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07/24/2006 Archived Entry: "The sorrow of Lebanon"

THIS, MORE THAN ANYTHING I'VE HEARD OR READ, expresses the horror of what's being done to the innocent people of Lebanon. And once again "we" -- that is, taxpaying Americans -- are aiding the slaughter.

It's too hard to write about these horrors, so I'm glad other people can. But it does occur to me, over and over, that all these violent shows of power -- the U.S. in Afghanistan, the U.S. in Iraq, Israel in Lebanon -- are really shows of the most pathetic weakness. Can't bring the perpetrators of 9-11 to justice? No problem; just flail out and destroy entire countries to show how "strong" you are. Can't root out the agents of Hezbollah? No problem; just target fleeing families and a tragic country's newly rebuilt infrastructure.

This is "strength"? This is the sort of "strength" revealed by an abuser. Beat the weak because your actual enemies are less easy targets. Don't care who you hit, as long as you hit. Don't care what -- or whom -- you destroy, as long as you destroy. The credo of aggressive nation-states everywhere.

(And no, I'm not taking Hezbollah's side against Israel. They're guilty of the same barbarity -- just on a smaller and non-U.S. financed scale. A pox on all their houses. On a lighter note, the Mideast Morass (out of which we should damn well stay) reminds me of that cheery song, "The Merry Minuet.")

Posted by Claire @ 08:12 AM CST
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