Genocide

 I have been very reluctant to call Israel's conduct in Gaza "genocide." The reason is that I think that when you broaden the use of a very powerful word, you dilute the impact of it. When some folks started saying that expecting people to be on time was "white supremacy" and racism...suddenly racism isn't real. It's just a thing someone doesn't like.

Anyway, I've felt that the IDF was conducting war crimes and that the long term goal of the Israeli Right was slow motion ethnic cleansing.

I think what we are seeing in Gaza now rises to the level of genocidal intent. Of course, if my theory of language is right, then my and others calling it genocide has lost the punch it might have because people have been throwing that word around at various forms of urban combat. 

Still, we are likely to see more and more countries, including the EU, recognize a Palestinian state. The US veto will prevent full UN recognition, but the conduct of Israel has gotten worse and worse, when it should have been getting better and better. Hamas is crippled, Syria is neutralized, Iran is licking its wounds. Now is the time to "win hearts and minds" and instead we are seeing escalating crimes against humanity.