militaryhistory

Over the last couple of weeks, we have seen Israel actively assault Hamas militants in Gaza. There are very mixed reactions to Israels actions in Gaza. Though if one lived in southern Israel, I think the answer to their reaction would be much clearer. Imagine you live in the far north suburbs of Chicago, and a militant faction in Wisconsin was launcing rockets into your hometown. It s highly probable that one would expect the Ilinois National Guard, if not the US Military to stop the activity. In the case of the present situation in Gaza, Israel has in fact been a target of extremists groups since its inception.

Ideally, the ultimate resoluton should be a diplomatic one. All hostilities should cease, all warfare stopped and all weapons silenced, however, diplomatic solutions have been tried repeatedly and failed in violence and bloodshed. And it seems that somewhere out there a program exists with an agenda to destroy Israel and to destroy western interests worldwide, and no one knows for sure what would replace democracy, should the west fall.

So it is with this in mind, that one must examine history for an answer. But what is the question? The question is “how can we finally stop the violence in the mideast”? Considering that organizations such as Hamas and Hezbolah have continued to utilize violence as the means to the ends, when in fact, the end result has now been more violence on a grand scale. Yes, Violence committed by a “standing army”, being the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). An action that many people of come to dread and fear. There is probably nothing more freightening that being invaded by an organized and well armed miltary force. This however has been a fact for many throughout history, war is war, and in the words of General W.T. Sherman, “war is all hell”.

So now the question is “how do we define victory”? A study of military history provides an easy and definitive answer. Victory is the result of surrender, or “capitualtion or inihaltion of a military opponent.  So the answer becomes that Hamas must surrender, for the good Gaza, for the good of its own people, for the rebuilding of its state and the safety of its children, Hamas must surrender. Like the Japanese in world war two, Hamas has the chance to be honorable, to show the world that it cares about all of our childen, to show that they desire real peace, that they desire to be a good neighbor to Israel, that they desire to see their young people live and not to be used as walking time bombs. Surrender is an option.

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