Escalation VI

We have always said that in our war with the Arabs we had a secret weapon - no alternative. - Golda Meir, Prime Minister of Israel (1969-74)

The past several days have seen events that don't bode well for the cessation of hostilities along the Israel-Lebanon border any time soon.

Efforts to commence a cease-fire are going nowhere; various nations have offered various proposals, but no one seems to agree on a definitive plan. I think everyone - even Israel - pretty much agrees that the poor Lebanese are the ones most hurt in this terrible crisis. (although I believe the regime in Iran could care less as long as Israel gets hurt). Israel contends that they need to neutralize the threat from Hezbollah. That seems to be the official stance of the Bush administration as well.

This week's innocent victims include four United Nations observers who were evidently in the wrong place at the wrong time during an Israeli bombing. Quite surprising when you consider UN peacekeepers tend to leave an area when hostilities erupt. Quite surprising when you consider how quickly the UN abandoned Iraq when their base of operations in Baghdad was bombed by terrorists. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan (a corrupt lameduck if you ask me) was quite angered by the incident and claimed it was a deliberate attack by Israel. Hey, if you're at a baseball game, you might get hit by a foul ball or even a broken bat. It's not the stadium's fault or the team's fault. You need to be aware a of what's flying around you. Same goes for a war zone. You might get hurt if you stay in one! These guys were there to observe a war. Well, duh! They found one!

Now the pigs of al-Qaeda have decided they should get involved, and called upon all Muslims to come fight against Israel. And Hezbollah doesn't even want them there.

Israel is halting further advances into southern Lebanon - for now. Meanwhile they're busy calling up 30,000 more reserve troops.

The missiles keep flying. One struck an Israeli chemical plant. Cute. And now Hezbollah is firing missiles with longer range, reaching targets 10 miles farther than Haifa. These missiles are known to be manufactured by Iran. Both sides are claiming these missiles have been deployed.

The veil of evil in the Middle East is being lifted, and the guilty parties are being revealed. Iran has shown they are very much committed to this conflict. Although they seem to lack the courage to engage Israel directly, Iran has no problem putting their weapons in the hands of privateers (namely Hezbollah) and hiring them to do their dirty work, and exploiting the Lebanese in the process.

Syria has exploited the Lebanese for generations now. Their designs against Israel are no secret. The massive flow of Iranian arms into the hands of Hezbollah can only flow one way - through Syria. If al-Queda makes good on its promise, they can only do so mostly by going through Syria. At some point, Syria is going to have to pay the price. President Bush today urged Syria to get out of this conflict. I doubt they will heed. If this conflict degenerates to the point where WMDs are used against Israel, I can almost guarantee that Damascus will be wiped off of the map.

Hezbollah, too, has exploited the Lebanese, to the point where they have usurped Lebanese sovereignty in the south. In parts of Lebanon, Hezbollah is Lebanon. And the Lebanese military is no match for them.

While much of the world displays its victim mentality, let us remember a few things: Israel unilaterally pulled out of Gaza and the West Bank. This was a gesture of good faith. The Israelis even looked the other way when some minor terrorist attacks were executed against them. How does Hamas and Hezbollah reciprocate? By crossing the border, kidnapping soldiers, and firing missiles into Israel. There is only one word for that kind of response: Evil.

Keep watch, my brethren. Stay vigilant.