Death Toll in Tel Aviv Attack Rises to 9

17:49 Apr 17, '06 / 19 Nisan 5766




Sixty-six were wounded, some of them critically, many of them maimed for life. By the time you read this article, all nine have been buried, the families sat shiv'a, the falafel stand either closed or renovated, and the stream of life continues without another side look at what transpired. On to the next one, chas-veshalom. We are used to it.



I'm proud to report to you that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and his military advisors met in an "emergency" session to discuss the bombing and formulate an appropriate response. And I'm glad to relate to the reader that, unlike the usual non-response we've grown accustomed to, Israel is finally responding with an iron fist. Once and for all, Hamas will understand that Jewish blood will no longer go unavenged. Olmert, in his infinite wisdom and following his illustrious military career as an army correspondent, is flexing Israel's mighty muscles. Hamas beware!



The response? First of all, Israel made it known that the Hamas is responsible for the outrage and it is being held accountable. What that "responsibility" actually means, I have no idea. How will that "accountability" be exacted? Glad you asked.



It has been strongly recommended ? recommended, mind you ? that three Hamas leaders will have their Israeli residency identification card revoked. Yep. Revoked, canceled and thrown out. They will no longer be able to move freely through the territories. Nope. No more free ride, no more safe passage. They will have to pay the fare like everyone else. They thought Israel was playing games? They thought that Israel is impotent? They ought to think again, because I haven't yet related to you the complete severity of the response. Hold on to your seat.



Israel will do all it can to pressure the rest of the world to isolate Hamas. Shall I repeat that? Hamas will soon feel the unrelenting pressure Israel will exert in the diplomatic field in order to force Hamas to abandon its vow to destroy Israel. The government of Israel will not stop in its pursuit of that goal. And that goal is achievable. Other than a few states here and there, the world will comply fully with the request to delegitimize, ostracize and isolate the Hamas. Other than Iran, North Korea, China, the twenty-two Arab countries, Indonesia, Venezuela, Russia and another seventy or eighty European and third-world countries, the rest will fall in line. Yes, dear reader. Diplomatic pressure was always a success in staying terror, especially in the almost-sixty-years of Israel's war to survive. It should be no different now.



You see, attacking fire with fire is not a choice. Declaring an all-out war on a so-called government that has declared a war of annihilation against you is not on the horizon. An all out military effort to uproot Hamas and eliminate it is not yet in the cards. Israel clearly understands that as long as the victims are Jewish, the world will pay lip service at the most. We need to get it into our heads that responding in kind will not be tolerated by any of the nations in the universe, including Israel's "best friend"' the United States.



Retaliation in kind is a given in Iraq or Afghanistan. Retaliation and elimination of terrorists is okay in Chechnya or the Sudan. The war on terrorism must go on at full steam everywhere in the four corners of the earth, though a derailment here and there in regards to Israeli responses is to be clearly understood. Killing of Iraqi or Afghan insurgents is a duty of the highest priority. We don't want any Americans or British personnel killed, do we now? We do understand.



Besides, there are no more empty fields or abandoned buildings in Gaza. There are no more dilapidated, ready-for-demolition warehouses left anywhere in the Palestinian Authority territories for Israeli target practice. And the super-sonic booms have been abandoned because it's harmful to peaceful Palestinians and their camels.



In any case, the mighty Israeli military machine must stand ready for a moment's notice to evict Jews from the next sixty-eight settlements and vibrant cities, as promised by Mr. Olmert. You can't expect the army to fight as vigorously against the poor Palestinians as they must do against their own brothers and sisters. So, let's be fair and give credit where credit is due. Mr. Olmert is doing his best.



And as the dessert for the stupid menu of Israeli Jewish self-hate and self-destruction, we need to understand the following latest, brilliant pearls of wisdom.



The eighty-year-old bag of hot air, Shimon Peres, in his speech in front of the newly inaugurated Knesset, said the following: "The Palestinian people are not our enemy. It's only the few, the Hamas and its like that refuse to make peace with Israel. The majority of Palestinians want peace...."



Blah, blah, blah.... Where has this senile old man been hibernating?



And our illustrious current foreign minister, Ms. Livni, in a recent interview uttered the following jewel: "The targeting of soldiers is somewhat understandable...."



Do you, dear reader, understand what Ms. Livni said? Israeli soldiers being targeted for murder are legitimate targets, because Palestinians have their agenda and need to pursue it. Which means the following: since every Arab terrorist organization claims that as long as the State of Israel exists, every Israeli and every Jew is to be considered a soldier who is a legitimate target for murder, Ms. Livni has practically given the green light for the continuation of such atrocities as we just witnessed in Tel Aviv. Understand the brilliant piece of work trotting around the world as Israel's foreign minister?



The above are just two of the most recent examples of the asinine, foot-in-mouth disease Israel's leaders are infected with. Unfortunately, we are witnessing the State of Israel coming apart at the seams. The Zionist dream has gone up in smoke. If Israel is not protecting its population, has declared war on its own citizens and grants our enemies the legitimacy they demand, if the State of Israel - which was created to gather in the displaced Jews and give them a home - has metamorphosed into a self-loathing, pro-Arab conglomerate peppered with confused liberals who no longer recognize the difference between friend and foe, then perhaps its time to admit failure, close shop and return the keys to the United Nations.  



But who will take us in?