Tête-à-Tête-Tête

I really don’t like writing about the whole Israel/Hezbollah thing. It’s too difficult for my small brain. But, I can’t help commenting when I chance upon dumb stuff - that even I can see is dumb - written by a premiere right-wing blog. Especially when that dumb comes alongside some pretty sorry ethical thinking. John Hawkins:

There has been a lot of talk about who’s winning and who’s losing in Lebanon. It’s easy to figure that out. Which side wants an immediate ceasefire? Lebanon, right? They’re losing. Which side wants to continue fighting? Israel, right? They’re winning.

Right about two things - Lebanon wants a ceasefire, and Lebanon is losing. Missing the rather obvious point that, like Israel, Hezbollah is perfectly happy to keep fighting. So, in the war between Israel and Hezbollah, both are winning. See what I mean about dumb?

And, yes… the “fragile democracy” we keep hearing about in Lebanon… those folks are losing.

More dumb:

Why should the US try to stop Israel’s attacks just because the Lebanese people are getting angry at us? Some people look at it like this:

“They hate us! We’ve got to stop the Israelis in order to help make these people like us again!”

Shouldn’t we actually be looking at it like this,

“They hate us! So, why should we care if the Israelis blow up their country?”

I have no doubt that John Hawkins (the author of the above) hates “lefties” like me. Yet, somehow I care if his house gets blown up and his family killed. Even if it was EarthFirst! doing the bombing. Actually, especially then. See what I mean about dumb with a side dish of ethical shortcomings?

Then there’s Israel’s reaction to the hate aimed at them. Ooooh, what if the Lebanese get angry at them? What if the Saudis get furious? Then there’s the French! Newsflash: Israel is surrounded by people who want to finish the job that the Nazis started. Of course, they’re not really rooting for the Israelis. But, what about the people in Europe? If the Israelis were run into the sea tomorrow, there would be dancing in the streets all over Europe. Folks, once they’re rooting for you to die, there’s really not much point in putting the lives of your citizens at risk to gain their approval. While it would be nice for the Israelis to be liked, there is only one place they have to be liked, and that’s the United States. On that front, it’s so far, so good.

Ummm… it is not important to be liked because Israel is surrounded by people who do not like them… and it’s not important to avoid escalating that conflict because it’s a rosy, happy choice to become involved in a war in which Israel will likely have to rely upon nuclear weapons or the full force of the U.S. military (current occupation: a war that isn’t in Israel) to win… a war that might even become a world war (not the rhetorical kind a la Gingrich - the real kind with, you know, the better part of the whole world lobbing bombs at one another).

Lot’s of other dumb stuff in the article, but couched in right-wing conventional wisdom, broad brush statements that have enough grains of truth that one needs an analytical sieve to show the dumbth. I’m not up to it. Still. Dumb.