23 Comments

A million times yes to what you wrote. Thank you indeed for wading into this issue.

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Very good writeup. I would add a couple of points I think are relevant.

First, I do understand why Palestinian Arabs would be angry that the UN gave half of "their" land to the Jews in 1948. But that is the reality of partition - when you have two ethnic groups sharing a territory who cannot live peacefully together, unfortunately partition is the only solution. It happened with India and Pakistan (and then Pakistan and Bangladesh), it happened with Ireland and Northern Ireland, with the Balkans, with North and South Korea. Hungary lost 70% of its territory after World War I and Turkey lost more than 80% (which included the land of Palestine).

Even if you think the partition is unfair, history shows that it's much better for your people in the long run to move on with your lives and build the best country you can and hold to your new borders. The IRA lost their fight, after half a century of terrorism they did not succeed in driving the British out of the North. Now that they've made peace, the peoples on both sides of the border live in a peace and prosperity that was unimaginable during the troubles.

Look at some pictures and videos of Gaza before Oct 7 and you will instantly see the lie of the "open air prison." Gaza was indistinguishable from any Egyptian or Jordanian neighborhood and more prosperous than many of then. In fact, the GDP per capita of Gazans was higher than that of Syrians and about the same as Egyptians. Palestinians who live and work in other Arab countries like the UAE tend to be smart and educated and have a good reputation as employees. It's heartbreaking that Gazans decided to throw that all away to try and kill Jews, that they have thrown it away so many times in history rather than build a real country for themselves. I know it's not likely but I hope in my heart that this war could mean a new beginning for them, as WWII was for Germany and Japan despite how devastated they were by the war.

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So many lies and deceits, but I’m sure you’re not even aware since this seems like a lot of re-packaged Israeli propaganda.

For instance, if one were going to bring the numbers of Jews in Arab states, one might want to mention the Mossad synagogue bombings and publicity campaigns intended drive Middle Eastern Jews to Israel. Deceitful.

Or, for an example of a lie: this is absolutely an attempted land grab by Israel. What did you think the constant driving of people further south while consistently cajoling & calling out Egypt is? Did you not see the plan leaked from the intelligence think tank which echoes what numerous Israelis, including officials (“we’re instituting another Nakba”), have said?

The plan calls for a consistent bombing campaign and maintaining the blocks on entry of sufficient amounts of food, water, fuel, etc. such that the people of Gaza become so scared for their lives and so desperate for sustenance than they yield to demand they go to Egypt. Israel would construct tent cities in Sinai, establish a “sterile zone” buffer, and then allow the humanitarian crisis to fester (“an epidemic plays to our strengths,” they said) enough that Western and Muslim countries take on even more of the Palestinian diaspora. The plan specifically mentions Canada, Spain, Greece, and North Africa as likely candidates for the dispersal of these 2.3 million people. This is pure and unadulterated ethnic cleansing of the sort certain Israelis (like many of the ones in power) have been promoting for some time.

Now one that’s both: it’s simply untrue as a matter of fact that the Palestinian leaders (which leaders? Israel was sure to fund many, including Hamas, as it played divide & conquer and worse) want only the dissolution of Israel. The PLO/PA acknowledged Israel and embraced a two-state solution in the 90s. Hamas published a fresh charter in 2017 that plainly states their problem is with Zionism and their dispute is over land and specifically not with Judaism or over religion. They too have expressed interest in the internationally accepted 1967 borders solution.

Only Israel refuses to cooperate on this. Only they figure out ways to sabotage the process or to so aggravate the Palestinians that they lash out, thereby providing a pretext for Israel to do what they wanted to do anyway. I said it when they disrespected al-Aqsa earlier this year: this provocation is designed to provoke a response and get Netanyahu out of the turmoil he’d spent 40 weeks in prior to 10/7 while opening the door to a Final Solution for the Palestinian question. I note the bulldozers are destroying West Bank roads and settler attacks have exploded upwards there where there is no Hamas leadership.

Additionally, it’s quite deceitful to make that allegation (based on old material Israelis insist on being willfully ignorant about) and neglect to mention the Likud Party platform which advocates a singular Jewish state literally from the river to the sea.

I don’t have an hour to spend right now picking the whole thing to pieces, from the argument of guilt by association (can we get the very short list of Israel’s supporters, including the vast majority of the Western ruling class and some bumbling Boomer Evangelical dupes & their borderline doomsday cults?) to the lame appeal to standing up to terrorism (what exactly do you propose they do? The Great March of Return was just the last peaceful action that was met with bullets and opprobrium—what’s their next move supposed to be? Be quiet and die off like they’re supposed to?).

Maybe I will later, but I don’t think you’ve really done the many hours of research required to produce a fair picture of this conflict. You should try reading both sides. The contradictions, mendacity, and brutality on the Israeli side would become abundantly clear.

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Long rebuttal that unintentionally reinforces Gummi's point of communication by manipulation from something who "reads" 424 Substacks.

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It’s obvious that the 2017 “update” to the Hamas charter was a PR move, and a smart one. Now ppl actually believe they are only motivated by a land dispute and “anti-Zionism” rather than ideology and Islamic jihadism. It puts the onus for their hatred entirely on Israel, since the 1980s version is clear that all Jews in the world should die. Believing they no longer feel that way is naive.

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Idiot

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Islamic extremists will use Al Aqsa to agitate Muslims and as an excuse for Massacres, Revolts and terrorism as Grand Mufti (Hitler's soul mate) did in the Hebron Massacre of 1929, and it's parallel HAMAS Al Aksa flood Massacre 10/7/23; or in the future- if they feel they won. Civilization is threatened

with Islamic Extremists and Jihadists--they must be, and will be destroyed.

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This has been one of the most clearly written, well thought out breakdowns I have read. Bravo. Im so glad to see this. 👏👏👏

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I agree with most of your column. The only difference is your contention regarding Israeli "settlements" in the "west bank". First of all, it's Judea and Samaria, and was until Jordan illegally conquered and occupied it from 1948-1967 and changed the name of the territory to the "West Bank". The "settlements" are not illegal, contrary to that repeated talking point. They are Jews living in their homeland. I hope you do some more research on that topic.

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Any sources you might recommend to learn more about this issue? I've only been able to find vague corporate media talking points, so far, but also haven't heard any convincing rebuttals from pro-Israeli sources, so it's hard to know what to think about it.

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one good article is "Legal Rights and Title of Sovereignty of the Jewish People to the Land of Israel and Palestine under International Law" by Howard Grief. There is no such thing as a 'settlement'--this is just a gentile-invented lie used against Jews. Also there is an article available on hirhome, a Pentagon study, "Memorandum for the Secretary of Defense"; Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 13, No. 2. (Winter, 1984), pp. 122-126. Even the Pentagon determined that the higher elevation areas (where the 'settlers' are living) are entirely necessary for Israeli defense b/c whomever is in those areas could shoot rockets at people living at lower elevations. So basically, Jewhaters don't like the fact that Jews live in those highland areas.

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Thank you for this writing.

I started asking when almost everyone saying the Same thing like save Palestine.

I wanted to see other narrative.

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People continue to fall for this propaganda because they have no understanding of what and who hamas is, because they have no understanding of evil.

hamas doesn't give a damn about its own people.

They hoard foreign aid, hide out in their lavish mansions, and then play the victim card afterwards.

They use the land that was offered to them as a warzone. (the same land which was only taken in the first place in self-defense)

They divert water, electricity, and fuel towards terrorist activities, such as building rockets, hundreds of kilometers worth of tunnels, etc, and then cry about their living conditions.

https://honestreporting.com/watering-down-the-facts-israel-the-palestinians-access-to-water/

https://www.camera.org/article/is-israels-siege-denying-water-and-food-to-gaza-just-the-facts/

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2023/11/map-of-israeli-attacks-closely-tracks.html

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-chanukah-miracle-of-last-drops-of.html

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1723752589102129458

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1719756266006810820

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1718590392717676692

They deliberately place there weapons within the civilian infrastructure and environment.

They then attack from said positions, hide behind human shields, and play the victim card afterwards.

https://honestreporting.com/repeat-performance-how-the-media-failed-to-learn-the-lessons-of-2014s-operation-protective-edge/

https://honestreporting.com/its-an-open-secret-whats-really-going-on-in-al-shifa-hospital/

https://www.timesofisrael.com/deepening-pressure-on-hamas-army-says-ground-forces-push-further-into-gaza-city/

https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-releases-new-intel-detailing-hamas-use-of-gaza-hospitals-for-terror-purposes/

https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-says-troops-found-hamas-rocket-launchers-near-playground-swimming-pool-in-gaza/

https://www.timesofisrael.com/rockets-found-in-unrwa-school-for-third-time/

https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-hostage-was-killed-in-shifa-clip-shows-hamas-take-2-more-hostages-there-on-oct-7/

https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/gaza-news/article-772789

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/b1mtxqcxa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwoXhWr4UVM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEhsIJUw1DQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtyN1tkH9xk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pWiZz1WNZU

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2023/11/finally-reporter-actually-reports-about.html

https://www.instagram.com/p/CzZnIQioRyS/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRFrMV1BBj0

https://www.terrorism-info.org.il/en/hamas-use-of-the-civilian-population-as-human-shields-and-gazas-civilian-facilities-for-terrorism/

https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2021/06/23/hold-hamas-accountable-for-human-shields-use-during-the-may-2021-gaza-war/

https://stratcomcoe.org/cuploads/pfiles/hamas_human_shields.pdf

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2023/11/map-of-israeli-attacks-closely-tracks.html

https://www.israellycool.com/2021/10/08/gazan-terrorist-admits-to-firing-rockets-from-areas-of-supportive-civilians/

They commit multiple suicide bombings, stabbings, shootings, car rammings, etc, and then cry about blockades.

https://www.standwithus.com/factsheets-security-barrier

They regularly incite violence within the vicinity of the "al aqsa mosque" and then play the victim card afterwards.

https://www.israellycool.com/?s=al+aqsa+mosque

https://honestreporting.com/al-aqsa-is-in-danger-the-anatomy-of-a-lie/

They regularly incite violence in general, and then cry out when said terrorists get arrested/shot/killed in self defense.

The ones who are arrested get millions of dollars in stipends. (money that would be better spent on their own people, of course)

https://palwatch.org/page/15217

They regularly incite hatred towards Jews, not just Zionists, but Jews, through the use of education, media, sermons, speeches, etc. (think about that the next time you see headlines such as "Israel has killed thousands of children")

https://www.memri.org/reports/memri-tv-compilation-knife-intifada

https://www.memri.org/reports/memri-tv-archives-hamas-their-own-voices-and-gaza-march-return-israel-compilation-videos

https://www.memri.org/reports/hamas-indoctrination-children-jihad-martyrdom-hatred-jews

https://palwatch.org/page/32378

https://palwatch.org/page/32976

https://palwatch.org/page/1112

https://palwatch.org/page/34768

https://www.jihadwatch.org/2023/11/mothers-and-the-murderous-sons-who-make-them-proud

https://www.jns.org/jns/hamas/23/7/20/304361/

https://unwatch.org/report-u-n-teachers-celebrated-hamas-massacre/

https://www.impact-se.org/wp-content/uploads/UNRWA_Report_2023_IMPACT-se_And_UN-Watch.pdf

memri.org

palwatch.org

They violently attack those who dare to speak out against them.

https://www.thefp.com/p/the-untold-stories-of-gazans

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWk7HL0w8CY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoYny0N1lR0

https://www.jwire.com.au/eyeless-in-gaza/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rB57WuCf1xQ

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=300684682784291

https://www.terrorism-info.org.il/en/the-price-gazans-pay-for-criticizing-hamas/

They inflate casualty numbers, fake scenes of violence against them, (look up the term 'pallywood') masquerade as soldiers, journalists, and medical personnel, and list terrorist casualties as civilians. (think about that the next time you see headlines such as "Israel has killed thousands of children")

https://honestreporting.com/tag/pallywood/

https://www.israellycool.com/?s=pallywood

https://www.israellycool.com/category/libels/

https://www.israellycool.com/category/fauxtography/

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2023/11/infant-photos-at-shifa-are-not.html

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2023/11/cair-condemns-alleged-hate-crime-and.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqbuBHUZ3gE

https://honestreporting.com/photographers-without-borders-ap-reuters-pictures-of-hamas-atrocities-raise-ethical-questions/

https://honestreporting.com/did-gazan-photojournalists-go-from-witnessing-the-story-to-becoming-part-of-the-story-on-october-7/

https://honestreporting.com/media-give-platform-to-gaza-journalists-who-infiltrated-israel-or-praised-hamas-massacre/

https://david-collier.com/not-what-they-seem/

https://david-collier.com/media-lies/

https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-771443

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2023/11/hamas-doesnt-even-pretend-to-adhere-to.html

https://www.jihadwatch.org/2023/11/us-supports-israel-on-use-of-ambulances-by-hamas

https://www.investigativeproject.org/search.php?cx=007811315508120065319%3A59zy8iq-o_8&cof=FORID%3A9&ie=UTF-8&sa=Search&q=ties+to+hamas

Previous conflicts have shown that upon further review, many of the so-called "civilians" have ended up outing themselves as terrorists through the use of various photos, videos, statements, etc. (think about that the next time you see headlines such as "Israel has killed thousands of children")

https://www.israellycool.com/2021/06/02/report-on-initial-gazan-fatalities-showing-majority-were-terrorists-now-available-in-english/

https://www.israellycool.com/2018/05/16/senior-hamas-official-admits-at-least-50-of-those-killed-on-monday-were-hamas-terrorists/

https://www.israellycool.com/2018/04/27/latest-analysis-whopping-80-of-great-march-fatalities-terrorists-or-affiliated-with-terror-orgs/

https://www.israellycool.com/2016/07/08/hamas-slips-up-with-admission/

https://www.israellycool.com/2012/12/24/more-than-60-of-palestinians-killed-during-recent-gaza-operation-were-terrorists/

https://www.jns.org/hamass-numbers-warfare/

https://honestreporting.com/the-battle-over-casualty-counts-in-gaza/

Anyone who still thinks that this is about land is seriously deluding themselves.

First off, they've already been given plenty of it.

Second, they regularly call for the death of all Jews.

Israel could cease to exist tomorrow, and they would still continue hunting down every last Jew in existence.

People continue to fall for the propaganda hook, line, and sinker.

They fail to realize that they are being used.

They view emotionally charged images, videos, articles, and continue to get more and more emotionally invested, up to the point, where they can no longer see or think rationally or clearly.

They don't know any of what I mentioned above because they continue to get their information from propaganda outlets such as Al Jazeera, B'Tzelem, Ha'aretz, Mondoweiss, The Electronic Intifada, BBC, NBC, Reuters, The New York Times, etc.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rB57WuCf1xQ

https://www.camera.org/

https://honestreporting.com/

https://unwatch.org/

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/search/label/NGO%20lies

https://david-collier.com/category/media-bias/

https://www.investigativeproject.org/9348/unethical-gaza-reporting-cuts-crucial-context

Continued in next comment

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Here are some examples of distorted thinking.

"hamas's "firecracker" rockets (if they are so harmless, then I invite you to come and stand under the "firecrackers") are no match for Israeli firepower. The rockets don't do much damage and are usually intercepted by the Iron Dome. Israel's response is therefore, disproportionate"

So basically what you are saying is that someone could make a couple of thousand attempts on your life, and that you're not allowed to attack them back until they succeed.

Where do you come up with this backwards logic?

"Israel has got to be more careful with regards to civilian casualties. There are many more deaths on the palestinian side then on the Israeli end."

First off, contrary to the propaganda that you've been fed, Israel doesn't deliberately target civilians.

They instead target hamas terrorists.

Second, as I said above, hamas inflates casualty numbers, fakes scenes of violence against them, masquerades as soldiers, journalists, and medical personnel, and lists terrorists as civilians.

They also brainwash children from birth to hate and kill Jews, train children in warfare, and misifire some of their rockets.

Third, hamas deliberately fires from within the vicinity of houses, schools, mosques, hospitals, etc.

Israel goes out its way to send warnings so that the civilians can clear the area.

https://twitter.com/IDF/status/1720213978092101955

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=719433396700539

hamas has been known to not allow the civilians to leave.

https://pjmedia.com/catherinesalgado/2023/10/12/hamas-told-gaza-civilians-to-ignore-idf-warnings-to-evacuate-n1734514

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-770242

https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2023/11/latest-blood-libel-hamas-slaughters.html

The bottom line is that the civilians that get caught up in the crossfire are directly the fault of hamas, and hamas alone.

[As a side note, if Israel was truly bloodthirsty, then they would have no problem just carpet-bombing Gaza and getting it done with.

They instead, send frequent warnings to clear the area, set up exit passageways, pause to allow for the clearance through said passages, and continue to send hundreds of truckloads worth of aid.

Maybe you should think about that before just automatically believing the propaganda.]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWRz7exxRs0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lybpok_HPA4

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1724008258052980840

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1722230867878375640

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1726303701567168564

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1723422360961728823

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1726607012220604703

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1724329871382302908

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1719278178504495339

https://twitter.com/cogatonline/status/1724678207922708517

Imagine the following scenario.

A terrorist is firing at you while using a civilian as a shield.

Would you attack back, or would you be too afraid to risk the life of the hostage?

Would you just stand there and drop dead?

Guess what?

That same terrorist just shot and killed another person.

Still won't budge?

Guess what?

They just shot and killed a bunch more.

Now what if you decided to fire back and ended up accidentally hurting/killing the hostage in the process?

Whose fault would it be?

Yours?

I could go on and on, but I think that you get the picture.

Once again, the blame lies squarely with hamas, and hamas alone.

Let me ask you something.

What would you do if you had a whole group of people that wanted nothing less then your complete destruction?

What would you do if they continuously tried to destroy you for years on end?

What would happen if they used the land that you gave them back as a warzone?

What would happen if they smuggled in weapons, and then used said weapons to continue attacking you to no end?

What would hppen if they diverted all of the aid that you gave them towards fattening up their pockets?

What would happen if they diverted all of the water, fuel, electricity, cement, etc, that you gave them towards creating terror?

What would happen if they did all of that in the name of your complete annihilation and destruction?

What would happen if you bent over backwards, forwards, and sideways to appease them, yet they still continued to terrorize?

What would happen if they used ever single gesture that you handed them against you?

Would you put up walls and blockades?

Would you continue giving them goods?

Would you continue to negotiate?

At what point would you be forced to stop?

You see, the bottom line is that you cannot negotiate with evil.

People who immediately turn around every gesture towards them aren't interested in peace.

No amount of appeasement will satisfy them.

They have said from the very beginning that their true intentions are nothing less then your complete annihilation and destruction.

They have continued to say so along every step of the way.

Maybe its time that you start to actually believe them!

The evil of the world continue to play on people's emotions and sensibilities.

It's about time that you stop making excuses for its existence!

It's about time that you start to recognize evil for what it is!

#FreePalestine [from hamas]

#stopbeingusedbythemedia

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I have noticed so much hypocrisy in the “free Palestine” movement and have found most of them almost impossible to talk to. If you say anything less than “Israel is evil and responsible for 100% of this war,” hell, even if you express compassion for the 10/7 victims, you are met with “what about the genocide of Palestinian babies???” or are accused of being pro-ethnic cleansing or something.

They must believe no other countries in the Muslim world have behaved like “colonialists” and mistreated ppl with an eye for wealth and power, that all other countries have peaceful histories. Israel is not blameless but the idea that they are uniquely evil shows that ppl don’t know much about history or geopolitics.

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Phenomenal and detailed article. Thank you! I just need to pick one bone. You say "But I will say that I think illegal settlements by Israelis in the West Bank are wrong and seriously undermine the Jewish cause." What is an illegal settlement? Jews live in land conquered in both 1948 and 1967, in wars Israel won but did not start. I don't understand the concept of calling it illegal for Jews to live anywhere, and it certainly does not undermine the Jewish cause for Jews to live in their homeland. The only way there can ever be a Palestinian state right next to Israel is if it is as safe for Jews to live in that state as it is for Arab Muslims to live in Israel. Let's not fall in the trap of saying it is illegal for Jews to live anywhere is the world, but certainly not in the biblical heartland.

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Caveat to the Radicalization of the Palestinians, regarding the survey. Each Palestinian population is essentially under a dictatorship, I imagine even if one did not support the 10-7 attacks in Gaza or the West Bank as a Palestinian they would fear their government would hang them just as they recently did to the two "suspected" Israeli collaborators.

There is no way to gauge the actual sentiment of the Palestinians as long as Hamas is the governing authority

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First, I am glad to have found your substack. I was a big fan of your Twitter account saying the things that mattered when they did.

That said, this article has many blind spots and is written almost like a political hit piece rather than an intellectually honest assessment of the conflict. A lot of those talking points are legitimate though, especially understanding the history and WHY many Palestinians want the dissolution of Israel. Its obvious that by all modern sensibilities Israel should never have been created. And, I'm not arguing some modern morals on past actions non-sense, because I am including those sensibilities at the time of it's formation. It was a state formed based on race only (it was non secular) in a place where that race represented less than 5% of the population.

Interestingly, this was the beginning of Jewish / Arab conflict, and its the root cause of its continuation. Treating Oct 7th like an isolated event, is like pretending the apparatus for Covid tyranny started in 2020, and not the decades before when you were ignoring the threats to liberty people like Ron Paul were speaking about every day.

The protesters are idiots. They understand the conflict far less than almost anybody. Yet, Palestinians do not hate Israel because they are Jewish, or because they are free, or because {fill in other dumb propoganda that people somehow easily believe in their binary good-guy vs bad-guy brains}.

The whole world isn't condemning Israel's actions because its anti-semetic. Its because "military" campaigns like this are unacceptable in 2024, even for the US. In fact, Israel is quoting the US's blatant disregard for international order as reason why they can do whatever they want. Unfortunately, this argument is sound if you accept that US foreign interventions are good and necessary.

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How do you think about the arrests of peaceful college protesters? How do you think about the politicians double standards of free speech regarding pro-isreal and pro-palestine supporters?

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Excellent writeup, thank you!

Wanted to add regarding the 'Tactic: Shift the debate towards the historical context'. If the so-called 'occupation' justifies terror, then by the same token, Israelis, who see their homeland occupied by Palestinians, would also see themselves as justified in using terror against Palestinians.

And in general, any group of people who see themselves as occupied or wronged, will see themselves as justified in using terror. This would lead to bloodshed and loss of innocent lives.

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an important thing to notice in this issue: why are there NO Iranian Muslims supporting 'palestine'? The answer is because they understand what living under Western-backed islamist tyranny is all about. They see right through the lies of the Arab and American Muslim community, who are both lapdogs of our domestic Arabists. Iranians still remember Cyrus.

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Let me see if I got it. Following your reasoning, if an isolated terrorist group committed terrorism, should we put an end to it, even if it kills thousands of innocent civilians, and is that ok? Are they just compensations? my god man! You guys are all crazy!

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This is a good piece. But when you reference illegal Israeli settlements, are you referring to all settlements in W. Bank? Are you including parts of Jerusalem?

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