General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: The war against the Jewish story [View all]AnrothElf
(923 posts)Genocide is the attempted or actual extermination of a people. That's not what this is. This is war.
Israel has already agreed to multiple ceasefires, but Hamas has refused the terms. Now Israel refuses Hamas' terms, the same day Hamas bombs a checkpoint, stopping foreign aid from entering Gaza from Israel, and the "But Israel..." crowd descends on the Internet to spread pro-Hamas propaganda.
Why isn't Egypt letting aid in from the south? Maybe because Hamas are terrorists, and they know Hamas will steal it? Yes, that's why.
More innocent civilians have died in Russia's invasion of Ukraine than have died in Gaza, and it hasn't risen to the level of genocide yet, even though -- like Hamas -- Putin has a loud and proud genocidal agenda.
Hamas has a genocidal agenda. Israel does not. Intent is only part of the equation, but it's a big part.
The other part, since we're talking numbers, is percentage. There are millions of Palestinians in Gaza. They are in no danger of disappearing as a people, at present. There are millions more in the West Bank, Jordan, Iran, and elsewhere.
How many died under Assad and where were the protesters then? Something like half a million dead? Where the outrage then? Or now?
Genocide has an ethical dimension, as well. When one side is the aggressor, their losses are often dismissed. Russia has also lost almost half a million in the Russia-Ukraine war. Is that genocide? Many or most of those Russian dead were conscripts, like the kids the US sent to Vietnam.
Slinging accusations of genocide around is dangerous. It diminishes real genocide.