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And that's the thing. I don't have an illusions that Hamas or Hezbollah can be convinced to act in a rational way. If I did, I'd direct more effort in that direction. I do believe Israel is full of people who do understand and can act in rational ways, though it doesn't seem to be led by them. Convincing them that the current direction is not making things better, and finding another way should be the goal here. Violence for the sake of violence, and as you say generating "hours of footage of their sworn enemies being emasculated," is dumb and worthy of being denounced.
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What's the value in insisting that one side act in the rational manner that it's capable of, towards an enemy that isn't capable of that same rationality?
If you accept the proposition that parties should work towards an end that is beneficial to them, and that there are two possible avenues (peace and conflict), and that a peaceful solution is impossible because one side is incapable of acting rationally, then what is the benefit to that rational party of acting in that rational manner.
Israel and Egypt were in conflict for a long time. Both actors are capable of acting rationally, and once both sides decided that they were ready to do so, they established a lasting peace. Are Hamas, Hezbollah, and the segments of that Palestinian population that support those groups capable of that same level of rationality? I don't know that they are.
ANYWAYS, I promised myself I wouldn't get mired in this cesspool of a thread...