What Would You Do?

OK. Pop quiz.

Get out your number two pencils. (Do they still use number two pencils? Do they still make pencils?)

Over the past few years there's been plenty of news coming from the Middle East, accompanied by extensive invective. It's been hard to separate the problems and to decide what we, and the participants, should be doing. In order to clarify everyone's thinking on the subject I've prepared a set of questions that may illuminate some of the issues. This is an open-book test and you're encouraged to use any publications of the United Nations, the European Union, and the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement. No other references will be permitted. The examination will consist of the presentation of realistic situations – some already experienced – followed by possible responses. You are expected to be fair to all participants and to follow moral guidelines. Two subjects are covered: proportionality and moral equivalency. Since it is often difficult to separate them, no attempt has been made to do so. But in all instances you should look for the proportional and morally equivalent action.

You are a soldier, standing in a crowd at a bus stop. An automobile heads directly into the crowd running over, and possibly killing several people. The car stops and the driver exits with a hatchet. He then starts running after bystanders.

Do you

a. shoot the man with the hatchet,

b. protect the man from the enraged crowd,

c. help the man escape from the mob, or

d. run home, get your car, and look for a crowd in his neighborhood?

Three Israeli soldiers are approached by a civilian Arab family. The mother pulls a pair of scissors from under her clothing and stabs and kills one of the soldiers. The other family members (including four children) reach into their clothing.

Should the remaining soldiers

a. flee,

b. shoot the woman,

c. shoot the entire family, or

d. run home and get a pair of scissors?

An Israeli soldier comes under attack by a mob that corners him. He is armed with an automatic weapon. The mob begins throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at him.

Should his response be to

a. advise the mob that their acts are illegal,

b. fire at the advancing crowd,

c. pick up some stones and throw them back, or

d. consult his procedure manual for what would be approved?

Jihadists in Gaza send unguided missiles into Israel. They are aimed in the vicinity of a school but land in an adjacent field.

An appropriate response by Israel would be to

a. ignore the attack since no one was killed,

b. use the Iron Dome system to prevent future attacks,

c. remove any guidance systems from their missiles in order to ensure a level playing field if they return fire, or

d. target and attack the site from which the missiles were launched?

If in the previous scenario the attack came from a United Nations hospital which the terrorists were using as a military base, and if children in the school in Israel were killed

Should the response be to

a. consult the United Nations about the incident,

b. use the Iron Dome system to prevent future attacks,

c. return fire upon the source of the missiles irrespective of collateral damage, or

d. attack a nearby school in order to kill children and even the score?

BONUS QUESTIONS

a. Which of the above instances merits a UN or EU condemnation of Israel?

b. Which Israeli(s) should be brought before the International Court for war crimes?

c. In which cases are BDS actions not warranted?

d. Wouldn't all of the world's problems disappear if there were no Israel?

Think about these questions and answer them. The answers are obvious, but you have to reach them yourself – although the permitted references will certainly guide you to the truth. After all, we've known for millennia how to bring morality, pea,ce and goodwill to the globe on which we live.