On: Use of Drones for Killings Risks a War Without End

[davidf18]

Terrorists are people who target civilians, regardless of which country they are in.

[vidarh → davidf18]

So police are terrorists?

[taniraja → vidarh]

Not sure about Police but according to this the IDF would be terrorists by targeting Palestinian children.

[davidf18 → taniraja]

The IDF does not target children. Please cite your references before making such a statement.

OTOH, during Operation Cast Lead (I was in Israel for that entire 3 week war) Hamas did deliberately use children as human shields: http://www.palwatch.org/main.aspx?fi=157&doc_id=1304

[mark_l_watson → davidf18]

I have read reports from Doctors Without Borders and other sources that the Israelis kill about ten times the number of Palestinian children than the Palestinians kill Israeli children. I don't want to get into a political flame war here, but the facts seem pretty solid in my opinion on which side is harsher to civilians. A little off topic, but a a very good friend who is an Israeli is very critical about his government for just this reason.

[davidf18 → mark_l_watson]

Like US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have regrettably killed children as well but again not by intent, Israelis have killed children, but certainly not with intent. If you're going to point out the number of children killed by Israelis indirectly by combat then you should do the same of US troops.

However, Palestinians have deliberately targeted Israeli children.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ma'alot_massacre An attack of a school, 22 children killed

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avivim_school_bus_massacre An attack of a school bus, 7 children killed

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolphinarium_discotheque_suicid... An attack of a Discotheque, 21 teenagers killed

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercaz_HaRav_massacre An attack of a Yeshiva (religious school), 7 children killed.

In each of these cases and many others, Palestinians are deliberately targeting children.

It is really upsetting when different groups and people single out Israel when the US and other countries do exactly the same thing as Israel. Israel is attempting to defend its citizens against terrorists to the best of its ability just as the US is trying to defend its citizens to the best of its ability.

[mark_l_watson → davidf18]

Thanks for providing those examples, I looked at all of them. In your opinion though, is the ten to one ratio cited by Doctors Without Borders and other organizations valid, or invalid? Honest question.

Good point about US actions. A little off topic, but I strongly support the US closing most foreign military bases, staying out of the middle east and other places around the world unless allies or US interests are directly invaded. The days of my country being the world's only military super power should have ended long ago - certainly before our invasion of Iraq.

On the topic of the middle east: Europe is obviously a lot closer to the middle east that the US and I would support the idea of Europeans placing peace keeping observers in Israel, Palestine, and generally around the middle east. Sort of the same way that Canada, the US, and Mexico all have a stake in what happens in our area of the world (North America). Does that make sense to you?