‘the clumsy bully on the block’

The Economist :

the impression received yet again by the watching world is that Israel resorts to violence too readily. More worryingly for Israel, the episode is accelerating a slide towards its own isolation. Once admired as a plucky David facing down an array of Arab Goliaths, Israel is now seen as the clumsy bully on the block.

Clumsy? Maybe, if by that they mean strategic clumsiness. Israeli generals have deliberately cultivated a reputation that their forces have gone nuts by a combination of disproportionate military responses (Lebanon 2006, Gaza 2009) and ‘errors’ (The killing of UN observers in South Lebanon).

Strategic clumsiness is Israel’s plan for deterring Arabs. They call it baal habayit hishtageya , Hebrew for “the boss has lost it”.