Are we divided? Has the latest trial, yet again, torn us asunder?No, we are not divided.
In fact, we are pretty much united:You do not kill out of vengeance; nor do you shoot a man on the ground. No one argues with that. We all believe that.We are all favor of a free trial. We all believe in that too.
Where we are divided— indeed sorely divided is how to relate to our cretinously debilitating leadership.The soldier did not get a fair trial.The Minister Of Defense and the CIC rushed within hours to microphones whinnying their 'me too' condemnations. Any trial under those conditions was egregiously unfair.The soldier's actions, instead of the circumstances leading to them, were debated pre-trial. The debates were sub judice.The Trial was unfair.
Our talking heads studiously avoided the circumstances leading to the event. How do we police a people perpetually intent on mayhem?We must face three things:How do we police the Palestinian population? Are untrained, unprepared conscripts the answer? They most certainly are not; indeed, it is surprising the event did not repeatedly occur before. Conscripts are blatantly not the answer; nor should they be.Our soldiers are not policemen; especially when called to police in extremely difficult situations. Surely the time has come to set up the appropriate well-trained personnel?Weak leadership fudges the issue. How do we police and whom are the policemen?
How does the policing conundrum dovetail with Bennett and his fellow loose-lipped, short-sighted, ill-thought-out, opportunist gibbering about land grabs? As is Bennett's way, he makes a bad situation intolerably worse.
When are we going to have a PM who not only 'leads from behind', but seemingly leads from his behind? When will he have a PM that will shape and lead opinion instead of testing the wind and following the stench? The brouhaha was no substitute for bravery. Well-honed sound bites added no veneer to a lackluster leadership.
And we are never to forget:The so-called victim was a self-confessed, nascent, slaughterer of Jews. His timely and fully-deserved death thwarted his life-goal. A life goal whose sole aim is to slaughter Jews. He was no freedom fighter that fought Israeli occupation. He was not a patriot longing for Palestine. He was a murderous, Muslim, religious bigot.The thwarted killer's deep-rooted motivation is the core value of the conflict. The Arab core value prevents all solutions. The core value is demanding we defend ourselves whenever and wherever we can. The core value led to the untrained and unprepared soldier facing and wrongfully killing a murderer who eminently deserved to die.