I think the excuse for the original raids was the suicide bombers.

As I recall, the story line was the Israelis had to invade. They had to stop the dirty Palestinians. They protested the settlements. It was only 34 settlements since Sharon. 2 a month. 2 lousy settlements a month. Denied tanks, helicopters, rockets, APCs, and army, they used suicide bombers. NOT FAIR. So what if it's all they had.

Indiscriminately killed civilians. Not like our tanks, or rockets. That's collateral damage, that's OK. Everyone in the world thinks killing civilians is not right. Well, Israeli civilians. The Palestinians, well, they're warriors. All of 'em. Old, young, male, and, yes female. They make the best suicide bombers.

If they didn't like the settlements, they should have had the UN write a letter. Another letter.

The Israelis used that as the excuse to invade. Rotten Palestinians, brought it on themselves. Wasn't like it was 500, or even 100 illegal settlements, only 34 in the last year and a half. That's barely 2 a month.

The Israelis had to protect themselves, so they invaded that part of the land they hadn't built settlements on, yet. After all, they were up against what, 5, 6 suicide bombers.

Everyone said to Arafat, "Stop the violence!!" Even while the invasion was going on, GWB was telling Arafat to stop the violence. Didn't seem odd to the little monkey, not at all.

Well, there has been no suicide bombing for a while. Seemed as if that part of the violence stopped.

And the Israelis keep invading and killing.

They've got to get it back to the 25 to one, I guess.

Now, finding materials for bombs. The Palestinians are fighting tanks, American helicopters, American planes, they're fighting rockets, and you blame them for making bombs.

These must be brave Americans, who insist upon owning guns, all kinds of guns, who think another people, when invaded, should lay down and die. Kinda makes you wonder if they would have the courage to fire their own guns, or if in the face of an invasion would hang them from the front door so the bad guys wouldn't get mad at them. Sure wouldn't use 'em.

Nope. Lay down and die.

Wow!

The nonsense gets thicker. Let's say there is a church, some Palestinians are holed up inside. No way out without being shot. Israeli snipers shooting and killing people inside.

Comes night. The Israelis shoot flares to light up the place. Flares hanging from parachutes. Bright white flares. Look like magnesium, which burns hotter than hell. Some burn long, some burn short. Some launched high, some wind up lower.

Church catches fire. Same church in which the Palestinians are holed up. With no way out. The Israelis are some distance away from the church, and the fire is inside the church. If it got warm, the Israelis could move away. They're outside the burning building. The Palestinians are inside. So is the fire.

The Israelis say the Palestinians started the fire. The fire inside the building in which the Palestinians are holed up. The Israeli flares didn't start the fire. The Palestinians did. Malicious vandalism, of course. Can't trust a Palestinian, everyone knows that.

There are people who believe people inside a building will burn themselves up as preferred method of suicide. After all, history is on their side. The authorities say the folks at Waco burned themselves to death. Setting themselves on fire seems to be a preferred activity of wierdos.

The same folks believe Randy Weaver's wife, carrying a baby, was a lethal threat to the FBI snipers. People do strange things. That cost the American taxpayer some millions of dollars, but thank God none of the people who did it, or covered it up, lost their jobs. Those same folks tell you that people burn themselves up if they can't arrange to be shot.

What a crock! What a bunch of crocks!! And as long as people keep believing such utter nonsense, they'll keep coming up with it.

Arf