Comments on: Uneasy Gaza Truce Holding, For Now

Israel Does Not Retaliate After 11 Rockets Fired From Gaza, Saying It Wants To Give Cese-Fire A Chance

[firststate]

hamiltongrad, You say, "...all relig. are not the same. Tolerance, freedom,gender respect, intellectual investigation is not a strong suit of one. Can you guess which one I am thinking of ?"
Christianity is a real possibility, unpleasant as that probably is for you.
1. Tolerance - The Inquisition and the Crusades
2. Freedom - Slavery
3. Respect - Missionaries proselytizing, my way or Hell
4. Gender Respect - Male-only Priesthood and the wife subservient to the husband
5. Intellectual Investigation - Embryonic Stem Cells, Evolution, Physics, etc.
You say all religions are not the same - because yours is right.
Are you aware that just as Christians consider the Bible divinely inspired, the Muslims do the Qur%u2019an?
Christians have a duty to convert others to the %u2018True Faith%u2019 as Muslims do.
Christianity, like Islam has different sects (Catholics-Protestants and Sunni-Shiite.)
Some Christian sects even limit heaven to their particular sect.
People tend to acquire religion from their exposure as children in society and the family. Religion is based upon faith. Even though there is no proof, it can be integral to people%u2019s lives.
Christianity and Islam have more in common than either would choose to admit.

[firststate]

First I%u2019m not a Scientologist. I am aware of the fact that the piece of real estate there has been hotly contested. Christianity, Judaism and Islam all consider at least part of it Holy. That given, is the place more important than the message or the messenger? It just doesn%u2019t make sense to me, no matter how many people fight over it. If a reasoned response, not steeped in religion indicates ignorance, then I am guilty. I wonder if Soloman had a solution for 3 contenders.

Secondly, I have read much of the bible and its prophesies. The accuracy of the bible is a lot like that of Nostradamus. You can make almost anything fit when you work from the events of today back to fit the prophesy. The problem is trying to specify some future event from the prophecy in anything beyond the most general terms. Even if you accept the bible%u2019s stories as divinely inspired, who did the transcribing, editing and all the translations? It deserves respect as the basis of a religion, as does the Qur%u2019an of Islam.

[bushrocks1]

Would I send my son to this war? You might ask would I send him to WW II? Or Vietnam? Maybe you would distinguish those conflicts and whether you would send your son to fight in them. But that question is misdirected in a very important way: I can't command my son to go to war. He has to make that choice. So the better question would be: would I volunteer to fight in Iraq, WW II, Vietnam? Would I volunteer to fight in any war? Respond if drafted? I don%u2019t know. I'm not equivocating, only addressing that it is a hypothetical. To a hypothetical, I can answer, sure I'd fight. But I have nightmares of battle (from my past life as a Jacobite). So how do I feel toward those who do volunteer? Impressed and maturely knowing that many things go into their decision. But I do strongly believe that a country that can't find those men is doomed. The fact that we can find them is one reason why I say there is no failure in Iraq. Objectively, I also believe it for other reasons. An attempt to establish democracy in the Middle East is a bold, brilliant, noble effort, facing a high chance of failure. That's why I greatly respect and admire those who have made the attempt--the Bush administration. They have been resolute, something I have not seen in my lifetime. They may not succeed, for reasons outside their control or fault: traitors on the home front, being a big one. But now those traitors have apparently occupied the high ground. Yet... we're still in Iraq. Why?... I'm waiting.

[titocordero]

Firststate
What are you a Scientologist?? If you've read up on anything religous than you should have walked away with at least one certainty and that is that Israel is the most contested piece of land in the world. A piece of "holy" real estate (to most people of the world)and the wars and conflicts to possess and wipe out the people that currently dwell in that land threatens the security of all mankind. That cannot be said about area 51, The Mojave Desert or you backyard. Check it out there are 3 major religions in the world and they all have Israel as it's central setting....or at least Jerusalem. So now I tell you, you sound as ignorant as Grumpas. Have you read the bible, if you have than you know that all of what is happening today has been prophesised thousands of years ago in the Holy Scriptures. Now tell me what other book outside of the Bible can claim such accuracy. I'm not down playing anyone's religion or the God they choose to worship but the stuff of headlines today has been written thousands of years ago in the Bible.

[sandycat2]

I have no sympathy for the Palestinians. They are living the way they want to live. They the support the murderer terrorist grops incliding Hamas and Islamic Jihad. They don't want a Palestinian state. If they did want that, they could have had that by now. Arafat turned his back on the OSLO accord which would have given the Palestinians everything they said they wanted, but Arafat started the Intifada instead of taking the Palestinian state. The the truth is the Palestinians want to destroy Isreal and kill Jews. That is their goal. Hamas and Islamic Jihad repeat this goal over and over again. What about this goal, don't you people understand?

[feelfree1]

starlady2,

Thank you for posting that article. What an aweful example of the extremism of many Israeli settlers.

A recent analysis of these Israeli settlements has concluded that 40% of them are located on Palestinian owned land. These poeple are morally bankrupt.

[starlady2]

chanting in Hebrew %u201CWe killed Jesus, we%u2019ll kill you too!%u201D http://www.palsolidarity.org/main/2006/11/18/hebron-day-06/

A 19-year old Swedish human rights worker had her cheekbone broken by a Jewish extremist in Hebron today. Earlier the same day at least five Palestinians, including a 3-year-old child, were injured by the settler-supporting extremists, who rampaged through Tel Rumeida hurling stones and bottles at local residents. Palestinian schoolchildren on their way home were also attacked. The Israeli army, which was intensively deployed in the area, did not intervene to stop the attacks.

Tove Johansson from Stockholm walked through the Tel Rumeida checkpoint with a small group of human rights workers (HRWs) to accompany Palestinian schoolchildren to their homes. They were confronted by about 100 Jewish extremists in small groups. They started chanting in Hebrew %u201CWe killed Jesus, we%u2019ll kill you too!%u201D %u2014 a refrain the settlers had been repeating to internationals in Tel Rumeida all day.

[feelfree1]

Is it possible that Hamilton Graduates leave shool even less informed than when they enter?

[feelfree1]

Fortunately, there are many brave Israeli Jews who are openly opposed to the State-terrorist activities of their government.

The "refusenicks" are an excellent example of this. They are working hard, in spite of vicous resistance, to salvage a bit of dignity and humanity for their fellow country men and women.

[feelfree1]

The Israelis have become their own worst oppressors. They must end their brutal and illegal occupation of Palestine, if they ever hope to re-join the human race.