A Time To Respond - There Is No Moral Equivalency?

What would Americans do living in San Diego and its suburbs if 13,000 rockets had been fired from Tijuana and northern Mexico into their homes, schools, parks, churches and hospitals?

Mind you, they were NOT FIRED INTO THEIR MILITARY BASES...but on innocent p

eople just trying to live life in peace. I would HOPE that the US military would defend their citizens by going into northern Mexico BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY and clean out any and all perpetrators of such immoral acts before any more lives were threatened.  The goal of this would not be to obtain more land, nor to limit the freedom of a neighboring people, but to protect the lives of our citizens.  

If the US didn't respond in that way, we would all hold them accountable for treason for allowing it to continue

Israel has shown overt restraint and focused on surgically precise strikes to avoid even the appearance of an asymmetric response. Even with that, much of the world media and Arab and other anti-Israel nations rail against Israeli retaliation.  Their blatant hypocrisy reeks to the heavens.  While 30,000 Syrian citizens are brutally murdered by an Arab despot, there is no outcry amongst those nations.  But, when the "Zionist Entity" defends its own citizens, their is vehement opposition.

After Israel pulled out of Gaza in 2005 as an act of goodwill to prove their desire for peace with the so-called Palestinians, more than 13,000 rockets have rained down on Southern Israel.  Now, with the use of Iranian supplied Fajr-5 missiles fired from apartments, homes and stores in civilian areas, this has extended into Tel Aviv, Rishon LeZion and other much more populous regions in Israel.  No other sovereign country should have to tolerate even 1 rocket.  But Israel is always called upon to show restraint.

Some interesting points:
1) Israel assassinated one of the most important Hamas operatives, Ahmed al-Jabari in retaliation for the enormous wave of increased rockets fired from Gaza over the recent days.  Israeli use of targeted assassinations has been criticized by many...but it saves lives - it saves Israeli lives.  But, just as importantly, it saves the lives of innocent people in Gaza.
2) Israel left Gaza in 2005 -- removing ALL of its citizens (it is actua

lly illegal for an Israeli citizen to enter Gaza) -- in the name of peace.  Despite the misinformation by anti-Israeli media and organizations, Israel has ensured the importation of millions of tons of food, clothing, building supplies, and other necessary items into Gaza over the 7 years since.

3) Despite the fact that the publicly elected government of the Gazan people REFUSES to acknowledge Israel's right to exist and whose patent goal is the eradication of the Jewish population of Israel, Israel still provides electricity to all of Gaza (paid for by Israeli citizens and their taxes)

4) There may be far fewer Israeli casualties than Gazan casualties in any military encounter between the two.  This unfortunate circumstance is not a result of intentionality on Israel's military.  There are a multitude of reasons, not the least of which are:

   a) Israel's first priority is the protection of the innocent...and it builds bomb shelters for that purpose.  Even one life lost is sadness beyond tolerance to most Israelis.

   b) Those in power in Gaza not only avoid building bomb shelters, they fight from within populated areas FOR THE DISTINCT PURPOSE of encouraging more collateral damage that will persuade world opinion against Israel.  For the Islamist radical leadership in Gaza, it is an honor for anyone to die for the cause of Jihad.

There is no moral equivalency between rockets fired upon civilian populations and the defensive efforts on the part of Israel to surgically incise terrorists and their weapons from Gaza.  When Israelis and most other compassionate people learn of the loss of innocent lives - women or children in Gaza for instance - for a moment they stop to ask the question...why?  Why can't their just be peace?  Why can't the hope for mutual understanding, dialogue and respect become a reality?  Now compare this to the reaction of the Palestinians and other Arab nations when an innocent Israeli citizen is a victim of a rocket attack or a suicide/homicide bomber.  Recall the reaction that took place in the streets of Gaza city and Ramallah after the tragedy of 9/11 - they were filled with people celebrating the death of nearly 3000 innocent lives.

The situation is tragic and their appears to be no end in sight.  But, any intelligent, morally sound individual would understand that there is a time for restraint and their is a time for response that matches the threat.  Now is the time for the latter.

Let  us all pray for the protection of the innocent and Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem and the entire region.