Ceasfire Threatened In Gaza.

Predictably blame has been heaped upon Hamas for "perpetuating terror." No doubt Hamas is too prone to violence. But the real issue is the continuing blockade of Gaza by the Israeli government. The people of Gaza are starving. They have nothing. They live in abject poverty and dire conditions.

In fact even the blockade is nothing but a part of the larger problem: Occupation. Israel continues to expand in the West Bank, to tear down Palestinian homes, to take the best resources from Palestinians and give them to Israeli settlers. The Palestinians are unable to make it to work or to hospitals because of the long delays - not to mention harassment - at the over 600 check points they must be stopped at. There are even Israeli only roads and gates: which reeks of apartheid.

And in Gaza the situation is far worse. With the unemployment rate above 50% and the extreme poverty (less than $2 dollars a day) at over 70%, these people can hardly be said to be thriving. Then the constant attacks by Israel. The most recent violence took over 1,000 Palestinian lives (13 Israelis died) and reduced Gaza to rubble.

By all means let us unequivocally condemn suicide bombings and the firing of Rockets into Israel. By all means let us recognize that Hamas is not the best leadership for a battered and oppressed people. But let us remember the real conflict here. To heap all the blame for this conflict on the Palestinians, or even on Hamas, is a bit like beating a man on the head with a bat and then blaming him for kicking you in return. Until we look honestly and responsibility at the root of this destructive conflict, we have no hope of making any positive ground on it.