Some good points there, robomatic. Actually, what I mean by "tribalism" is merely an "us and them" psychology. Such a psychology always casts "us" as good and "them" as bad. Life just isn't that simple. (As I'm sure you realize.) Politicians always try to whip up their populace by means of "us and them" rhetoric, and I call that tribalism, whether or not it's based on an actual tribe in the strict sense of the word.

Jews and Muslims, ironically enough, sprang from a common group of 12 tribes which diverged off in different directions as time went by. They share many of the same holy books and prophets. What you have happening now is a huge family quarrel, and family quarrels can be among the nastiest (witness the family quarrel in Ireland or the one in Korea).

I think both the Israelis and the Arabs suffer from the delusion that they are good and their opponents are bad. Those who imagine such simplistic things and believe them can always justify launching preplanned, premeditated, pre-emptive attacks...because, after all, they are simply defending liberty, freedom, justice, etc... :-)

I cast a jaundiced eye on such facile justifications for war.

In 1967 it was no David and Goliath confrontation. It was a case of a large but poorly trained, poorly organized, and technically outclassed Arab military fighting an only slightly smaller excellently trained, excellently organized, technically far superior Israeli military...and the Israelis got in the first punch. I don't call that "David beating Goliath", I call it Rocky Marciano beating Primo Carnera. Israel may look small on a map, but it was not small in military capability.

The Israeli generals were not David. They were Rocky Marciano, and they knew very well that they could win that war handily, with or without Divine assistance. :-) You punch first, punch hard, and score a knockout. Israel was only an underdog in the eyes of people unacquainted with Israel's very potent military expertise.