What I said, with wrath
I guess I listen to The Young Turks a lot. On his blog, show co-host Cenk Uygur said basically the same things I said below but with more fury. And with more heartbreaking pictures.So, whenever you hear anyone on television or radio saying how Israel had to do this and we had to sanction it, remember these pictures. These are not abstract principles. These are real dead women and children you're looking at.
This is self defense? Those two girls above were about to imperil the existence of Israel?
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Doesn't anybody think anymore? Doesn't anybody feel anymore? Why is it impractical to suggest peace while war has proven futile over and over? Does Bush really believe allowing just a couple more bombings will do the trick?
Do the people of Lebanon look like they are more willing to co-exist with Israel now? Or could it be that you made mortal enemies where they did not have to exist before? Please spare me your generic "these people hated us anyway" bullshit. Which people? They're not monolithic. They're actual human beings. They have different opinions, and people can be swayed. The brothers and sisters of these kids could have grown up to be moderates. What do you think the chances of that are now?
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When are we going to realize that war only feeds the beast? When are we going to have leaders who can use their heads to solve problems?
The only answer George Bush ever has is - more bombings. He once famously said that he doesn't do nuance. We desperately need a president who does do nuance. Someone who has enough wisdom to realize that the solution to every problem isn't more war.
If you still support this administration which has no clue and no moral compass, you are culpable. If you still support their enablers in Congress, you are culpable. If you keep putting these warmongers back in office, you are culpable.
We put the man who authorized this in charge. If you don't do anything to fix that, you have blood on your hands. We're a democracy; we're responsible for the actions of our leaders. If you keep voting for politicians whose only solution is more war, then you might as well have dropped the bomb yourself.
posted by Kinder Gentler Little Man @ 8:56 PM
4 Comments:
Welcome back Nasty Man.
Wasn't familiar with the artist but loved the lyrics and may have to buy some tunes.
War...all the little children will suffer the most. Sad to see the picture but makes one sure it is real and not some far away place where we can say "Who the hell cares? It's not my country."
Keep writing...Oh, and are you meditating more? Oops, was that another fire?
Yes this war is senseless, but before we get too unbalanced about the death of children let's keep in mind who puts them in harm's way. The hundreds of Hezbollah rockets have missed their marks (children and women included) only because Israel learned long ago to move them to shelters. If not for that, the carnage in Israel could be every bit as bad as in Lebanon. Commentators to this blog should read some history lessons going all the way back to 1948 when Israel became a state. The fundamental aim of Hezbollah and the Palestinians is to deny Israel the right to exist! The fact that they have no regard for life, their individual own included must be taken into account.
Now about Mr. Bush. Up to this point the world cried out for him to act multilaterally, build a consensus, get help from the international community. In this case, when he apparently has chosen to do so, it has become his problem that he hasn't simply directed a sovereign nation to stop conducting their affairs as they choose. If he chooses to do such would it make a difference? Read your history. With all due respect to Mr. Carter, he had his shot and still we are at this juncture in history. Is the carnage saddening, painful to see, frustrating? Yes it's all of that! But appeasement of people that care not a wit for the sanctity of human life and use women and children as shields to prevent a response to their actions, will only provoke more violence. (By the way did you see the soccer field bombing in Baghdad today. Those who planted the bombs really care about harming their children, or how they might grow up to be productive citizens.)
For an interesting sidebar to the Lebanon/Israeli conflict take a look at Bob Schieffer's interview of the Lebanon prime minister, followed immediatley by the Israel deputy prime minister. The contrast is startling and is telling about the ability of Lebanon to manage its internal affair, particularly with regard to Hezbollah.
"Hezbollah needs to be diminished and disarmed."
"Unfortunately, Palestinian, Hamas, and Hezbollah leadership isn't wise enough to recognize that a) they cannot go toe-to-toe with Israel and b) bombing pizzerias and malls in Tel Aviv wins you few friends. Where would the Palestinians be if they didn't carry out these foolish missions?"
Clearly, there is no love lost here for Hezbollah.
Unfortunately, what leaders fail to recognize time and time again is that death and destruction do not win hearts and minds (see: Iraq). Inflaming the situation is this mentality: "You started it." "No, you started it." And missiles fly.
Few are advocating for appeasing Hezbollah. (Aside: "Appeasement" is one of the most inflammatory words used in public dialogue, and most of the time it is not an accurate description of what is being advocated.)
What I hear many advocating for is diminishing Hezbollah's power through means more constructive than bombing everything to smithereens.
Unfortunately, Israel has chosen to bomb everything and everyone to smithereens. Roads, bridges, apartment buildings, a power plant that is now pouring tens of thousands of tons of fuel into the Mediterranean and destroying the fishing industry. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/31/AR2006073101086.html)
These are not the actions of leaders who are thinking with clarity.
Anonymous said:
"The fundamental aim of Hezbollah and the Palestinians is to deny Israel the right to exist!"
While walking the concrete jungle of downtown in the 100 degree heat yesterday, I thought about this some more. To say "the Palestinians" believe this is to paint with a broad brush, and I believe that is not appropriate. It's the equivalent of saying, "The Americans believe..." Obviously, there is a broad range of thought in our country, and we can safely say that there is diversity of thought in Palestine, too.
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