I have just been listening to the Today Programme which has the capacity to wind me up at times, none more so that today whilst listening to all the stuff about what is happening in the middle east. As far as I am concerned what Israel are doing is no more nor less than terrorism, they are no better than the terrorists they are “protecting” themselves against. And what makes this so much worse is the fact that they are getting tacit approval for every single one of these acts of terrorism from America, who, when faced with any UN resolution against Israel, exercise their veto. Looking back over the years it is quite astonishing just how often the US has used the veto when anything concerning Israel has been on the agenda; as I say giving tacit approval to Israeli acts of terrorism. It is about time that the US got its collective head out of its collective arse and started supporting the rest of the world who are trying to bring Israel into line. Nostradamus predicted that Armageddon would begin in the middle east, well maybe not in those words, but pretty close; and at the moment it does not look like he was far off the mark.
Rant over!
July 14, 2006 at 2:49 pm
I find it interesting when the US looks to the UN for a condemnation of North Korea’s or Iran’s actions, just the subtle hint of either China or Russia veto will stall the process.
Let Israel strike back after their soldiers are killed and captured, and a resolution appears out of nowhere. I, for one, am glad Amb. John Bolton exercised the US veto.
July 14, 2006 at 7:14 pm
So Charlie you are quite happy for Israel to murder innocent people, to bomb power staions and leave populations with out electricity, to pollute water sources to make water undrinkable all in the name of “protecting ourselves”; I am sorry I have to disagree with you this is nothing more than state sponsored terrorism. And it is not just the one resolution that the US has vetoed in favour of Israel, this stretches back many,many years, and I for one would be very suprprised to find any resolution concerning Israel that the US has not vetoed. We have to ask ourselves why “their soldiers are killed and captured”; is it any surprise given the actions of Israel over the decades? This state sponsored terrorism has been ongoing for decades now, are you telling me that their targets should just sit back and do nothing, perhaps even thank the Israelis for bombing them? I am sorry to say that I think you are sadly misguided in your thinking…
July 14, 2006 at 7:39 pm
Israel correctly bombed Iraq’s nuclear facilities in the 1980s. The US, astonishingly, declined to veto the UN condemnation. State Sponsored Terrorism is not one party dropping fliers saying ‘your area will be targeted’ before they strike. When an organization inside your border gleefully blows up restaurants filled with civilian diners and nothing is done to rein them in is state sponsored terrorism.
A weaker power pledges to destroy an entire nation, resorts to bombing civilians, ambushes soldiers, and then says ‘don’t fire back’. Climbing aboard public buses and blowing them (and self) up is hardly as brutal as Israel targeting power plants; there is no comparison.
The only way to end this cycle of violence is for one side to win; there is no negotiations with those that will resort to terror as their weapon. This applies to the US as well as Israel.
July 14, 2006 at 8:52 pm
I refuse to become embroiled in an argument that uses such flawed logic as yours; maybe you want ask yourself why the “weaker power” has to resort to such tactics. I think that you will find that the answer is that the terror tatics used by the de facto “stronger power” (after all if there is a weaker power then logic decrees that there must be a stronger power) leaves them no other option!
July 14, 2006 at 10:50 pm
…and yet the stronger power targets airfields (initially), not homes.
The stronger power announces when they’ll target communities, and doesn’t act undercover. The stronger power, who could annihilate its foe with great ease, still shows restraint.
And you still justify the acts of hostility against it?
You’re right: there’s no point in continuing this debate with you.
I bid you kind regards, our disagreement not withstanding.
July 15, 2006 at 6:31 am
Yes and the stronger power buldozes house without warning; I also notice that you fail to address my earlier point when I say that “you are quite happy for Israel to murder innocent people, to bomb power staions and leave populations with out electricity, to pollute water sources to make water undrinkable all in the name of “protecting ourselves””; so I will take it thatg you approve of such actions. Very true is as pointless arguing with me as it is to argue with you, because it is your sort of thinking that led us into an illegal, immoral war in Iraq. You beleive that because country a is bigger and stronger that it has the right to bomb the shit out of country b because it hold a different belief system, a belief system that is abhorrent to country a; that my friend is no more nor less than terrorism!
I also wish you well despite our differences, and think that we should simply agree to differ on this matter.