So a major terrorist plot may have been thwarted at Heathrow. That's good, I imagine. But as anyone who has been even peripherally involved in a newsworthy story knows, you shouldn't believe the reports that you hear or read in the first few days, especially when they breathlessly involve "Breaking News." And the reports that follow tend to build upon the initial reports. Still, if what they're saying on CNN is even remotely accurate, then stopping it is a very good thing. Let's hope this wasn't just one protrusion on the iceberg. But it probably was.
My thoughts on the ongoing situation in Lebanon are complex.
- Hezbollah (or however the hell you pronounce it) = BAD.
- Hezbollah being allowed to amass 13,000 missiles of various types = VERY BAD.
- Hezbollah firing those missiles at Israel while taking cover deep in civilian areas = VERY BAD.
- Israel attacking civilian infrastructure = UNDERSTANDABLE (cut off transportation for those 13,000 missiles.)
- Israel alerting civilians to flee before airstrikes = ADMIRABLE (on the other hand, should Osama bin Laden be thanked each time he issues a warning to Americans?)
- Israel targeting fleeing refugees, ambulances, refugee camps, and U.N. observers = VERY, VERY BAD.
- Lebanon allowing Hezbollah to run whole chunks of the country, dictate foreign policy, and engage neighbors in battle = STUPID.
Lieberman's out because he supported the war - well, and because he toadied up to the Republicans and the Bush administration so much that he and Tony Blair were fighting over lap space. But didn't Hillary Clinton support the war, too?
OMG- this is all making my head spin. I have been talking with my roomie and my mom about this today. Here is where I think I have landed:
ReplyDeleteHezbollah- bad
Israel- justified in attack
Killing civilians- bad
Using civilians as shields- bad
Killing civilians- still bad
...so my problem with the war is that I don't think it is going to accomplish anything in the end. Yes Israel is justified and Hezbollah should be punished, but that is not reason enough to destory civilian lives. I think in the end many civilians will have died and lost thier homes and loved ones, Hezbollah will be militarily weakend for a time, but will eventually re-group and find themselves with more general Lebanese support due to outrage over civilian deaths.
So, in the end, even if it is justified, what is the point. All it really boils down to is death and destuction, a short break from Hezbollah, and more Hezbollah support from Lebanese and other Israeli hating Arabs (not saying all Arabs are Israeli hating).
Anyway, I think I'll write a post on this soon...