By Nicholas Stix
Apparently, Israel has for years been shelling towns in Southern Lebanon, killing people, and occasionally kidnapping Hezbollah terrorists. At least that’s what would have to be the case for Doug Bandow’s tirade, “Chutzpah Squared,” over at 4 Pundits to make any sense. But then, it’s a recycling of something he’d previously written for AntiWar.com.
Okay, let me get this straight. Israel attacks Lebanon and reduces much of the south and parts of Beirut and elsewhere to rubble. In doing so, it increases, as if that was possible, hatred of Israel (and the U.S.) in Lebanon and elsewhere in the Mideast. Israel's attack unifies most Lebanese behind Hezbollah, which proves better able to stand up to Israel than have most Arab governments. The assault also demonstrates the impotence of the Lebanese government and leaves Hezbollah as that nation's best organized and most effective organization. The ugly aftermath--homes wrecked, jobs destroyed, crops ruined, unexploded ordnance sitting about--leaves Lebanese desperately in need of assistance.
Which means, ta da!, Hezbollah can step forward, bankrolled by Iran and Syria, to fill the void. The end result then would be an even more influential Hezbollah with greater ability to do harm to Israel in the future. So it is everyone else's responsibility to fix the problem by dropping bombloads of cash on south Lebanon.
Returning to the real world from The Twilight Zone, the areas from which Israel has for years been daily shelled, have for just as long been under Hezbollah control. Israel doesn’t destroy too many jobs, because Hezbollah maintains much of the populace on welfare, so that they will be loyal to it. But what if that were not the case, and Israel were destroying Lebanese jobs, left and right? That’s a novel defense of terrorism: Fighting terrorists destroys jobs. America destroyed jobs in Afghanistan, and she is presently destroying jobs in Iraq.
And why limit the "job destruction" criticism to those figthing terorists. I wonder how many Japanese, German, and Italian jobs America destroyed during World War II. And I'm sure that only made the Japs, Gerries, and Italians (there was no wartime phrase, that I'm aware of, referring to the Italians) hate us even more, or just started them off hating us.
I guess this killer "job-destruction" criticism is the replacement for the "disproportionate response" talking point, since Hezbollah's Green Helmet Corpse Distribution Program was exposed.
To the uninitiated, AntiWar.com is, like so many “pacifists,” not at all against war, just against certain people defending themselves against Raimondo & Co.’s favorite war-mongers. The site could be renamed, “Die, Jews, die!” without missing a beat. (Expected response from my anti-Semite and neo-Nazi fans: ‘There he goes, with the anti-Semitism smear! These damned Jews can’t take constructive criticism, without playing the victim, and smearing their critics! There was no Holocaust – the damned Jews just made that up, to look like victims – and I wish Hitler had finished the job!’)
Stick to economics, Doug. You’re not quite as bad at that. Conversely, I’m a much more gifted Jew-baiter than you are. (‘Oh yeah? Prove it!’)
Technorati Tags:
Israel, Hezbollah, Lebanon, Doug Bandow and Pacifism.
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