A muddled clarity

A late muddled start for my day means; I really am behind on the haps. A quick skim of the headlines reveals that things were pretty much what they were before I went to bed. Hezbollah has not been disarmed, and has sent over 70 rockets sent into Israel in the course of one hour, which must be some kind of record even for Hezbollah, but miraculously enough, only one reported death.

The IDF repelled two separate attempts from Hezbollah terrorists to gain a foothold into northern Israel at Moshav Avivim. For those with either incredibly short memories or who were simply weren’t alive at the time to understand the significance of Moshav Avivim. It was the sight of a particularly horrific and gruesome attack in May 1970. Although I was only 8 years old and living a half a world away, I developed a fear of riding in school buses after viewing pictures in the newspapers from the aftermath of that slaughter.

Palestinian terrorists had infiltrated into Israel from their home base in Lebanon. The Palestinian terrorists laid in ambushed for an Israeli school bus which was their chosen target. The school bus was initially disabled by first firing a bazooka at it and then the Palestinians turned their guns onto the survivors. When the smoke cleared, the death toll was 3 adults and 12 children. Nineteen children were crippled for life. All in a days work for the Palis, I suppose.

Arutz Sheva has an interesting little article up on its site called “Will the Rockets Fall?” and quotes some prominent Israelis with their analysis and predictions for the future of the Gaza Strip. Here’s a quote from the old Ariel Sharon:

If we cut and run, Gaza will be taken over by terror organizations... Gaza's squares shall be transformed into launching platforms of Katyushas toward Ashkelon ... The only way to defeat terrorism is by controlling its bases.
Likud MK Ariel Sharon
Maariv, June 12, 1992

Strangely prophetic, huh? Here’s the new and improved Ariel Sharon:

The purpose of the Disengagement Plan is to reduce terror as much as possible, and grant Israeli citizens the maximum level of security...These steps will increase security for the residents of Israel and relieve the pressure on the IDF and security forces in fulfilling the difficult tasks they are faced with. The Disengagement Plan is meant to grant maximum security and minimize friction between Israelis and Palestinians.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon
Herzliya Conference
December 18, 2003

So much for the Sharon vision. And just to show that newspaper editorial boards are no strangers to delusional thinking; here’s one from the Jerusalem Post dated August 11,1995:

A particularly favored line is that the Likud's dire predictions of Gaza turning into another Lebanon, with Katyusha rockets hitting Ashkelon, have proved unrealistic and plain silly.

How about from a former Israeli Defense Minister:

I anticipate that the level of terrorism will drop after the disengagement and after pragmatic Arab forces take control.
Defense Minister, Kadima MK Shaul Mofaz
Arutz Sheva
Jul 02, 2004

Now that he has joined the Kadima party, he is no longer Defense Minister but he does hold the Transportation and Road Safety portfolio.

Check out the scorecard here.