Perspective

One Jerusalem.com Israel's Blog Magazine is reporting that an IAF strike on the Lebanese town of Qana could wind up being the turning point in the war. Apparently, a basement shelter "filled" with "refugees, mainly women and children," was struck by an Israeli bomb. 60 people are reported killed and injured. How did those mature, suffering Lebanese women and children react to the bombing?

They surrounded UN headquarters, vandalized the place, and started waving Hizbollah flags at every TV cameraman and photographer (probably while doing that erradic tongue-wailing thing that most Muslims do after they vow to kill the infidels and before they charge forward with their shivs).

Yeah, I feel real sorry for these people.

Look, I know, I'm suppose to feel bad that "innocent" civilians were killed, that women and children lost their lives. (Do muslims have fanatic PTA moms who go around screaming, "BUT WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN?!!" too?) Yeah, that stinks. Boo hoo.

Israeli women and children are living in bomb shelters and hospitals, too.

I'm supposed to feel so bad for these Lebanese people that I'm supposed to demand that Israel stop a war that Hizbollah started so the UN can bring in "humanitarian aid" to "cure the humanitarian crisis."

No one has suggested that Hizbollah stop rocketing for 72 hours so we can get aid into the north, and cure the humanitarian crisis in Israel. But I guess that's because, according to the UN Human Rights Council, Jews aren't humans.

But let's pretend for a moment that Jews and Lebanese are equal, shall we? Okay, now, let's compare the reactions of the world body (meaning: the media, foreign countries, the UN, and basically anyone BUT Israel) to the "Humanitarian Crisis Unfolding in the Middle East" (I swear, I should write news headlines):

Lebanon-- Thousands fled to Syria. Anyone with a foreign passport got flown out. The ones still in the country are receiving aid from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria, Iran, the UN, the EU, and America. Oh, and Hizbollah, who reportedly has a great socio-economic infrastructure. They have to get into some bomb shelters when sirens go off. The rest of the time they spend crusing around in their Mercedes-Benzes, looking for international news cameras to pose in front of.

Israel-- Thousands are living in refugee camps on the beaches further south, or in the homes of strangers. No reports have been made about anyone with dual citizenship fleeing the country. In fact, 240 new olim from America arrived one week into the fighting. They are receiving aid from fellow Jews in Israel and abroad. They mostly live in bomb shelters, as evidenced by the fact that when foreign news reporters are on the streets of Israeli towns in the north, the streets are usually vacant. The Israelis getting media attention are the bloggers covering the war; these bloggers are the only chance Israel has of getting a fair shake from the foreign Al-media.

Wow, if we actually do the proper journalistic thing and give you both sides of the story, the wailing and gnashing of teeth over the "humanitarian crisis" in Lebanon seems a tad, well, overdone doesn't it?

So, getting back to my original question: Do I feel bad for those "innocent women and children" who were killed in a bomb shelter in Lebanon today?

No.

But you have to feel bad for them, you're a Jew! Where's your ancestral guilt, man?

Being Jewish allows me to see the morality in the situation. Morally, death is a sad, sad thing. But the commandment reads, "Thou shalt not murder" not, "thou shalt not kill." Murdering and killing are two different things. Innocent Israelis have been murdered for years by Hizbollah's suicide-bomber recruits and rocket launches. Now, in a justified fight back, the Israeli Army happens to be killing some Lebanese civilians along with official Hizbollah terrorists. Too bad. They should've read the repeated fliers sent to them by Israel, telling them to get out of the way.

(Another side-note: When does Hizbollah drop fliers telling Israeli civilians to get out of the way of the rockets? Oh, wait, they don't, because they aren't just fighting a military war, they're fighting a war for Allah. Yeah, now who's the racist god?)

Still, though, women and children. It's not their fault they're in this thing.

They've spent well over six years giving and receiving aid and comfort from Hizbollah. Their men elected Hizbollah into parliament. They clearly continue to side with Hizbollah now, as evidenced by the picture of Nasrallah hanging in every Lebanese home across the south. Am I supposed to feel bad for someone who chose this kind of life for themself? "Aw, you elected Nasrallah and now you have to live in a bomb shelter, awwww, poor thing." Please. Everyone makes choices; the Lebanese made theirs, and now they may have to die for it. Think of it this way: maybe that'll make their racist god happy.

So, will this be the turning point of the war? Ha! Not likely. So far, this war has produced more confusion within the world body than ever before. Israel isn't likely to let up and concede to world opinion now, anymore than they have been over the past 20-odd days of fighting. Israel is in this until the finish; even if the government reaches a point where they want to end it, the civilian population knows that unless Hizbollah is wiped off the map, Israel will never be safe. So, you know what? Screw what the world thinks. There's a reason our Bible is filled with stories of individuals standing up for what is right and saving our nation in the process: when it comes to standing for the truth, you've got to be willing to stand alone.

**UPDATE**
Varifrank has an excellent analysis of Israeli propaganda tactics. It's a good report, a hopeful report, and one that rings right with my spirit... Baruch haShem, may it be so.

And another thought occurred to me. Recall yesterday's post mentioned the insane Hizbollah cleric telling the ticking time bombs via Al-Manar that Adonai is "a racist god" and that the Jews are commanded to kill the Lebanese in Torah. What does that mean to us? It means that if this war was a poker game, Hizbollah just flashed their ace in the hole. They can get away with a certain amount of religious bilge, but if they want the favor of the world body, they can't just go around calling this a holy war from the Jewish side as well as their own; the secular world body really will start to view them as nothing more than religious nutbags. There are only two reasons this cleric would even think to bring the Jews into the spiritual element of the battle:

1. They think they're winning so they can start calling the shots.

2. They're confused as hell and aren't sure what to do next, so they decide to see if this will provoke Israel to use full force and charge forward. Of course, this assumption is backed up by the thought-process of #1.

You don't show your cards before the other player has called. It's just not wise gaming (or war) strategy. In the end, I believe it is further evidence that Varifrank's analysis is correct: Israel is working a careful war of words that, so far, has Hizbollah not knowing their tuchuses from a hole in the ground. This also happens to be a classic Biblical battle tactic, commonly referred to as "putting enemies in derision."

"Strike them with terror, O LORD; let the nations know they are but men."
Psalm 9:20


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