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I have mixed feelings about this topic appearing on HN as I feel like folks are entrenched one way or the other and information isn't going to sway anyone. If t
by xyzelement 3y ago
I have mixed feelings about this topic appearing on HN as I feel like folks are entrenched one way or the other and information isn't going to sway anyone. If this were a discussion we want to have here, this feels like a very bad article as by it's nature it's a one-sided subjective narrative with very little light to shed on the depth of the conflict. An interesting differentiator left unsaid in this article is that Israel released these guys upon investigation which by wartime standards is good behavior (in contrast to hostages kidnapped and held by Hamas still)
A thing that makes this conflict difficult to talk about is that the prevalence of coverage makes so many people take sides, while the depth of their understanding is basically just hearing the repetition of a word and applying the emotion of that word to the conflict. For example people hear "genocide in Gaza" and their opinion is simple: genocide is bad. It takes a little digging that most people don't bother to realize the population of Gaza has continued to grow exponentially [1] which is basically the opposite of genocide.
Sometimes reading about this conflict feels like seeing someone outraged at an oncologist because of what the radiation treatment is doing to a patient. Yes its bad, yes it's hurting them, but you can't really make sense of that unless you understand cancer and the greater danger that necessitates this kind of response.
[1] https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/gaza-population https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/gaza-populati...
- mbs159 3y ago> It takes a little digging that most people don't bother to realize the population of Gaza has continued to grow exponentially [1] which is basically the opposite of genocide. This is a very common and unfortunately completely irrelevant point that the far-right mentions when somebody brings up the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, and does not show any "depth of understanding". By no internationally recognized definition of genocide is general population size considered. Something can be considered genocide even if the population grows in the end. You portray a extremely obvious pro-Israel bias in this topic while thinking that you have a more nuanced opinion than others. Please stop misleading others.
- makeworld 3y ago[flagged]
- wolverine876 3y ago> I feel like folks are entrenched one way or the other and information isn't going to sway anyone People like to profess doom and hopelessness but I see productive conversations, in this thread and another recent one. Why, in the face of the evidence, is it important to believe and convince people that it's hopeless? The trend to despair just pisses me off. Nobody ever taught me to embrace despair; I don't know about you. Let's get off our asses and make sh-t happen.
- underdeserver 3y agoExcept nobody does. How many people got off their asses, came to the region and took a look with their own eyes? How many went to work for the NSA in the Palestinian department to understand what's actually going on? How many have spoken to both sides with open eyes and open minds, gathered all the actual evidence and testimonies, systematically categorized them, confronted liars with their proven lies, and so on, and formed a concrete opinion based on actual proper research?
- wolverine876 3y agoJust look at this page! Lots of people doing those things (except the NSA job, which seems a little over the top).