Who are the terrorists?

Firing rockets blindly into a country is wrong; there is no way to justify it, and those who commit these acts of terrorism should be captured and held accountable. That said; the way Israel is responding to these attacks takes things to a whole other level, miles beyond wrong. Palestinians are firing poorly made, inaccurate rockets with barely any range into very scarcely populated areas in Israel. Israel is responding by indiscriminately bombing – with bombs that actually work, bombs that they received from the strongest military in the world – areas where these rocket firing people might be. In the process, they occasionally kill an “enemy”, but more often than not kill innocent civilians including children. If one listens to the media or just about any Serious politician, then we know that this is OK; Israel has a right to defend themselves. Sure, every once in a while they go too far, but they have no choice- the Muslims want each and every Jew dead and Israel forever destroyed. However, if we ignore these people telling us what to think and just spend a few minutes digging a little deeper, we discover that this may not be true. Why are the Palestinians firing rockets into Israel? Could it be because they were literally thrown out of their homes when the Jews decided that they needed a new country? Could it be that, since then – since being forced to live in refugee camps, some of them for more than an entire generation – they have been oppressed like almost no other people in the world? Could it be the arrogance that the Israeli soldiers and politicians show towards the Palestinians, the way they are treated as if they are less than human?

      I am Jewish, my grandparents were in Auschwitz and were lucky enough to survive. A lot of my family was not. I have studied the Holocaust and I believe that the reason Jews were not able to defend themselves was because they did not have a country, a government, armed forces, or any sort of real representation. I believe that the creation of Israel has prevented any future holocaust from occurring to the Jewish people. However, the way these people – after going through what they went through – can treat their fellow human beings makes me almost embarrassed to be Jewish. The fact that my mother’s side of the family is liberal about any other subject – women’s rights, gay rights, social programs – yet go on the defensive when anyone dares speak ill of what Israel is doing, makes me sick. I remember reading Elie Wiesel and beginning to really understanding my heritage; he made me feel like it is possible for me to not believe in god, and yet still be a Jew. He made me feel that being Jewish was not being a part of a religion, but rather it was being a part of a community with a very long and glorious history. Then I saw a documentary on his life and – when asked the question of how Israel can treat the Palestinians with the same ferociousness with which the Jews were treated – he said that he realizes what Israel is doing can be considered a holocaust, but he is fine with it. He said that it is what has to be done in order to protect the Jewish population. Since then, it hasn’t been too hard for me to see who is in the wrong.