![\"](\"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Intifada.jpg\")
<\/a>Violence<\/p><\/div>\n
The Government just announced 20 year prison terms for persons convicted of throwing rocks and bottles in protest related attacks. Street violence in mob protests is harmful to everyone. Commerce, business and tourism are all industries which employ Israelis of all faiths. Is a twenty year prison sentence too harsh for this act? Let’s investigate what is behind what some would consider a misdemeanor or even a \u201ccivil right\u201d.<\/p>\n
Since operations in Gaza ended under the current arrangement, daily violence in Israel, especially Jerusalem, has escalated. The Palestinian Authority has praised murderers as martyrs, rioters as heroes, and is threatening a third intifada. From access to the Temple Mount, building in Jerusalem, closing off areas where repeated violence is occurring to urging more street and mob violence, there is no limit to the inciting to riot activities. Rock, bottle and firecracker throwing has become a widespread tactic for the mobs. The main target is the Jewish population but Arabs, Christian tourists, potential investors in Palestinian businesses, all of these are targets as well. Daily attacks are deterrents to everyday businesses, many Arabs operate stalls in marketplaces or food sales. Many ride public transportation, almost everyone walks on the streets. Riots, either spontaneous or organized, put a halt to normal city life. Pedestrians are hurt, people stay home instead of shopping, costs for repair and replacement of areas damaged by the violent acts are high.<\/p>\n
In the 1960’s America went through a traumatic series of racially motivated riots in major cities. A short time ago, Britian saw widespread violence, looting and arson in several cities. Both nations bear the scars internal and external from these episodes. It is madness to say that someone is so angry so they will burn down their home or loot a nearby store. The results are homelessness, no investment in replacing the lost real estate and a fortress mentality for those shopkeepers who choose to remain. In several American cities a brickfront architecture was installed, no windows to break, iron grates over doors and usually a wary and armed store-owner on guard. No one benefits from a mob-prone economy or invests in a war zone, insurance rates are astronomical and no profit can be had there.<\/p>\n
Its obvious that the well-paid administrators of the Palestinian Authority are absent from the violence and damage. The losers are those whose booths, stalls, food preparation equipment, homes,vehicles and lives are damaged by rioters. The police have needed to open fire when lives are at stake and some rioters have been killed .The Authority and a world press ready to accuse Israel of defending itself, criticize Israel for saving lives and property in the face of vicious and intentional violent acts.<\/p>\n
The martyr mentality has infused many rioters with a sense of testing the police, they know what their actions can bring upon them and yet they persist. A bullet can end the rioters life quickly. A possible long prison sentence can deter even the most hardened martyr from violent actions if this is a clear possibility. Martyrs get funerals, rock and bottle throwers can get prison terms and not become the celebrities as they imagined or fantasized.<\/p>\n
Israel looks for humane solutions and deterrents to violent acts. Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia use hanging, beheading and amputation as punishments and deterrents. Somehow the riots must stop. If the Authority cannot mature itself into a semblance of government, then its citizens will continue to suffer the economic and social penalties. Until then a prison sentence for a convicted rock thrower is a typically humane, typically Israeli solution to a violent mob-based political activity. No other nation in the Middle East would ever approach such
\ncrimes in such a humane manner, only Israel.<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/div><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Tom Brennan The Government just announced 20 year prison terms for persons convicted of throwing rocks and bottles in protest related attacks. Street violence in mob protests is harmful to everyone. Commerce, business and tourism are all industries which employ Israelis of all faiths. Is a twenty year prison sentence too harsh for this more \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2474,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[524],"tags":[625,438,125,439,440],"class_list":{"0":"post-2472","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-just-thought","8":"tag-israeli-news","9":"tag-jerusalem-violence","10":"tag-news-from-jerusalem","11":"tag-rioters","12":"tag-stone-throwing","13":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2472"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2472\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2475,"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2472\/revisions\/2475"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com\/israelnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}