Well, of course this soldier's father is right. The IDF deterrence factor was lost after 1,000 ! rockets were allowed to rain down on Gush Katif and S'derot etc residents! Why should any Jew have to pay the price for the regime's incapablity to defend its citizens - civilians and soldiers alike? The terror heads have been spitting in Israel's eyes for the longest time. Now all of a sudden the regime wakes up??

I am a firm believer in "having one's cake and eating it too". In exchange for Corporal Shalit, Israel should release all its Palestinian prisoners, including those "with blood on their hands." Once Shalit is returned to Israel safe and sound, then Tsahal will go into Gaza and KILL , as in K-I-L-L all those released prisoners "with blood on their hands". This seems to be the most humane and practical solution.

everyone including the arabs knows that Olmert is weak and he is the King of Apeasment. We've had opportunity after opportunity to retrieve our power of deterrence but Olmert wasn't having any of it. God forbid they kill Gilad, Olmert will still try and give the arabs Yehuda and Shomron and demonize the courageous Jews who are still willing to fight for the Land. So instead of a few hundred artillery rounds shot into empty building and open fields he'll have a couple of thousand shot. Maybe he'll really grow a pair and have Haniyeh killed but will this really solve anything? The arabs will continue shooting rockets at us, they will still want to destroy us and they will try and murder us whenever they get the chance. The problem isn't the arabs they are doing exactly what they should in order to reach their goal... to destroy the State of Israel. The problem is with Israel. We cannot continue to elect disgustingly weak leaders like Olmert. Wake up Israeli Jews and be strong once again. We don't have to settle for mediocracy.

Who believes the words of Israel's weak leaders ? How many times have they promised harsh only to back down and do nothing ? We don't believe you any more and we know you are too weak and fearful to tell the world to go to hell and do what you should have done long ago.

1) Free Marwan Barghouti so the Palestinians will have a leader they'll trust who is willing to take hold of the situation and negotiate with Israel. Did he do anything worse than Nelson Mandela did in South Africa? Or Jomo Kenyatta or many others who fought against undemocratic occupation? 2) Talk to the Hamas government, whether they like it of not, and offer to work with them, not just on this crisis, but on everything. (Make a start by giving back the Palestinian tax money. Keeping it is just plain theft.) RIGHT NOW IT'S LIKE TWO LITTLE CHILDREN SPITTING AT EACH OTHER. BONUS: get rid of this Old Testament - Koranic revenge culture. Both sides are to blame for this. It often seems that the highest goal on both sides is to be the last team to kill somebody from the other side. Another childish obsession.

As a holocost servivor I think we should negotiate Gilad relese.

By any means even if we have to deal with Hamas

and you are not for as they are fighting for freedom

A little bit of sanity among the ravenous, bloodthursty hordes on both sides...

I do not care if Gilad survive this or not. But we should not negotiate with them.

I agree with Gabriel Coldwater. He is 100% right

Then we can take care of the plastenian.

What a change in your openion. Do you girls drink together ?

Oh I think that their willingness to die is quite generally understood. It seems only kind to help them fulfill their wishes. And no we are not fighting for freedom; we have that. we are fighting for civilization.

#1. "Free Marwan Barghouti" Did you know Barghouti is serving multiple life terms for MURDER? A "real leader" al right, just like Arafat, but with more innocent blood on his hands. #2 "Talk to Hamas" But they don't want to listen. BONUS: "Get rid of all religion" You genius, you! Joe Stalin and Mao achieved the most wonderful peace, love, happiness, coexistance and tolerance once they got rid of that nasty stupid old religion. How about, as a compromise, get rid of ISLAM.

It is not about Gilad any more. It is about all of us and we should act now.

Yup, deterrence is the name of the game. The problem is there has been no attempt to resolve the major issues underlying the conflict in the past five and a half years, no final status negotiations. The longer there will be sole reliance on deterrence the more animal-like this conflict will look, and the more similar both sides will be.

The palestinians remind me of a scene from Raiders fo the Lost Ark. A large turban clad arab gives a dazzeling show of swordplay while confronting Indiana Jones. Indy wo has been battling all scene has an exasperated look cross his face and he pulls out a large gun! That's where Israel is RIGHT NOW. Were all waiting for Indy Olmert to pull the damn trigger and be done with it!!

A lot of americains here are posting, kill pals, dont negociate... What a hell u are doing here u are very far from this country and these ppl.

It would be better to speak less, to threat less, and to act more...The Israeli government is weak and it thinks that by speaking loud he will gain strength and respectability... There a one dozen Chamberlains is that government...and unfortunately not a fraction of Churchill is at sight...There is a syndrome of collective pusillanimity, the rulers should have acted with force three months ago…anybody with some political insight could have guessed that the Hamas would try a spectacular attack in order to regain a place in the national and international stage. That has always been the modus operandi of Arab political rationale. They will never loose an opportunity to bite the Jews, until gaining control over all, what they consider, Muslim and Arab lands.

We hear a lot of tough talk from the Olmert gov't. but little action if any. It's time for Olmert & Co to either take off the gloves & hit hard ot turn the gov't over to real leaders who are willing to take real action. This soft shoe dance does not benefit Israel at all.

Do not attack Americans. AttackPlastenians. do you understand what American did for Israel ? Go ask and you should know

You should join the Olmert gov't. You are living in a dream world. The fact is that the palis want to destroy Israel & kill the Jews. All the schmoozing and appeazing will not work.

Olmert, peres and peretz are the weakest sadest leaders Israel has ever had. To us one life is as valubale as 1000. We should go in and get him. God forbid if he is killed then they will say why go in he is dead anyway. STOP SCREWING AROUND!!!!

What is the difference between Palestinian suicide bombers and the ones in Iraq that blow up in the middle or markets, crowded streets etc??? Are those guys fighting for freedom as well??? Terror is terror no matter what you call it. Targeting innocent people is not what freedom fighters do, it's what brainwashed cowards do. Get it???

We can all wait for a long time. Olmert talks a good game, but when it comes to action, he's weak kneed and spineless. A typical left wing liberal.

I agree with you and hope we can hear more wise voices in both sides. Marwan Barghouthi he is strong leader who can stand agianst hamas and work for peace, hope that Israeli leaders will understand that its time to talk with palestinians, otherwise extrimests will gain more power, and im sure that most of Israeli they dream in peace same as most of palestinians.

You are the couse of yout own humiliation! You wait at check points because you have often abused them and smuggled in explosived to murder the innosent. You sit in darkness in Gaza because you voted into power a terrorist orginazation. Keep you poor Palasinian rights bull to yourself. Stop killing, murdering, and stealing and youl be as free as you want. Judging by the world daily hedlines, it seems that you people just cant stop killing.