Give a Terrorist an Inch, He Will Take a Mile

I know that many, if not all of my posts have been about the war and the political garbage that accompanies it. I can't help that, because it is on my mind everyday. I think back to my Marine Corps service, and what it felt like waiting to breach the Iraqi defenses in Kuwait, and the combat itself. It was somewhat different than the current war because we were to clash with an army, not a bunch of criminals using IEDs to target innocents. One thing that is certain, and that is the current intel and information that we had. National security assets knew what was going on with the enemy, and untold lives were saved because of that fact.

The point of this post was supposed to be about Israel, and the current happenings in Gaza. As you know, a 19 year old corporal in the Israeli Army was kidnapped, and Israel has responded with a military action that will certainly grow sooner than later.

Israel, hated on the world stage by so many, has made effort after effort to come to peaceful terms with the Palestinians. Peace talks, disbanding settlements, and the latest is to hand over Gaza to the Palestinian state. In response to that, the Palestinians elected HAMAS to govern, and despite the eviction of thousands of Israelis from Gaza, it isn't enough.

Americans should learn a lesson from this experience. Despite the rhetoric of the Palestinians and other Muslims, they don't want peace, and they don't simply want their own land. They want Israel eliminated and all Jewish people killed. Radical Islam wants the same for western culture, and specifically the United States. What has happened to Israel this week is the price of appeasement. It is the price of stepping back from your principles, and giving in to a bunch of criminals and thugs in a losing attempt to come to terms with a situation.

Pulling our troops from Iraq, discusions with Islamic nations, and appeasement of terrorists will lead to more violence. Modern Islam was emboldened by the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the same would happen with an American withdrawal from Iraq. It isn't our actions that lead to more violence, it is our lack of victory that will.