You don’t kill this many children by accident
Karachi, Pakistan: How many innocents in Gaza must Israel pulp before it admits it is the aggressor? At what press conference will it hold up the shredded stuffed animal and call it a weapon of war? At what podium will they point to a broken tricycle and call it an existential threat? And yet, every child killed is not an “oops… whatever!” It is a conscious and plotted policy. They are murderers by committee.
Beyond the immediate killings, can Israel truly be the victim when it holds the keys to every Gazan’s pantry and medicine cabinet? When it decides which children eat and which patients die due to a lack of permits? Israelis scream victim on camera to justify being the executioner off-screen. Will they present the collapsed lung of a baby as a hostile tunnel? The spinal column of a toddler as a weapons shipment? When does the dehumanization become so complete that even a mother’s womb is declared a legitimate military target?
The beneficiary of a stolen inheritance can’t claim to be disinherited. Controlling other people’s essential resources and mobility aligns with the definition of collective punishment and siege warfare, not defensive posturing. Military operations that target civilian infrastructure are indicative of an offensive, not defensive, stance. The recurring conflation of political criticism with security threats is a propagandistic effort to legitimize ongoing military engagement. The bombardment of housing, inducement of starvation through siege, and preclusion of medical aid are not haphazard events, but coordinated elements of a broader strategic calculus. This is not defense! Yumna Zahid Ali
Homecoming coverage
Bohemia, L.I.: Re “Ma fears for Gaza flotilla son” (Oct. 5): My son Eric was on one of those boats. On Oct. 1, they were intercepted by the Israeli military in the Mediterranean Sea while still in international waters. The boats were confiscated and all crew members were arrested and brought to an Israeli prison. They were given meager food and no medical care. Other parents and I have been in contact with the embassy in Israel, the U.S. Department of State, the UN and the White House. After much effort, we were told that our loved ones would be released yesterday and taken to Jordan. Supposedly, they will be flown to JFK. Families will be coming from all over the U.S.A. to meet their loved ones. I urge the Daily News to be present for that event. When hostages were returned to other countries, there was quite a bit of news coverage. Helen Lein
Seeding future violence
Palo Alto, Calif.: Israelis face a stark choice that can’t be delayed: Continue down the path of vengeance and destruction under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or demand a future built on peace and justice. Each new strike plants seeds of rage that will only yield more violence. In Gaza, Israeli attacks have killed hundreds in the past two weeks, including a 5-year-old girl, Noor, pulled lifeless from the rubble after her family’s home was destroyed. Hospitals now warn of “certain death” for patients as fuel for lifesaving equipment runs out. These tragedies are not acts of self-defense — they are war crimes. Meanwhile, France and several European nations have joined Britain, Canada and others in recognizing Palestine as an independent state. Israelis must rise, reject Netanyahu’s reckless rule and demand a just peace before endless strife becomes their only inheritance. Jagjit Singh
That’s apathy
New Hyde Park, L.I.: To Voicer Rose S. Wilson: President Trump’s not asleep; he doesn’t care. Matthew Callanan
Trumpy chutzpah
Bronx: Re “Andy: Zohran must condemn ‘Globalize Intifada’ by Oct. 7” (Oct. 6): Andrew Cuomo must be receiving instructions from Donald Trump, giving ultimatums to Zohran Mamdani, the next people’s mayor of New York City. Also, I almost died laughing when Andy asked Mamdani to show some “moral clarity.” Virgilio Carballo
No easy out
Clearwater, Fla.: Re “Freakoffs get Diddy 50 months in prison” (Oct. 4): Instead of showing humility, Sean “Diddy” Combs has shown nothing but pure, unadulterated arrogance and feelings of entitlement. Too bad for Combs. His audience will just have to wait until he completes his 50-month prison sentence. He never should have booked speaking engagements based on the assumption that he would immediately be released from prison. In the meantime, Combs may as well unpack his bags and sit tight while he plays the waiting game. JoAnn Lee Frank
Where’d he go?
Somerset, N.J.: For the second year in a row, your baseball expert and columnist Bill Madden has no columns during the MLB playoffs. Why not? Arthur Bressler
Mess of a team
Point Pleasant, N.J.: The Jets are a mess — the only team in NFL history not to create a turnover through five games (an NFL record). The worst defense in football. Still no quarterback, and the coaching is a disgrace. There were more Cowboys fans than Jets fans at the Jets game this weekend. Worse than the Rich Kotite era. When does Woody Johnson cut the cord? Bring back Rex Ryan. This is worse than the same ol’ Jets. Mike Agar
Unwelcome changes
White Plains, N.Y.: I’ve been a lifelong Daily News reader like my father before me. I don’t like this new online format for reading the paper. Sometimes I like to print out certain parts, like Bramhall’s cartoons. Before, I could just select the cartoon and print that out. Now I have to print the whole page, whether or not I want the article. This new version is more complicated to navigate. What was wrong with the old one? Sometimes, improving on something does not make it better. Also, why did you get rid of the Justice Story? I would print them out and send them to my 92-year-old father in Puerto Rico. We are true-crime buffs. Not happy, in case anyone cares. Iris Clemente-Bell
Get Dems on board
Glen Burnie, Md.: I’m reading that tariff revenue is skyrocketing to more than $215 billion and Trump is reviving his idea about sharing this revenue with the American people in the form of a one-time $2,000 payment. I have a better idea. Instead of this nominal impact, Trump should challenge the Democratic Party to join him by ramping up the pressure on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to dramatically slash interest rates by an unprecedented 3 percentage points. This could save the average U.S. family $1,500 per month off the “price of money” and wouldn’t cost the U.S. taxpayer a dime. And with all the tariff revenue going toward debt reduction, coupled with a massive slash in national interest payments, the $37 trillion “existential threat” time bomb will finally be defused. Luana Dunn
Democrat dodger
Staten Island: All the windbag lefties who love making fun of Bone Spurs Trump were awfully silent for four years when it came to Joe Biden’s illustrious service during the Vietnam era. Sadly, “childhood asthma” kept Joe from military service, though it didn’t prevent him from playing football, serving as a lifeguard and facing down the fearsome Corn Pop. John Colella
Happy to have him?
Lake Ariel, Pa.: So the guy the progressive, liberal Democrats in Des Moines, Iowa, hire to run their school district of 30,000 kids is an illegal immigrant with a criminal history (“ICE arrests leader of Iowa’s largest school district, says he was living and working in US illegally,” Sept. 26). He drives around in one of the district’s vehicles, carrying a loaded handgun and knife. He lied on his application about a doctorate degree he does not have. But he inspires and educates the kids. What’s he teaching them? How to be liars, thugs and criminals? And the woke liberal idiots still want him around their kids. Who said stupid is dead in this country? It seems to be thriving in the blue states. Joseph Beyhl
Stay above it
Forest Hills: In a recent letter, a Voicer referred to a fellow Voicer as an “idiot.” In a forum like this, differing opinions are expected and welcomed, but personal attacks and name-calling sink to the level of Trump. The Daily News and its Voicers are better than that. Letters containing insults should not be written or published. Alan Hirschberg
