An error made by the vast majority of people from all parts of the political compass – we are more accepting of killings perpetrated by those wearing uniforms or flying an F16 than by those not wearing such uniforms. The doctrinal systems tell us that for violence to be legitimate, it must be carried out by agents of state. In other words, state terror ceases to be terror simply by virtue of it having been perpetrated under the auspices of a government and its so-called armed forces. It’s important to note this – from a moral perspective, whether you kill a child’s parents at point blank range, or from a few thousand feet in the air, the acts are equivalent.
The slaughter of Eitan and Naama Henkin is terrorism in the same way that the slaughter of hundreds of innocent men, women and children in Gaza is terrorism. Either oppose both equally, or accept that you are led by primitive tribalism rather than principles.
Meitner is a sickening piece of trash. He cannot find it in himself to condemn the murders without a caveat.
Meitner claims that evil Zionists support murdering civilians as long as the murderers are wearing uniforms. But no sane Israeli supports murder, whether the perpetrator is a soldier or not.
There is a world of a difference - legally, morally and logically - between cold-blooded, targeted murder and the tragic deaths of people who are killed when the terrorists hiding among them are being targeted. (There is a reason that every legal system on the planet distinguishes between murder, manslaughter and accidental death.)
If the IDF wanted to target civilians, Gaza would be a smoldering crater and there would be hundreds of thousands killed in 50 days.
No military expert on the planet says Israel targeted civilians. They know what Israel could do.
On the flip side, if an IDF soldier would shoot a Palestinian family at point blank range for no reason except a sense of dignity and revenge, Israeli society would rightly condemn him.
Meitner wants to politicize this murder of Jews and turn it into an anti-Israel screed. What a disgusting excuse for a human.
Here is the real equivalence: the murder of the Henkins is like the murders of Mohammed Abu Khdeir or of the Dawabashe family. In those cases the victims were targeted.
And when you compare apples to apples, the difference between the morality of those Zionists h despises and the Palestinians he loves becomes crystal clear.
Because Israeli society, from the Prime Minister to the people on the street, rose as one to condemn the murder of Abu Khdeir.
Because Israelis raised cash to pay the victims of the Dawabashe arson/murder.
Because the vast majority of Israelis are naturally disgusted and ashamed at the thought that one of their own could be responsible for such depravity.
And how did Palestinians react to the murder of the Henkins? They celebrated. They shot off fireworks. The expressed uniform happiness on Facebook.
I could not find a single Arabic voice in any message board or social media. As of this moment, a single article from Al Quds about the attack - showing the faces of the victims - has 4,500 Likes and 650 Facebook comments, every one uniformly happy that they were murdered. (UPDATE: There are very few fortunate exceptions, h/t DH).
What does it say about Palestinian society that seemingly no one, from Abbas down to the streets of Nablus, can condemn the murders of the Henkins? What does it say about Palestinian society that the Khaled Abu Toamehs and the Bassam Eids and the Muhammad Zoabis and the Mohammed Dajanis, people who actually think of Jews as human beings, are so rare - and roundly hated?
This is the difference between Israel and its Palestinian neighbors.
This is the difference between a moral society and one that is perverted.
That is the difference between a society that deserves respect and one that demands it.
That is the huge moral difference between the people Mondoweiss despises and those it supports. And if you want to see that difference in detail, read the comments of anti-Israel bigots who are applauding the murders.
But credit where credit is due. I have to thank Avram Meitner for helping me crystallize the difference between him and me.