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Israel Hamas War, West Bank, Etc. | Hostilities resume

  • Thread starter Thread starter nycfan
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Why are only a fraction of a percent of Americans members of the military? Simply supporting Hamas doesn't make you a member of it.

The degree to which Palestinians "support Hamas" is an open question. I assume most Palestinians support some things Hamas does, and don't support others. It's not a binary, either/or thing.

But for the last 20 years, everyone in Palestine has had the opportunity to become offical members of Hamas, and 98% have refused to do that. My question still remains, why do you think that is?

I understand you have very little knowledge of the historical or cultural situation over there - other than what you google on the fly - that you tend to process information into binaries like an insect does with pheromones, and what info you do have is filtered through extremely tendentious sources, so whatever answer you give is bound to be a hot take, but I'm nevertheless in your what your hot take is....why do the overwhelming majority of Palestinians refuse to join Hamas, for going on 20+ years now?
 
I read where you are justifying children being slaughtered because you've seen images of Hamas using children.

I'm condemning Hamas for using children as soldiers, and for intentionally placing children at risk. You are only seeing what you want to see.
 
What's your hot take about 65% of Israelis opposing criminal prosecution of soldiers that rape Palestinian prisoners? And around 95% supporting Israel's genocide and many saying it's not harsh enough?
I think that's wrong. See, it isn't hard to get away from the "my team is better than your team" mentality.
 
The degree to which Palestinians "support Hamas" is an open question. I assume most Palestinians support some things Hamas does, and don't support others. It's not a binary, either/or thing.

But for the last 20 years, everyone in Palestine has had the opportunity to become offical members of Hamas, and 98% have refused to do that. My question still remains, why do you think that is?

I understand you have very little knowledge of the historical or cultural situation over there - other than what you google on the fly - that you tend to process information into binaries like an insect does with pheromones, and what info you do have is filtered through extremely tendentious sources, so whatever answer you give is bound to be a hot take, but I'm nevertheless in your what your hot take is....why do the overwhelming majority of Palestinians refuse to join Hamas, for going on 20+ years now?

I've actually spent time over there. Have you? Pretending like you know anything about me is not a great way to make an argument. It makes me question the other things that you say.

What does "becoming an official member of Hamas" entail? Do they get ID cards? AK-47s? I'm sincerely asking.
 
I'm condemning Hamas for using children as soldiers, and for intentionally placing children at risk. You are only seeing what you want to see.
I haven't seen you once condemn Israel killing Palestinian civilians, or even Palestinian children. You just find a way to justify it as collateral damage, or a part of war, or that the children deserved it because they are Hamas soldiers. All you want to hear is people condemning Hamas. I've condemned them killing civilians enough times and I'm done wasting my time.
 
I haven't seen you once condemn Israel killing Palestinian civilians, or even Palestinian children. You just find a way to justify it as collateral damage, or a part of war, or that the children deserved it because they are Hamas soldiers. All you want to hear is people condemning Hamas. I've condemned them killing civilians enough times and I'm done wasting my time.

I condemn the intentional killing of Palestinian civilians by the IDF. I also condemn the killing of civilians that is caused by intentional recklessness by the IDF. However, I will say that the IDF cares more about Palestinian civilians than Hamas does. If Hamas chose to fight like Hezbollah, the civilian death toll in Gaza would be a fraction of what it currently is.
 
I condemn the intentional killing of Palestinian civilians by the IDF. I also condemn the killing of civilians that is caused by intentional recklessness by the IDF. However, I will say that the IDF cares more about Palestinian civilians than Hamas does. If Hamas chose to fight like Hezbollah, the civilian death toll in Gaza would be a fraction of what it currently is.
There are some logistical and geographical challenges to your proposal. What forested mountain ranges would you propose Hamas use in Gaza?

I understand your larger point, but at a very practical level, any war waged from Gaza is going to be very different from any war waged from Southern Lebanon.
 
I've actually spent time over there. Have you? Pretending like you know anything about me is not a great way to make an argument. It makes me question the other things that you say.

What does "becoming an official member of Hamas" entail? Do they get ID cards? AK-47s? I'm sincerely asking.

I've known you for a long time, IAmStageCoachBoBuckwheatTime. The fact that you have "spent time over there" means nothing. I know you're not an idiot, but lots of idiots have "spent time over there."

Joining Hamas in Gaza is not hard.. It's not a huge area, and 50,000 people have become official members. That's .002% of the population of Gaza. Why do you think, and feel free to just guess, why do you think more didn't join those 50,000?
 
There are some logistical and geographical challenges to your proposal. What forested mountain ranges would you propose Hamas use in Gaza?

I understand your larger point, but at a very practical level, any war waged from Gaza is going to be very different from any war waged from Southern Lebanon.
It is true that the Gaza Strip is much more densely populated than southern Lebanon, but there are still plenty of fields and areas that are not close to urban areas that they could use. Of course, that puts them at higher risk, but maybe they shouldn't be launching missiles blindly at civilian areas. I live in the United States and I know that if I stand outside a military base and blindly fire projectiles into it, I'm either going to get arrested or get smoked. The same applies to 10/7. Hamas had to know that Israel would respond forcibly. Had they been more strategic and targeted only soldiers and military targets, the response likely would have been far different. We lost over 200 Marines in Beirut in the 1980s and didn't launch any major wars as a result. Yet, when thousands of our civilians got killed on our own soil in 2001 we engaged in over 20 years of warfare with hundreds of thousands of civilian casualties in Afghanistan and Iraq.
 
I've known you for a long time, IAmStageCoachBoBuckwheatTime. The fact that you have "spent time over there" means nothing. I know you're not an idiot, but lots of idiots have "spent time over there."

Joining Hamas in Gaza is not hard.. It's not a huge area, and 50,000 people have become official members. That's .002% of the population of Gaza. Why do you think, and feel free to just guess, why do you think more didn't join those 50,000?
You're asking me a question that I don't think either one of us have the answer to. Do you know what the process is to become an official member of Hamas? Do they let women become members? Do you have to fill out an online application and then you get a welcome letter in the mail? I personally believe it is much harder than that, which would account for the membership number you listed.

Also, you claim to have known me for a while, but I've never been Stagecoach or Buckwheat so I guess you don't know as much about me as you think.
 
It is true that the Gaza Strip is much more densely populated than southern Lebanon, but there are still plenty of fields and areas that are not close to urban areas that they could use. Of course, that puts them at higher risk, but maybe they shouldn't be launching missiles blindly at civilian areas. I live in the United States and I know that if I stand outside a military base and blindly fire projectiles into it, I'm either going to get arrested or get smoked. The same applies to 10/7. Hamas had to know that Israel would respond forcibly. Had they been more strategic and targeted only soldiers and military targets, the response likely would have been far different. We lost over 200 Marines in Beirut in the 1980s and didn't launch any major wars as a result. Yet, when thousands of our civilians got killed on our own soil in 2001 we engaged in over 20 years of warfare with hundreds of thousands of civilian casualties in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Terrorists may be a lot of things, but stupidly hanging out in an open field when the opponent has satellites and sophisticated long-range weaponry is not one of them. Hezbollah is not more noble than Hamas. It simply has geographical advantages in how it wages war.
 
Terrorists may be a lot of things, but stupidly hanging out in an open field when the opponent has satellites and sophisticated long-range weaponry is not one of them. Hezbollah is not more noble than Hamas. It simply has geographical advantages in how it wages war.
Right, which is why Hamas should have shifted its strategies. Unless, as I am arguing, a large amount of Palestinian civilian deaths is exactly what they are aiming for.
 
What strategy would you advocate Hamas follow?

Maybe less "death to Jews" and more "let's try to make things better for Palestinians". Maybe denounce terrorism and start actually progressing towards being able to work with the international community. But, if they don't want to do that, maybe guerilla attacks against IDF soldiers/equipment as opposed to the rocket launches and the terror attacks against Israeli civilians.
 
Maybe less "death to Jews" and more "let's try to make things better for Palestinians". Maybe denounce terrorism and start actually progressing towards being able to work with the international community. But, if they don't want to do that, maybe guerilla attacks against IDF soldiers/equipment as opposed to the rocket launches and the terror attacks against Israeli civilians.
No offense to you, but I think your career as a terrorist strategist would likely not advance very far.
 
No offense to you, but I think your career as a terrorist strategist would likely not advance very far.
I'm glad that I'm not qualified for that career. I don't think their current guy is either, as their strategy over the past few years has only made things that much worse in Gaza.
 
I'm glad that I'm not qualified for that career. I don't think their current guy is either, as their strategy over the past few years has only made things that much worse in Gaza.
I dunno. Hamas seems to be more popular than ever -- especially at Western universities. Now they just have to impact actual policy makers, which is a tougher nut to crack. Of course, Netanyahu has been the ideal business partner for them.
 
I dunno. Hamas seems to be more popular than ever -- especially at Western universities. Now they just have to impact actual policy makers, which is a tougher nut to crack. Of course, Netanyahu has been the ideal business partner for them.
I'm not so sure about that. The NYT article I posted a few pages back stated that Hamas is essentially begging someone else to run Gaza for them and is severely weakened (although not completely defeated).
 
Fatah and Hamas singed a deal, brokered by China, for a "unity" government. Neither can be eradicated. The new entity will have a tough job, even if the IDF leaves them alone due to corruption alone. Lots of money to be made.
 
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