Should the US help Israel Destroy Hezbollah?

[ECH1969]

U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D- Mass., who was in town Sunday to help Gov. Jennifer Granholm campaign for her re-election bid, took time to take a jab at the Bush administration for its lack of leadership in the Israeli-Lebanon conflict.

"This is about American security and Bush has failed. He has made it so much worse because of his lack of reality in going into Iraq.…We have to destroy Hezbollah," he said.

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060723/UPDATE/607230360
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Do you agree with Kerry that we should help destory Hezbollah?

[butterfly77]

1. Aren't they already?

they send them missiles and nuclear weapons.

[Armstead]

2. There is no destroying Hezbollah

As the US is learning in Iraq, you don't stamp out such movements by brute force.

The only way to weaken the destructive side of Hezbollah is to stop feeding the grievences that result in their support. Right now, Israel is running a great recruiting campaign for Hezbollah. I think the leaders of all Arab terrorists organizations are probably grateful to Israelfor revitalizing them by bombing Lebanon so indiscriminately.

[brmdp3123]

8. How did Israel 'feed the grievances'?-by existing?

[atreides1]

25. Gee I Don't Know

Dropping bombs and missiles on civilians could be helping to feed the grievances, also locking people up without charging them with a crime, how about destroying an entire apartment complex just to kill one man?

The Israelis have done all of these things, and let's not forget the 2 Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon where their Christian allies killed men, women, and children!!!!

The real interesting thing that I discovered while stationed in the ME, was that everyone there has a long memory, and it tends to span the generations.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

26. But where do we stop?

If we alleviate the greivances that have resulted in their support, have we not then acquiesced to them? And what about next time, when they want more territory, or want to push their religion down secular throats in the area?

It's the old quesstion..how does one deal with terrorists? I really don't know.

[MGD]

39. Cut their financial links to the sponsor states and they will wither

and wane.

[treestar]

43. Exactly, and in addition, the US had not succeeded in destroying

Al Qaeda, which would be its number one priority, even if this could be done.

[Tom Joad]

3. Should the US help destroy Lebanon? That's the question, kerry

[bryant69]

7. I think that Hezbollah can't be destroyed by force

But, conflating the two like that is bad for Lebonan. Hezbollah is a terrorist organization; Lebanon is a country. A country with problems, sure.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[Tom Joad]

27. Israel is destroying Lebanon. It is not me that is conflating the two

But i think it is also wrong to destroy Hezbollah.

[bryant69]

33. Do you think it would be wrong to destroy the Mafia?

[Tom Joad]

34. By massive bombing of Italy?

[bryant69]

37. That's quibbling over methods

If there were a method that minimized civilian deaths sufficiently, would it be worth it to destroy the mafia.

Particularly if you compared the number of lives they would take or ruin if allowed to continue vs the number of civilian casualities.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[Tom Joad]

42. the mafia has influence in Las Vegas and Chicago.... When does the

bombing begin?

I can't help but think you are just pulling my leg. No rational person would consent to "bombing" away the Mafia, because it is impossible.

Any more than bombing away resistance to Israeli agresssion will work in Lebanon. That is what Hezbollah is, after all, armed resistance to Israeli aggression. Obviously, enjoying its greatest popularity at the moment, because of tactics supported by Kerry/Bush et.al.

A rational response is to call for an immediate cease-fire and start serious negotiations for prisoner release, including the release of Lebanese fighters held in Israel for many years. There should also be pressure on Israel to end its occupation of Lebanon fully and completely, because it only partially withdrew.

Mass slaughter of civilians and their homes and communities should not be an option. The mafia would be nicer than that.

[bemildred]

4. Kerry cements his reputation as a shameless political whore.

There was a time when he seemed to know that warmongering was immoral.

[oberliner]

9. What about Conyers? Agree with this statement of his?

"I believe Hezbollah is a terrorist organization that was, is, and remains a threat to peace in the Mideast, and must be dismantled and disarmed."
-John Conyers

http://www.house.gov/conyers/Lebanon_PC.htm

[bemildred]

10. I disagree with ANYONE that cheers for war. Period. nt

[RoseMead]

16. Thank you!

And haven't we learned *yet* that it's impossible to "destroy" guerilla forces without also destroying the entire civilian population in the process? Save us from the destructophiles.

[ChiciB1]

12. Too Bad John Conyers!

I really wish I didn't even check this thread out! What a shame!

[Ignoramus]

15. In case you think he's supporting aggression

The next sentence is:

"This conflict cannot be resolved militarily; only diplomacy can bring an end to the bloodshed."

Hurray for John Conyers. So, the entire Senate and most of the House are terrorists. At least John Conyers and Kucinich are progressive on this issue. Though, the 2004 democratic platform that someone linked to the other day shows that the official position of the democratic party is absolute preference for Israel against everyone else in the Middle-east. So, essentially, being a democrat means being in favor of a pro-Israel bias.

[Ms. Clio]

30. that was a deliberately misleading quote, wasn't it?

odd how that works.

[bdamomma]

18. the cancer is spreading

they are starting to believe this pre emptive blow up countries shit.

[cynatnite]

29. If you look back over the last 20 years...

you will find democrats and republicans alike denounced Hezbollah. I don't get why anyone is shocked by what they say about Hezbollah.

As far as most are concerned, it was Hezbollah that killed all those marines when Reagan was in office.

No politician will say otherwise because it'll mean their job.

I hate Hezbollah and I think they should be demolished, but as a realist I know they're not going anywhere. They're popular with the people and they're in parliament.

[Ms. Clio]

28. but that's not the entire quote, is it? Why such a selective edit?

And what is the next sentence? Why, it's this: "This conflict cannot be resolved militarily; only diplomacy can bring an end to the bloodshed."

Very disingenuous.

[Jara sang]

5. violence begets violence.

stomp your foot down on one terrorist and five more pop up somewhere else. I think the policy makers and defense contractors know this and use it it toward their scheme of perpetual warfare. Wars are like ATM machines to them.

[ChiciB1]

6. We ARE Already Aiding & Abetting With All Kinds of Weapons....

but I say NO MORE!! Anyone who watched Democracy Now today would understand why... so many in the Middle East are really beginning to "hate" America and Americans!!

Check it out.... www.DemocracyNow.org and what is wrong with Kerry??? That's it for me!!!

[bdamomma]

17. I hate to say this

but we are all victims of the bush crime family, and we will pay heavily for all this death and destruction.

[Ignoramus]

11. "Destroy Hezbollah"...

Sigh... The idea that you can just kill all of the bad people is ridiculous.

People engage in killing people because they think that it is acceptable to kill innocents for the sake of a greater good, and because they think they can compell people to change by forcing them to change through violence. That is the problem. Kerry's idea is to become the same as the people he wants to kill.

You can't get all of the "bad people" to congregate somewhere so that you can kill them. The central problem with Kerry's philosophy is that "evil" is within all of us, it isn't a group of people, it is a philosophy. You can't bomb terrorism, because it's not a place or a group of people.

[Karenina]

24. In IDEA cannot be bombed out of existence.

The IDEA many Arabs hold that they are NEITHER INFERIOR to the white colonialists, NOR required to submit to such cannot be bombed away.

[MikeNY]

13. No.

Israel is creating terrorists by bombing Lebanon.
The US is creating terrorists by occupying Iraq.
The Romans created terrorists by occupying the Middle East.
The Soviets created terrorists by invading Afghanistan

See where this is going? When you have no right to enter a nation's sovereign borders, and bomb the hell out of a country that doesn't even have an airforce, you ARE the aggressor.

The Arabs in the Middle East hate the US due to our policies.

Invading Iraq just confirmed their beliefs and emboldened them.

Further aid to Israel will only make the Arab world hate the US even more. And I've got some news for everyone here, the Arabs aren't disappearing from the Middle East anytime soon and neither are their customs. As much as the Bushwacker and his cronies think they are going to change things there, they won't.

Edit: Thousands of years worth of history support this view. Its not a matter of "who will win". Its a matter of "How long it lasts". Do you want the US to be involved in a series of crusades that last hundreds of years? Bin Laden's stated goal was to bankrupt the US. This is how it will start... Let's get someone with a brain in the White House please.

[whistle]

14. Sounds like John Kerry is positioning for a return run for POTUS

...in 2008 with his statements.

<snip>
"If I was president, this wouldn't have happened," said Kerry during a noon stop at Honest John's bar and grill in Detroit's Cass Corridor.

Bush has been so concentrated on the war in Iraq that other Middle East tension arose as a result, he said.

"The president has been so absent on diplomacy when it comes to issues affecting the Middle East," Kerry said. "We're going to have a lot of ground to make up (in 2008) because of it."
<end of snip>

Well Mr Kerry, you begin making up the lost ground in the senate. We the voters will find an appropriate candidate to run for president in 2008 against whatever reThuglicans attempt to throw into the race. I don't know who will be the democratic choice, except I do know it will not be John Kerry.

[Little Star]

19. I agree. He really needs to hang it up. When he lost me, I

knew it was over for him. He needs a clue.

[SammyBlue]

20. Yes we should, but it is an impossible goal because

you can kill people, not an idea.

[spanone]

21. They are only creating new terrorists for the future.

[leveymg]

22. 20 years ago it was the PLO they wanted destroyed.

Now Fattah are the "moderates", by comparison to what followed. 20 years from now, Israel will wish it had stabilized Lebanon and Gaza, and negotiated with Hamas and Hezb'allah.

The IDF repeatedly gives their enemies credibility by bombing them and everyone around them, only to see something else spring up from the craters.

Reminds me of the quotation about the fruits of victory being ashes in their mouths.

[MisterP]

23. "I will do Bush's work, instead of saying that I will like he does"

not really a very good campaign slogan, is it?

[greguganus]

31. Kerry is right

You can't reason with Hezbollah. They have said themselves that they are only interested in the total destruction of Israel. The total destruction of any nation/nationality/race is genocide. Hezbollah reminds me of the Borg collective from Star Trek-TNG. No reasoning with them. Only out for destruction. I applaud Kerry for saying what he believes. I will support Kerry if he chooses to run again.

[Lindacooks]

35. Exactly:

"The total destruction of any nation/nationality/race is genocide."

That's what Israel is trying to do.

[greguganus]

41. Alrighty then...maybe they will all destroy each other, then

we can use the beaches for spring break.

[Lindacooks]

45. Maybe. but they also may take the rest of us with them.

The whole thing is just sickening.

[conflictgirl]

32. I totally disagree with him

Destroying Hezbollah seems almost as pointless and impossible as a "war on terror."

We don't need the Dems to be "more effective" warmongers. We need them to present a valid alternative to warmongering.

[Just Me]

36. Personally, I think it's time to take a stand for equal opportunity and

,...a REAL discussion about co-existence. Hezbollah is only powerful because of the EXTREME U.S. favor given to Israel,...same with Hamas. Both Hezbollah and Hamas provide aid to all those oppressed by the U.S. favor towards Israel, especially with arms.

Incredibly, just after Syria was chased out of Lebanon, making it weak against outside attacks, here we are,....Israel being that bad fucking bully, destroying 10 to 1 or more every innocent Lebanese citizen. Almost looks like the U.S. set up Lebanon, huh!

If it were me, I'd be setting ultimatums with Israel, offering Palestinians humanitarian service, demanding international forces involvement in protecting ALL from one another, withdrawing unconditional support for ANY ONE, including Israel.

STOP THREATENING IMPERIALISM AND/OR CONTROL OVER OIL-PRODUCING COUNTRIES. Begin a "table of equal interests for humanity". Agree to CONTROL the power-mongers and profiteers by imposing the rule of law equally against them.

,...thinking continues,...

38. You can't destory Hezbollah

It is just a name for a group who came together in response to Israel's previous aggressions. You have to have diplomacy. People will always rise to fight for their own interests.

[Toots]

40. The same way we are destroying Al Qaeda?

:shrug: Will America ever become a nation of intelligent people again?

[leftofthedial]

44. yes, but only while we also simultaneously

help Hezbollah destroy Israel

[savemefromdumbya]

46. Just another little enemy in the War on Muslims ( I mean terror)

Cheney is looking for more enemies