Final thoughts on Gaza for now UPDATED

Both parties have declared their own cease-fires.  We wait to see what the final outcome may be.  It is interesting to note that by each side having declared a unilateral cease-fire, neither had to address the concerns of the other.  Israel got no assurances that the rocket attacks will stop.  Gaza got no assurances that [...]

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An ethos of death?

I happened today upon another blogger who brings an interesting perspective to the situation in Gaza — that of an anthropologist.  As I have tried to point out, there are no winners in the current conflict, only losers. Indeed, Prof. Gabrielle Marranci questions whether both the Israeli government and Hamas have an ethos of death.  [...]

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A Clarification: Sympathy doesn’t equal support

It has come to my attention that I should have been more clear and repeatedly stated that I felt that Israel has a right to defend itself.  I thought that I had done so clearly enough and that I had acknowledged the invisible (emotional and psychological) damage done to Israeli citizens who live in the [...]

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A time for talking… and for listening, too?

I see that PE Obama has indicated a willingness to talk to Hamas and is signaling that things will change in his administration as to how the US approaches the Middle East.  My first reaction is, “Well, it’s about time!”  And I’m delighted to learn that he intends to treat the region from Gaza to [...]

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Musings on war and peace, on revenge and forgiveness

As I am wont to do, I find myself seeing connections where others do not.  Or at least connections that aren’t part of the public discussion.
The issue of proportionality has weighed heavily on me since the beginning of the Israeli action in Gaza.  And yet, proportionality assumes that we look at events rationally and logically [...]

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Cause and Effect: Lives shattered

Over the weekend I watched news coverage of the ground incursion into Gaza by the IDF.  Then, this morning, three very different articles caught my attention.  The first was this account by a Gazan journalist. The second was President Bush’s take on the situation in Gaza. The third was Andrew Sullivan’s analysis of the [...]

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A Matter of Proportionality

I’ve been reading about the assault on Hamas sites in Gaza by Israeli military forces and the bellicose language coming from both sides.  First, let me point out that to fire rockets into another country is, by all international standards, an act of war.  So, I can understand why Israel felt a need to respond.  [...]

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