Holy Crap, There's A War Going On!

This topic, coming back from vacation, was the most difficult for me to approach here. The conflict is so complicated and grand that one doesn't even know where to begin. I don't have much to add, but I will take a look at where we stand and how U.S. leaders are approaching the Mideast situation disaster.

Big news today- after agreeing to a 48-hour ceasefire in light of numerous civilian deaths, Israel resumed the bombing of Lebanon hours after making that pledge-

Israeli warplanes carried out strikes in southern Lebanon on Monday, hours after agreeing to temporarily halt air raids while investigating a bombing that killed at least 56 Lebanese civilians, mostly women and children seeking shelter. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said there will be no cease-fire, adding that "Israel is continuing to fight."...

It's interesting; I was discussing this with a friend this morning after he mentioned the non-ceasefire ceasefire by Israel and I couldn't believe how far they'd come in two weeks. When they first began their campaign, most people were shocked, but in general understood where Israel was coming from and understand what their goals were in terms of strangling a long-time enemy once and for all. Call it a 'ripping off the band-aid' foreign policy approach. But after two weeks of constant bombing and attacks, much of which now seems to lack any specific purpose in light of all the civilian deaths, most of the world seems to have given up on Israeli knowing when to quit or what they are doing. Calls for a real ceasefire and more diplomacy are increasing. Even the NY Post- never a critic of Israeli policies- seemed to share this worn-down sentiment on its cover today. Backing out of the ceasfire promise didn't help. So in two short long weeks, Israel seems to have almost gone out of its way to make itself much less sympathetic in this conflict. This isn't to say, of course, that anyone is sympathetic to the state of Hezbollah, but it just seems its the Lebanese people who are being most punished here and not that terror group. The long-term goals still make sense, but I see little evidence that this will achieve anything other than cyclical destruction.

It's time they dropped the bravado and articulated whatever their long-term plan is.

Meanwhile, on the U.S. front, in addition to sending Sec. Rice to talk with world leaders, President Bush continues to insist that he will not join in calls for a ceasefire unless it is "accompanied by a wider agreement addressing the root causes of the fighting, such as Hezbollah's control of southern Lebanon, and Iran and Syria's influence in Lebanon." Which, of course, will be very easy to accomplish with bombs raining down all over Lebanon, right? Right? {*sigh*}

The not-so-secret truth is that the White House and its political allies are very approving of what Israel is doing and would prefer a wider escalation in the region (particularly against Iran and/or Syria) rather than a ceasefire. Josh Marshall summed this up in a good, balanced post yesterday: "There's more here than the US not wanting a ceasefire before meaningful changes on the ground have happened in south Lebanon. Or at least I fear there is... [T]here do appear to be forces in Washington -- seemingly the stronger ones, with Rice just a facade -- who see this whole thing as an opportunity for a grand call of double or nothing to get out of the disaster they've created in the region. Go into Syria, maybe Iran. Try to roll the table once and for all. No failed war that a new war can't solve. Condi's mindless 'birth pangs' remark wasn't just a gaffe -- or perhaps it was a gaffe in the Kinsleyan sense of inopportunely saying what you really think. That seems to be the thinking -- transformation through destabilization."

And that's a scary thought in light of what we've seen already.

Further reading, for those interested:
-AP: Bush looks to UN for Mideast solution
-Newsweek: Making Enemies: Hamas and Hizbullah should not be confused with Al Qaeda. Bush's insistence on doing so shows his failure to understand his foes.
Time Magazine: Why the Middle East Crisis Isn't Really About Terrorism
-Salon War Room: Bush: We have to destroy Lebanon in order to save it
-NY Times: Child Victims Incite Anger in Lebanon and Beyond
-Reuters: Raise readiness, Assad tells Syrian Army
-James Zogby (HuffPost): What Must Be Done in Lebanon

Finally, an interesting discussion on the Bush foreign policy by Chris Matthews and Don Imus of all people.





[PS- Meanwhile, back in Iraq, things aren't going much better. Iraqi Prime Minister Malaki's visit to America didn't go as well as hoped. In particular, his comments about Israeli were not in line with our government's stance, though he did repeat the White House talking points in regards to Iraq and the war on terror. And as the bodies in Iraq continue to pile up, more and more Democratic leaders in Congress unite to call for troop withdrawals from the country. They wrote a letter to President Bush to express their concerns about the war. Recent polls support their position.]