Here we go again, with Israel blowing innocent Lebanese children to hamburger, in a so-called “defensive” war against Hezbollah.
Well, dang me with a warhead: Hezbollah captures a couple of Israeli soldiers for the sole purpose of exchanging them for their many compatriots in Israeli prisons - an exchange these two parties have done before - and Israel starts a war.
This is a war that has been planned by Israel for a year now, and they seized on this tiny excuse to launch it.
It’s awful of Israel. Like it was awful of the U.S. to invade Iraq. It’s morally indefensible and strategically dumb. How in the name of Jehovah can you possible get rid of Hezbollah, which represents 35% of the Lebanese population, and in the past couple of weeks has become the dominant political and military force in Lebanon? As it is, Israel seems to be doing very little damage to Hezbollah, but a great deal of damage to the fragile democracy of Lebanon.
Israel shouldn’t be fighting with Hezbollah. They should be negotiating with Hamas, the democratically elected leadership of the Palestinians, to recognize the right of Palestine to exist, and to give the poor Palestinians — whom they’ve been oppressing since 1948 — their own state, so there can be peace in the Middle East.
Why is it so goddam tough to do that simple thing?
Let me tell you why it’s so tough.
It’s tough for Israelis because their attitude is, if you step on my toe, I’ll bomb your brains out of your head.
It’s tough for the Israelis to negotiate with anyone, because they think they are God’s own chosen people and have the God-given right to kill Arabs.
It’s tough for Israelis, because they’re so blinded and panicked by Arab anti-Semitism, they can’t see that the only way to get rid of it is to stop killing Arabs and start talking to them.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Bliffle
It's tough because israel is getting rocketed every day by hezbolah.
2 - Apollo
The dhimmi propogandist is back. Adam, Hezbollah is using Human shields and this tragedy is a result of that. can't this simple fact get into ur biased head.
3 - kanrei
I agree on Iraq, but not here. Israel is fighting back. They are not the offenders, they are the defenders. They have gone too far yes, but they are correct to attack.
4 - dan
Have you ever been to Israel. I would guess not.
By saying that "The Israelis are not Jews anymore." you do not seem to have a grasp of basic history.
5 - Marcy Mann
I am not embarrassed, I am proud and glad that we are protecting ourselves. If not us then who would protect us? Have you learned nothing from the holocaust? Would you prefer things to go back to the WWII Jewish way and have Israel blown off the map? I am always shocked by Jews who are anti-Jewish. To be a Jew is to love our homeland.
6 - pleasexcusetheinteruption12
Personally, Ive never understood why Jews have a right to Israel, although I dont know that much about the history of the issue. It seems to me a nation centered around a religion or race is in general just a bad idea. Isnt that what Nazi Germany was? Where have I heard this homeland/fatherland rhetoric before?
7 - William Dufkin
Until Palestinians recognizes the right of Israel to exist, and hand Jerusalem over to the Jews, they are not even civilized human beings. They are the true baby killers with sick minds and souls. They are the one that need to go on to one of the many other Islamic countries and make a home for themselves. One little strip of land for the Jews and the world for the Arabs...whatever. You are clearly oblivious to history.
8 - Dean
It is sad and ironic that Israel is using collective punishment tactics that were used against Jews in the past.
There are many ways to resolve conflict. Collective punishment is not one of them.
What collective punishment does is cause terror in civilian populations and more resentment.
Q.E.D.
9 - Dave Nalle
Dean, calling what is going on in southern Lebanon 'collective punishment' is a complete misrepresentation with the goal of making it sound as if by making normal war the Israelis are violating the Genva Accords. Collective punishment is when you line up 10 civilians and shoot them for each 1 of your soldiers killed. It is NOT, bu definition, collateral damage, no matter the number killed.
Dave
10 - RUVY IN JERUSALEM
Adam, stop embarrassing yourself. It's high time for Jews in exile to stop acting as if they know how to be Jews in their homeland; they don't. And it is high time for Jews in exile to stop making fools of themselves by condemning our puerile efforts to defend ourselves.
11 - Walrus
You have left out or glossed over so many facts that it's embarrassing. Hezbollah did not only kidnap soldiers, they also sent rockets. The innocent Lebanese children should not be there, but they are there, either with their parents' complicity or because they are forced to by Hezbollah to provide propaganda points. Hezbollah's stated aim is not only to wipe out Israel but all of the world's Jewry.
Talking to these people just won't work. There is no common language.
Having said that, I don't know that there is any right way to deal with them. Surgical strikes are extremely dangerous when the enemy insists on clothing itself in human shields. Perhaps an army of Ninja assassins would be the only appropriate response...
12 - Les Slater
Jews in Israel are Jews and they are not beyond talking to.
Part of the problem is that not only are some Jews defending a particular ideology, zionism, and the particular vulgarities of a particular imperialist state, Israel, but are proclaiming such support in the name of all Jewry.
Trying to implicate all Jews in this crime is not only cowardice, but objectively anti-Semitic.
13 - Dean
Dave, "Collective punishment is when you line up 10 civilians and shoot them for each 1 of your soldiers killed."
It's also collective punishment when you bomb 10 civilians and kill them for each 1 of your soldiers killed.
14 - Michael K
Maybe you're right that (1) Hezbollah doesn't want to destroy Israel and is just waiting for a better deal on the West Bank and (2) in the meantime they just killed and kidnapped a few soldiers to facilitate a prisoner exchange.
Here's an opinion piece by Joschka Fischer, former Foreign Affairs Minister in Germany. He doesn't seem to agree with you. Find it here
He says that Hezbollah and the Hamas leadership in Damascus are not interested in any deals. They had been stockpiling weapons to destroy Israel and had to be engaged.
And the papers all say that they store and use their weapons from within civilan centres so how can their opponents avoid looking like devils when they fight back?
I'm not saying that you're 100% wrong but I thought that Rabin did extend the hand on the White House lawn a number of years ago. And Barak extended it again. The deals they offered might have needed some work but a new intifada? You're the peacenik, you tell me.
15 - pleasexcusetheinteruption12
Can someone just explain to me why Jews are entitled to Jerusalem and Israel any more than Christians or Muslims? How can one justify the creation of a Jewish homeland in a previously predominantly Muslim area? Where are the Muslims supposed to go?
16 - Karl W.
All Israel wants is peace. All Hezbollah and Hamas want officially is the total destruction of Israel. Israel has tried every way for peace. The have every rigt to defend there citizens who there Arab neighbors want to destroy. You are so wrong Adam.
17 - RUVY IN JERUSALEM
At #15, #13, #12, and all my other friends overseas...
Gimme a couple of days to get my land line so I don't have to impose on someone else's computer...
Later
18 - The Fifth Dentist
"Hezbollah captures a couple of Israeli soldiers for the sole purpose of exchanging them for their many compatriots in Israeli prisons - an exchange these two parties have done before - and Israel starts a war."
I'm not going to defend everything that Israel has done in this war, but the above quoted statement leaves a few things out. First of all, the raid that captured the Israeli soldiers, which occurred inside Israel, also resulted in the deaths of several Israeli soldiers. And you conclude that Israel started this war? They may have escalated it, but there's no fucking country on the face of the earth that would put up with this shit without fighting back. Countries like that don't tend to stay around very long. It's very unfortunate that so many innocent Lebanese have died but they were living in a fool's paradise where a good part of the country was being used as a staging ground by the single most vile terrorist organization in the world. I can see why they'd be alright coexisting with these bastards: they weren't the ones being attacked. Israel's intent is to destroy legitimate Hezbollah military targets whereas Hezbollah is just haphazardly firing rockets into Israel with no military objective. Fortunately, Israel has much better weapons at this point in history but for how long do you think that advantage is going to last? We already see that Hezbollah has missiles with a range extending halfway to the southern border of Israel. In the past, Hezbollah has shown that it will blow up a synagogue in Europe or South America as an expression of foreign policy. You want to negotiate with these guys? Their stated purpose is destroy Israel. Are those terms acceptable to you?
19 - pleasexcusetheinteruption12
No one's answering my #15 post. :(.
20 - SFC SKI
To my knowledge, many Israelis are secular, or non-practicing Jews. Doesn't thqat make them merely Israelis?
21 - Les Slater
#15
They do not.
22 - SFC SKI
#15, whether or not the creation of Israel is justified is now a moot point; Israel exists. Unless you have some miraculous answer to relocating All of Israel's population, the thing that needs to be considered is how to keep its presence from being a catalyst for conflict.
23 - The Fifth Dentist
#15
Where are the jews supposed to go?
24 - Dean
Stay within the pre-1967 borders.
25 - SFC SKI
Yes, that worked so well, especially in 1948, 1953, and 1967.