Quote:
Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
You've said things that make it sound like you think Lebanese citizens are getting what the deserve -- e.g., what you say right here, after trying get away from the word "deserve" -- but you don't want to say it. It's all well and good to support Israel's right to drop bombs just so long as you don't have to think about where they land?
The Lebanese state has rarely functioned as such. Which makes it hard -- in my view, if not yours -- to think that the Lebanese deserve -- oops, there's that word again -- what they're getting for its failures.
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We can agree to disagree, I think that there is a difference between "deserve" as in they deserve to die and asserting that there are consequences for their behaviour, passive and active. Death is the most extreme consequence. It's also the most indiscriminate. Which is unfortunate. What is also unfortunate is that in the last 25 years, Syria and portions of the Lebanese people (including leaders of certain powerful factions) and Iran have declined the possibilities to seek out long term peaceful strategies for their region and the more produtive governance of their lands. Now, that 25 years of making a choice to acquire and stockpile better and more arms, and create and foster larger, more aggressive and better armed paramilitary/terrorist groups within their borders, all for the singular purpose of aggressive action towards Israel, there are some consequences coming to bear.
In that backdrop, I don't have a problem with Israel carrying out its current strategy and I think that its prmature for any cease fire.
