Let’s start with this: The untimely death of any innocent is, at a minimum, a tragedy. That’s true whether it’s a mother who dies in a car accident, a brother who falls off a high building, a daughter killed by an assailant desiring her death or a grandfather killed in a crossfire. I’m describing these people in relational terms – mother, brother, daughter, grandfather – because each of these losses are losses not just to the world, but to other living, breathing,
This is one of the most lucid articles on the philosophical foundations of the laws of war, why they exist, and why adhering to them is so important. Thank you for writing this article.
Thank you for writing this, Akiva. You've been a powerful voice these last few weeks and I thank you for your thoughtful and articulate posts that generally say what I feel much better than I can manage. There is not a single thing about this war that I do not hate. And what I hate most of all is that I cannot support its end without the elimination of Hamas. But at least I know I am not alone in that feeling. Peace and blessings to you, your family, and your community.
Not a bad showing as a piece of propaganda. Of course it wouldn't actually convince anyone not already on the side of Palestinian genocide, but it'll certainly help those people feel more at ease.
I especially like the intro. You of course have to make sure to humanize the Israeli deaths, but doing so without humanizing Palestiniean deaths would be a bit too obvious. Elegantly, you had us imagine a specific person, your daughter, when talking about Israeli deaths but talked more generally about the parents of Palestinian children. At first blush it looks like an equal condemnation of the death of either. But with that framing, an Israeli death is the death of someone specific, whereas a Palestinian death is the death of someone abstract.
From then on it's the classics of defending the indefensible: be specific only insofar as it helps your point, and be vague and abstract everywhere else. IDF kills 50 people in a refugee camp? Oh well there are theoretically cases where this might have been valid in the abstract, and the IDF said this qualifies, so we just don't know. We can't know for sure. You can't judge them for this, or any other act, because some hypothetical reason exists that could potentially justify it. Blur the truth through enough layers of verbal snow, and even genocide can look palpable.
This is one of the most lucid articles on the philosophical foundations of the laws of war, why they exist, and why adhering to them is so important. Thank you for writing this article.
Thank you for writing this, Akiva. You've been a powerful voice these last few weeks and I thank you for your thoughtful and articulate posts that generally say what I feel much better than I can manage. There is not a single thing about this war that I do not hate. And what I hate most of all is that I cannot support its end without the elimination of Hamas. But at least I know I am not alone in that feeling. Peace and blessings to you, your family, and your community.
Not a bad showing as a piece of propaganda. Of course it wouldn't actually convince anyone not already on the side of Palestinian genocide, but it'll certainly help those people feel more at ease.
I especially like the intro. You of course have to make sure to humanize the Israeli deaths, but doing so without humanizing Palestiniean deaths would be a bit too obvious. Elegantly, you had us imagine a specific person, your daughter, when talking about Israeli deaths but talked more generally about the parents of Palestinian children. At first blush it looks like an equal condemnation of the death of either. But with that framing, an Israeli death is the death of someone specific, whereas a Palestinian death is the death of someone abstract.
From then on it's the classics of defending the indefensible: be specific only insofar as it helps your point, and be vague and abstract everywhere else. IDF kills 50 people in a refugee camp? Oh well there are theoretically cases where this might have been valid in the abstract, and the IDF said this qualifies, so we just don't know. We can't know for sure. You can't judge them for this, or any other act, because some hypothetical reason exists that could potentially justify it. Blur the truth through enough layers of verbal snow, and even genocide can look palpable.
But it's still genocide.