Ignorance is Strength
I was not entirely convinced that the kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah was worth the trashing of Lebanon's fledgling democracy. Turns out that undoing the Cedar Revolution should have been the least of my concerns.
When Israel extended their assault beyond a few retaliatory volleys and started the systematic destruction of the country's infrastructure, it seemed like a cause for alarm. Tragic civilian casualties aside, the massive impact of the airstrikes all but guaranteed that the recovering, recent-civil-war-survivor country would be thrust back toward darkness for years with Syria and Iran only too happy to show them the light.
With a repeat of Israel's 16 year South Lebanon quagmire looming on the horizon, the US was forced into negotiating the same kind of cease-fire agreement Bush initially claimed not to want and Israel was backed into accepting it. Seems pretty clear at this point that we won't be putting a notch in our WOT belt with the results of this event and even these folks have come to the same conclusion -- Hezbollah, Iran, and Syria have emerged the victors.
Today, however, in a truly bizarre, Orwellian WAR IS PEACE... FREEDOM IS SLAVERY... IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH moment, Bush informed us that Hezbollah has been defeated.
Um... yeah. Or maybe they're in their last throes.
When Israel extended their assault beyond a few retaliatory volleys and started the systematic destruction of the country's infrastructure, it seemed like a cause for alarm. Tragic civilian casualties aside, the massive impact of the airstrikes all but guaranteed that the recovering, recent-civil-war-survivor country would be thrust back toward darkness for years with Syria and Iran only too happy to show them the light.
With a repeat of Israel's 16 year South Lebanon quagmire looming on the horizon, the US was forced into negotiating the same kind of cease-fire agreement Bush initially claimed not to want and Israel was backed into accepting it. Seems pretty clear at this point that we won't be putting a notch in our WOT belt with the results of this event and even these folks have come to the same conclusion -- Hezbollah, Iran, and Syria have emerged the victors.
Today, however, in a truly bizarre, Orwellian WAR IS PEACE... FREEDOM IS SLAVERY... IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH moment, Bush informed us that Hezbollah has been defeated.
" 'Hezbollah attacked Israel, Hezbollah started the crisis, and Hezbollah suffered a defeat in this crisis,' Bush said."
Um... yeah. Or maybe they're in their last throes.
posted by Logic101 at 8/14/2006 07:38:00 PM
3 Comments:
And Hezbollah claimed victory as well, citing the 500 dead Lebanese citizens and $2.5 billion in destroyed infrastructure as milestones documenting Hezbollah's respect and support of Lebanon's people and democracy.
While Bush and Ohlmert claim false victories, so does Nasrallah. There are no winners here, not even Iran and Syria. While the Iranians may view this as expanding their influence in the region, all it really has accomplished is re-inforcing the hatreds and condemning their own peoples to more years of violence and destruction.
That's a pretty esoteric assessment. The fact is that Hezbollah met its objectives here -- survival, relevance, and renewed support in the region. Israel did not -- Hezbollah lives on and now has an Israeli defeat on its resume.
Sure... peace, freedom, and prosperity in the M.E. is the desirable outcome . So is ending world hunger. And stopping the spread of AIDS in Africa.
Iran and Syria are clearly the victors here. The evolving Shia Crescent is feeding on anti-Westernism like a tic on a dog. They're creating a new populist energy in the region. They're uniting under a common cause and eventually they're going to want to start exerting their power.
My assessment is not esoteric at all. What I am saying, is these "leaders" are claiming victories...what the "victories" truly accomplish is pretty simply condemning the people of these countries to continued hatred and violence. Hezbollah won a victory? Yes, they appear to have greatly expanded their reputation and influence, at the cost of the lives of 500 people who did not sign up to be killed. Iran and Syria expanded their "influence"? Yes, that appears to be true too. What will their people get out of that? It seems likely they will get hatred, violence, and death. It is abhorrent to watch "leaders" claiming victories built upon the death and destruction that THEY chose for their people....simple as that.
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