JG, Not sure if you expect me to defend some of Israel's worst tactics, which have been deplorable. I won't. They have done some attrocious things. But when you judge Israel, you definitely have to look at them through the prism of history, the fact that for years they were surrounded by enemies hell-bent on their destruction, and which kept attacking, and that they have a population today that lives under constant fear of dupes being sent into public places with explosives strapped onto them -- at the behest of these sadistic Hamas forks. Israel very often poors gasoline on the fire, so my statement above is not meant to give them a free pash, but they are really caught between a rock and a hard place as long as men like this exist, whose ONLY purpose is to see to Israel's destruction (let's be realistic about it). To put it in perspective, if Canada started launching missiles at our border towns and started sending 17-year-olds on suicide missions in which it was their goal to take out as many Americans as possible (whether these missions are the result of hopeless despair or not), started crossing the border to kidnap Americans (not just Hamas, but Hizbollah), etc., how would you want to the U.S. to react? Perhaps not as heavy-handed as the Israeli's often act (in which their retaliations often seem indiscriminate). But i can't blame them for protecting their interests, making a statement that they will not allow such barbarism to stand, standing up for themselves in the face of such hostility, and fighting back.
Maybe you disagree. And I understand if others do too. The Israelis are not saints. But I strongly get the sense that if their enemies had ever shown a willingness to negotiate in good faith, the Israelis are actually EAGER to put an end to the hostilities. Can the same be said about the Palestinians, as long as they choose Hamas to lead their interests? When Anwar Sadat came to the table in good faith, something was able to get done, and even though there is no great love of Judaism in Egypt, they actually recently reopened a very old Synagogue that had been sacred to Egypt's once thriving Jewish population. It's kind of proof that the Israeli's (and any Arab interest not hell-bent on Israel's destruction) willingness to find peace is greater than most of its enemies. Agree to disagree if you must. But it's the way I have always seen it.