Spectator/Stephen Tuttle

Continued from page 3 Why are so many Republican, Democrat, and Independent community leaders avoiding these uncomfortable but essential conversations? Your silence is complicity. Speak your voice to demand accountability from Jack Bergman and to prevent our state legislators from suppressing our rights to freely vote in Michigan.

Gerard G., Bear Lake

Plain Talk

Simple, basic, truthful facts: Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election by over 7 million votes. According to the National Archives and Records Administration, Joe Biden won the Electoral College vote by 74 points; 306 to 232. No substantial voter fraud has been proven. None. Those who claim otherwise have a questionable agenda. Lying about election results is dangerous and must not be tolerated.

Jan S., Bear Lake

Wake Up, Sheeple

I’m amazed and stunned how much purposeful and subversive work has been done to develop and roll out a nationwide Marxism plan in America. It is purposeful and subversive. Designed to get rid of the U.S. Constitution, to bury and prevent the return of the 45th President, to forget Martin Luther King, and to make us complete “sheeple.”

In 2016, the Marxist liberals were so beside themselves they had to roll out their most deceptive, unlawful plan to assure their grand plan would take root with their 2020 candidate. They could not let their fellow world country comrades down, again. Regardless of what you think, if American citizens allow the current proletariat to further rule, know you are not about helping people as you think. Current rule wants to centralize power and have power over you; not to help.

I feel sorry for the impoverished and those that do not fully realize they are equal, can make their way, and get their equity in the real America. Your poverty, lack of freedom, safety, is because your decades-returning city and state leaders have long abandoned you. A destructive and profitable drug and gun industry now reigns. Sad. Who are the real racists?

Jill R., Bellaire

Correction: In our May 17 Now Hiring issue, the email address we received for Munson Healthcare jobs was incorrect. The corrected address has been updated in the online version of the story at www. northernexpress.com. You also can find the latest job openings at Munson and links to apply under the Careers and Job Search tabs at www.munsonhealthcare.org.

spectator

by Stephen Tuttle

Israel and Hamas have, at least temporarily, finished one of their somewhat regular skirmishes, with predictable results. We’ve seen this before. Hamas, the elected government in Gaza, almost wholly funded by Iran and declared a terrorist organization by the U.S. and others, finds a reason to fire a fusillade of rockets across the border into Israel. Israel, the only democracy in the region, then responds with overwhelming force, exacting what their military leaders have called a “blood cost” on those who attack them.

This time the alleged offense was an Israeli intrusion into the Al-Asqa mosque in East Jerusalem, a Muslim holy site from which they believe Muhammad ascended to heaven. Since Muslims believe East Jerusalem, which Israel annexed during the Six Day War in 1967, belongs to them, any offense there is reason enough for more rockets.

But let’s back up.

Hamas has only existed since 1987, founded to “liberate Palestine,” and establish an Islamic State. The problem is their charter does not recognize Israel’s right to exist and specifies Israel is the land to be “liberated.” They would simply erase Israel and, presumably, the Jewish population living there. It makes it more than difficult for Israel to negotiate with them.

In the 1990s, displeased with peace accords between Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), Hamas undertook a campaign of suicide bombings, killing dozens. Israel, which had controlled Gaza since the Six Day War, returned it to the Palestinians in 2005, calling home 9,000 Israeli settlers in the process. Hamas took control of Gaza’s embryonic government in 2006 elections.

Israel, about the size of New Jersey and with a total population of less than 9 million, is a bit touchier than most countries, and with mighty good reason: It has been under constant attack since before it officially became an independent country in 1948. The list of aggressors it’s successfully fought off represent a land mass that’s several hundred times bigger than Israel with a population of more than a billion people. But David consistently beats up Goliath.

It started when Israel’s about-to-be new neighbors — Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria — joined forces in an attempt to prevent Israel from existing in the first place. It didn’t work. That led to a decadelong insurgency and attacks inside Israel in the 1950s in an attempt to destabilize the new government. That didn’t work, either. Then came the famous Six Day War in 1967. Egypt, Syria, and Jordan (supplied and assisted by Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait), tried again. In less than a week, Israel had scattered their attackers and taken over the West Bank, the Golan Heights, Gaza, and the Sinai.

Then came more attempts by those countries to regain the territory they lost, including a surprise attack on Yom Kippur in 1973 that worked temporarily, but in the end, not a foot of ground had been retaken.

Since then, there has been an endless series of attacks big and small from Hezbollah, a terrorist group in Lebanon, and Hamas, in Gaza. Sometimes the attacks come from within; almost 21 percent of Israel’s population, more than a million people, is Arab. They’ve been elected to local offices and have been members of the Knesset, Israel’s version of Congress. (By contrast, there are perhaps a dozen Jews, total, living in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and Egypt combined.)

As a result of all of this, Israel has undertaken a controversial policy of settling land it acquired in war but is now disputed. If for no other reason, it creates broader and more defensible borders for the Israelis.

Yes, it is unpleasant seeing Palestinians being removed from their homes. And, yes, it is horrific watching Israel’s overwhelming military response in Gaza after the Hamas rocket attacks. Israel listed 12 dead and dozens wounded from those rockets. The death toll in Gaza is more than 200, with hundreds more injured and thousands rendered homeless.

None of this should be a surprise. Israel’s policy responding to attacks is to inflict sufficient pain to discourage future attacks. They make no pretense about “proportional” responses; quite the contrary. They will try to avoid the obvious — schools, hospitals, mosques — but if Hamas leaders or their weapons are being housed in those locations, they will be considered legitimate targets.

It’s easy to feel sorry for the residents of Gaza, whose incompetent, terrorist government has condemned them to fights they cannot win. But Gaza is among the world’s biggest recipients of humanitarian aid. And the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees has been spending millions annually since 1949, assisting those “displaced by Israel statehood.” No such agency has ever existed for Jews booted out of the Arab world.

If Hamas and their Iranian keepers would accept reality and recognize Israel’s right to exist, the Israelis would be happy to just leave them alone.

It’s easy to feel sorry for the residents of Gaza, whose incompetent, terrorist government has condemned them to fights they cannot win.