Quote from dcraig:
There's a fair bit of evidence that the US and Israel were arming and financing elements of Fatah with a view to staging an armed coup against the elected Hamas. So much for democracy eh ?
The 'elected Hamas', eh? I see.
If you could post a comprehensive series of links, it would help. However, why shouldn't Israel support the party that is interested in real peace, as opposed to Hamas, whose publicly stated goal is to murder every Israeli man, woman and child? You seem like a reasonably well-informed person, so it's surprising that you forgot that Hamas took power by murdering a bunch of its own people after an election didn't go its way. Too bad about that niggling little detail, eh?
So much for democracy, eh?
Quote from dcraig:
It's very possible that the hand of Hamas was forced into an infamous "preemptive strike". Without advocating support for anybody in particular, it is quite possible to see Hamas action as the work of a rational actor forced into a situation not really of their making, and making a rational choice in the circumstances.
I see. So you believe that Hamas, the ideological kin to the Iranian mullahs who seek to destroy Israel and create a worldwide state governed by the letter of Sharia law, in which there is no concept of legislation by majority rule (what you know as government) since all laws, both civic and moral, are delivered by the Prophet, is a rational party? Is that it?
If you think that what the fanatic Islamist murderers want for the rest of us is rational, you're either one of them or you're a fucking moron. I'm not sure which it is, in your case.
Quote from dcraig:
But such an interpretation runs against the usual propaganda spin that represents all opponents of the Israeli state as gun toting religious lunatics hell bent on a suicidal aim of the destruction of western civilization.
We're not talking about all opponents of the Israeli state. We're talking about Hamas. You seem to be unaware of the fact that this is
exactly what they want. If you're confused about this, I suggest you read Lawrence Wright's Pulitzer Prize winning book 'The Looming Tower', which traces the rise of modern Islamic fundamentalism back to its roots in Egypt and to a man called Sayyid Qutb. You seem to object to the reportage you're seeing. If you attempt to impugn Wright's credentials, we'll all know you're a suicide-bomber wanna-be.
Since you seem to have glossed over it, I will post the following para again. What part of this don't you understand?
"The crucial point to bear in mind is that Hamas is not a reasonable political movement. It cannot thrive without crisis; the blood of innocents is its own lifeblood. These are not Palestinian nationalists who happen to be Muslims; they are totalitarian Islamists whose Palestinian identity is of secondary importance. They have nothing but contempt for Arab Muslim states. Instead, they draw inspiration and resources from non-Arab Iran, the most ruthless power in the region, which may well have put pressure on them to end the ceasefire. Only Iran can equal Hamas in its determination to wipe out Israel â and, eventually, every secular Arab state. "
the white man don't have no power don't let him fool you
