"The European Union and Turkey on Sunday joined with Arab countries that have criticized Israel for using what they call disproportionate force in Gaza." -Associated Press.

Given that Israel has been hit by rocket attacks from Gaza every day for over two years, it is hard to understand just what response would be deemed appropriate by Turkey and the EU.

Turkey is now completing a military sweep in northern Iraq, where Turkish armed forces have been wiping out Kurdish rebels who have made numerous incursions into Turkey. Do the Turks appreciate the irony of criticizing Israel for doing what they are doing themselves, right now?

Unlike Turkey, the members of the European Union are not now suffering from over-the-border terrorist attacks. But if they were, how would they react? Would they fight back? We know that the United Kingdom responded to German bombing in World War II by revenge bombings, followed by participation in the invasion of Germany in early 1945. Was that "proportionate force" or was it the force needed to smash Nazi Germany?

The United States announced that "the violence needs to stop and talks need to resume." When the US was attacked by Al Qaida on September 11, 2001, the US responded, not with talks, but by invading Afghanistan and destroying both Al Qaida bases and Taliban rule. The US also invaded Iraq in 2003 because the Baath regime "might be" making atomic weapons which "might" be later used against America. The US was using military force against a potential enemy half-a-world away, while Israel is fighting an active enemy right across its border!

Actually, Israel has exercised remarkable restraint in waiting this long to counter-attack Hamas-ruled Gaza, which has launched an unprovoked war against the Jewish state. But you won't hear Turkey or the EU recognizing that!

By: Gerald Glazer
http://glazerbeam.blogspot.com
Gerald Sherwin Glazer was born in Milwaukee in 1942 and educated in Milwaukee Public Schools. He holds a bachelor's degree from the Unversity of Chicago and master's from Northwestern University, both in mathematics. He has taught math at the University of Wisconsin at Waukesha and several other local colleges. Prior to his retirment in 2004, Glazer was a real estate broker. He has been a candidate for the Milwaukee County Board and the Milwaukee Board of School Directors.