It would be a fib to say this response from the 44th “President” is surprising, but it is no less infuriating.
Barack Obama on Monday wrote an article on Medium called “Thoughts on Israel and Gaza” where he slammed the Jewish state’s response to the Hamas terror attack and took a shot at America in the process. At the same time, he made excuses for the Palestinian population in Gaza which elected Hamas to start with.
At first, Obama starts off his piece by expressing support for Joe Biden’s “call” to support Israel going after Hamas before quickly devolving into full college lecturer mode.
As I stated in an earlier post, Israel has a right to defend its citizens against such wanton violence, and I fully support President Biden’s call for the United States to support our long-time ally in going after Hamas, dismantling its military capabilities, and facilitating the safe return of hundreds of hostages to their families.
But even as we support Israel, we should also be clear that how Israel prosecutes this fight against Hamas matters.
Obama next takes a shot at the greatest country in the world which he once represented as president. Note the moral equivalence he draws between America and less civilized countries.
This is an enormously difficult task. War is always tragic, and even the most carefully planned military operations often put civilians at risk. As President Biden noted during his recent visit to Israel, America itself has at times fallen short of our higher values when engaged in war, and in the aftermath of 9/11, the U.S. government wasn’t interested in heeding the advice of even our allies when it came to the steps we took to protect ourselves against Al Qaeda.
The failed president goes to warn that an invasion of Gaza could ultimately “backfire” on Israel if it ignores “the human cost.”
Still, the world is watching closely as events in the region unfold, and any Israeli military strategy that ignores the human cost could ultimately backfire. Already, thousands of Palestinians have been killed in the bombing of Gaza, many of them children. Hundreds of thousands have been forced from their homes.
Obama next slams Israel’s decision to institute a blockade of sorts on Gaza.
The Israeli government’s decision to cut off food, water and electricity to a captive civilian population threatens not only to worsen a growing humanitarian crisis; it could further harden Palestinian attitudes for generations, erode global support for Israel, play into the hands of Israel’s enemies, and undermine long term efforts to achieve peace and stability in the region.
This is the same population that elected Hamas to begin with. The goal by the Israeli government is likely to break the will of the terror organization and its supporters.
It is a far cry from raping women, murdering babies, and burning families alive. These are just a few of the atrocities Hamas is guilty of.
Obama’s criticism of Israel continued as he whined about Palestinians who were “displaced” when the Jewish state was formed and hits out against the settlement policy Israel has had for years.
It means acknowledging that Palestinians have also lived in disputed territories for generations; that many of them were not only displaced when Israel was formed but continue to be forcibly displaced by a settler movement that too often has received tacit or explicit support from the Israeli government; that Palestinian leaders who’ve been willing to make concessions for a two-state solution have too often had little to show for their efforts; and that it is possible for people of goodwill to champion Palestinian rights and oppose certain Israeli government policies in the West Bank and Gaza without being anti-Semitic.
Obama then finally closes by with a faux call for compromise.
Perhaps most of all, it means we should choose not to always assume the worst in those with whom we disagree. In an age of constant rancor, trolling, and misinformation on social media, at a time when so many politicians and attention seekers see an advantage in shedding heat rather than light, it may be unrealistic to expect respectful dialogue on any issue — much less on an issue with such high stakes and after so much blood has been spilled.
But if we care about keeping open the possibility of peace, security, and dignity for future generations of Israeli and Palestinian children — as well as for our own children — then it falls upon all of us to at least make the effort to model, in our own words and actions, the kind of world we want them to inherit.
via thegatewaypundit
