[quote]Maccabee wrote:
Wow, lots of room for commentary here… where to start…
Lebanon in trouble because of the “Zionist state?” Interesting-- I was under the impression that Lebanon was doing pretty well until certain events came to pass… Remember when the PLO and Arafat were kicked out of Jordan and moved their terror organization into Lebanon…? (Well, many or most of you were probably either not yet born or mere infants…) Of course, then Christian Arabs began to suffer just as much as Israelis from internal violence and terrorism.
Palestinians living in squalor because of Israeli initiatives? That is perplexing-- What about Jordan, Syria, Egypt, Iraq, etc vying for territory and using them as pawns? Anybody bother to read about that? How about “leaders” of those countries manipulating the Palestinians and ignoring them while they move into camps while their “compatriots” wage war against Israelis? Why did they not help to construct housing and infrastructure with the money they received from the UN?
What about their poorly elected leaders embezzling funds from the United Nation and other states within the European Union? Why does Arafat’s wife not release all of the funds from her Swiss bank accounts? I’m certain those millions and millions of dollars would help the Palestinians in Gaza buy at least a little bit of fuel and food.
Have any of you ever actually lived in or visited the region? Ever seen a Palestinian refugee camp? Have you seen the compounds of their “leaders” and the slovenly, run down shacks that surround them? Is it really any wonder that it is so easy to fuel hatred for Israel when you forego basic services for your brothers and purchase arms instead?
Education-- Educated Professionals? Where are they? Oh, I forgot-- they left decades ago because they anticipated all of these problems and did not want to stick around for the fashla that was to ensue-- What motivation would a physician, an attorney, contractor, or a banker have to stick around in Palestinian neighborhoods when there is not going to be a market for their services? Correction: a physician is going to have a huge market for his/her services. A banker, maybe not so much. It is a pity too, because their intelligence, education, and success would have much better served the Palestinian’s than the thugs they “elected.”
Dustin, I’m not sure what you learn about in your company or at home in Oklahoma, but the officers in the higher echelons of our military disagree with you. I steadfastly disagree with your notion that the media skews public opinion so grossly in favor of Israel. And since you hunger for solid facts/examples, here is a link to one:
http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/reports/The_Photo_that_Started_it_All.asp
Read the article. Is it not intriguing that major American media corporations showed a “Palestinian” young man bloodied with an Israeli soldier holding the club in the background? If and when you read the article you will discover that the bloodied youth is a Jewish American student in Israel, and the soldier was not screaming at him�??he was screaming at the Palestinians who were trying to finish him off. If you want to read Tuvia Grossman�??s story about the attack, look at this link:
http://www.aish.com/jewishissues/israeldiary/Victim_of_the_Media_War.asp
It is also interesting that the Palestinians also continue to use Tuvia�??s photo, a photograph of a bloodied Jewish boy, in their propaganda. Strange, no?
Before you say, �??Well, the Israeli military still accidentally kills innocent civilians,�?? let me offer up this question: Where are the internal watchdog groups for the Palestinians, for Hamas? Where are the groups that monitor the internal affairs? Because Israel has these organizations�??they watch out for and disclaim these incidents if and when they happen. However, I never see reports from Arab organizations about the misdeeds of the Hamas thugs in Gaza that fire rockets into Sderot, or lash suicide bombs to young men and women. Sure, you hear about if from other media outlets, but that is not the same.
Now let me cycle back to a previous statement�??Lebanon still suffers, but not because of Israel. Lebanon suffers because the country cannot effectively expel terrorist organization and cells that have plagued the country and its citizens. Lebanon suffers because terrorists hide out in her cities and organize unlawful activities against foreign governments within her borders. Lebanon suffers because internal violence within the government allows neither proper function nor security.
Anyone ever read Hobbes? Finish the Leviathan and then maybe we can inject some intellectual discussion into this crumbling thread. I think some lessons in political philosophy would do many of you a world of good in structuring your arguments.
[/quote]
Excellent post! Excellent links too!