[Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA:

Laugh or cry at this line: " We will not let Hamas fire on Israeli
civilians and we have the capabilities to stop them"

Hello?

What are you trying to tell me Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Gabi
Ashkenazi?

Are you playing a technical word game here?

"We will not let Hamas fire on Israeli civilians" - but Gaza terrorists from
other groups who have been firing at Israeli civilians every day - now
that's a different story?

Or are you sending a message that "we have the capabilities to stop them"
but the civilian Israeli government is holding the IDF back?

But, then again, you say "we will not let Hamas fire on Israeli
civilians" - so are you a throwback to the waiting period before 1967 when
some top brass actually considered the possibility of simply overruling the
civilians and getting down to business.

" the IDF will not refrain from taking any action necessary to protect
Israeli civilians"

Give me a break.

You know it isn't true.

The IDF refrains every day.

That's not to say that this is bad.

Our world is much more complicated than that.

And there can most definitely be conditions that require that the IDF does
indeed refrain.

As cruel as it sounds, civilians do indeed die as a result of very rational
decisions that weigh the immediate protection of Israeli civilians against
the long term interests of the state.

Ask the people in Ashkelon whose budget busting demand that their
educational system be protected against rockets was refused.

But that's nothing new. And it goes far beyond defense.

We drive 110 KPH (or at least that's the posted legal limit) on roads when
there is no question people will die because the speed limit isn't 40. We
have a whole beautiful park system with cliffs that hikers slip to their
deaths from each year.

You get the point.

The rhetoric is a bit annoying.

Here is a suggestion.

Sit down and figure out what you can publicly promise to deliver - and
actually keep the promise.]

Chief of General Staff: We Will Not Let Hamas Attack Our Civilians
16 September 2010 , 13:20 Jonatan Urich IDF
http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/News/today/10/09/1601.htm

On Wednesday (Sept. 15) the Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Gabi
Ashkenazi, visited the Bnei Dor Military Academy. During his visit, the
Chief of Staff spoke about challenges currently facing the IDF and
emphasized the significant contribution of students in the military academy.
"The attempts at delegitimizing Israel and the IDF are growing stronger. But
we have a moral army which operates in the most professional and ethical
ways," he said.

Lt Gen. Ashkenazi discussed the current intensification of the situation on
the Gaza border with the increasing number of rockets and mortar shells
fired into Israel. "We face the threat of rockets and missiles fired from
urban areas and nature reserves. We will not let Hamas fire on Israeli
civilians and we have the capabilities to stop them." The Chief of the
General Staff added that Operation Cast Lead created a new reality in the
Gaza Strip, whereby the IDF will not refrain from taking any action
necessary to protect Israeli civilians.

"On the eve of Yom Kippur we in the IDF stand before many challenges. The
reality is complex: Iran is growing stronger, as are Lebanon and Hamas. We
also have much work to do in the Judea and Samaria region. The IDF, as the
guarding shield of Israel, will stand between the enemy and the State of
Israel. As commanders of the army, we are working hard to be prepared for
war," added the Chief of Staff.

"We must continue fighting for our right to live here. Therefore it is
important to enlist in the IDF and to have the most meaningful service
possible," Lt Gen. Ashkenazi said, stressing that the IDF would continue the
fight to encourage enlistment "despite the increase in draft numbers to
combat units. It's very important to the army, as the army of the nation, to
draft everyone despite the schism in ideas and beliefs between us. The IDF
should be the bridge which connects everyone."