The Silent Victims

September 15, 2007 - 8:00 AM by

Last week a Qassam rocket lobbed over from Gaza slammed into an Israeli army base in the Negev Desert. Dozens of soldiers were wounded.

Israelis at large and Israeli government figures have had enough. And the response or ultimate decision in handling the ongoing rocket attacks coming out of Gaza is pending.

Now I know it’s not easy to reach in and find compassion for the other but read this entry by fugitive peace and you just might find an alternate way of viewing things for at least a few minutes.

It’s from a Gaza-based friend of Gideon’s – the writer behind fugitive peace – who waited long months and went through the arduous process of securing permissions, Visas and travel documents for study abroad. Last week’s rocket attack slashed his hopes.

I set out of here on time Tuesday 4:00 am. I got on the bus with the other travelers and we moved on to Erez crossing, passed it after we had done all the checking procedures on the Israeli side so swiftly and smoothly. Every thing seemd fine and good. We got on other buses and were supposed to head to Egypt. We waited and waited and waited to move, time of waiting on the buses almost 4 hours. We did not move to Egypt though :-( . Then we were told we have to return to Gaza for security reasons. We heard later that it was because some Palestinian stupid group fired a rocket against Israel and hit a group of Israeli soldiers, one was killed [NB: according to reports today he is critically injured but still alive - Gideon] and 60 others were injured…. On the way back, I saw the women and kids traveling back bursting into tears feeling so disappointed, grievous and upset. All of them were of course stuck in Gaza and this was their only chance to reunite with their families, fathers and husbands… It is so sad and agonizing to know that we ,the Palestinian, do this to ourselves and call this “resistance” of the occupation…

Read on for this different but fresh perspective. May we ALL know peace in the New Year.

Tags: • Category: Blogging, Politics, War 

Comments

10 Comments on The Silent Victims

  1. Alex on Sun, Sep 16th 2007 9:17 AM

    2. Stephanie, focusing on “the other” during this time just weakens your resolve. The Israelis just need to do what needs to be done, and this time don’t quit before they are done.

  2. Stephanie on Sun, Sep 16th 2007 11:32 AM

    3. Alex: I beg to differ. I’m not advocating focusing on the other side. Rather, shifting to allow a different perspective for a fleeting few moments in order to move away from the false notion that all Palestinians are the enemy.

  3. Alex on Mon, Sep 17th 2007 2:21 AM

    4. Well, let me put it this way.

    During WWII were all Germans your enemy?

    All of them?

    No, but most of them. The vast majority of them were.

    The Palestinians are the enemy. That is the cold hard fact of things. Now with life you have your grays, you have your exceptions, but that doesn’t change the fact that in a general practical sense, all Palestinians are your enemy.

    It is like what I once said to a friend. You believe in a world of black and white. But when instead you see gray you become all confused. I on the other hand acknowledge the gray, expect the gray, and upon encountering the gray am able to see the essential black and white that can indeed be found beyond that gray.

  4. Alex on Mon, Sep 17th 2007 2:36 AM

    5. Hitler was a man who loved to talk to children. He loved his dogs and he was a very gentle boss to his secretary.

    All the above is indeed true. And for those who expect the world to be black and white, are exactly the type of “gray’ facts that would confuse them and make them question.

    But for those who live, like I do in the world with an expectation of running into the gray, I can look beyond all that and see the black and white that exists beyond all that gray. I know that all that stuff doesn’t really matter and what mattered is the evil Hitler did and the fact that he needed to be destroyed.

    So, if you go about saying that the world isn’t black and white well, you would be kind of right but more fundamentally wrong. The world is Black and White, but first it is gray.

  5. Stephanie on Mon, Sep 17th 2007 6:29 AM

    6. I find the “parallel trap” so often drawn to Hitler to be most often inappropriate and disrespectful to those who lived WWII. We’re talking about a Gaza kid who missed out on college here. Regardless of semantics. Enough. I’m bowing out of this one, Alex.

  6. Alex on Mon, Sep 17th 2007 9:11 AM

    7. You believe in a world of black and white. But when instead you see gray you become all confused.

  7. Alex on Mon, Sep 17th 2007 9:17 AM

    8. Can you hold these two facts in your mind at the same time?

    Hitler was a evil man who is responsible for the deaths of Millions.

    If you were a secretary you couldn’t dream of having a better boss than Hitler.

    Well if you can’t, too bad. That’s the real world.

    If you go about the world thinking that you will see it as black and white you are going to be terribly disappointed.

    But Black and White it indeed is, but first you have to be able to see through its gray!

  8. Alex on Mon, Sep 17th 2007 9:23 AM

    9. “We’re talking about a Gaza kid who missed out on college here.”

    What’s your point here?

    To me that is as meaningless as saying that Hitler treated his dogs well.

    So, in the end, talking about Gaza kid who missed out on college is pointless. In the end the Palestinians are still your enemy,

    Oh indeed the world is black and white but first you need to look through the gray,

  9. Stephanie on Mon, Sep 17th 2007 12:33 PM

    10. Thanks, Alex. I’ll bear that in mind

  10. nrg on Wed, Sep 19th 2007 2:01 PM

    11. ooh, I just can’t let this one pass… try as I might.

    Alex:
    Your analogy between the kid who missed out on college and Hitler would be ok if you had the correct basis for comparison. I don’t believe that you do.

    If you were talking about a boy from Gaza who was the architect and brain behind the system that led to the bombing of the Israeli army base and who was simultaneously a well liked kid eager to go off to study abroad and live the life of a normal college student, I would see the basis for comparison. With that not being the case, I think you are drawing parallels for which you have no foundation.

    Attempting to support the idea that all Palestinians must be seen as the enemy by using the Hitler/Germany comparison is weak at best. As they say in norwegian, you’re comparing lobsters and canaries…

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