Raanan Gissin, a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, worded it better than any of us could: "Condemnations and excuses aren't going to bring back the dead or heal the wounded."
Five young Israelis are dead. Nothing can change that.
Arab leaders and my Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, fell all over themselves to condemn Friday night's genocide bombing, which snuffed out the lives of at least five more innocent human beings in Israel and wounded more than 50 others.
They vow to round up those responsible, claim that a terrorist group from outside the territories is the likely villain, declare that such tragedies only thwart Palestine's future and point with pride to their progress.
"The Palestinian Authority will not stand silent in the face of this act of sabotage," Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas proclaimed in news accounts. "We will follow and track down those responsible, and they will be punished accordingly."
Adds career blabbermouth Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator: "I condemn this attack in the strongest possible terms. Whoever is behind this attack has one aim, which is to sabotage the peace efforts. This attack undermines Palestinian national interests."
Rice's words: "It is essential that Palestinian leaders take immediate, credible steps to find those responsible for this terrorist attack and bring them to justice. We understand that the Palestinian leadership has condemned the attack. We now must see actions that send a clear message that terror will not be tolerated."
Earlier Friday, the New York Times published a photo depicting three jubilant Palestinian lawmakers celebrating the creation of their new parliament. To the credit of Palestinian leaders, the new parliament will include qualified specialists instead of Yasser Arafat's slimy buddies.
All very impressive, but it still begs the question: Can Abbas, Erekat and Rice bring those five Israelis back to life?
Israel's concern must be to prevent the deaths of its citizens before their time, as it should be the concern of a future Palestinian government and any other government. Nice to condemn these killings, nice to round up the usual suspects, nice to plan governance that might prevent future deaths of their Jewish neighbors. But it is too late for the five Israelis who are now dead. They were not hurting anyone. In fact, they were doing nothing - just waiting in line to enter a Tel Aviv nightclub - not to mention the 50 others who were injured.
Abbas and his people - at least those who supported terrorism before - are still responsible for the bombing. The Arabs started this conflict and perpetuated it. Abbas and friends did not commit this specific act and they are probably sincere in their regret that it happened. But it was the Arab world that released this genie long ago and lost control early on. The problems of a would-be Palestine are their problem, not Israel's. The killer of the Tel Aviv five is the Arab world's legacy.
This incident only bolsters the prospect that Israel could wall itself off at some point and have nothing to do with the Palestinians. It is not Israel's responsibility to provide the Arabs with jobs, it is that of their fellow Arabs.
There is no question that Israel has made serious mistakes, which include abuses against innocent Palestinians, but how could said mistakes have been made if the Arabs lived in peace with Israel from the outset?
Five young Israelis are dead. Nothing can change that.
Arab leaders and my Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, fell all over themselves to condemn Friday night's genocide bombing, which snuffed out the lives of at least five more innocent human beings in Israel and wounded more than 50 others.
They vow to round up those responsible, claim that a terrorist group from outside the territories is the likely villain, declare that such tragedies only thwart Palestine's future and point with pride to their progress.
"The Palestinian Authority will not stand silent in the face of this act of sabotage," Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas proclaimed in news accounts. "We will follow and track down those responsible, and they will be punished accordingly."
Adds career blabbermouth Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator: "I condemn this attack in the strongest possible terms. Whoever is behind this attack has one aim, which is to sabotage the peace efforts. This attack undermines Palestinian national interests."
Rice's words: "It is essential that Palestinian leaders take immediate, credible steps to find those responsible for this terrorist attack and bring them to justice. We understand that the Palestinian leadership has condemned the attack. We now must see actions that send a clear message that terror will not be tolerated."
Earlier Friday, the New York Times published a photo depicting three jubilant Palestinian lawmakers celebrating the creation of their new parliament. To the credit of Palestinian leaders, the new parliament will include qualified specialists instead of Yasser Arafat's slimy buddies.
All very impressive, but it still begs the question: Can Abbas, Erekat and Rice bring those five Israelis back to life?
Israel's concern must be to prevent the deaths of its citizens before their time, as it should be the concern of a future Palestinian government and any other government. Nice to condemn these killings, nice to round up the usual suspects, nice to plan governance that might prevent future deaths of their Jewish neighbors. But it is too late for the five Israelis who are now dead. They were not hurting anyone. In fact, they were doing nothing - just waiting in line to enter a Tel Aviv nightclub - not to mention the 50 others who were injured.
Abbas and his people - at least those who supported terrorism before - are still responsible for the bombing. The Arabs started this conflict and perpetuated it. Abbas and friends did not commit this specific act and they are probably sincere in their regret that it happened. But it was the Arab world that released this genie long ago and lost control early on. The problems of a would-be Palestine are their problem, not Israel's. The killer of the Tel Aviv five is the Arab world's legacy.
This incident only bolsters the prospect that Israel could wall itself off at some point and have nothing to do with the Palestinians. It is not Israel's responsibility to provide the Arabs with jobs, it is that of their fellow Arabs.
There is no question that Israel has made serious mistakes, which include abuses against innocent Palestinians, but how could said mistakes have been made if the Arabs lived in peace with Israel from the outset?