About the war
I am not glad that Israel is at war.
I am glad that Israel is finally defending civilians who have been living under constant rocket attacks that have gone unreported by the world media for several months now.
And frankly, screw world opinion.
Unfortunately, as I wrote over at DB's, there is really only one way to defeat guerrilla fighters, whether in the mountains of Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Gaza, and I don't think Israel has the commitment to follow through on the current strikes to make them effective and lasting:
Guerrilla fighters of any stripe depend on making a population more scared of and/or indebted to them than the enemy does, in order to gain cooperation.
The ONLY way that has ever succeeded in rooting out fighters who hide among civilians is with overwhelming efforts on three sides:
1. Improve quality of life beyond what the guerrillas are able to offer
2. Be scarier, with more firepower and more physical presence than the guerrillas (this means living among the enemy civilian population in large numbers)
3. Create a new world-view/identity for the enemy population in which the enemy civilians are powerful decision-makers in their own right, who "choose" to ally with you instead of the fighters.
Basically, this would require the full forces of the IDF and multiple international humanitarian (non-crazy left wing groups) to all work together and basically "invade" Gaza en masse for a generation.
FYI, for breaking news, see Jameel's live-blogging of the war at the Muqata.
I am glad that Israel is finally defending civilians who have been living under constant rocket attacks that have gone unreported by the world media for several months now.
And frankly, screw world opinion.
Unfortunately, as I wrote over at DB's, there is really only one way to defeat guerrilla fighters, whether in the mountains of Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Gaza, and I don't think Israel has the commitment to follow through on the current strikes to make them effective and lasting:
Guerrilla fighters of any stripe depend on making a population more scared of and/or indebted to them than the enemy does, in order to gain cooperation.
The ONLY way that has ever succeeded in rooting out fighters who hide among civilians is with overwhelming efforts on three sides:
1. Improve quality of life beyond what the guerrillas are able to offer
2. Be scarier, with more firepower and more physical presence than the guerrillas (this means living among the enemy civilian population in large numbers)
3. Create a new world-view/identity for the enemy population in which the enemy civilians are powerful decision-makers in their own right, who "choose" to ally with you instead of the fighters.
Basically, this would require the full forces of the IDF and multiple international humanitarian (non-crazy left wing groups) to all work together and basically "invade" Gaza en masse for a generation.
FYI, for breaking news, see Jameel's live-blogging of the war at the Muqata.
posted by Tzipporah at 2:27 PM
4 Comments:
Guerrilla fighters of any stripe depend on making a population more scared of and/or indebted to them than the enemy does, in order to gain cooperation.
The ONLY way that has ever succeeded in rooting out fighters who hide among civilians is with overwhelming efforts on three sides:
1. Improve quality of life beyond what the guerrillas are able to offer
2. Be scarier, with more firepower and more physical presence than the guerrillas (this means living among the enemy civilian population in large numbers)
3. Create a new world-view/identity for the enemy population in which the enemy civilians are powerful decision-makers in their own right, who "choose" to ally with you instead of the fighters.
You mean like in the Warsaw Ghetto?
Anon, the comparison is off-base. What exactly is the same about people who have vowed to kill you and elected a gov't based on that idea, and powerless people who try to go about their lives WITHOUT committing violence against their oppressors?
I don't get it.
And yes, I actually know a lot about both situations.
people who try to go about their lives WITHOUT committing violence against their oppressors
The ZOB didn't commit any violence against their oppressors?
I guess the Uprising must just be Nazi propaganda, then. Real Jews would never try to defend themselves against ethnic cleansing and genocide -- only Moslems would act in such a courageous and dignified way.
Tzip is entirely correct.
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