Dateline Jerusalem — I have a pet peeve, the media using anti-Israel political rhetoric. Certain words. When it comes to the term “stone-throwing” Arabs and Palestinians, I put the word in quotes. They do not throw stones. They throw rocks. The difference is the size. A pebble would be a tiny stone found in a fish tank. A stone is smaller than a rock. It would be used to decorate a flower bed. Rocks are the big ones, the ones that kill and maim, the ones thrown at Jews in Israel. In many cases, the “stone-throwers” use catapults, slings, and slingshots to throw stones, rocks, bricks, and sometimes cement blocks at Jews walking down the street or driving on the road.
Besides rocket fire from Gaza and Arab rioting in the streets of Jerusalem, the big story in Israel was when a man was killed and others injured on Rosh Hashana eve when Arabs threw “stones” at their car. The New York Times carried a headline about stones pelting the car, not that they were thrown by a human being. Or as described by one news media source, the stones were like gravel on the ground that just happened to fly into the air by themselves and smash through the windshield causing the car to lose control. Less than a week later, a young couple and their six-month-old baby narrowly escaped death when rocks crashed through their windshield and flew to the back of their vehicle just above the infant’s head, landing on the child’s carseat. That was one of 23 rock throwing and firebomb attacks within one day, including a rock breaking a soldier’s leg and an attack on a firetruck. Isn’t it enough that firefighters risk their lives fighting fires?
Assume the media is correct in insisting that the large projectiles are “stones,” not rocks, bricks or cement blocks. We all know what the word “ass-u-me” means. In ancient days, a form of capital punishment was to be “stoned” to death. But in the Torah (Jewish bible), it was more principle than practice since the death penalty required near impossible standards of proof. In ancient Israel, the death penalty rarely was carried out. In modern Israel, there has been only one civil execution and that took place over 50 years ago when Adolph Eichmann was hanged for his role in the Holocaust, not stoned to death.
Believe it or not, stoning someone to death is a common practice by some Muslims under Sharia law. Therefore rocks and stones, or whatever the politically correct term is, are deadly weapons. They should be treated as such. Throwing them is not a non-violent form of protest. It is meant to cause death or serious bodily injury. An assault with a deadly weapon occurs when the attacker accompanies a physical attack with a physical object capable of inflicting serious bodily injury or death. Use of these dangerous pebbles, stones, rocks, bricks, and concrete objects create a risk of serious consequences.
Is Two Enough?
The Israeli Penal Code considers stone throwing a felony. Currently conviction brings a two-year imprisonment. Because of the frequency of Israeli civilians and soldiers being killed and seriously injured by these assaults, the Israeli government proposes extending the time in prison to 10 years. Unfortunately, too many left-wing jurists do not follow sentencing guidelines as it were, which encourages these terror attacks. Although the Israeli government has attempted to seriously deal with this form of terrorism with deterrents, the non-elected judges continually overrule the efforts of the Knesset, the legislative branch that makes the laws. Another pet peeve: The ongoing dispute between the Attorney General and the Prime Minister as to the “rules of engagement” for soldiers and police with respect to rock throwers.
Use of a non-fatal Ruger 0.22 with rubber bullets used to disperse rioters has been approved by the Attorney General. That does not seem to be a deterrent. Another proposal presented to the Knesset is to deny stone, rock, and Molotov cocktail throwers National Insurance benefits, such as unemployment, pensions, and work injury payments. Because Hamas, Fatah and other terrorist organizations incite youths to do the throwing, sentences are less than for adults. One proposal is to fine or sentence the parents and families of the juveniles committing acts of terror. It makes sense to hold the parents liable for their children’s terrorist acts, especially since the children are taught by their parents to commit such acts and be martyrs.
It is interesting to note that Palestinian Authority police handle violent rock throwing protests by shoving the stone throwers to the ground and then several police officers proceed to kick and beat them. Even in the U.S., the Border Patrol has been known to shoot rock throwers. Naturally, there is a double standard when it comes to Israel. Another pet peeve.
L’hitraot. Shachar
