Israel’s “proportion” critics miss the point.

Here we go again. Israel responds to terrorism and they’re criticized for it, usually under the misnomer that their response is disproportionate. This misses the point completely, opines Scott Hindraker of Powerlineblog:

As he leaves office, President Bush stands alone among the quoted leaders. He alone issued a statement declining to equate the parties or call on them both to cease. The statement nevertheless is couched in its own kind of stupidity. Through spokesman Gordon Johnroe, the White House statement provides:

Hamas’ continued rocket attacks into Israel must cease if the violence is to stop. Hamas must end its terrorist activities if it wishes to play a role in the future of the Palestinian people.

The United States urges Israel to avoid civilian casualties as it targets Hamas in Gaza.

Contrary to the implication of the White House statement, however, Hamas’s reason for being among “the Palestinian people” is terrorist. The linked AP story quotes a Hamas spokesman speaking on a Gaza radio station. The Hamas spokesman pungently states that “Hamas will continue the resistance until the last drop of blood.” Is anybody listening?

And like all the terrorist groups in the region, Hamas embeds itself among civilians, using them as shelds against a humane enemy. The Israelis go to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties. Hamas intentionally makes it difficult for the Israelis to avoid civilian casualties. It would be nice if the White House noted this aspect of the evil perpetrated by Hamas or acknowledged the traditional Israeli restraint in this regard.

True. There’s another story floating around on Drudge, etc., about self-flagellating liberal Israelis calling their government’s retaliation “genocide.” Given Israeli’s military strength, can there be any doubt that if Israel really wanted to line up a tank side by side and kill every Palestinian they could? And, conversely, if that technology balance was reversed and Palestine had all the power would there still be an Israeli left alive? Indeed, in terms of territory or casualties, no other country would show the patience and proportional response that Israel has. In an example of the former, the White House and State Department should recall that we took California, New Mexico and Arizona for a heck of a lot less provocation in the Mexican-American War. And, the latter – casualties – history is replete with examples of true disproportion, such as Syria’s liquidation of the people of Hama in 1982, a state that today condemns Israel for much less.

Another point: So long as Hamas can lob rockets into Israel they needn’t worry about actually running a government. Were they to stop their terrorism and accept a two-state solution, in other words, their people would begin to focus on the ineptitude of Hamas’ government rather than the Zionist bogeyman next door to them. Similarly, the neighboring states, from Jordan to Lebanon to Egypt to Syria (and although not a neighbor, Iran), will continue to promote terrorism and war by proxy against Israel because they profit from it.