Amidst the e-mails today (including a personal favorite that asked, "WARSAW GHETTO & SUCH. HOW CAN YOU JUSTIFY THAT TREATMENT??? WHAT HAVE YOU TO SAY ABOUT ALL THAT???"), the common thread has been a simple question: What would you have Israel do in response to non-lethal rocketry? How can Israel end the cycle of violence when Hamas refuses to recognize its right to exist, much less the need to disarm? But Israel cannot be in the business of responding to every act of violent provocation Hamas can engineer. Saying that only Hamas can end the violence is another way of saying that they have total control over the situation. Hamas may never cease mounting violent attacks. They live off Palestinian hatred of Israel. Their currency is the oppression of their people. It is oxygen to their cause. Resolving to meet their every provocation with overwhelming force is akin to a promise of immortality for the organization. Giving them a veto card over the peace process is assuring their triumph.
