Reply #5: there are a lot of "what if" question in this conflict Sir.

[Douglas Carpenter]

And I certainly don't think shooting the rockets is an acceptable practice either morally or politically.

But if my memory serves me correctly collective punishment is still a crime under international law. Shooting at ambulance drivers, engaging in indiscriminate attacks on civilians including unprovoked shooting into crowds of unarmed civilians including children is definitely a crime under international law. Using civilians including children as human shields is undeniably a war crime under international law. All of this is confirmed by every credible independent human rights organization on earth including all the leading Israeli human rights organizations. They all seem to report almost exactly the same things.

But still, what if Israel had not massively expanded settlements during the 90's in the first place; bull dozing house and building apartheid roads throughout the occupied Palestinian territories including the Gaza thus strangulating the economy and even normal life?

What if Israel had not imposed closure, creating massive unemployment and then isolating the Gaza off effectively from the rest of the world?

What if Israel had not engaged in the systematic destruction of the Palestinian civil authorities and much of the Palestinian civilian infrastructure?

What if Israel had engaged in serious dialogue with the Fatah-lead Palestinian authorities?

What if for just one minute the American people could put themselves in the position of the vanquished rather than the victor?