My heart has been breaking for the last few days, but yesterday hit a crescendo here on Daily Kos. The situation in the Middle East is absolutely tragic for all involved - the innocent civilians in Lebanon killed by Israeli air-strikes, the innocent Israelis killed by rockets, the killing of anyone in general.
But something deeply nefarious has been going on here in our community. There has been a small, but vocal, minority that not only refuses to condemn actions of Hezbollah, Hamas, et al, but actually takes it a step further and finds ways to justify it. The latest is this diary which actually questions whether the Israeli soldiers at the heart of this matter were actually "kidnapped."
As someone who believes war is wrong, who wants nothing but peace in the Middle East, and who condemns killing, this is a dangerous and saddening trend amongst a small group here. Stop it.
First, let me say that I oppose Israeli tactics in dealing with this matter. Their response was excessive and it's not going to work. It's only going to gin up more hatred against Israel and it will most likely fail militarily too, at the cost of many on both side. That is a tragedy. Yes, Israel is wrong.
But guess who else is wrong? Hezbollah. Israel pulled out of Lebanon entirely in 2000, and since that time, Hezbollah has been launching cross-border raids and sending rockets into Israeli towns continuously (of course, some commenters yesterday claimed the rockets only started two weeks ago in "response" to Israeli attacks - facts show otherwise). Hezbollah has little to do with Palestine any more - in real terms they are funded and armed by Syria and Iran as a way of prodding Israel and maintaining influence by those two countries in the region. After all, they can't fight Israel in a conventional war, so instead they use Hezbollah.
Now, before you go on about the Palestinians, let's get a couple things straight. I oppose Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands. They were wrong to occupy them in 1967 and it's been nothing but a misbegotten tragedy ever since (by the way, one of the reasons I opposed the Iraq War is the knowledge that occupying these lands is counter-productive). I also think that most Israeli tactics in dealing with the Palestinians were unfair and tragic.
But Hezbollah no longer has much of anything to do with Palestine, they have a lot more to do with projecting Shiite influence in the region and keeping Israel busy on their northern border while Iran builds up its strength.
But reality has little influence on a small number of people in this community who have gone out of their way to justify Hezbollah and its tactics. They have called the kidnapped soldiers POWs - of what war? Is Hezbollah a nation now?
Even worse, there is a refusal on some parts to mourn the deaths of the innocent Israelis who have been killed in this situation simply because more Lebanese have died. Has it come to that? If the death counts were even would they feel better? This from a community ostensibly opposed to unecessary war, the death penalty, etc?
I am tired of the hypocrisy. I, for one, condemn Israeli killings of innocent civilians. But I also condemn Hezbollah provocations and killings of innocent civilians. And I find it pathetic that some will contort themselves into pretzels ignoring the reality of the situation so that they can claim Hezbollah are righteous freedom fighters.
Let's say it loud and clear: two wrongs don't make a right. In reality, the situation there is a mess, complex, bloody, with little black-and-white. And I know how most of us feel about those who let ideology get in the way of reality.
Attack Israeli tactics all you want. But stop justifying its enemies in the same breath. It's beneath us.