This is in response to Quinn Sullivan’s article, “Consider the Two-State Solution,” (Daily Nexus, Jan. 12, 2009). You are indeed correct to acknowledge that Israeli civilians, who have suffered thousands of rocket attacks by Hamas, are not the only victims in this conflict. There is no doubt a significant amount of Palestinians who not only desire a peaceful two-state solution, but a government that looks after their own citizens, rather than using them as human shields. The Palestinian people deserve better than to be tyrannized by such a ruthless terrorist organization as Hamas.

Your grievous error, however, is in addressing the root causes of the conflict. You attribute the existence of Hamas and their terrorist acts to “Arab frustration” and conclude that “there will be…few[er] calls for the obliteration of Israel… [if] Israel can appease Hamas and other terrorist factions by making concessions.”

With all due respect, Hamas is not a humanitarian organization that is simply trying to feed its refugees. It is an Islamo-fascist regime with no regard whatsoever for human life. Their singular purpose, which they willfully admit, is the destruction of Israel.

Consider the appeasement of Hitler, to which Neville Chamberlain famously concluded that “peace in our time” had been accomplished. Hitler, of course, cared nothing of peaceful coexistence, for his ultimate priority was world domination and the annihilation of the Jewish race. Throughout history there has appeared evil forces whose blood thirst can only be quenched by armed combat, and Hamas is one of them. As Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer explained, “Some geopolitical conflicts are morally complicated. The Israel-Gaza war is not. It possesses a moral clarity not only rare but excruciating.”

Your analysis of the situation is thoughtful, but excessive. If you wish to be pro-peace, I’m afraid your only option is to be anti-Hamas.