Hamas Founder KILLED

[Docfeelgood]

A shame there aren't more Jews to produce the brand-new Auschwitz off-road.

Don't go there

[Fake Boris]

Originally posted by Docfeelgood
Don't go there

Why? I thought the camp was closed in 1945. Has George W. Bushb reopened it yet?

[DanS]

I wonder whether clearing out of Gaza without making it look like Hamas chased them from the land could have been done in a better fashion. This seems like a rather crude way of managing Palestinian perceptions, even if it is effective.

[Az]

Originally posted by paiktis22
Damn I wanted to visit the Holy Places this Passover

so, what's the problem?

[Az]

Then, I can understand and probably continue the assasinations if my overall goals were being met. Just remember that this could blow up in Israel's face.
If I were a leader of the Palestinians I would use Israel's assasinations to rally my people. Especially the ones who are on the fence to increase the amount of attacks. I would escalate the conflict until the other side was willing to halt their aggression and talk.

people on the fence? use the assassinations? What is exactly your source on the beliefs of the people on the streets?
They're already doing their best to "escalate" the conflict, that's the fricking point. Any claim like "we're going to bring pain to Israel" like they proclaim after each time they get pwned, is met by lots of rolleyes on our side.

[The Mad Monk]

Originally posted by Docfeelgood
Why give it back when they have all been exterminated

News of our extermination has been greatly exagerated.

[The Mad Monk]

Originally posted by DanS
I wonder whether clearing out of Gaza without making it look like Hamas chased them from the land could have been done in a better fashion. This seems like a rather crude way of managing Palestinian perceptions, even if it is effective.

The problem isn't the perception that Hamas is chasing them out; the problem is the reality that Hamas is now busy driving what's left of the PA out.

Hamas has been trying to make Gaza its own, independent of Arafat's PA.

[Az]

Hamas is still GREATLY outnumbered. That's why they don't stage a takeover: their numbers are 1:10 against the palestinians ( 1:20 against the Israelis. )

[Gatekeeper]

Originally posted by Comrade Tassadar
China and Pakistan are very close.

Realpolitik is a wonderful thing, is it not?

[Nubclear]

As long as India is still there, Pakistan will continue to be a Chinese ally.

[Zevico]

quote:
Originally posted by paiktis22
Damn I wanted to visit the Holy Places this Passover

Originally posted by Azazel
so, what's the problem?

What Azazel means to say is: it won't get any worse than it is now. Hamas getting its leader killed won't let it magically conjure up more suicide bombings or bombers. So if you were planning on going to Israel, the same risk exists now as before.

[lightblue]

You think? I'd say the next few weeks will see an expansion of the suicide bombers campaigns. It's what always seems to happen after a terrorist faction leader is taken out.

[The Mad Monk]

Check Siro's "attacks blocked" thread.

[GePap]

Originally posted by lord of the mark
Look, youre saying the Jews waited for 1800 years to get a state, and they finally got one so why should the Pals settle for a compromise. Fine. So let them cut a deal for Gaza and 94% of the West Bank now, and KEEP THEIR DREAMS of taking the whole area. Dictating peoples dreams is NOT within the realm of liberal politics. What im interested in is not their dreams, which are their own, but their actions. The ACTIONS I expect are a territorial compromise, one that gives them a viable state but recognizes theyre NOT going to get all they might have gotten had they recognized Israel in say 1950. Just as I ask my revisionist friends to KEEP your dream, but make a territorial compromise NOW. I think Israel MUST withdraw from 90% of the West Bank or more. Do you think I will not still DREAM of Hevron, of Shechem, the hill country of Ephraim, of the ancient homes of my people? But a politics of dreams ALONE is a politics of disaster. One must wake from dreams and face the cold light of day. The moderate elements of the Israeli left have done so. Every now and then Sharon gives the impression of having done so (but not so consistently that i dont still prefer a Labour PM) A few Pal intellectuals have done so, and Abu Mazen gave strong signs of having done so. But Hamas has not done so, much of Fatah has not done so, Arafat has not done so, and many Pals who follow Arafat and Hamas have not done so.

Well, there is a slight difference-you see, Jews can imagine a wonderful old kingdom they once had- and dream about the past, as you seem to do-whether this has any bearing with reality, different matter.

But the palestinians have nothing to dream about-their state was stillborn. They were fundamentally correct to feel what was going on in the mandate in the 1920's, 30's and 40's was completely against the values their rulers had voiced-they were denied self-determination, and when it came time for them to have any real political say, this was crushed by both the neighboring arab states and the Israelis. So what can a Palestinian dream about? The wonderful time in the 1930's?

Palestinian identity was being born in the early part of the century, as was all arab nationalism-so the entire palestinian national experience, as that and not just a pan-arab experience, has been rather ****ty. Denied thier own state, betrayed in various ways by the self-serving arab leaders who claim to be helping them-why should they then aspire to anything but all? After all, what will it change? They have been victims for all their history-whats a few more centuries of same old, same old?

I really hope Sharon pulls out of Gaza soon and keeps his hands off- the Palestinians need some time of actually havingh real self-rule somewhere to work out their many, many issues.

[GePap]

Originally posted by Azazel
Hamas is still GREATLY outnumbered. That's why they don't stage a takeover: their numbers are 1:10 against the palestinians ( 1:20 against the Israelis. )

And at least according to some NY papers, 300,000 people come out to mourn Yassin-which is about 1/3 of the population of Gaza. So while the PA may have more guns, they sure as hell don't have more support.