naraburns nihil supernum
2yr ago
(text post)
31564 thread views
Israel-Gaza Megathread #2
This is a refreshed megathread for any posts on the conflict between (so far, and so far as I know) Hamas and the Israeli government, as well as related geopolitics. Culture War thread rules apply.
I have to wonder—are our official statements framing it as a lesson learned from Afghanistan, or is that just editors aware of the irony? Because “trust us; we’re experts on going balls deep in Islamic terrorists” has a certain credibility.
orthoxerox
If you can read this, you're using a custom theme
netstack 2yr ago
Afghanistan is a country the size of Texas. Gaza Strip is the size of New York City. Lessons learned from invading the former don't really apply to the latter.
Right, and Israel has a population comparable to NYC, while there are about a fifth as many Palestinians in the strip. Does that mean they have an edge over Afghanistan?
When the situation is so confused and entrenched, I think it’s better to err on the side of caution. Going in with an exit strategy is always a better idea than rawdogging it.
I've always gotten the impression that Israeli leaders are unusually frank in their statements rather than circumlocutory in the manner of the Chinese. So I picture that, in the room, Blinken is absolutely looking Netanyahu right in the eye and saying "We got the Goys to try this twice and it didn't work for them."
This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a
court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to
optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.
The weekly Culture War threads host the most
controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are
appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy;
if in doubt, post!
Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts.
You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.
Why are you called The Motte?
A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently,
it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey",
originally identified by
philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial
but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens
this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for
the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired
propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."
On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.
New post guidelines
If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it.
A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts
such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a
submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).
Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or
significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
I have to wonder—are our official statements framing it as a lesson learned from Afghanistan, or is that just editors aware of the irony? Because “trust us; we’re experts on going balls deep in Islamic terrorists” has a certain credibility.
Afghanistan is a country the size of Texas. Gaza Strip is the size of New York City. Lessons learned from invading the former don't really apply to the latter.
Right, and Israel has a population comparable to NYC, while there are about a fifth as many Palestinians in the strip. Does that mean they have an edge over Afghanistan?
When the situation is so confused and entrenched, I think it’s better to err on the side of caution. Going in with an exit strategy is always a better idea than rawdogging it.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
I've always gotten the impression that Israeli leaders are unusually frank in their statements rather than circumlocutory in the manner of the Chinese. So I picture that, in the room, Blinken is absolutely looking Netanyahu right in the eye and saying "We got the Goys to try this twice and it didn't work for them."
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link