Arlene Kushner..
02 February '12..
How long do we play the role of sitting ducks, instead of taking the offensive against enemies?
Yes, this is a recurring theme of mine, and I've asked this question, in one form or another, several times before. Unfortunately, I'm likely be moved to ask it again in the future.
I ask it now because of the focus of the news, and the speeches delivered at the Herzliya Conference, which ends today.
There is, for example, Aviv Kochavi, head of IDF Intelligence, who spoke this morning. He reported that Israel's enemies have 200,000 rockets and missiles pointed at the country; thousands have a range of hundreds of kilometers, which means that every part of Israel is within target range now.
Is that so? And here we sit?
"The warheads on these missiles contain hundreds of kilograms of explosives, not dozens, as in the past. And their firing precision and ability to hit specific targets is also greater. The rockets are largely located in Lebanon and Syria, with a smaller amount in Gaza – and in Iran, as well, which has thousands of missiles that could reach Israel....Every tenth house in Lebanon is now a weapons depot."
I ask again: And here we sit?
I have never seen myself as having a propensity for violence. But confronted with information such as that above, I find that my desire to do very serious damage to these enemies waxes strong. This makes me a realist who takes "Never Again!" very seriously indeed. Concern about collateral damage is all very humane, and perhaps attention to world reaction is prudent to a point, but we simply cannot be inhibited from making the hits that will protect us. I want us to hit them -- the rocket storage areas and the terrorist headquarters, etc. etc. -- and hit them hard.
Spoken as a layperson...
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