Yeah, reading that statement is an unpleasant thing but I think the problem is, publicly, Biden and US officials have to take a specific stance and so do not have the luxury of saying exactly what they think or feel. So, I am not giving Biden a pass here nor making excuses for him, but sadly, I think if he does not take that hardline stance against anything that may relate to Hamas, he would be crucified politically in the press here. Yeah, he is selling the Israeli line that they are "justified" in doing whatever they do there and that if innocent dead bodies pile up, it is just the cost of war. Horrible? Absolutely but really most of the US is sold on the idea that we have to support Israel and they don't know a Palestinian from a member of Hamas. Not all Germans were Nazis and I am not sure some Americans grasp that. 

I remember once reading a strange and depressing article about the cost of killing people from different regions and countries. Literally, the author, or whatever study he was quoting was putting a dollar amount on killing people based on where they were from and their ethnicity. Needless to say, the cost to kill an American was rated as very expensive (because the US is going to respond and respond in a big bad way) and the cost of killing people in a third world country was obviously much more of a bargain. I thought of this when I was reading about this war. Palestinians are not a financial contributor to the world and because of that, I think that some of the more ruthless people that govern in this world, see killing them as the same as stomping on ants. The cost to kill them is low and so they can kill them by the hundreds with little thought. Israel is essentially following the principal that, they are making it very expensive to kill an Israeli. I know that is a hideous example and you know I don't endorse it. 

What can Biden say, when the Israelis are following the same principal as the US? If you kill an American, if you take an American, you are likely to pay a high price for that. I think that because there were American hostages taken, that is the primary reason there was any sort of pause before Israel launches their ground assault. 

Lots of people are paying lip service to the idea that Israel needs to try not to kill innocents in their quest to wipe out Hamas. I think in these days of social media and endless blowback for doing anything many people will frown upon...well...maybe that has an impact. 

I agree with David that if you kill hundreds of thousands of people, a lot of them 18 and under, to prosecute your war on Hamas, that is going to make many people see you in a bad light. I think that matters to plenty of Israelis but probably not Netanyahu and his crew. 

Biden did give a speech about not giving in to your rage in cautioning the Israelis. At least with Biden as president we get that. If we had Trump in power for this, I believe he would have went all in with Netanyahu to wipe the place off the map. Not much solace there, I know, this is our world.