regions on earth. … Is it surprising that a radical organization like Hamas exists? Would it exist if the Israeli treatment of the Gazans had been better during the occupation? Like many other things, the present state of affairs is a done deal. You cannot go back in time and create a better life for the Gazans … and ultimately, the Israelis. … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Marion Post Wolcott took the social media picture in September 1939. “R.B. Whitley, who was one of the first citizens of the town and is one of its leading citizens, owner of the general store, president of the bank, and owns a cotton mill nearby and a farm. He is a big land owner, owns Whitley-Davis farm and a cotton mill in Clayton. He said he cut down the trees and pulled the stumps out of the main street, and was the first man in that town of Wendell, Wake County, North Carolina” ©Luther Mckinnon 2025 · selah