The art of atrocity
War Nerd uses the Gaza war to make the point that the age of ‘total war’ (where civies are acceptable targets) is currently in abeyance. The point he doesn’t make is that Israel seems to have mastered the art of the ‘focus group’ atrocity – pushing the limits of war crimes to kill civilians, trash infrastructure, do so and collectively punish a population – but stopping just before the point where they’ll lose political support among US politicans or provoke a serious civilian action in Europe such as a boycott.
Not convinced? What could be more cynical then their agreement to a cease-fire on the day before the Obama inaguration? I guess they want to figure out what they can get away with with the new guy. Shrubya was the Larry King of cis-Jordan power-brokers, but they probably have figured out that Obama may actually pay some attention to what is going on.
My anecdotal bellwhether of course are a few die-hard liberal Jewish friends, who, while they decried the Iraq war, tow the line on Israeli politics of occupation. None of them were shaken by the recent atrocity exhibition, so it seems Israel got away with it again.
It really makes you wonder though just what Israel can get away with, if torching civilians with white phosphorus, destroying their homes and fields, denying them power and foodstuffs and any but the most minimal contact with the outside world. What would it take to get the Euroweenies to take action? To revolt my bellwhether pro-Israel liberal pals? To get the supposedly sympathetic Arab neighbors stop jawing and take any real action?
*Update* After lying for a few weeks, Israel admits to frying Gazans. As they say, ”Like Father Like Son.” Israel is really our ‘Mini-Me,’ isn’t it?
Stumble it!
Tags: cis-Joran, collective punishment, Gaza, war crimes
January 20th, 2009 at 8:54 pm
Choose your words carefully. What you’ve written is “suspect.”
January 29th, 2009 at 3:46 am
I see the Wikipedia entry was changed. I should have linked to this or this.