Be assured that Israel is fighting a just war on behalf of all of humanity, and it’s fighting with righteous precision and all efforts to sift and protect innocent human shields of Hamas from among hardened Islamist "martyrs", active and passive collaborators. Israel's civilian-to-combatant casualty ratio approaching 1:1 sets a new standard, better than any previous urban warfare, including the U.S. siege of Mosul. The Jewish nation takes no pleasure in the loss of any human life.
While this conflict may unfortunately still only be starting, when it ends, may the Ayatollahs be neutralized, the world more acutely attuned and ready to deal with the very real and insidiously infiltrating threat of political Islam.
Yes, but.... when October 7th happened, I was completely horrified and it was obvious that Israel would this time have to overcome all previous hesitations and get into Gaza and get after Hamas and seek to disrupt and destroy its roots and its tunnels and its deadly power. But the first article I published about the situation stated flat out that if the international community actually gave a damn for the innocents of Gaza, who were about to be very much in harm's way, they would allow a temporary encampment outside the zone of conflict where people who were demonstrably and clearly NOT Hamas fighters could shelter and receive food and medical attention. There are actually FAR fewer civilian deaths in Gaza than the Hamas-controlled health ministry would lead you to believe. On the other hand, there are absolutely tragic deaths and injuries that have happened -- the blood is on Hamas' hands first, but on the "international community's" second. Everyone on the planet knows that Hamas' strategy is to use the civilian population as human shields and everyone is very busily playing into it. Which is why the shrieking at Israel is so very loud. No one wants people to start saying well if you are so concerned, why could not a little corner of Sinai be partitioned off temporarily to let these people live through this war and then come back to rebuild....... why couldn't the U.S. and other Arab states help Egypt to temporarily allow a humanitarian encampment? Because no one wants to deal with it -- so much better to keep up the line that it is all Israel's problem.
And, unlike the US and Europe, Egypt knows the culture they are dealing with. Actions and beliefs have consequences. Egypt seems to be saying, you’re toxic and I don’t want you here. Whereas in the US those pledging support, “queers for Palestine,” are so disconnected from reality that they don’t understand that the culture they support would torture and murder them. Pray they don’t learn this fact the hard way.
"Women, children, the elderly, and the peaceful men of Gaza are trapped in an invidious, evil situation. They are (mostly) the unwilling subjects of Hamas"
This is a standard homily recited without any basis at all: polls conducted by two Palestinian public policy institutes in the West Bank, in Nov 2023 and March 2024, show just over 70% of Palestinians support the Oct 7 Hamas atrocities:
To this can be added the numerous videos of Palestinian civilians celebrating the Oct 7 attacks on that day and the popularity of Hamas torture and murder videos on Telegram channels.
There could not be more complete evidence of the widespread support of the Palestinian population for the October 7 atrocities and their perpetrators. This cold, hard fact from statistical science should, but will not, put a crimp on another homily, the "two-state solution": what sort of leaders would a Palestinian state elect after these survey results?
Similar efforts were made in the past to excuse the bulk of the German population of complicity in Nazi crimes. They were completely exposed in Daniel Jonah Goldhagen's "Hitler's Willing Executioners" which showed how widespread was German popular support for the murder of Jews. In some towns, a few weeks before the end of the war but after German troops had left, the local population took it upon itself to murder any surviving Jewish slave laborers before Allied troops arrived.
Sam Harris wrote a similarly well-considered article, just longer. I am very glad to observe that at last two of the 4+1 horse(wo)men had the kind of mindset that allowed you to come to terms with Christianity up to a point. You in a different way than Sam Harris, but he too has significantly broadened his mind on the subject of the significance of Christianity in shaping the West. Both of you remain very much invested in rational observation, or in radical empiricism as William James would have it. Much appreciated.
Dear Ayaan Hirsi Ali you are a Christian and so I would like to comment on your professed concern for Christian Palestinians.
Before the ghoulish massacre committed by Hamas on 7th of October the Christians of Gaza were NOT persecuted for their religion. (Although they of course like all Gazan’s suffered under Hama’s terror regime).
After the 7th of October the IDF has bombed churches and Chrisitan community centers in Gaza. One church was the oldest Christian church in the world. In North Gaza the IDF even shoot Christian women in the courtyard of a church complex. A complex where disabled children were cared for. Are we to believe that this was done in order to fight terrorists? The IDF has blocked almost all food to Northern Gaza so most of the Christians there have probably starved to death. Plenty of experts, among them, the Israeli-Jewish genocide scholar Omer Bartov have warned that what we are witnessing in Gaza is a genocide under the cover of war. Yet you pretend never to have heard these warnings.
Christian Palestinians also live in the West Bank. Indeed in Jesus’ birthplace Bethlehem there is a Christian congregation suffering under Israeli occupation. Alongside their Muslim compatriots Christian Palestinians are being driven off their land and even killed, by violent extremist settler who openly state their aim to take over the whole West Bank. IDF-soldiers do nothing to stop this violence and might even participate. All you can offer is a vague comment that Palestinians in the West Bank ought to be protected.
So please stop pretending that you care about the freedom, dignity or even the life of Christian Palestinians.
Dear Ayaan Hirsi Ali you are a Christian and so I would like to comment on your professed concern for Christian Palestinians.
Before the ghoulish massacre committed by Hamas on 7th of October the Christians of Gaza were NOT persecuted for their religion. (Although they of course like all Gazan’s suffered under Hama’s terror regime).
After the 7th of October the IDF has bombed churches and Chrisitan community centers in Gaza. One church was the oldest Christian church in the world. In North Gaza the IDF even shoot Christian women in the courtyard of a church complex. A complex where disabled children were cared for. Are we to believe that this was done in order to fight terrorists? Now the IDF has blocked almost all food to Northern Gaza so most of the Christians there have probably starved to death. Plenty of experts, among them, the Israeli-Jewish genocide scholar Omer Bartov have warned that what we are witnessing in Gaza is a genocide under the cover of war. Yet you pretend never to have heard these warnings.
Christian Palestinians also live in the West Bank. Indeed in Jesus’ birthplace Bethlehem there is a Christian congregation suffering under Israeli occupation. Alongside their Muslim compatriots Christian Palestinians are being driven off their land and even killed, by violent extremist settler who openly state their aim to take over the whole West Bank. IDF-soldiers do nothing to stop this violence and might even participate. All you can offer is a vague comment that Palestinians in the West Bank ought to be protected.
So please stop pretending that you care about the freedom, dignity or even the life of Christian Palestinians.
Be assured that Israel is fighting a just war on behalf of all of humanity, and it’s fighting with righteous precision and all efforts to sift and protect innocent human shields of Hamas from among hardened Islamist "martyrs", active and passive collaborators. Israel's civilian-to-combatant casualty ratio approaching 1:1 sets a new standard, better than any previous urban warfare, including the U.S. siege of Mosul. The Jewish nation takes no pleasure in the loss of any human life.
While this conflict may unfortunately still only be starting, when it ends, may the Ayatollahs be neutralized, the world more acutely attuned and ready to deal with the very real and insidiously infiltrating threat of political Islam.
Amen.
Yes, but.... when October 7th happened, I was completely horrified and it was obvious that Israel would this time have to overcome all previous hesitations and get into Gaza and get after Hamas and seek to disrupt and destroy its roots and its tunnels and its deadly power. But the first article I published about the situation stated flat out that if the international community actually gave a damn for the innocents of Gaza, who were about to be very much in harm's way, they would allow a temporary encampment outside the zone of conflict where people who were demonstrably and clearly NOT Hamas fighters could shelter and receive food and medical attention. There are actually FAR fewer civilian deaths in Gaza than the Hamas-controlled health ministry would lead you to believe. On the other hand, there are absolutely tragic deaths and injuries that have happened -- the blood is on Hamas' hands first, but on the "international community's" second. Everyone on the planet knows that Hamas' strategy is to use the civilian population as human shields and everyone is very busily playing into it. Which is why the shrieking at Israel is so very loud. No one wants people to start saying well if you are so concerned, why could not a little corner of Sinai be partitioned off temporarily to let these people live through this war and then come back to rebuild....... why couldn't the U.S. and other Arab states help Egypt to temporarily allow a humanitarian encampment? Because no one wants to deal with it -- so much better to keep up the line that it is all Israel's problem.
And, unlike the US and Europe, Egypt knows the culture they are dealing with. Actions and beliefs have consequences. Egypt seems to be saying, you’re toxic and I don’t want you here. Whereas in the US those pledging support, “queers for Palestine,” are so disconnected from reality that they don’t understand that the culture they support would torture and murder them. Pray they don’t learn this fact the hard way.
Agreed!
"Women, children, the elderly, and the peaceful men of Gaza are trapped in an invidious, evil situation. They are (mostly) the unwilling subjects of Hamas"
This is a standard homily recited without any basis at all: polls conducted by two Palestinian public policy institutes in the West Bank, in Nov 2023 and March 2024, show just over 70% of Palestinians support the Oct 7 Hamas atrocities:
https://www.jns.org/three-in-four-palestinians-support-hamass-massacre/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/poll-over-70-palestinians-still-maintain-hamas-correct-to-commit-oct-7-atrocities/
To this can be added the numerous videos of Palestinian civilians celebrating the Oct 7 attacks on that day and the popularity of Hamas torture and murder videos on Telegram channels.
There could not be more complete evidence of the widespread support of the Palestinian population for the October 7 atrocities and their perpetrators. This cold, hard fact from statistical science should, but will not, put a crimp on another homily, the "two-state solution": what sort of leaders would a Palestinian state elect after these survey results?
Similar efforts were made in the past to excuse the bulk of the German population of complicity in Nazi crimes. They were completely exposed in Daniel Jonah Goldhagen's "Hitler's Willing Executioners" which showed how widespread was German popular support for the murder of Jews. In some towns, a few weeks before the end of the war but after German troops had left, the local population took it upon itself to murder any surviving Jewish slave laborers before Allied troops arrived.
May I join in this prayer. With leave to correct Mr.Donne for sexist language (he knew not what he did)
Sam Harris wrote a similarly well-considered article, just longer. I am very glad to observe that at last two of the 4+1 horse(wo)men had the kind of mindset that allowed you to come to terms with Christianity up to a point. You in a different way than Sam Harris, but he too has significantly broadened his mind on the subject of the significance of Christianity in shaping the West. Both of you remain very much invested in rational observation, or in radical empiricism as William James would have it. Much appreciated.
Dear Ayaan Hirsi Ali you are a Christian and so I would like to comment on your professed concern for Christian Palestinians.
Before the ghoulish massacre committed by Hamas on 7th of October the Christians of Gaza were NOT persecuted for their religion. (Although they of course like all Gazan’s suffered under Hama’s terror regime).
After the 7th of October the IDF has bombed churches and Chrisitan community centers in Gaza. One church was the oldest Christian church in the world. In North Gaza the IDF even shoot Christian women in the courtyard of a church complex. A complex where disabled children were cared for. Are we to believe that this was done in order to fight terrorists? The IDF has blocked almost all food to Northern Gaza so most of the Christians there have probably starved to death. Plenty of experts, among them, the Israeli-Jewish genocide scholar Omer Bartov have warned that what we are witnessing in Gaza is a genocide under the cover of war. Yet you pretend never to have heard these warnings.
Christian Palestinians also live in the West Bank. Indeed in Jesus’ birthplace Bethlehem there is a Christian congregation suffering under Israeli occupation. Alongside their Muslim compatriots Christian Palestinians are being driven off their land and even killed, by violent extremist settler who openly state their aim to take over the whole West Bank. IDF-soldiers do nothing to stop this violence and might even participate. All you can offer is a vague comment that Palestinians in the West Bank ought to be protected.
So please stop pretending that you care about the freedom, dignity or even the life of Christian Palestinians.
Dear Ayaan Hirsi Ali you are a Christian and so I would like to comment on your professed concern for Christian Palestinians.
Before the ghoulish massacre committed by Hamas on 7th of October the Christians of Gaza were NOT persecuted for their religion. (Although they of course like all Gazan’s suffered under Hama’s terror regime).
After the 7th of October the IDF has bombed churches and Chrisitan community centers in Gaza. One church was the oldest Christian church in the world. In North Gaza the IDF even shoot Christian women in the courtyard of a church complex. A complex where disabled children were cared for. Are we to believe that this was done in order to fight terrorists? Now the IDF has blocked almost all food to Northern Gaza so most of the Christians there have probably starved to death. Plenty of experts, among them, the Israeli-Jewish genocide scholar Omer Bartov have warned that what we are witnessing in Gaza is a genocide under the cover of war. Yet you pretend never to have heard these warnings.
Christian Palestinians also live in the West Bank. Indeed in Jesus’ birthplace Bethlehem there is a Christian congregation suffering under Israeli occupation. Alongside their Muslim compatriots Christian Palestinians are being driven off their land and even killed, by violent extremist settler who openly state their aim to take over the whole West Bank. IDF-soldiers do nothing to stop this violence and might even participate. All you can offer is a vague comment that Palestinians in the West Bank ought to be protected.
So please stop pretending that you care about the freedom, dignity or even the life of Christian Palestinians.