Watching the destruction of Gaza I am reminded of our reaction to the 9/11 terrorist attack. What should have been an international police action for justice turned into an excuse for the old Cold War hawks getting us into the never-ending wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The terrorists won. Netanyahu's Israel is falling into the same dark hole. What Hamas did was inexcusable. They are a terrorist organization, but their power comes from the 50 years of injustice laid on the refugees in Gaza and the West Bank — 50 years because by then the reality of Israel as a nation was recognized by the world.

Hamas has taken advantage of the Palestinian frustration of not being given the same state status and the terrorists did the predictable. But as I watch the inhumane destruction of Gaza and the continued incursions into Palestinian territory in the West Bank by Israeli "settlers," I think Israel should be better than that. Instead, they are becoming state terrorists. An "eye for an eye" has become 22,000 eyes for 2,200. In the long run, Netanyahu's war will cause more problems for peace and the status of Israel and Judaism in the eyes of the world. Enough killing and destruction; it only reaps hate.

Richard Dixon

Old Mystic