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Dan Rather says Israeli missile defense saved Palestinian lives in Gaza

Horse feathers at Huffpo. Dan Rather comes up with some hasbara of his own, and, reporting on Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, claims that it saved hundreds of lives inside Gaza.

In the recent conflict, the Israeli missile defense system may have saved more Palestinian lives than Israelis. To understand my reasoning, take a step back and look at recent history. Since 2007, the Islamist group Hamas has run the densely populated sliver of territory to the south of Israel known as the Gaza Strip. Militants from the territory, in recent years, have launched hundreds of crude rockets, provided by Iran, into southern Israeli towns. In 2008, Israel responded with Operation Cast Lead — A brutal aerial bombardment and ground invasion that left more than 1,000 Palestinians dead and brought Israel widespread condemnation from abroad. November’s conflict left about 150 Palestinians dead.

How do you explain the stark difference in the death toll? One element would be Iron Dome.

Rather explains that unguided Palestinian missiles would have caused destruction inside Gaza. Yes but would Iron Dome have stopped all the missiles that Israel sent into the strip, many of which killed civilians? And what about the human rights reports after Cast Lead that showed that Israel targeted civilians, and that damaged the nation’s reputation around the world? Thanks to Max Blumenthal

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You’re very gentlemanly to use the term “horse feathers”…Perhaps Dan is losing his noodles.

Read Rather’s piece over there forgot to mention it over here but Max caught it. Odd conclusions by Rather.

Phil/Annie Chris Matthews has spent the last two nights talking a bit about how he thought Obama was reaching out to Iran for negotiations and how this is a slap in the neocons face. As Joy Reid nodded her head in agreement with Chris Matthews as he was saying these things Howard Fineman looked pretty damn uncomfortable. Chris Matthews also brought up that Obama did not mention Israel at all in his inauguration speech and how his speech almost sounded like the words of a “pacifist” Monday and Tuesday night

Did the Iron dome really prevent Palestinian deaths though?
Maybe it could have, maybe not.

The only reason there was such a stark difference this time round is because of time length. Israel shot missiles into the Gaza strip for 8 days, as opposed to 22 days. In ’08-’09 offensive, they even conducted an incursion into Gaza which increased casualties.

Dan Rather would probably argue that the rapist’s handcuffs save the victim from serious physical abuse. With her handcuffed to the bed, he didn’t need to constantly beat her into submission to prevent her from harming him…I mean, from potentially harming herself.

Violence feeds on itself in both direction. Iron Dome by preventing successful missile strikes likely prevented severe Israeli retaliation for those successful strikes. Israel can hit Gaza much harder than it has but in general tries to keep the death toll semi proportionate so their actions are seen as “wars” and not “massacres”.

I think it is fair to say anything that reduces Palestinian military effectiveness as least in the short term reduces not increases Palestinian casualties.