# U.S. Convoy attacked in Gaza. Should the U.S. retaliate? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 15, 2003, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534 "2003-10-15T09:30:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Rashak\_Mani](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@Rashak\_Mani](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rashak_Mani)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/21 "2003-10-15T14:30:48Z")
I wouldnt shoot a CIA convoy since they are mostly civil servants and their bosses are safely hidden away back home… but if Rummy came down the road… oh my … what a temptation. I would shoot him without blinking in the name of world peace. ---
**Author:** ![Brutus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Brutus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brutus)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/22 "2003-10-15T14:39:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by London\_Calling \* > \*\*Frankly, if the CIA drove down my street in a ‘convoy’ and I had the weapons, I’d want to blow the bastards up – ain’t nothing good ever going to come of them being around, ‘cept in the interests of US.plc. > > The UN these people are not. \*\* You share some fine company, with that of [Palestinian ragamuffins.](http://msnbc.com/news/801833.asp?0cv=CA01) > [@](#): > > Several hours after the bombing, U.S. investigators arrived at the scene and photographed the mangled van. About a dozen Palestinian youths threw stones at the investigators as about 200 Palestinians looked on. As the angry crowd chanted “Allahu Akbar” — “God is great” — the Americans rushed back into their cars, surrounded by nervous Palestinian security officers with rifles raised. It’s also refreshing to see **London\_Calling, vanilla, and Rashak Mani** drop their pretenses and call for the death of US officials and government employees. Not that I agree with them, of course, but at least they are being forthright with their (rather sick) views. ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/23 "2003-10-15T14:43:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Brutus \* > \*\* > > It’s also refreshing to see **London\_Calling, vanilla, and Rashak Mani** drop their pretenses and call for the death of US officials and government employees. Not that I agree with them, of course, but at least they are being forthright with their (rather sick) views. \*\* no no no. Not death for anyone. unemployment, maybe. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Rashak\_Mani](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@Rashak\_Mani](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rashak_Mani)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/24 "2003-10-15T14:46:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Brutus \* > \*\* It’s also refreshing to see **London\_Calling, vanilla, and Rashak Mani** drop their pretenses and call for the death of US officials and government employees. Not that I agree with them, of course, but at least they are being forthright with their (rather sick) views. \*\* ``` I said only Rummy should be killed... thats for the good of the USA also in fact. You disagree that his death would be beneficial ? ``` ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/25 "2003-10-15T14:48:00Z")
I only agreed with the last sentence. the U.N. thse people are not. so there. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/26 "2003-10-15T16:51:10Z")
Not that I’d advocate the murder of anyone at the CIA or the UN, but in fairness to the jingoism that’s brewing here, I should point out that the UN does not have a track record of overthrowing democratically-elected presidents of foreign countries, whereas the CIA does. Where _that_ fits in on the Cosmic Scale of Morality is for you to decide. ---
**Author:** ![YourOldBuddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/bc79bd/32.png) [@YourOldBuddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YourOldBuddy)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/27 "2003-10-15T17:02:43Z")
Hmmm retaliate. You mean in some other way than continuing to finance their occupation? One might ask who did the retaliation. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/28 "2003-10-15T17:38:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Rashak Mani \* > I said only Rummy should be killed… thats for the good of the USA also in fact. You disagree that his death would be beneficial ? \*\* Dude STOP TALKING! You made an asanine statement. Don’t make yourself look like even more of a moron by trying to rationalize it. Is there something about Islamic culture that believes that every problem can be solved by shooting and blowing stuff up? > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by rjung_ > Not that I’d advocate the murder of anyone at the CIA or the UN, but in fairness to the jingoism that’s brewing here, I should point out that the UN does not have a track record of overthrowing democratically-elected presidents of foreign countries, whereas the CIA does. In all fairness, the UN doesn’t have a track record of overthrowing dictators either. ---
**Author:** ![Mojo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Mojo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mojo)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/29 "2003-10-15T17:44:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by London\_Calling \* > \*\*Frankly, if the CIA drove down my street in a ‘convoy’ and I had the weapons, I’d want to blow the bastards up – ain’t nothing good ever going to come of them being around, ‘cept in the interests of US.plc. > > The UN these people are not. \*\* Do you often post your CIA revenge fantasies to Great Debates threads? Did you note the part that this was a) a private security company, and b) escorting diplomatic officials to interview potential Fulbright Scholars in the Palestinian territories? Do you have anything besides insinuations that this was CIA? And for someone who claims to care so much about the Palestinians, I’d think you’d be able to see that this will not turn out well for them and will lead to further US involvement, not less. ---
**Author:** ![Fang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/96bed5/32.png) [@Fang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fang)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/30 "2003-10-15T19:32:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mojo \* > \*\*And for someone who claims to care so much about the Palestinians, I’d think you’d be able to see that this will not turn out well for them and will lead to further US involvement, not less. \*\* No, you have to remember: If the US or Israel takes action, and the Palestinians respond inappropriately, the US or Israel is responsible. If, however, the Palestinians take action and the US (or Israel) responds, the US (or Israel) is still responsible. Huh? What contradictions? ---
**Author:** ![swami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@swami](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swami)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/31 "2003-10-15T19:36:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by msmith537 \* > Is there something about **Islamic** culture that believes that every problem can be solved by shooting and blowing stuff up? _(bolding mine)_ I was asking myself that same question about **American** culture, during this “damn fool war”. ---
**Author:** ![swami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@swami](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swami)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/32 "2003-10-15T19:40:56Z")
Were you an Iraqi war supporter **msmith537**? ---
**Author:** ![Daisy\_Cutter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@Daisy\_Cutter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daisy_Cutter)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/33 "2003-10-15T20:29:24Z")
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on Wednesday condemned the attack as an “awful crime” and said he ordered an investigation. 😃 I bet there’s some real intensive _investigative_ work going on. ---
**Author:** ![Daisy\_Cutter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@Daisy\_Cutter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daisy_Cutter)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/34 "2003-10-15T20:45:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Daisy Cutter \* > \*\*Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on Wednesday condemned the attack as an “awful crime” and said he ordered an investigation. > \*\* That line was a snippet from a newsarticle, which I forgot to indicate. . . ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/35 "2003-10-15T21:00:14Z")
While military intervention is pretty much out of the question, I would think the Palestinian organizations (i.e., Hamas, al Aqsa Martyrs, Hizbollah) have all brought themselves under the magnifying glass (as in ants under a large lens in direct sunlight). These violent idiots previously had the speck of intelligence not to attack US personnel and interests. That line has been crossed and now there is a distinct justification for direct action (covert or overt) against those responsible. While Israel remained their sole target, these matters were fought by proxy. The gloves have come off and I have little confidence that Palestinian terrorist organizations will be happy with the outcome. I foresee greater intelligence distribution, an increased degree of asset (read satellite and con-intel) sharing in addition to more restrictive measures taken against Palestinian charities remotely connected with terrorism. In short, way to go idiots. You have awoken the sleeping dragon while continuing to remain crunchy and tasting good with ketchup. ---
**Author:** ![Spavined\_Gelding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@Spavined\_Gelding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spavined_Gelding)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2003, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/36 "2003-10-16T00:00:44Z")
There is an obvious question. Just who ought we to go retribute against? How about an air strike on the Gaza Strip, just sort of willy-nilly blow up everything in the general area. There is an Islamic congregation about 80 miles down the road–maybe one of the NG units that hasn’t been mobilized should go over there and shoot the place up? Maybe we should try to capture or kill BenLaden? Maybe we should invade some country with no obvious connection to the thing? It’s a lot easier to blather about military retaliation than to do anything. I doubt is a national temper tantrum is going to help much. ---
**Author:** ![Dissonance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Dissonance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dissonance)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2003, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/37 "2003-10-16T01:48:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zenster \* > \*\*While military intervention is pretty much out of the question, I would think the Palestinian organizations (i.e., Hamas, al Aqsa Martyrs, Hizbollah) have all brought themselves under the magnifying glass (as in ants under a large lens in direct sunlight). > > These violent idiots previously had the speck of intelligence not to attack US personnel and interests. That line has been crossed and now there is a distinct justification for direct action (covert or overt) against those responsible… > > In short, way to go idiots. You have awoken the sleeping dragon while continuing to remain crunchy and tasting good with ketchup. \*\* Odd you should bring up Hezbollah and claim they never crossed the line to attack US personnel and its interests. They and others did that very thing during the 80s, remember the [truck bomb](http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/lebanon/tl03.html) in Lebanon, just as the most egregious example? The (alleged) US reaction hardly helped the US, from [here](http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/target/etc/cron.html): > [@](#): > > President Reagan and the CIA called off covert operations when Lebanese intelligence operatives – some allegedly trained by the U.S. – set off a car bomb on March 8, 1985, in an attempted murder of Sheik Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, the Shiite Muslim cleric who some believed to be the spiritual leader of Hezbollah. Over 80 people were killed in the attack near a Beirut mosque. Fadlallah survived. > > Many blamed the CIA for the attack, saying it had directed the intelligence operatives to carry it out. Robert McFarlane, President Reagan’s national security adviser, says that the operatives who carried out the attack on Fadlallah may have been trained by the U.S., but the individuals who carried it out were “rogue operative[s],” and the CIA in no way sanctioned or supported the attack. **London\_Calling** , I really don’t get how you’ve automatically decided that a convoy of diplomats and their security guards amount to the CIA, or for that matter why they deserve to be bombed even if they were. ---
**Author:** ![RexDart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b77776/32.png) [@RexDart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RexDart)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2003, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/38 "2003-10-16T01:52:16Z")
Why is there a US convoy in Gaza in the first place? I say we high-tail it out of there and never return, never, never, never again. Problem solved. ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2003, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/39 "2003-10-16T02:00:57Z")
Thank you for the reminder, **Dissonance**. Methinks there may be a bit more reaction this time around. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2003, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534/40 "2003-10-16T04:54:10Z")
Not much point to military action. The Israelis can say the same thing to us that we said to them in 1991 when Scuds were falling on them. There isn’t anything we can do there that they aren’t already doing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-convoy-attacked-in-gaza-should-the-u-s-retaliate/207534.md?page=3)