Thursday, August 17, 2006

Trust: A Snowball's Chance in Inferno!!

Ok, As I was saying before this outburst, I never liked Hizbullah, don't like Syria or Iran, and reiterate that Lebanon needs to "absorb" Hizbullah's alacrity into an official "underground, Lebanese army controlled, non-sectarian para-military civil resistance."
To elaborate on the plan, If Martians invade; everyone would go to his or her post on the front, near the mother-ship landing site. If Israelis invade, the "recruits" would head to anti-aircraft missile pads around bridges, hospitals, Dairy and Biscuit factories, Civil Defense centres, water dams, and Peach orchards. Those are normally the IDF's favourite targets.
A few unique Lebanese qualities passed on to HA are: intelligence and scheming. One has to admit that HA was fully capable of constructing undercover rocket launch pads, and dug a maze of tunnels under the noses of Israel's watch-towers, not to mention the thousands of over flights, and 3 spy-satellites twinkling high above.
If one uses Google Earth – chances are one can spot a water pump, but somehow the IDF intelligence (or lack of it) missed spotting missile-launchers that are – emmm.. Visible? The more dogmatic and presumptuous comments I read from the Israeli side, the more and more I lean towards the belief that God's Angels where distracting the IDF soldiers. Hallelujah!!!! Not only should one never trust the IDF's sagacity, we have reason to suspect vision and visibility impairment. What else can explain how they managed to hit all the bomb shelters and civilian buildings, but failed to incapacitate rocket launchers. If it weren't God, who was it - the IDF should come with an explanation quick before I fall on my Knees in praise and adoration.
Typically, "Israeli" fellow-bloggers cannot help involving themselves in everyone else's business but their own. I need to be clear here. I'm in no position to contemplate the peace of mind of Israel or any its non-Arab population (including the Egyptian and Jordanian Ambassadors), or how to defend "Israel." I do however have something the "Israelis" can do as part of the Lebanon Defense plan - at the end of this article. I will spend some time to respond to a very interesting comment from Jordan. Other comments were hysterical; some were racist and plain ignorant. Some were properly responded to, or otherwise properly laughed at. With all due respect I have no business defending my "blueprint Defense plan" to Israelis at the moment.

However, in response to a refreshing comment, I have some News on how trustworthy Israel has been towards Arab nations. -
Q: When was the last time you hear of Israeli jets pounding Egyptian or Saudi or Jordanian bridges?
o Israel-Egypt: Egyptian soldiers were shot with cold blood less than two months ago. Not the first incident, certainly not the last. I can go further, but I have more below!

o Israel-Iraq: In 1981 Israel launched a surprise air strike that destroyed an Iraqi reactor, which Israel feared would be used for plutonium production. Israel has its own nuclear power plant and arsenal. It too plans to drop them sometime soon. Anyway, by flying to Iraq, IDF violated Saudi Air Space- an act of War against two nations. If they used El-Al aircraft, it would have been only a civilian incursion. {hint: they're not smart}
o Israel-Saudi Arabia: Oh Raja! Why do you need a bridge if you don’t have rivers? Notheless, don't be surprised, probably the Israelis are STILL looking for a bridge.
o Israel-Tunis: In April 1988, some four months after the outbreak of the first intifada in the occupied territories, an Israeli death squad broke into the home of Abu Jihad in the Tunisian capital of Tunis and gunned down the Palestinian military and political leader. Abu Jihad, born Khalil Al-Wazir. An act of war.
o Israel-Jordan: in 1988 Jordan's late King Hussein relinquished his claims to the West Bank, which Jordan had lost to Israel in 1967. Does the Bridge over river Jordan qualify? Israelis didn't destroy it, they just seized it. The Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre are of invaluable importance to Christians and Muslims around the world. Jordan gave them up, Palestinians couldn't get them. Bridges? Bridge that gap!! I will not even mention the loss of the Jordanian 60th brigade exterminated by Israelis. Ok that was war, before the Peace treaty.
While Jordan does not need military tanks to fight off Israel, it required water tanks to transport water to the residents of Amman city when a few years ago Israel diverted the water to its side not to Jordan. Should I mention the Israeli dream to build a controversial Mediterranean-Dead Sea Canal which if completed, could devastate Jordan's vastly insufficient groundwater supplies? Drown it's fertile lands in the Ghor-Urdon?
One can live without bridges, dignity, or sense of security. One needs water to fill the swimming pools though.. Ooops, forgot, that goes to the Israel west-bank Settlements, not to the Jordanians or Palestinians!! Water is a strategic weapon. What will Jordan do if ten years from now Israel decides to build the canal? Wave the Araba Peace Treaty in their faces? Threaten to cut diplomatic ties! Perhaps resort to the UN! Done that, been there – 68 times!! Goooooooooooooooooood Luck. Endangering a strategic resource is an act of war.
Do you honestly believe that Israel would NOT endanger any country's interests unless it fears retaliation? Switzerland is always ready for a war. Switzerland! They host the Red Cross and the UNICEF, not the IDF! Never sleep on silk; you won't wake on thorns - brother.

When Israel disarms, removes chemical weapons and nuclear arsenal, perhaps then, only then one can trust that no war-driven bigot would press the wrong button, or that a fanatic who rises in power with crazy plans colludes with the battle-thirsty Generals to loose "forbearance." [Nice word, really!] The only Forbearance I see is what Egypt, Tunis, Jordan, Iraq, and Saudi have excercised at different times - for lack of proper "responses."

o Israel-Syria: Just the recent incidents:
§ In 2001, Israel raided a Syrian radar position in the Bekaa valley in Lebanon. An act of war against 2 nations.
§ October 2003: Israelis hit several targets at the Ein Saheb camp northwest of Damascus. An act of war.
§ Last but not least: June 28, 2006 - Israeli warplanes (not kites) flew over one of Bashar al-Assad's palaces. An act of war. President wasn't in the palace; otherwise he would have declared war.
o Israel-Libya: My favourite. On February 17-18, 1986, two Israeli missile boats, the SAAR 4-class Moledet, disembarked naval commandos to plant "Trojans" transmission devices in Tripoli-Libya. Not only that, the Mossad used the Trojans to transmit false messages to make it appear that a long series of terrorist orders were being transmitted to various Libyan embassies around the world. On April 14, 1986, one hundred and sixty American aircraft dropped over sixty tons of bombs on Libya. The attackers bombed Tripoli international airport, Bab al Azizia barracks, Sidi Bilal naval base, the city of Benghazi, and the Benine airfield outside Benghazi. - An act of war by Israel and the US against Libya.
We know that Israeli people are not monsters, we are only worried about the monsters among them who inhabit in IDF and War Cabinet caves. They create more damage than Bigfoot set free in a Crystal shop! My question is: Can Israelis really control their own government and army? I think you are as victims of the belief as you think we are victims of HA.
The Israeli civilian population opposes war only when they hear sirens for too long, but they never seem to stop war before it starts, or have not heard enough sirens already? They somehow miraculously believe that war brings peace, just like HA believes that Katioushas fly longer and hit harder if they say a certain prayer. Something should be clear, you cannot beat someone into altering conviction; Better still, it's not for lack of trying that Israel has failed down that specific road, time after time. No matter how much you think the cause is "justified," violence only aggravates the situation.
Instead of telling the Lebanese what to do, I would suggest Israelis write letters to Peretz or to Halutz (the cutest among all the bigfeet in IDF), or to its successors if he goes to prison before you get the chance to draft the letter. Tell them that 2 million Israelis spent 34 days in bomb shelters (as opposed to 1 million Lebanese who spent 34 days in the Open ... i.e. Sanayeh Park) because someone "lost his forbearance."
An Arabic saying goes, do not attempt to limb in front of the crippled, it just won't work!!
It depends how you look at "no Americans in Baghdad": for some it's funny – until it's no longer funny (ha ha), for some it's a promise, for others it's an oath, for me – it's a just a matter of time. Arabs and Iraqis are patient; we've been here for 7000 years uninterrupted. No Plans to go anywhere, {certainly not to Table Mountain!} While in Iraq however, the US is welcome to take the blows for the whole Free-world while attempting to restore democracy and uproot terrorism. When they're done, they'll be gone {one way or the other}. Vietnam will look like an afternoon ride by then.
When the Israeli army (backed by the US) invaded Beirut in 1982, someone hung a road sign that says:
Beirut 12 KM,
Saigon 3000 KM
Welcome!
With the Defense plan, or with HA if we cannot find someone better, it will read:

Saigon: 3000 KM
Baghdad: 750 KM,
Beirut: 3.5 light years
Invaders Graveyard: 0 KM.
Bye!

{You see, the road map was a trap for the invaders to stop, to read, &to turn into dust!!}.
Let us think of peace. Do your part, when you're done, and when Ein Helwe is turned into a golf-park after the Palestinians return to the State of Palestine, and Chebaa farms is a ski resort on the Lebanese tourist map, and water is pumped to Jordan, and the rest of the 7 points plan is applied, and the 68 UN resolutions honoured, and a few hundred more falters Israel has to look into… then perhaps we can begin to build trust. I won't say bring back the dead, remember, God is on our side (refer to earlier paragraph) - HE will take care of that.
Until then, keep the truce, we will draft our plans. Anyone with a brain doesn't need an F-16, really! A pop-corn pot near the border is enough to squeeze half the population of northern Israel into bomb-shelters (except for the Arabs who have NO shelters); A few pops of corn on the boarder are sufficient to bring Haifa, Yafa and Ashdod to a standstill.

You see, we're peaceful. As long as nobody gets hurt! {Except for egos, perhaps}.. How does it feel?!

WARNING>> For profanity and hateful comments, I would gladly receive and properly respond only if you leave your email address. Otherwise, such comments will be deleted.

10 comments:

  1. Fadi,
    We cannot let the Palestinians return to Israel because then we won't have a Jewish state. I understand you do not think this is just but we do. I personally am willing to fight and die for the existence of the Jewish state. We have here a confilict of ideologies that cannot be resolved.

    Since it seems that you believe that there will only be peace with the right of return, I guess we will be at war for a long time.

    Looking into the future you can expect Israel to field armies of robots based on nanotechnology in 20-30 years. Before that, we will have developed anti-missle system and advanced bunker busting bombs as well as active defense for armored vehicles.

    We will use our technological advantage until the Arabs decide to stop fighting. If we lose, we will use nuclear weapons against everybody in the middle east. Yes, we are sore losers.

    So really, this seems a fight till the end unless you agree to a Jewish state however unjust you believe it is. I fully understand why you would like to fight us but please understand why we will fight you: We believe that the injustice done to the Palestinians is less than the injustice done to the Jews and that the Palestinians refugees should be absorbed in the Palestian state only and in other Arab countries, just like all the Arab Jews came to Israel.

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  2. Anonymous,

    I myself was worried of being attacked, not promoting one.

    Unlike the state you mention, which I'm really not sure is a state envisioned by all the Israelis, Lebanon is a small peace-loving progressive nation whose views its role in the world Economy, Media, Trade, beauty, Literature, Art, Music, cultural interaction and peaceful coexistence as the raison d'etre of the country.

    The right of defending the land is something, aggression is another. I oppose violence, and as you could see (or failed to), I make fun of those who think weapons will work. - I would like to refer you to the earlier article of "Coffee in Beirut". That should answer some of your nuclear concerns.

    As for the rest of the thoughts, I am relieved that you expressed your views clearly regarding a Jewish state, right of return, and use of nuclear technology. I neither approve of them, nor do I understand them, but I uphold your right to express your views freely, as long as you use the peaceful means.

    I did not express my opinion whether a Jewish state is just or unjust. If you care to know my view, I think it is unnecessary - and not for all the other known reasons, so don't cry anti-Semitic etc.. - I oppose any and all forms of religious political states. Yes - ALL. I also call for the integration of the Israelis and Arabs (Jews, seculars, Christians, Muslims) in their surrounding. How: if you settle in the US, integrate, if you settle in Palestine, integrate. Switzerland is an excellent example of multi-ethnic, multi-religious integration.

    The last thing this region needs is more borders and a new form of religious fanaticism.

    Thank you for giving me the idea for my next article.

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  3. Fadi,
    I understand that you want peace and are a non-violent person. Nothing would make me more happy if we could reach an agreement whereby there would be no aggression on either side.

    The problem is, and you must face it, that the agression against Israel is justified by most people in the Arab world by the fact that there is no "just" solution to the Palestinian problem. You said this yourself. What I am trying to tell you is that there cannot be a "just" solution from the Arab point of view. Israelis will not accept the right of return.

    You have every right to think that a Jewish state is not necessary but since most Israelis think it is necessary and are willing to die in order to protect it, where do we go from here?

    How can there ever be peace? I would appreciate it if you clearly state your position on the right of return. Do you insist that in any peace agreement, the Palestinian refugees should be allowed to return to their villages (that mostly don't exist anymore)inside the 67 borders or would you accept that they be allowed to return only to the Palestinian state that will be formed in Gaza and the West Bank (the occupied territories)?

    Once we know if peace is at all possible we can plan for the future.

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  4. Fadi,
    You have not answered me yet so I will take the opportunity to make the point clearer.

    There are about 5M Jews who would like to live in a liberal and democratic state that has a Jewish majority. You may think this is irrational or stupid but given the history of the Jews, this is what we want and we are prepared to die defending this country.

    Granting the Palestinians the right of return will make Israel lose its Jewish majority and identity. I know you think this is not a big problem, but we think it is. We don't think that Lebanon has proven as yet that the Swiss model works in the ME and we wouldn't like to undergo the same problems.

    Given this view of most Israelis, it is clear that from an Arab point of view, there can be no just solution to the Palestian problem. I ask you then, given this situation, is peace possible? If even a moderate like you insists on the right of return then I would have to conclude that peace is not possible.

    As you see, I am not saying that the Israeli position is moral or just. I am only letting you know what is the really crucial thing for us. I personally would not mind compromising about Jerusalem, but the right of return is where I draw the line.

    Where do you draw the line and is there any room for agreement?

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  5. Anonymous,

    Is Israel willing to withdraw to the June 4, 1967 borders, or at least recognize it as a starting point for minor and reciprocal territorial swaps? Because if Israel isn't willing to do that, then there's no chance of peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors for a very long time.

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  6. Anonymous,

    I just want to point out that when the Arab League offered in 2002 to normalize relations with Israel in exchange for return to the pre-67 borders and a "just resolution" to the Palestinian refugee problem (not a "right of return"), Israel ignored the offer and continues to ignore it.

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  7. Peter,
    Let's stop beating around the bush.
    What does a "just solution" mean?
    As usual, the Arabs were ambigious. Say it out loud: No right of return, and I will agree to the 67 border and we can have peace.

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  8. In my view almost all of your post is deficient on logic. I can t go over whole of it because i would end up cluttering the whole space here with my analysis.

    Say this one : When was the last time you hear of Israeli jets pounding Egyptian or Saudi or Jordanian bridges?

    Here you follow with a long list of events dating as far back as 20 years ago. Most of these has nothing to do with the point made by that person which is that peace treaties between Egypt/Jordan and Israel show that indeed its perfectly possible to have normal relationships with Israel and it indeed guarantees safety of bridges and infrastructure.

    As to the incident with 4 egyptian soldiers .. well.. it was an accident ... but if u prefer some conspiracy theory , its your choice

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  9. I should say that you misunderstand the reaction in israel to this war. There is a lot of anger towards the IDF and the government for their undecisiveness, for the delay in starting ground operations, for agreeing to the ceasefire without bringing back the two soldiers. Olmert and Peretz are politically walking dead now. Its just a matter of time.

    Everybody says that the army should undergo a full scale reform. The cuts of the past years in the military budget should be reversed , the development of anti katuysha laser based system should be resumed as well as the active protection tank system should be installed on every tank. This is a talk in Israel.

    You detect signs of weakness where there are none. This war was like a pinch for our economy. Maybe more than a pinch. But we can live with this.

    For Lebanon it may have been the beginning of the end. I have no idea how you are going to repay your debt and frankly i think your economy may soon go into a total collapse.

    Mind you , i dont think its the end of the story. Outsourcing the defense of the border with such a neighbor as israel to a fundamentalist militia is not a good policy of caring for national security. Esp. if officially you are in a state of war with us and both countries have no diplomatic relationships. That means that the smallest provocation may grow into another war. You have no ways to control it. Not in the sense of controling the border , not in the diplomatic sense of limiting the impact of deliberate or undeliberate accidents.

    Most people i know are dead sure that we ll be soon in another war with hezbollah. I dont know how well hezbollah would survive this time , but i am under impression that ,unlike Hezbollah, your country would'nt ..


    For us and Hezbollah its just another round in our long long confrontation. The next round is already looming. You are pretending that you are a sort of masters of your fate and can dictate things to Nasrallah and prevent this from happening. But you are wrong.

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  10. So what do you do folks?

    This has gone on now for generations. Is it going to be your generation that stops it, or is your generation going to be added to the cemeteries.

    Hezbolleh are a disgrace to the Lebanese people. Israel just ended one of the worst military operations in history.

    Why don't you guys start a blog page, with the goal of finding common ground. It isn't that difficult to understand the positions stated here. It is difficult to find a path to common peace.

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