You “forgot” that Hamas has clearly stated that its objective is the destruction of Israel and the establishment of a Palestinian state, extending from the Mediterranean sea to the Jordan river. 
  You also “forgot” that rocket fire continued even after Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip to the last inch. If, immediately after Israel left the Gaza Strip, all terror activity from that area ceased. Which means no rocket launching, no weapons smuggling, no efforts to send suicide murderers into Israel then all the crossing points would have remained open, there would have been free merchandise exchange, and thousands of Gazans would have been able to work in Israel. This would have made the Gaza economy much stronger and made further Israeli withdrawals from the West Bank much easier.

However, as you are supposed to know, the Palestinians chose to continue their war of terror and continued to fire rockets at Israeli towns and villages on a daily basis. And of course you know that the residents there have 15 seconds to reach shelter from the moment the alarm sound. Imagine the feeling of a mother, who has children at school, when the alarm sounds.
  You should read the Geneva Convention, which states in Part III, Section I, Article 28: “The presence of a protected person may not be used to render certain points or areas immune from military operations.” This means that when the Hamas combatants fire their weapons and hide among civilians, they are not immune from attack. Also, if civilians get hurt, the responsibility lies with those who hide among civilians and endanger their lives.
As long as the Palestinian terrorists continue with their war, Israel will do its best to protect its citizens, whether you like it or not.

@Lockwood “Contrary to what the article says… it is the lack of critical self analysis that continuously lands Jews in trouble.  He believes Israel’s behavior and the behavior of the powerful lobbies that act on its behalf (like AIPAC in the USA and similar powerful organizations in every western country) risk a huge backlash.”

So that’s the reason why Jews are always in trouble - because they’re not self analytical enough because if they were more self critical, they wouldn’t be in trouble all the time and there would be no antisemitism - or less of it? Wow!! Who knew? Do you really believe that? That’s amazing. First of all, the above reference of Jewish Lobbyists and Israeli policy has no more to do with being a Jew than those brutal African dictators have in being black or American policy makers who are Christians. We sure do go out of our way to separate Islam and Muslims from their brutal dictators and their violent regimes. But Jews? Not so much. I think if you really want to find a common denominator in the brutality and greed and destruction that exists in this world try looking at the gender: MEN. They’re all men and I think we should round them all up and lock them away and we would see a lot of the world’s problems lessen. It’s funny that no one attacks that very glaring culprit. Secondly, you don’t hang around a lot of Jews it seems. Never was their a group of people that questions EVERYTHING - even God’s motivation for doing the stupid things he does sometimes. Try reading just a bit of the Talmud and then tell me Jews don’t engage in an excessive amount of critical self analysis to the point where you want to blow your brains out. I think that there’s something a bit more behind Jews getting into “trouble” than meets the eye here, that perhaps you and this Gilad guy seem to think that Jewish people bring about their own destruction, that they cause others to hate them. I think that’s what you’re trying to say. That there’s something inherently not likable about Jewish people. I think you have maybe a love/hate relationship with Jewish people. Or maybe just a hate relationship.

Speaking truth to power:  America’s epithat:

What a tragedy for all humans that the the little boy along the parade route in a
distant land watching King America roll past had to be a “raghead” kid wearing a
suicide vest. Are the “homelanders” listening?

Mr Fish was the little kid we should have listened to years ago.
PS. No! I don’t know him or wish he was my son or cousin.

There is a new book out by the Israeli-Briton Gilad Atzmon.  Atzmon served in the Israeli army in 1982 and after his experiences became a critic of Israel.  He is a popular Jazz musician and interesting (and controversial) writer.

Contrary to what the article says, “Judaism, on the other hand…seemed to thrive on a tradition of critical self-analysis as opposed to the self-glorification of Technicolored Anglo-Saxonism”, Atzmon believes it is the lack of critical self analysis that continuously lands Jews in trouble.  He believes Israel’s behavior and the behavior of the powerful lobbies that act on its behalf (like AIPAC in the USA and similar powerful organizations in every western country) risk a huge backlash. 

His book is called “The Wandering Who?”.  Its criticism of separateness and chosen-ness (the “Chosen People”) appears to be a major part of the book.  I haven’t read his book, but I plan to do so.