Questions for the reporter on a Gazan father

Ever so infrequently, the Summit Daily News publishes some article about the “Palestinian cause.” This past week, a reporter featured a Gazan father who took his sons to see the conflagration that occurs regularly at the border of Gaza and Israel between rioting, tire burning, border rushing, rock and firebomb-throwing Gazans and Israeli military forces. Unfortunately, one of his sons was wounded by a ricocheting bullet. The reporter went on to describe life in the Gaza Strip which, according to him, was made more miserable by an Israeli blockade. By the time I was done reading this opinion piece, I wanted to ask this reporter several, pertinent questions:

1. What responsible parent puts their child in such harm’s way? I would no sooner have exposed my kids to such a scene than I would see them handle poisonous snakes or live grenades.

2. How do the thousands of Gazans get to the border with Israel and what is their purpose for their weekly riots? Who hires the buses? Who provides the tires, fire bombs and hand grenades?

3. What other border police or army would stand for being pelted with rocks and incendiaries? What troops would tolerate attempts to forcibly invade their border? And what purpose is behind those attempts to breach border fences and barriers?

4. Are you not aware of Hamas’ usage of human shields?

5. Are you not aware that Hamas and others have placed rocket launchers in and under schools, hospitals and homes?

6. Have you not read Hamas’ charter which calls for the annihilation of Israel?

7. Are you as a reporter doing enough background and historical research to even know what you are talking about or presenting?

8. Are you remotely aware of the biases you have brought to your piece?

9. Have you seen the destruction of the agricultural fields and forests adjacent to the Gaza Strip which have been burned because of fire bomb-carrying balloons?

10. Have you taken account of the hundreds and hundreds of rockets, mortars and missiles that Hamas and an Iranian-backed and prompted group called Islamic Jihad have fired into Israel over the past number of months, or the attack tunnels which the IDF has located and destroyed — a tunnel into Israeli territory for the purpose of kidnapping and murdering Israeli civilians?

11. Are you aware of the tons and tons of goods and materials that flow through the Kerem Shalom check point from Israel to Gaza daily (that is when Hamas or its surrogates aren’t attacking and blowing up this crossing)?

Your piece featured an irresponsible parent and then went on to attempt to raise sympathy for him and to what he exposed his children to. My question is, if given the chance to do it over, would he make the same mistake?

For your next venture into explaining the Gaza Strip, you might ask yourself why no one seems to want to rule this piece of land? Why not the Egyptians or the Israelis? Why did Israel give up the Gaza Strip in August of 2005? You might ask why there is no adequate sewage treatment or water system in Gaza? Why does sewage from Gaza flow untreated into the Mediterranean Sea, spreading north and winding up on Israeli beaches? Why isn’t electrical service full time in Gaza? What has happened to the groundwater there and why does the drinking water now taste salty? Why, given the millions and billions Hamas has received, hasn’t it built better hospitals, schools and housing for its people, instead of throwing these funds into the building of a vast tunnel system under the Gaza Strip and preparing hundreds if not thousands of rockets for firing into the Jewish state?

Given its location on the shores of the Mediterranean, Gaza could one day be a glorious resort location complete with air and seaports. But as long as it is ruled by the likes of Hamas, none of this, tragically, will ever come to pass.

It may have given you some satisfaction to appeal to your readers’ sympathies for the plight of the people of the Gaza Strip, but your simplistic, naive and superficial article only gives aid and comfort to a terrorist regime which brutalizes the people it rules and whose sole purpose isn’t care for this population, but to fire them up against Israel in a futile effort to destroy the enemy. That Israel has every right to protect and defend itself against such hostility seems lost on you. But may your homeland never be subjected to such blind hatred and so many frequent plots, assaults and attacks.

Rabbi Joel R. Schwartzman

Dillon

Praise for Cory Gardner’s approach to health insurance

Colorado’s Sen. Cory Gardner deserves a “thank you” for standing up for businesses and working families on the health insurance tax issue. This tax raises health insurance premiums, which are already exorbitantly high here in the mountains. Sen. Gardner has let congressional leadership know he wants to see immediate action to suspend the health insurance tax in 2020, continuing the moratorium already put in effect for 2019.

This is essential for entrepreneurs and contractors like myself, who don’t enjoy employer-based coverage. We have to pay for our own insurance for our families. Even a high-deductible plan is extremely expensive and still leaves you with tons of out-of-pocket costs. Add the health insurance tax on top of the premiums and an individual policy will cost $170 more next year — I already pay $700 a month for my own health care!!! And it’s not just sole proprietorships that will be affected. Small businesses will be forced to pay over $420 extra for every family on the company health plan.

Although 2020 may seem a long way off, Congress needs to take action now, or the health insurance tax will be included in the premiums insurers will soon start calculating. Any delay in extending the suspension on the tax essentially guarantees most consumers and businesses will be paying more for insurance in 12 months time.

Colorado’s economy relies on small businesses and entrepreneurs, especially in our remote areas. If we want to see more businesses founded and more jobs created by independent companies in town, we need to make health insurance more affordable. The health insurance tax won’t achieve that goal, and it should remain suspended as long as possible.

Hopefully Sen. Gardner can help us stay on the right track and keep the moratorium on the health insurance tax in 2020.

Carl Ecklund

Frisco