Victor Davis Hanson with cohost Sami Winc talk in this special episode on the war in Israel started this weekend by Hamas.
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Victor Davis Hanson with cohost Sami Winc talk in this special episode on the war in Israel started this weekend by Hamas.
We need Trump more than ever. The stolen election has consequences.
https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1711496189323952185
Mr. Historian Victor, there seems to be a lot of questions surrounding this story, at least from me! My high school age son informed me this was a coordinated attack on Israel that had been planned for some time. You always bragged the IDF was a serious force protecting a deadly border, unlike our Southern border. What happened to its border defense?
Mr. Trump had some harsh words for Netanyahu. Our cunning president is mostly right every time he says something weird. Please kindly dig deeper into this story. It was tragic what had happened, but it seems like a lot more people will die. Why is Biden so supportive of Israel all of the sudden? Why?
The IDF’s intelligence failure doesn’t call into question its reputation as a “serious force protecting a deadly border”. Highly professional and experienced military and intelligence organizations are made up of humans, and humans make mistakes.
Some examples of intelligence failures:
Pearl Harbor
the Ardennes offensive
North Korea’s invasion of South Korea
Tet
the Beirut Embassy bombing
attack on the USS Cole
9/11
These were certainly fatal to American personnel, and embarrassing to our military’s and intelligence agencies’ prestige. But that they happened didn’t mean that the organizations themselves were generally incompetent or ineffective. They happened because of human failings, often failure to recognize the pieces of intelligence that when put together in the right way, would have made it plain that something was going to happen.
More important is how well any of those agencies bounced back and corrected the errors that led to the disasters. What is also important to remember that human nature and a constitutional society being what they are, it’s likely that disasters will recur over time. The wise will recognize this and prepare, but again, human nature is a factor that often negates wisdom.
The examples you cited are surprise attacks on civilians and unsuspecting targets. While this is a border defense failure. The objective is clear — do not let your enemy breach your border. I just have a lot of questions. But what do I know? Just repeat the saying “intelligence failure” and everything is understood and forgiven, and move on, right?
Thanks, Victor. Waiting for this posting to put things in perspective, as little time to follow events & implications. All of your comments make sense. To me, Israel’s engaged in a war of attrition, be it 10, 15, 25 years or more, and should simply remove all those complicit in this brutal attack from the Gaza to hasen the process. The sooner the better, since our annual aid to Israel continues to drain our treasury, which is unfair to American taxpayers.
In my opinion its our unmonitored aid to Ukraine that is draining our treasury, not our aide to Israel.
I agree, but we’ve been subsidizing Israel for nearly 75 years. Last checked, it was something like $5 billion per year, typically half in cash, the rest in military equipment & loan forgiveness for construction loans on settlements in Palestinian lands guaranteed by U.S. Govt. Israel routinely defaults on those loans; it makes the cash outlay seem less than in reality.
BECAUSE IT IS NOT WAR, IT IS NOT TERRORISM, ITS ACTS OF GENOCIDE .. ISRAEL NEEDS DEATH PENALTY LAW FOR HIDEOUS ACTS OF GENOCIDE
In that case, many Israeli would be put to death for acts of genocide throughout the decades. I believe the kill ratio is somethig like 6 or 8 to 1. The reality is that the Israel Lobby is the largest lobby group in Washington, D.C., and owns our politicians. Israel simply recycles a portion of our annual aid to buy them off. The mainstream media is also documented to be owned and/or controlled by liberal interests, able to destroy a politician overnight and often creating divisions within our country.
Yet, Israel, our only real Mideast ally, is a democratic state (likely with our nuclear weapons trained on our adversaries) within an autocratic region of the world, one rich in oil resources needed by developed nations to fuel their economies. The sooner Israel attains total control of its country, the better for American taxpayers. Palestinians are outpopulating Israeli, representing an internal political threat, and the two-state solution will never work for obvious reasons, so the Israeli have to finish cleaning house.
I apologize if I offend others, but the fighting in that part of the world seems never-ending, and we, as Americans, shouldn’t want to be associated with any of it, nor certainly funding these activities in any way, because it only serves to alienate others and, again, drains our treasury at a time when we’re running record annual deficits.
The talk from the Right is becoming more blunt, less inhibited with regards to the Left, and I think this is good. Let the Right make its truthful, and harsh accusations against the Left. Let the naive Left and Moderates recoil from it. Eventually, the truthful basis will become apparent to a wider, and wider audience. Kudos to Mark Levin for the title of his new book, The Democrats Hate America. Those who read it will find the title justified, I am sure.
As for the Muslim terrorists that spawned this war, I am hearing them described by Israeli’s as Nazis. This is a good, apt description of them. I hope it will continue to be used. Jews, unlike all others, have the most right to legitimately use this word when it fits.
Are terrorist cells in the United States today?
My prediction is that they will become very active if we remain steadfast in our rightful support of Israel in this war. I hope I am wrong, but if I am not, I hope the U.S. will remain steadfast in its support for Israel.
Of course, there are terrorist cells here! Just go to any School Board meeting! The FBI’s got it covered, no problem.
Most definitely, terrorist cells are inside the wire.
Plus, a very close neighbor’s son works for the Border Patrol. Cartels have put the word out they will pay a reward to anyone providing them the home addresses of our Border Patrol employees. They are probably not interested in developing new friendships.
The Biden Admin with all its nursing staff is completely responsible for this.
In all this terrible mess, it is appropriate to recall the advice of two recent politicians that were in the “know”:
Prez Barrack Obama warned, “Don’t underestimate Joe’s ability to f–k things up.” NY Post
Obama’s former Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Joe Biden in 2019, “he’s been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past 4 decades.” Fox News.
Anything resonate?
This is a far-left, shadow government run by the Obamas, Rice, Soros, Sanders, Warren, The Squad. Biden simply does what he’s told – “Just sign it!” – aside from the strange behavior due to dementia.
Fabulous. Always the best insight and analysis. I could sit and listen for hours!
I’m sorry but 911 was orchestrated by our own government. My bad. You are right. They are a terrorist organization.
Spot on about Turkey. NATO is too large and removing Turkey is a great first step to managing NATO and redefining its mission.
“The sleep of reason produces monsters”
Francisco de Goya
Outstanding! Out friggen Standing! If a candidate was to say that VDH would be his/her consigliere; And would use his suggestions first. That would be enough to get my vote. Maybe even campaign money!
While providing more sophisticated weapons, the funding and the training were done by Iran and by Qatar, the timing was probably chosen by Hamas without consultation with Iran. Otherwise, they would have coordinated attacks from Lebanon, and from Syria combines with missiles from Iraq and Yemen at the same time.
Israel has to choose between two bad options, negotiating for release of hostages, and accepting humiliation, or giving up on the hostages and annihilating Hamas.
My prayers are for Israel to make the right choice.
Ditto!!!