That word you keep using...

"Israel will never apologize for defending its citizens," a high-ranking Israeli government official told CNN Monday, after Turkey reportedly demanded an apology or an inquiry into an Israeli raid on an aid ship that killed nine Turkish citizens.

"Of course we regret the loss of life, but it was not the Israeli side that initiated the violence," the official said.

Yes, it was. Armed men rapelling onto boats from military helicopters is an act of aggression. Threatening people with those armed men is an act of aggression. The people who engaged in self-defense were those who attempted to repel the pirates.

Yes, I said pirates. That's what we call armed forces that board boats in international waters with the intention of securing control of said boats (outside of war). Israel was not in a state of war with Turkey. (Though they sure seem to want to be.)

And there would have been no need for the Israeli military to "defend" themselves if they hadn't deliberately gone onto those boats with armed men with the intent to commit violence in international waters.

(I realize there is a great deal of legal debate on whether or not this was acceptable legally. I note, however, that there is a great deal of legal debate, rather than it being cut and dried. Just once, I'd like to see the Israeli government admit they've made a mistake with their responses of overwhelming force. But I'm not holding my breath.)

Here's something I'm sick of...

I'm sick of people categorizing moderates as wishy-washy and unable to make up their minds, especially if they're willing to compromise on certain points.

First off, political opinions do not just come in "left" and "right". There's a whole wide spectrum. For instance, when it comes to abortion: you can be avidly for legalized abortion or avidly against it, but it's just as possible to be in favor of legalized abortion generally but also in favor of trying to minimize it through some means, or you can be against abortion generally but in favor of leaving it legal under certain circumstances. That's at least four major positions, but two of them are more moderate than the others. It's a complex issue; it can have complex positions.

Also, taking a compromise position takes both empathy for people one doesn't entirely agree with and the ability to discard preconceived notions in favor of examining the various positions to try to find where opinions are either more similar than one might have originally thought, or find where complex opinions have points that people are not as fervent about. It quite often accomplishes nothing to just keep on insisting Your Way prevails over Their Way; decisions are hard to make when no one can agree. Coming up with a suggestion that's "close enough to Our Way to be satisfactory" will be more effective in many cases. Just because it can take longer doesn't make it "wishy-washy"; it just makes it careful.

And frankly, the world could use more people willing to be careful.