This is for Netanyahu, from Marcus Aurelius:

[ananda]

The noblest form of revenge is not to
become your enemy.

[Goodheart]

1. I've been thinking since October 8 that the best thing Israel could have done in response to October 7

was to NOT retaliate. Hunt down the killers with covert operations, to be sure, but restraint would have won sympathy. Israel should have invited Palestinian citizens to a round table. Israel has lost the moral high ground. And now they have more enemies than before.

[DaBronx]

2. Would you have invited

The 9/11 pilots to your dinner table as well?
I am so tired of hearing this bs about what Israel should have done. I am not sure you understand the full scope and scale
Of what occurred on October 7. This wasn’t a skirmish. In case you missed the details perhaps you should revisit them. Yes Israel has
Made mistakes but war is ugly and they did not begin this war. This is all on Hamas and the Gazans who support them. And let’s not
Forget that Israel, at the same time, has to deal with Iran and its proxies. Would you like Iran at your potluck dinner round table as well? They all want death to Israel.

[Goodheart]

3. That's a silly question.

I don't equate all Arabs with the 9/11 pilots. And I don't equate all Palestinians with Hamas.

[DaBronx]

4. This has nothing to do with equating

You don’t understand the scale of what occurred and the necessary response. After rape, torture, etc etc I find it hard to believe that you actually think a nation of
People, having endured their
Own 9/11, would have tolerated a fucking round table.
People in the country were zombie like after October 7 in exactly the same way we were here in NY. Your suggestion of a round table is extremely naive. People so removed from war don’t understand. But go ahead and do your Monday morning quarterbacking.

[Orrex]

6. If what you say is true

then imagine how much worse it must be for innocent Palestinians, with thousands in Gaza slain by a vastly superior military force that claims to act with unquestionable righteousness and moral authority.


Wait, let me guess: "Hamas could stop this at any time," right?

Well, I don't believe that any more than you or Netanyahu does.

[DaBronx]

8. Perhaps you should invite Hamas to your roundtable?

I’m sure they will cooperate. Let us know how your rsvps are going.

[Orrex]

12. That's kind of an asinine question. You know that, right?

Hamas is a terrorist organization that should be wiped from the Earth. People like you lean very heavily on the fallacious tactic of implying that criticism of Netanyahu is support for Hamas, or that condemning the slaughter of Palestinian children is a call for Israel's extermination. These are juvenile tactics of pure deflection, and they've grown very stale over the past few months.

Out of curiosity, how many civilians has Hamas killed since October? How many civilians has Netanyahu killed? How many Palestinian children do you think Netanyahu should kill in his quest for peace?

[DaBronx]

13. So who is invited?

Let’s get a few things straight.
I do not support Netanyahu. I would
Like to see him gone.
I support the people of Israel who did not ask to be
Raped, butchered and tortured. I support the innocent civilians of Gaza.
I am a realist who understands that war is atrocious but is sometimes necessary.
I cannot comprehend how the reply to the OP suggests holding off on a response while suggesting a roundtable in response.
Moving on…happy to agree to disagree.

[Orrex]

15. Did you read that reply?

It called for Palestinians to be brought to the table. It seems reasonable to infer that this isn't meant to include Hamas members, though of course it must be recognized that Hamas doesn't exactly hold power through an egalitarian system of fair and open elections.

Perhaps such roundtable should exclude the militant, extremist members of Netanyahu's regime? Let innocent Israelis meet with innocent Palestinians to sort out the details, and leave the violent warhawks out of it. If Israel's foreign aid were suspended or made contingent upon brokering a peace deal, it would be interesting to see what solutions they come up with beyond "bomb every school and hospital you can find, and blame Hamas for it."

War may be necessary, but that's hardly the blank check that Netanyahu and his apologists claim it to be.

Assuming that Bibi doesn't actually intend to exterminate all Palestinians, then he appears to have two goals:
1. Ensure that future generations of Palestinians have learned to hate Israel through Israel's relentless and unapologetic attacks on civilians, notably children.

2. To do anything at all to keep himself in power.

[Goodheart]

7. Sure it does. You made a false equivalence.

And now you've compounded that with a further one.

[PatSeg]

9. Yes and I remember how our government

responded after 9/11 by invading two countries, countless lives lost, over $3 trillion spent, and no weapons of mass destruction found. Afghanistan ended up being a two decades long war. We had intelligence and special ops to go after terrorists, we did not need two boots-on-the-ground military invasions. But we had a right-wing president who wanted to be a wartime president.

I'm personally not suggesting a "round table" format, but there certainly are numerous options that would not be nearly as devastating as what we're witnessing right now. Netanyahu failed to protect his people last October and now he's using excessive military force to avoid being held accountable for corruption. Like so many leaders, he has politicized war.

Like many, I was and still am horrified by the atrocities of 10/7 and I am equally horrified by the brutal response. I am on the side of innocent victims regardless of their nationality, religion, or race.

[Ponietz]

5. disingenuous and silly

[SharonAnn]

18. And Hamas could surrender or start negotiations at any time. But they haven't.

[multigraincracker]

10. Wisdom from the East.

Before you Embark On A Journey of Revenge, Dig Two Graves.—
Confucius.

[Shipwack]

11. That chariot departed a long time ago... nt

[UTUSN]

16. K&R for, hah!

[WarGamer]

14. This quote could apply to MANY nowadays too...

I see it daily...

Hated has drawn many to become what they once loathed.

[hardluck]

17. I wonder how the Romans would have handled Gaza?

Maybe we should ask Carthage.

[Delphinus]

19. Amen!

Have never heard that, but, absolutely, yes!