Sunday, July 23, 2006
Israel's Fight is America's Fight
The fighting in Lebanon continues and it's easy to consider it to be yet another fight far away. But it's not just another fight. This is America's fight too. US is second on Hezbollah's target list after Israel. So, we'll better hope Israel will defeat this savage enemy or we'll better be prepared to deal with it directly. We may have to fight them up close anyway but the nature of the fight will be defined by how Israel will fare.
It's important to remember a crucial moral difference between Hezbollah and Israel. Hezbollah targets civilians while Israel try to spare civilians by careful target selection and by warning the civilian population. Unfortunately, Israel is not fully successful in sparing civilians and Hezbollah's tactict of hiding behind civilians ensure civilians are harmed. The civilian suffering is heart breaking but there is a moral difference and the Hezbollah has brought this onto its own people.
Is Hezbollah a success story? Hardly, Hezbollah have failed to make Lebanon into an Islamic Republic modeled after Iran, as was its goal. Instead, it is a part of the governmental system. Hezbollah has also failed to impose strict Islamic rules in its communities. It was not very popular.
Instead, Hezbollah has pursued community building with strong social programs. This is sometimes used as an explanation and justification for the increased popularity of Hezbollah. Social development is certainly a good thing, especially in the Arab world where that is a rarity. But it's a false promise if it's driven by a destructive agenda. This is not the first time - Adolf Hitler successfully pursued social and economic development. ¶ 8:22 PM
It's important to remember a crucial moral difference between Hezbollah and Israel. Hezbollah targets civilians while Israel try to spare civilians by careful target selection and by warning the civilian population. Unfortunately, Israel is not fully successful in sparing civilians and Hezbollah's tactict of hiding behind civilians ensure civilians are harmed. The civilian suffering is heart breaking but there is a moral difference and the Hezbollah has brought this onto its own people.
Is Hezbollah a success story? Hardly, Hezbollah have failed to make Lebanon into an Islamic Republic modeled after Iran, as was its goal. Instead, it is a part of the governmental system. Hezbollah has also failed to impose strict Islamic rules in its communities. It was not very popular.
Instead, Hezbollah has pursued community building with strong social programs. This is sometimes used as an explanation and justification for the increased popularity of Hezbollah. Social development is certainly a good thing, especially in the Arab world where that is a rarity. But it's a false promise if it's driven by a destructive agenda. This is not the first time - Adolf Hitler successfully pursued social and economic development. ¶ 8:22 PM
