A cesspool of hypocrisy

[Tooting Carmen]

Which side is mass murdering children?

Both sides do that, it is just that Israel has far more soldiers, bombs and weapons to carry it out on a rather larger scale.

And they do it because they understand if you kill someone's family the children will grow up to hate and fight you.

Ariel Sharon, who throughout most of his political career was at least equally extreme and warmongering as Netanyahu, did have a volte-face towards the end of it - he pulled out of Gaza (against Netanyahu's wishes), and there is evidence he wanted to end most if not all of the settlements in the West Bank too. Had he not had his rather suspicious and convenient stroke and coma, who knows what might have happened?

Would I be wrong to say that your main issue is how homosexuals are viewed and treated?

That is one issue out of many. The lack of freedom for women, the quasi-totalitarian rules imposed by Islamic Sharia law, and the lack of political freedom come to mind too.

Otherwise, I don't see how Israeli society is any less authoritarian than Palestinian society.

Israel is a fundamentally racist and tribalist society. What's more, its Haredim and possibly Orthodox communities are at least as obscurantist if not more so than are most Palestinians. Nevertheless, Israel overall grants far more freedom and equality for women than almost anywhere else outside Europe and North America (women even often have high-rankings in the IDF, whatever else you might say about them), and there is still a multiparty political system where you can go out and protest against the government if you don't like it - which before October 7th, lots of Israelis were doing day after day. Notwithstanding some hideously violent attacks on Christians and their churches, it also grants more religious freedom than most other countries nearby.

If you want to buy property the local community can reject you because you're not the right kind of person.

That is scandalous, but racial discrimination when it comes to housing (or employment) is hardly unique to Israel. Take a look: https://www.theguardian.com/news/art...housing-market

[Brás Garcia de Mascarenhas]

The whole point of these protests is to get universities to divest from Israeli companies, which is what some universities are now doing.

Trinity College Dublin agrees to divest from Israeli firms after student protest

Trinity College is a public institution. I fail to see the point of these protests at private colleges or with whom they choose to do business or attract investment. This is the equivalent of me having someone camp out on my private property because they don't agree with me doing business with someone.

[Colonel Frank Grimes]

Trinity College is a public institution.

Private universities, such as Brown, have also agreed to divest.

What is the objective: Force the university to divest from Israeli businesses.

Is the objective met? Yes.

Conclusion: success

I fail to see the point of these protests at private colleges or with whom they choose to do business or attract investment.

The point is to hurt Israel financially.

This is the equivalent of me having someone camp out on my private property because they don't agree with me doing business with someone.

It's not the same. You're an individual. You're not an institution that collects money through tuition.

[Colonel Frank Grimes]

Both sides do that, it is just that Israel has far more soldiers, bombs and weapons to carry it out on a rather larger scale.

No, both sides don't do that. Even on 10/7 the number of children was low (38 children) and that's considering a kibbutz was attacked and we don't know how many of those children were killed by the IDF themselves. We know that the IDF had killed many of their own people.

Ariel Sharon, who throughout most of his political career was at least equally extreme and warmongering as Netanyahu, did have a volte-face towards the end of it - he pulled out of Gaza (against Netanyahu's wishes), and there is evidence he wanted to end most if not all of the settlements in the West Bank too. Had he not had his rather suspicious and convenient stroke and coma, who knows what might have happened?

Incorrect. The reason why Israel pulled out of Gaza was to create an open-air prison where it would be easy to 'mow the lawn" (indiscriminate bombing) without repercussions to Israeli civilians. Sharon wasn't a peacemaker.

That is one issue out of many. The lack of freedom for women, the quasi-totalitarian rules imposed by Islamic Sharia law, and the lack of political freedom come to mind too.

That's not an issue on the West Bank. The reason that's an issue in Gaza is because of Hamas and who funded Hamas as a way to fight Palestinian secularists? Israel.
https://theintercept.com/2018/02/19/...tine-conflict/

Israel is a fundamentally racist and tribalist society. What's more, its Haredim and possibly Orthodox communities are at least as obscurantist if not more so than are most Palestinians. Nevertheless, Israel overall grants far more freedom and equality for women than almost anywhere else outside Europe and North America (women even often have high-rankings in the IDF, whatever else you might say about them), and there is still a multiparty political system where you can go out and protest against the government if you don't like it - which before October 7th, lots of Israelis were doing day after day. Notwithstanding some hideously violent attacks on Christians and their churches, it also grants more religious freedom than most other countries nearby.

Christians are treated like shit in Israel. Contrary to public ignorance there are Christian Palestinians. The resistance founded against Israel was founded by Palestinian Christians. Churches in Gaza weren't destroyed by Hamas and the other Islamic groups there. They were destroyed by the IDF.

Yes, you can protest if it's the acceptable kind of protest. If it's the members of one Israeli party against another sure. If it's Arab-Israelis or Hasidic Jews that are pro-Palestinian the boots come out.

That is scandalous, but racial discrimination when it comes to housing (or employment) is hardly unique to Israel. Take a look: https://www.theguardian.com/news/art...housing-market

It is unique because it's supported by the Israeli state. The Israeli state owns 93% of the land.

[Colonel Frank Grimes]

It is unique because it's supported by the Israeli state. The Israeli state owns 93% of the land.

[Colonel Frank Grimes]

That is scandalous, but racial discrimination when it comes to housing (or employment) is hardly unique to Israel. Take a look: https://www.theguardian.com/news/art...housing-market

BTW, there is nothing wrong with someone not wanting to sell their property or rent land to someone for whatever reason. That's their property to sell and rent.

The issue is when the community tells you who you can't sell your property or have as a tenant.

If I want to sell property to a Reptillian or allow them to rent property, then that's my business.

In Israel it's the community backed by the state that decides if someone is acceptable. The majority of Israelis lease the land from the government (as I said, Israeli government owns 93% of the land).