Disclaimer: this piece of criticism is directed at the thought patterns of the Israeli establishment, media, various peace advocates, and those who buy into their propaganda. In no way does it claim that all Israelis share the same flaw, nor does it target those brave men and women, who spend days and nights in defending Israel from the various threats that seek to devour it.
Having recently watched a series about American history in the last four centuries, one trait that often got emphasized was perseverance: the ability to carry on with a daunting task despite hardships, and losses. From the great engineering projects, like the hover dam, the Erie canal, and the California Aqueduct, through the colonization of the great plains, to the taking of Omaha beach, and the stand against Communism, Americans did not stop trying just because they failed on the first try.
Israeli mentality, on the other hand, suffers from a self-destructive syndrome known as 'Zbeng vegamarnu' ("one blow and it's over", in rough translation). While very proud of the efforts they take to protect the lives of their soldiers (after sending them into unnecessary high-risk urban combat), once a battle plan goes awry, and people do get killed, the whole operation it is quickly labelled as a complete failure, and a catastrophe of immeasurable proportions.
For the sake of brevity, I will not mention individual cases, but whenever there was a casualty of war during operation "Cast Lead" in Gaza, and the last Lebanese war, one could count on grim titles appearing on newspaper fronts, as well as lengthy debates on television and radio shows.
Whereas other nations strengthen their resolve in the face of adversity, or simply acknowledge the simple fact that people die in wars, Israelis see casualties as a sign of deep failure, and a reason to proclaim defeat.
This line of thought is as much the result of the unrealistic expectations, set by the magnificent victory of the six-days-war (as one satirical piece has put it recently: the Yom Kippur war was a terrible defeat, because we won in nineteen days, as opposed to the customary six), as well as the indulgent fantasy that wars can somehow be fought without casualties (preferably to both sides, so as not to offend anyone).
The enemy is well aware of this attitude, and is easily emboldened by it, because groups like Hamas and Hezbollah know all they have to do is kill enough Israeli soldiers in one fight (5+ will usually do the trick), to get the Israeli public fretting about the disaster. Immediately, worried women will demand that their soft children will be sent home from the front, leftist extremist will cite the horrors brought upon by Israel's colonialist, imperialist, and pure-evilist tendencies, and the media will inflate every sad personal story to absolutely ridiculous proportions.
It is no wonder, therefore, that both Hezbollah, and Hamas, claimed victory after the recent conflicts. What's worse - they were right, but not for the reasons that Israeli defeatist love to bring.
The reason they were right is that Israel does not have the luxury of ending a conflict whenever it pleases. The moment it goes to fight an Islamic, or Arab enemy, the only condition for peace should be the shameful surrender of that enemy. A voluntary ceasefire at any earlier stage simply invites the next war, as the recent decades have shown time and again.
Case in point, the war on Gaza could've only ended in Israel's favor had the leadership of Hamas publicly admitted defeat. The moment the IDF unilaterally withdrew from the strip, the clock to the next violent conflict started ticking, and you can quote me on that. The other side, on the other hand, defined victory as simply surviving, and there is no doubt it has accomplished that task.
Moreover, Hamas' local victory against Israel was observed by Muslims all over the world, encouraging them to carry on their global jihad. Thus, by sparing Gazans from paying the price of their own choices, my country has committed a different crime against humanity.
To create peace, Israel should not grovel before inferior Arab thugs like Abu-Abbas, but instead squash them mercilessly. That will make the surrounding Arab countries respect it, out of fear - the only preserver of peace in the Middle East. Any attitude that pretends otherwise, is an irresponsible self-indulgence that leads to more bloodshed.
