Raise the Hammer
While following the various conflicts in the Middle East one can't help but try to discern the possible behind-the-scenes motives for observing nations.
There are many theories, some credible, others born out of frustration. This much I now believe: we are seeing, and will continue to see, an increase in "terrorist" organizations gaining new recruits, which will only lead to further instability.
I understand the need for war at times, but excessive force and constant Western intrusion into the Middle East over the past 80 years seems finally to be boiling over.
My wife and I stared in horror at the front page of the Spec the other day with a picture of a destroyed apartment building in the middle of a ruined residential area in Lebanon.
The recent comment by Hans Blix about the US "breeding terrorism where it didn't exist" came back into my mind, and it hit me.
I said to her, "There are hundreds and probably thousands of guys like me who yesterday were sitting at the dinner table eating with their families, and today will leave to sign up with the local military chapter or organization in their town." As would I.
I can't help but wonder if this is part of the U.S. plan. After all, once those family men pick up a weapon and pledge to fight for their country, they are branded as terrorists.
Small, extreme groups have always existed in all societies including our own - KKK, neo-nazis and gangs are among the most common of these types of groups in North America. The same held true in other regions of the world, including the Middle East.
The problem arising now is that many of these nations have little or no formal military. Despite what you hear on TV, Iran is no threat to the US. They don't even have a nuclear generating station, let alone any weapons. The US has almost as many nuclear weapons as the rest of the planet combined.
The only option for these poor men who lose loved ones is to join the armies that will fight the U.S. Some may be legitimage armies, others are groups that were once small, isolated radicals now finding more recruits than they ever imagined.
This is happening in Iraq and will certainly happen once things settle down in Lebanon. Absolute force and constant military barrages won't bring "sustainable peace," as Condoleeza Rice claims.
It will, as Mr. Blix has observed, breed more terrorism, more death, and more war.
I fear we have just slipped past a line of no return. Innocent lives will be lost on U.S. soil and abroad in the days and years to come.
Let's just pray that nobody ever pulls out a nuclear weapon again. Once was more than enough. Now with so much nuclear might in operation around the world by nations of all ethnic persuasion and democratic make-up, one atom bomb would certainly result in more. And if that happens, we all lose.
According to Kevin Sites at The Hot Zone:
The missile strike seemed to clearly illustrate two aspects of the conflict so far: first, Israel's willingness to use overwhelming force against Hezbollah targets regardless of where they are located, and second, because of the mounting civilian casualties, a gradual closing of ranks by many Lebanese behind Hezbollah.
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