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The sum of all Keirs – politicalbetting.com

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  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517

    There’s a risk of forgetting that sometimes military victory does bring about peace.

    The Soviets ‘wiped out’ Koenigsberg. Did it make the Nazi threat worse?
    The Russians, by their own propaganda, are currently fighting the "Nazis" of Ukraine!
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    1. Bollocks it is!
    2. At what cost in lives, give me a number (whatever it takes isn't a number).
    3. I said pushing bastards out of windows and the like. Have you never seen Munich?
    Wasn't everyone saying they shouldn't bomb Gaza but go after the leaders of Hamas instead. Isn't that the basis of their supposed extra-territorial strikes.

    They can't win, eh.
  • StuartinromfordStuartinromford Posts: 18,299
    TOPPING said:

    I have no doubt that many in the IDF want exactly that. But thankfully Israel, like us, doesn't let the hotheads run the show.

    The question to ask is absent the IDF, at what point would Hamas have stopped on October 7th.
    Isn't the issue that the hotheads increasingly are running the show? In practice if not in theory.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 44,617
    Foxy said:

    You don't get scurvy eating spuds. Indeed they constitute one of the larger sources of vitamin C in the British diet.
    Sure, though the content is low and it's fairly marginal for some. However, I was referring to the fact that some of us won't even eat them.
  • 1. Bollocks it is!
    2. At what cost in lives, give me a number (whatever it takes isn't a number).
    3. I said pushing bastards out of windows and the like. Have you never seen Munich?
    1. Yes it is.
    2. Whatever it takes. The death toll of the Iraq War was over a quarter of a million, and this is an order of magnitude more justified than that war, so lets say double that half a million? If that's what it takes?
    3. Real life isn't a James Bond movie. Pushing a few people out of windows won't end Hamas.
  • Yes.

    I think they're pandering to people like you, safe in the knowledge that they don't need to come up with a solution themselves.
    You are unhinged.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    edited April 2024

    Isn't the issue that the hotheads increasingly are running the show? In practice if not in theory.
    No idea. I suppose in a perceived existential war the question is how hot is too hot.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    TOPPING said:

    I have no doubt that many in the IDF want exactly that. But thankfully Israel, like us, doesn't let the hotheads run the show.

    The question to ask is absent the IDF, at what point would Hamas have stopped on October 7th.
    According to the IDF, they killed 1,600 Hamas terrorists on 7/10 itself.
  • MexicanpeteMexicanpete Posts: 31,182

    There’s a risk of forgetting that sometimes military victory does bring about peace.

    The Soviets ‘wiped out’ Koenigsberg. Did it make the Nazi threat worse?
    Did you used to post as @contrarian ?
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 19,151
    TOPPING said:

    I have no doubt that many in the IDF want exactly that. But thankfully Israel, like us, doesn't let the hotheads run the show.

    The question to ask is absent the IDF, at what point would Hamas have stopped on October 7th.
    I think we'd already have reached the point where a lot of "common sense" people said that we'd taken enough Jewish refugees, alas.
  • You are unhinged.
    No I'm not, I'm being a realist.

    A real realist, not one of those fake ones who wants to kowtow to Russia.
  • No I'm not, I'm being a realist.

    A real realist, not one of those fake ones who wants to kowtow to Russia.
    Oh sod off with this Russia nonsense. You are a warmonger and you're lost.
  • Oh sod off with this Russia nonsense. You are a warmonger and you're lost.
    War is necessary sometimes.

    When faced by absolute evil, yes it needs to be destroyed at war sometimes.

    You are an appeaser.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    According to the IDF, they killed 1,600 Hamas terrorists on 7/10 itself.
    And what would have happened if they hadn't killed those terrorists do you think.
  • War is necessary sometimes.

    When faced by absolute evil, yes it needs to be destroyed at war sometimes.

    You are an appeaser.
    You think everyone on this board is an appeaser. You are crazy.
  • You think everyone on this board is an appeaser. You are crazy.
    No I think only those who don't want Russia and Hamas defeated are appeasers.
  • TOPPING said:

    And what would have happened if they hadn't killed those terrorists do you think.

    They'd still be killing innocent people as they were before? Not as many albeit and without justification.
  • No I think only those who don't want Russia and Hamas defeated are appeasers.
    When have I EVER said I don't want Russia or Hamas defeated? Withdraw this nonsense.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128
    TOPPING said:

    I have no doubt that many in the IDF want exactly that. But thankfully Israel, like us, doesn't let the hotheads run the show.

    The question to ask is absent the IDF, at what point would Hamas have stopped on October 7th.
    Certainly Hamas have a long record of war crimes, and are still committing them, but that doesn't excuse Israeli war crimes.

    I think that Israel does let the hotheads run the show. After all many are in government there.

  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 34,281
    155 seats doesn't sound too bad for the Tories, given some of the other surveys that have been out recently.
  • When have I EVER said I don't want Russia or Hamas defeated? Withdraw this nonsense.
    When you've said that there should be a ceasefire and peace.

    Ceasefire is the opposite of defeat.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    Andy_JS said:

    155 seats doesn't sound too bad for the Tories, given some of the other surveys that have been out recently.

    Well, I suppose it's only 10 fewer than 1997 :lol:
  • MexicanpeteMexicanpete Posts: 31,182
    TOPPING said:

    Wasn't everyone saying they shouldn't bomb Gaza but go after the leaders of Hamas instead. Isn't that the basis of their supposed extra-territorial strikes.

    They can't win, eh.
    There's going after bastards covertly on foreign sovereign land which is fine, and there is blowing up sovereign bastard's consulates on other sovereign nation's land.

    I thought being a military strategist you'd know this.
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 19,151
    Andy_JS said:

    155 seats doesn't sound too bad for the Tories, given some of the other surveys that have been out recently.

    That was my first thought, but then it was also said this was worse than the prior YouGov MRP.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    edited April 2024
    Don't forget that Israel is facing an environment whereby that noted paragon of virtue aid agency Oxfam was posting about the Brazilian grain harvest on October 6th and the very next post was calling for a ceasefire in Gaza on October 13th. October 7th went somehow unremarked upon.

    That is the tragedy of the WCK incident. The WCK was one of the first aid agencies to come to the aid of the Israelis on October 7th.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    Foxy said:

    Certainly Hamas have a long record of war crimes, and are still committing them, but that doesn't excuse Israeli war crimes.

    I think that Israel does let the hotheads run the show. After all many are in government there.

    I fear Israel is increasingly becoming a religious state, what with Bibi invoking the Biblical passages mentioning Amalek, and the general West Bank Settler rhetoric of "God gave us this land, so there".
  • There's going after bastards covertly on foreign sovereign land which is fine, and there is blowing up sovereign bastard's consulates on other sovereign nation's land.

    I thought being a military strategist you'd know this.
    So you want James Bond nonsense only.

    Covertly going after a couple of people may be possible, though its time consuming and difficult and expensive.

    Trying to defeat an enemy institution requires much more.

    Anyone out of window following your policy would be immediately replaced as they'd be so far between each one.
  • You are unhinged.
    It's all that meat the lad eats. If he'd just chill and eat a bit of smashed avo, he'd be much happier.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 54,087

    Well he has said he's running against Obama.
    Biden is white.
    Trump is orange.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    Foxy said:

    Certainly Hamas have a long record of war crimes, and are still committing them, but that doesn't excuse Israeli war crimes.

    I think that Israel does let the hotheads run the show. After all many are in government there.

    It's a wartime government wherein difficult decisions must be made.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    TOPPING said:

    And what would have happened if they hadn't killed those terrorists do you think.
    It would be a funny "Defence" force that neglected to fight back against the initial incursion, would it not?
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128
    TOPPING said:

    No idea. I suppose in a perceived existential war the question is how hot is too hot.
    If anything goes in an existential war, then surely that applies to Hamas too?
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 18,582

    It would be a funny "Defence" force that neglected to fight back against the initial incursion, would it not?
    Initial terrorist mass slaughter would be a better phrase than the anodyne ‘initial incursion’.
  • MexicanpeteMexicanpete Posts: 31,182

    1. Yes it is.
    2. Whatever it takes. The death toll of the Iraq War was over a quarter of a million, and this is an order of magnitude more justified than that war, so lets say double that half a million? If that's what it takes?
    3. Real life isn't a James Bond movie. Pushing a few people out of windows won't end Hamas.
    I'm an hour ahead of you so I"m off up the wooden stairs to Bedfordshire to mull over the thoughtless shite you have just written. TTFN Bart (and Topping).
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    There's going after bastards covertly on foreign sovereign land which is fine, and there is blowing up sovereign bastard's consulates on other sovereign nation's land.

    I thought being a military strategist you'd know this.
    Oh I bow to the superior PB knowledge of war fighting. If you could possibly drop me a copy of the rules of engagement or perhaps post them here for everyone to see then at least we can all understand what actions are right and proper and which ones are beyond the pale.
  • nico679nico679 Posts: 6,277
    The spineless gimp now threatening to leave the ECHR if they block his Rwanda plan. Sunak really is an odious twat .

  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 34,281
    edited April 2024

    That was my first thought, but then it was also said this was worse than the prior YouGov MRP.
    Yep. Actually the figures are amazingly close to the 1997 election, not just for the Tories but for Lab and the LDs as well.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517

    No I think only those who don't want Russia and Hamas defeated are appeasers.
    I think I am the only PBer who wants both a free, secure Ukraine restored to its 1991 borders, and a free, secure Israel restored to its 1967 borders.
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 19,151

    It's all that meat the lad eats. If he'd just chill and eat a bit of smashed avo, he'd be much happier.
    We might all be reduced to eating only cattle over here, if the fears of a potato shortage are realised.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    Foxy said:

    If anything goes in an existential war, then surely that applies to Hamas too?
    Yes I suppose it does.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    It would be a funny "Defence" force that neglected to fight back against the initial incursion, would it not?
    Not my point. I'm asking what you think would have happened without any IDF response. At what point would Hamas have stopped. Or would it only have been an out of ammo situation.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    It's all that meat the lad eats. If he'd just chill and eat a bit of smashed avo, he'd be much happier.
    Avocados are the fruit of the devil. Well, of the drug cartels at least.
  • I think I am the only PBer who wants both a free, secure Ukraine restored to its 1991 borders, and a free, secure Israel restored to its 1967 borders.
    No I do too.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    TOPPING said:

    Not my point. I'm asking what you think would have happened without any IDF response. At what point would Hamas have stopped. Or would it only have been an out of ammo situation.
    But the IDF was around that day. You'd might as well ask "What do you think would have happened if the Sun exploded?".
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 18,582
    TOPPING said:

    Not my point. I'm asking what you think would have happened without any IDF response. At what point would Hamas have stopped. Or would it only have been an out of ammo situation.
    There’s always knives. And rocks, they quite a stoning round those parts too.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128
    Andy_JS said:

    Yep. Actually the figures are amazingly close to the 1997 election, not just for the Tories but for Lab and the LDs as well.
    This MRP does seem rather too influenced by previous elections. In particular this affects the LDs.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128

    I think I am the only PBer who wants both a free, secure Ukraine restored to its 1991 borders, and a free, secure Israel restored to its 1967 borders.
    Not the only one. Me too.
  • MexicanpeteMexicanpete Posts: 31,182

    So you want James Bond nonsense only.

    Covertly going after a couple of people may be possible, though its time consuming and difficult and expensive.

    Trying to defeat an enemy institution requires much more.

    Anyone out of window following your policy would be immediately replaced as they'd be so far between each one.
    So you are going for full fat ethnic cleansing. There, you've spelled it out. Thanks.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 18,582

    But the IDF was around that day. You'd might as well ask "What do you think would have happened if the Sun exploded?".
    Because you persist in linking how evil a regime is to the kill score, rather than the intent. Others contend that Hamas would kill all the Jews if they could. However bad the current situation in Gaza is, I don’t think Israel wants to murder all the millions living there. Even if you believe that they are using hunger as a weapon (seems likely) it’s being done for a reason.

    There are still lots of hostages held by Hamas.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    But the IDF was around that day. You'd might as well ask "What do you think would have happened if the Sun exploded?".
    Okay fair enough I'm not going to do a Paxman on you and keep asking.

    That you refuse to answer is itself the answer.

    Your heroes would have kept on killing until they ran out of the means to do so. Although as @turbotubbs had noted there are plenty of rocks around which might have prolonged things.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517

    Because you persist in linking how evil a regime is to the kill score, rather than the intent. Others contend that Hamas would kill all the Jews if they could. However bad the current situation in Gaza is, I don’t think Israel wants to murder all the millions living there. Even if you believe that they are using hunger as a weapon (seems likely) it’s being done for a reason.

    There are still lots of hostages held by Hamas.
    And there are thousands of people currently held without charge by Israel...
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    Foxy said:

    Not the only one. Me too.
    Where do you stand on the whole North America thing.
  • .
    TOPPING said:

    Avocados are the fruit of the devil. Well, of the drug cartels at least.
    I fecking hate the stuff. I must be the only vegan on the planet that never touches them. I just use them as the stereotypical vegan food of choice. They trigger non plant botherers something awful!
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 18,582

    And there are thousands of people currently held without charge by Israel...
    Yes, there are. And if this ever resolved hopefully all will get home.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    TOPPING said:

    Okay fair enough I'm not going to do a Paxman on you and keep asking.

    That you refuse to answer is itself the answer.

    Your heroes would have kept on killing until they ran out of the means to do so. Although as @turbotubbs had noted there are plenty of rocks around which might have prolonged things.
    Your question is purely hypothetical, given it's your Israeli heroes who are ACTUALLY killing people in the real world, as we speak.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128
    TOPPING said:

    Where do you stand on the whole North America thing.
    I think those countries should stick to their internationally agreed borders too.
  • So you are going for full fat ethnic cleansing. There, you've spelled it out. Thanks.
    No I'm going for full fat victory.

    Everyone who fights for or supports Hamas dead or surrenders.

    I've been unequivocal on that since the beginning.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    Your question is purely hypothetical, given it's your Israeli heroes who are ACTUALLY killing people in the real world, as we speak.
    Yes they are Sunil, yes they are.
  • .

    I fecking hate the stuff. I must be the only vegan on the planet that never touches them. I just use them as the stereotypical vegan food of choice. They trigger non plant botherers something awful!
    I love avocado.

    Extremely low carb too.

    Before I was on my current diet, salmon and avocado sushi was one of my favourite treats.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    TOPPING said:

    Where do you stand on the whole North America thing.
    We should just reoccupy the whole lot , in order to:

    STOP them playing football with their hands
    STOP them driving on the wrong side of the road
    STOP them being obsessed with guns
    STOP them mispronouncing words like "water"
    STOP them spelling words like "color", er, I mean "colour" incorrectly.

    There!
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 19,151

    Your question is purely hypothetical, given it's your Israeli heroes who are ACTUALLY killing people in the real world, as we speak.
    How do you decide whether an alternative action is superior than by considering hypothetical questions?

    You are asking Israel to change strategy by not fighting Hamas, so it is a very relevant hypothetical to consider how well that strategy would have worked if pursued early last October.
  • Foxy said:

    I think those countries should stick to their internationally agreed borders too.
    Israel doesn't have an internationally agreed border though.

    The Oslo accords agreed that the future border was a matter for negotiations. Jordan and Egypt have relinquished their claim on the disputed land in the Middle East and the Palestinians don't automatically inherit that right.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    Foxy said:

    I think those countries should stick to their internationally agreed borders too.
    Israel annexed the West Bank and Gaza following a war with its Arab neighbours. We whiteys annexed the United States of America following a conquest of the indigenous peoples.

    If you want a return to 1967 borders then presumably you want a return of America to its 1492 state also.
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 54,726

    We should just reoccupy the whole lot , in order to:

    STOP them playing football with their hands
    STOP them driving on the wrong side of the road
    STOP them being obsessed with guns
    STOP them mispronouncing words like "water"
    STOP them spelling words like "color", er, I mean "colour" incorrectly.

    There!
    He hasn't yet revealed this, but Keir Starmer is planning to issue an ultimatum to the Australian Labor Party to change their name, or face the consequences.
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 19,151
    edited April 2024

    We should just reoccupy the whole lot , in order to:

    STOP them playing football with their hands
    STOP them driving on the wrong side of the road
    STOP them being obsessed with guns
    STOP them mispronouncing words like "water"
    STOP them spelling words like "color", er, I mean "colour" incorrectly.

    There!
    How do you pronounce "water"?
  • StuartinromfordStuartinromford Posts: 18,299

    Your question is purely hypothetical, given it's your Israeli heroes who are ACTUALLY killing people in the real world, as we speak.
    Unfortunately, there are very few heroes in this story. Lots of victims, a smattering of villains on both sides of the border. But apart from the aid workers, very few heroes.

    And until that changes, nothing changes.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    We should just reoccupy the whole lot , in order to:

    STOP them playing football with their hands
    STOP them driving on the wrong side of the road
    STOP them being obsessed with guns
    STOP them mispronouncing words like "water"
    STOP them spelling words like "color", er, I mean "colour" incorrectly.

    There!
    100% with you comrade.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 18,582
    TOPPING said:

    Israel annexed the West Bank and Gaza following a war with its Arab neighbours. We whiteys annexed the United States of America following a conquest of the indigenous peoples.

    If you want a return to 1967 borders then presumably you want a return of America to its 1492 state also.
    Why stop there? Justice for 1066? Or go back further? Justice for 43 AD.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128
    TOPPING said:

    Israel annexed the West Bank and Gaza following a war with its Arab neighbours. We whiteys annexed the United States of America following a conquest of the indigenous peoples.

    If you want a return to 1967 borders then presumably you want a return of America to its 1492 state also.
    The current borders of the USA are agreed internationally.

    Israel has occupied the West Bank and Gaza but not annexed them. It has annexed East Jerusalem. Hence the WB and Gaza are referred to as Occupied Territories.
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 76,479
    TOPPING said:

    Oh I bow to the superior PB knowledge of war fighting. If you could possibly drop me a copy of the rules of engagement or perhaps post them here for everyone to see then at least we can all understand what actions are right and proper and which ones are beyond the pale.
    Here you go.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/03/israel-gaza-ai-database-hamas-airstrikes
    The Israeli military’s bombing campaign in Gaza used a previously undisclosed AI-powered database that at one stage identified 37,000 potential targets based on their apparent links to Hamas, according to intelligence sources involved in the war.

    In addition to talking about their use of the AI system, called Lavender, the intelligence sources claim that Israeli military officials permitted large numbers of Palestinian civilians to be killed, particularly during the early weeks and months of the conflict.

    Their unusually candid testimony provides a rare glimpse into the first-hand experiences of Israeli intelligence officials who have been using machine-learning systems to help identify targets during the six-month war.

    Israel’s use of powerful AI systems in its war on Hamas has entered uncharted territory for advanced warfare, raising a host of legal and moral questions, and transforming the relationship between military personnel and machines.

    “This is unparalleled, in my memory,” said one intelligence officer who used Lavender, adding that they had more faith in a “statistical mechanism” than a grieving soldier. “Everyone there, including me, lost people on October 7. The machine did it coldly. And that made it easier.”

    Another Lavender user questioned whether humans’ role in the selection process was meaningful. “I would invest 20 seconds for each target at this stage, and do dozens of them every day. I had zero added-value as a human, apart from being a stamp of approval. It saved a lot of time.”..

    .. Several of the sources described how, for certain categories of targets, the IDF applied pre-authorised allowances for the estimated number of civilians who could be killed before a strike was authorised.

    Two sources said that during the early weeks of the war they were permitted to kill 15 or 20 civilians during airstrikes on low-ranking militants. Attacks on such targets were typically carried out using unguided munitions known as “dumb bombs”, the sources said, destroying entire homes and killing all their occupant….

  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    edited April 2024

    I love avocado.

    Extremely low carb too.

    Before I was on my current diet, salmon and avocado sushi was one of my favourite treats.
    There is a great documentary on Netflix about avocados. Watch it and hang your head in shame. While eating as @TwistedFireStopper says, smashed avocado, poached egg and smoked salmon on toasted soda bread.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517

    How do you pronounce "water"?
    Not "wodder"!
  • Foxy said:

    The current borders of the USA are agreed internationally.

    Israel has occupied the West Bank and Gaza but not annexed them. It has annexed East Jerusalem. Hence the WB and Gaza are referred to as Occupied Territories.
    Yes but Jordan and Egypt have relinquished their claims on WB and Gaza.

    Israel agreed to the Oslo Accords which agreed that the future Israeli border is a matter for negotiations. You are acting as if Israeli is not entitled to any of the WB and Gaza, when that is not what the Oslo Accords agreed.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    Nigelb said:

    Here you go.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/03/israel-gaza-ai-database-hamas-airstrikes
    The Israeli military’s bombing campaign in Gaza used a previously undisclosed AI-powered database that at one stage identified 37,000 potential targets based on their apparent links to Hamas, according to intelligence sources involved in the war.

    In addition to talking about their use of the AI system, called Lavender, the intelligence sources claim that Israeli military officials permitted large numbers of Palestinian civilians to be killed, particularly during the early weeks and months of the conflict.

    Their unusually candid testimony provides a rare glimpse into the first-hand experiences of Israeli intelligence officials who have been using machine-learning systems to help identify targets during the six-month war.

    Israel’s use of powerful AI systems in its war on Hamas has entered uncharted territory for advanced warfare, raising a host of legal and moral questions, and transforming the relationship between military personnel and machines.

    “This is unparalleled, in my memory,” said one intelligence officer who used Lavender, adding that they had more faith in a “statistical mechanism” than a grieving soldier. “Everyone there, including me, lost people on October 7. The machine did it coldly. And that made it easier.”

    Another Lavender user questioned whether humans’ role in the selection process was meaningful. “I would invest 20 seconds for each target at this stage, and do dozens of them every day. I had zero added-value as a human, apart from being a stamp of approval. It saved a lot of time.”..

    .. Several of the sources described how, for certain categories of targets, the IDF applied pre-authorised allowances for the estimated number of civilians who could be killed before a strike was authorised.

    Two sources said that during the early weeks of the war they were permitted to kill 15 or 20 civilians during airstrikes on low-ranking militants. Attacks on such targets were typically carried out using unguided munitions known as “dumb bombs”, the sources said, destroying entire homes and killing all their occupant….

    I'm not sure how what you posted relates to my request.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    TOPPING said:

    Israel annexed the West Bank and Gaza following a war with its Arab neighbours.
    It didn't actually annex anything except for East Jerusalem, the Golan (Syria), and the West Bank Settlements.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    Foxy said:

    The current borders of the USA are agreed internationally.

    Israel has occupied the West Bank and Gaza but not annexed them. It has annexed East Jerusalem. Hence the WB and Gaza are referred to as Occupied Territories.
    Yes. But who agreed that the current borders of the USA are sacrosanct. The Navajo?
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 19,151
    TOPPING said:

    Yes. But who agreed that the current borders of the USA are sacrosanct. The Navajo?
    The Navajo did sign a treaty with the US in 1868, yes.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    Unfortunately, there are very few heroes in this story. Lots of victims, a smattering of villains on both sides of the border. But apart from the aid workers, very few heroes.

    And until that changes, nothing changes.
    The WCK incident was a tragic loss of life. But the Aid Industry is far from heroic.

    Start with Linda Polman's books on the subject.
  • Jim_MillerJim_Miller Posts: 3,252
    Most of the United States was bought, not conquered: For example, the Louisiana purchase, much of the southwest after the Mexican-American War*, Florida, the Gadsden purchase, and Alaska. (If you want to say the US often bought stolen goods, I won't argue with you.)

    There were many smaller purchases of land from tribes, after those large ones.

    Before the Revolution, European settlers often bought land, famously Manhattan, less well-known but more important, parts of what is now eastern Pennsylvania, and so on.

    (*That's right, after winning the war with Mexico, the US paid Mexico for the land.)


  • Everyone who isn’t Bart is an appeaser.
  • DonkeysDonkeys Posts: 723

    It would be easier to believe that would be the case if Israel were making the effort to provide sufficient food to civilians in the areas that they control.

    The Israeli failure to provide sufficient food to civilians in areas that they control makes it hard not to think that their intended endgame is a Gaza without any Palestinians, rather than only without Hamas.
    Indeed. Consider the unexplained delay of the construction of the floating pier. It wouldn't surprise me if the deportation of remaining survivors after an assault on Rafah is the plan - meaning possibly a couple of hundred thousand fewer people than are shut in now - with the US government saying we-e-e-lll this isn't optimal, y'know, but in the circumstances...

    They're not creating the next one at all, the next one already exists.

    If there is a ceasefire and Gaza goes back to being blockaded, then the next one will exist.

    The only way to end this cycle of violence is to break it. Total victory for Israel, the total destruction or unconditional surrender of Hamas, then a Marshall Plan style redevelopment for Palestinians so they have a bright future without wanting to throw their lives away killing Jews instead.
    Have you got anything against the other armed resistance groups in Gaza, or indeed against armed resistance on that territory generally?
  • The Navajo did sign a treaty with the US in 1868, yes.
    And Egypt and Jordan have sign peace agreements with Israel too, without demanding their land back.

    There is no international agreement as to who owns that land, because Egypt and Jordan relinquished the land but Israel hasn't (yet) annexed it.

    Perhaps it will end with Israel annexing the WB and Gaza, and there's nothing wrong with that if that happens, but the Oslo accords said that the land would be negotiated between Israel and a future Palestinian state. I would like to see that happen, once Hamas are vanquished.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668

    The Navajo did sign a treaty with the US in 1868, yes.
    Perfectly willingly. Do you happen to know the terms of the treaty and whether they were violated (clue: yes they were). I suggest you look it up. Not our finest moment.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128
    edited April 2024

    Yes but Jordan and Egypt have relinquished their claims on WB and Gaza.

    Israel agreed to the Oslo Accords which agreed that the future Israeli border is a matter for negotiations. You are acting as if Israeli is not entitled to any of the WB and Gaza, when that is not what the Oslo Accords agreed.
    No country recognises the Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem or Golan Heights.

    Many Israelis do not support annexation of WB and Gaza, because that would Imperial the Jewish majority in Israel, unless the Palestinian citizens were either denied political rights, expelled or exterminated.

  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    Did we do this?

    Israeli government says it will block Al Jazeera from broadcasting

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68708984

    (In the UK, Al Jaz is freely available on Freeview 235.)
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    Foxy said:

    No country recognises the Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem or Golan Heights.

    Many Israelis do not support annexation of WB and Gaza, because that would Imperial the Jewish majority in Israel, unless the Palestinian citizens were either denied political rights , expelled or exterminated.

    Not the point. Even the UN doesn't mandate Israel to "return" them.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 98,413
    nico679 said:

    The spineless gimp now threatening to leave the ECHR if they block his Rwanda plan. Sunak really is an odious twat .

    It's just desperation. The plan was always going to be hard to enact in the first place, never mind the question of whether it would work or not, and a significant part of his base which may at least be tempted to remain with the party are furious about it, he has to either succeed or look like he is doing everything humanly possible to succeed in it, and utilise anger at others if he cannot.
  • ohnotnowohnotnow Posts: 4,603

    Biden is white.
    Trump is orange.
    Keir is grey. I'm now having flashbacks to my 1970s gym kit.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    TOPPING said:

    Perfectly willingly. Do you happen to know the terms of the treaty and whether they were violated (clue: yes they were). I suggest you look it up. Not our finest moment.
    "Our"??
  • Foxy said:

    No country recognises the Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem or Golan Heights.

    Many Israelis do not support annexation of WB and Gaza, because that would Imperial the Jewish majority in Israel, unless the Palestinian citizens were either denied political rights, expelled or exterminated.

    How does that go against any of what I said?

    The Oslo Accords said that the future of Gaza and the West Bank is for negotiations. Its no longer Egyptian or Jordanian, but nor is it agreed to be Israeli, nor is it agreed to be Palestinian.

    Yet you are acting as if it is one of those. Why?
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128
    TOPPING said:

    Not the point. Even the UN doesn't mandate Israel to "return" them.
    It doesn't, but the UN also refuses to recognise Israels annexation of East Jerusalem..

    Do you accept that at present Isael has not annexed WB and Gaza?
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517

    And Egypt and Jordan have sign peace agreements with Israel too, without demanding their land back.

    There is no international agreement as to who owns that land, because Egypt and Jordan relinquished the land but Israel hasn't (yet) annexed it.

    Perhaps it will end with Israel annexing the WB and Gaza, and there's nothing wrong with that if that happens, but the Oslo accords said that the land would be negotiated between Israel and a future Palestinian state. I would like to see that happen, once Hamas are vanquished.
    Egypt and Jordan relinquished their claims in favour of the State of Palestine in 1988.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 98,413

    Most of the United States was bought, not conquered: For example, the Louisiana purchase, much of the southwest after the Mexican-American War*, Florida, the Gadsden purchase, and Alaska. (If you want to say the US often bought stolen goods, I won't argue with you.)

    There were many smaller purchases of land from tribes, after those large ones.

    Before the Revolution, European settlers often bought land, famously Manhattan, less well-known but more important, parts of what is now eastern Pennsylvania, and so on.

    (*That's right, after winning the war with Mexico, the US paid Mexico for the land.)

    Did they get it at a knockdown price due to winning the war?

    Still, quite appropriate for the USA to have purchased its way to the top, that's the nouveau riche for you.

    Real countries do it the hard way, through the blood of peasants or marrying a pair of cousins together.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    .

    Most of the United States was bought, not conquered: For example, the Louisiana purchase, much of the southwest after the Mexican-American War*, Florida, the Gadsden purchase, and Alaska. (If you want to say the US often bought stolen goods, I won't argue with you.)

    There were many smaller purchases of land from tribes, after those large ones.

    Before the Revolution, European settlers often bought land, famously Manhattan, less well-known but more important, parts of what is now eastern Pennsylvania, and so on.

    (*That's right, after winning the war with Mexico, the US paid Mexico for the land.)

    Oh dear. Another one who needs to acquaint themselves with what actually happened. As with so many topics The Rest is History podcast has an excellent series on this. Go listen.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 51,128
    edited April 2024

    How does that go against any of what I said?

    The Oslo Accords said that the future of Gaza and the West Bank is for negotiations. Its no longer Egyptian or Jordanian, but nor is it agreed to be Israeli, nor is it agreed to be Palestinian.

    Yet you are acting as if it is one of those. Why?
    I am simply saying the entire WB and Gaza lie outside the internationally agreed 1967 Israeli borders.

  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,668
    Foxy said:

    It doesn't, but the UN also refuses to recognise Israels annexation of East Jerusalem..

    Do you accept that at present Isael has not annexed WB and Gaza?
    Israel occupies those territories.
  • We are ALL appeasers.

    Call me CorrectHorseAppeaser
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 19,151

    And Egypt and Jordan have sign peace agreements with Israel too, without demanding their land back.

    There is no international agreement as to who owns that land, because Egypt and Jordan relinquished the land but Israel hasn't (yet) annexed it.

    Perhaps it will end with Israel annexing the WB and Gaza, and there's nothing wrong with that if that happens, but the Oslo accords said that the land would be negotiated between Israel and a future Palestinian state. I would like to see that happen, once Hamas are vanquished.
    I don't think that's right. I don't think Gaza was ever part of Egypt. It was a part of mandate Palestine that was intended for an Arab state. I don't think there's been any subsequent agreement that supercedes that intent, so that is still the status quo, I believe.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 53,517
    Foxy said:

    It doesn't, but the UN also refuses to recognise Israels annexation of East Jerusalem..

    Do you accept that at present Isael has not annexed WB and Gaza?
    It has annexed the Golan Heights, and the WB Settlements.
  • I don't think that's right. I don't think Gaza was ever part of Egypt. It was a part of mandate Palestine that was intended for an Arab state. I don't think there's been any subsequent agreement that supercedes that intent, so that is still the status quo, I believe.
    Bart lies to further his war monger friends
This discussion has been closed.