The Lion in Zion

(People's Daily Online)
(alt.Muslim)
(cnn.com)

I do have (at least) one thing in common with Islamic fundamentalists:

The shared belief that it will a great day for the world when the state of Israel is driven into the sea.

I can only offer the disclaimer that I truly believe the Jewish people, the religion of Judaism, and a relatively small number of Israelis are not synonymous with the state of Israel. Just as all of Christendom was not guilty of the actions of the crusaders, not all Jews - and not all Israelis - are guilty of the terrorist actions of the Israeli government. But those who are guilty? Those deserve to be driven into the sea. Make no mistake, if this doesn't mollify Islamic fundamentalists, and I don't entirely believe it will, then they too will be driven into the sea in turn. As will all fascists.

But Israel is a country. A nation. Nuclear-powered. They have a responsibility not to be baited, not to murder civilians, and most importantly not to destabilize a region that will rise up and harm us all. As was mentioned on the News Hour earlier tonight, America is helping Israel to sow the terrorism that will be reaped on the next generation.

From The Business Standard:

In medieval times it was the practice of impecunious and unscrupulous European monarchs to “organise” the punishment of entire Jewish communities for the actions of one or two Jewish moneylenders who had the “cheek” to ask for repayments of their loans from the monarch. The process of Jew-baiting eventually culminated in the ghastliness of the Holocaust under Hitler. Is it not an irony, then, that although the Israelis refuse to acknowledge it, this is exactly what their government is doing in Lebanon—holding all Lebanese responsible for the actions of a Shia militant group, the Hizbollah which has 14 MPs in the Lebanese Parliament and a few ministers as well?

At current count, about a dozen Israeli soldiers lie dead, while over 300 Lebanese civilians have been killed. And yet Rep. Eric Cantor says "You know, I think it is just preposterous to call Israel's response disproportionate."

Oh?

A lesson in running a respectable military government: try to show some restraint in killing civilians. Bombing apartment buildings in Beirut will net the same result the bulldozing Palestinian neighborhoods already have: another dozen dead Israeli soldiers. Maybe not all at once, but revenge is endless. That is, generally, why governments shouldn't practice it.

If it were possible to take out every extremist in the world without the loss of an innocent, I'd be all for it. But it isn't. Israel has a choice: the higher ground, or destruction.

I'm betting on destruction.