What Israel has done for US lately

The Jerusalem Post ^ | 13AUG06 | YOSSI KUPERWASSER

[familyop]

Many pundits in Washington, among them supporters of Israel, anticipated better results from the month-long war against Hizbullah.

They were hoping for Israel to put Iran and Syria on the defensive by using IDF military might to eradicate Hizbullah much faster. Some have already concluded that this was an opportunity squandered.

The truth is that the last month has not been "a walk in the park" for Israel. We have been fighting a ruthless, well-armed and well-trained, albeit small, army that has spent the last six years preparing for this war while we have been busy on many other fronts.

Nevertheless, those in Washington who are disappointed with the results should consider a list of dividends that America has received from our campaign: First and foremost, Israel has sent a loud and clear message that any terrorist entity that carries out an act of aggression will pay a heavy price.

Moreover, we have proven that a "spoiled" Western society, as Hizbullah perceived Israel, can withstand barrages of rocket-fire on its civilians and still maintain an unfaltering resolution to stand up and fight.

Second, by exerting heavy military pressure on Hizbullah and the Lebanese government, we forced the collapse of Nasrallah's strategy that was based on unaccountability and terror-deterrence.

In so doing, we created the necessary conditions to compel the international community to take long-overdue measures to implement earlier UN resolutions that the free world hopes will ultimately turn Lebanon into an accountable, sovereign nation.

If this happens, Syria and Iran would be the main losers of this war. Security Council Resolution 1701 approved Friday is the direct result of that pressure, and now it is up to the international community to ensure that it is implemented.

Third, we helped people across the globe world understand the extent of the threat that Iranian radicalism poses to the entire free world, and why it is so important to prevent it from becoming a nuclear power.

Fourth, we exposed Syria's role in supporting terror - both by facilitating the transport of Iranian weapons to Hizbullah, and by supplying its own heavy, long-range rockets and other weaponry to this terror organization. You might be surprised to know that until this war, the international community had refused to acknowledge that Syria supplied these rockets to Hizbullah.

Fifth, we have shown how irresponsible the Russians were in supplying Syria with state-of-the-art weapons that have ended up in the hands of Hizbullah.

And finally, we helped the world to better understand the dangers posed by Hizbullah's fundamentalist brainwashing machine. In terms of the systematic and deliberate killing of civilians, the difference between Iranian-sponsored Hizbullah and Nazi Germany is that while the SS sought to conceal its deeds - including from German society - Hizbullah proudly proclaims its successes in killing Jewish civilians. This stream of distorted Islamist extremism is cut from the same cloth of twisted ideology to which the planners of the thwarted terror attacks on airliners flying out of London subscribe.

This is a short list of what Israel has achieved in the last month. These significant, concrete advances should go a long way to satisfying those wondering what Israel has done lately for those who live in the land of the free and the home of the brave.

The writer is a brigadier-general and former head of IDF Military Intelligence's research department.

[ClaireSolt]

I agree with a lot of this. I have been realizing that democracies require will of the people, and I don't think Bush could now raise a finger against Iran without howls of protest. In a way that poses some danger to us.

[Just mythoughts]

Unfortunately I think you are correct, Iran will have to attack US first before President Bush could get a consensus to stop their madness.

The Soros paid anti-war movement has been quite successful in trivializing these terrorists.

[Honestfreedom]

First what were these other things the IDF was busy with? Undoing the damage of Oslo in the West Bank. Then kicking Jews out of Gaza and smashing in some heads in Amona. Maybe if the nation and the IDF had its priorities in better order it would have had the ability to prepare for this. Of course if it had not unilaterally withdrawn from Lebanon this would not have been necessary. Olmert of course is learning the lesson well by planning to appease Hezballah and pull out of the West Bank.

[familyop]

"Seems rather foolish to me to expect someone else to fight our wars for us. (Although the euro-weenies expect it as a matter of course, since we fought and won the Cold War for them.)

Just proves my old man was right. 'A man who can't shoot his own dog, when its required, don't deserve the dog, and ain't much of a man, either'"

I couldn't have said that better.

[Darkwolf377]

You might want to check out a book called "Hitler's WIlling Executioners" before you give the average German a pass.

[MinorityRepublican]

You might want to check out a book called "Hitler's WIlling Executioners" before you give the average German a pass.

I'll check it out. Before I do, however who do you think are more rabid? The Nazis or Islamofascists?

[Darkwolf377]

I definitely agree with your characterization of Muslim's being rabid, but at the same time, having read about the post-Wilsonian 14 Points Germany, I don't think Hitler was able to rise so fast because the German people were casual about restoring their country to greatness.

I think for whatever reasons the Nazis were more methodical. To be crass, I believe the Nazis THOUGHT about what they were doing more, which made them such an immense threat so quickly.

I think if the Muslims--oh, excuse me, the 'terrorists' since all Muslims aren't blah blah blah--were as intelligent, or had the stability of a nation as a base, we'd be in a much hotter war than we are now. I think their need for these splashy attacks is as much about making themselves feel big. But their intense concentration on media and propaganda is certainly a trait they share with the Nazis.

To answer your question in brief, I think the Nazis had focus; the Islamofascists have passion.

[TomasUSMC]

The truth is that the last month has not been "a walk in the park" for Israel. We have been fighting a ruthless, well-armed and well-trained, albeit small, army that has spent the last six years preparing for this war while we have been busy on many other fronts.

---

Nah that AIN'T the truth. Israel has yet to fully mobilize. They are partying and carrying on in Tel Aviv like nothing like a war is going on. In light of the facts that Iran next year will have nukes, Israel should have called up all its reserves and gone WW2 on Lebanon Syria and Iran.

Instead they are using KGC warfighting and reaping the corresponding negative results.

[bybybill]

Truth time,Israel lost big time and they got to be dancing in the streets in Tehran. Hezbollah can now say that the Israelis couldn`t beat them. And, the nuts are right. The nut factory can also say that America is just like Israel and that if the killing continues in Iraq, we will cut and run, just like our good pals, the Israelis.
GWB hopes somebody will take the knife out of his back.

[jwh_Denver]

"However, our military strategy was incapable of stopping supplies and men from flowing south."

That's pure bullsh*t. It was a political war where Johnson would not allow the military to win it. And it could have been done very quickly by bombing Haiphong harbor, the Red River dykes, and the railways by cutting off they're supplies from Russia.

[claudiustg]

No, the military brass told Johnson and then Nixon that they could interdict the flow of men and supplies into South Viet Nam with airpower and that was simply not possible.

Sure you could always widen the war, but that wasn't what the brass hats were pushing.

[sonic109]

" American Jews stand by Israel "
Not in NY City they don't

[familyop]

"Nah that AIN'T the truth. Israel has yet to fully mobilize. They are partying and carrying on in Tel Aviv like nothing like a war is going on. In light of the facts that Iran next year will have nukes, Israel should have called up all its reserves and gone WW2 on Lebanon Syria and Iran."

Yeah, then [shiver, shiver--waaaaaaa!], we wouldn't have to do it for ourselves.

US pressure prompts delay of [Israel's] offensive ("We do not want escalations" - White House)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1680983/posts

Israel Asks U.S. to Ship Rockets With Wide Blast-State Department seeks to delay supply
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1681771/posts

...truth of the matter is that all will have to go, sooner or later--even those who go with our Navy, where having sex is allowed. [SNICKER, SNICKER]

[jwh_Denver]

The military could only operate under strict parameters so what they were pushing had to be within these parameters. N. Vietnam had to have everything shipped in and the US military was not allowed to stop the supplies at the source. Had these sources been been bombed out of existence the movement of NVA and equipment is moot.

Defense contractors told Johnson they wanted a war and Johnson said "if you want a war then by God I'll give you a war."

An unwinable war at that.

[Recall]

It's easy to be armchair generals. Personally, I have problems with all the news coverage. Why is "War" entertainment? It was like watching a fantastic war "game." We see where the troops are or headed to, the blasts of the bombs, coverage of damage, casualties and victims. I think we are becoming desensitized to the gore and death. And I read that Nasrallah used television coverage to help plan
his moves. That's insane!`

Both sides are fighting for their own survival. I
totally support Israel and have read more would have been accomplished if Hezballah hadn't of had the past 6 years to build bombs. As Israel is in it so deep now let them finish the job irregardless of how long it takes. These are terrorists not game pieces. There are obstacles Israel hadn't counted on but know about now. They can do it and will do it if we let them. All that said, if this "peace" process continues I feel it is definately WRONG, and seriously offensive to let Nazrallah have a say in anything.
Would we force the LAPD and gang members to declare a truce?

[familyop]

BTW, some of the IDF units are at the Litani River.

[nathanbedford]

BINGO!

On another thread you mentioned that you are reading IMPERIAL GRUNTS by Robert D. Kaplan. I too found his book to be instructive and, in keeping with what you have said above, I invite your attention to his remarks on page 368-369:

the lesson was clear: the more subtle and cautious its application of power, the greater would be America's sustaining impact. The United States could hold sway over the world only quietly, off camera, so to speak.

To be sure, the decision to invest Al-Fallujah and then pull out just as victory was within reach demonstrated both the fecklessness and the incoherence of the Bush administration. While a case can be made for either launching a full-scale Marine assault or continuing the previous policy of individual surgical strikes, a case cannot be made for launching a full-scale assault only to reverse it because of political pressures that were easily foreseeable in the first place. But in larger historical terms the Al Falluja drama also demonstrated the weakness of nation-states against the thundering new forces of a global media. Take Al Jazeera, the Independent, Qatar-based network whose characterizations of the fighting added to the political pressure on the White House to end the offensive. Al-Jazeera was itself an example of the very political freedom that the US sought to encourage in the Arab world. The more we succeeded in our quest for open societies, the more those open societies would seek to restrain us and consequently the more quiet and devious or military behavior would have to be

The American Empire of the early 21st century depended upon the tissue of intangibles that was threatened, rather than invigorated, by the naked exercise of power. Or as Army Colonel Tom Wilhelm had told me in Mongolia, an empire of behind the-the-scenes relationships was all that was possible anymore.

All of this about the fiasco at Al-Falluja is eerily predictive of this Israeli fiasco in Lebanon, which I predicted several days ago. The Israelis did not know whether to stop or start, whether to fight on the ground or from the air, and while they dithered the world rose not in support of Israel but in universal condemnation of it. This is precisely the way not to fight a war on terror.

I would suggest you take a look at Ricks', FIASCO, which I've been recommending to you for some time, it is just reached the number one position in the New York Times nonfiction list and it gives a theoretical framework for the same conclusions that Kaplan has reached anecdotally in IMPERIAL GRUNTS.

We must find an alternative to our failed strategy of big army, big footprint counterinsurgency operations.

[RusIvan]

Truth time,Israel lost big time and they got to be dancing in the streets in Tehran. ==

Impossible. 5 mlns nation of lazies vs 70 mlns fanatocally enstrenthen nation.

If Israel had the technological advantage like if its foes carried bows and axes then it coul dbe. But when Iran has almost same as Israel and even in bigger amounts then Israel has no chances.

Hezbollah can now say that the Israelis couldn`t beat them. And, the nuts are right. ==

Agreed.

Strangely muslims learn how to fight. I think it started from Kosovo. Who teached muslims there you know. Later in turned to Chechnya. I think that some chechen islamists and arabs who fought there returned to ME as the instructors. Russia did one fine thing. She found muslims who fight for her. Now it is muslim vs muslims there. SO many islamists went out.

The nut factory can also say that America is just like Israel and that if the killing continues in Iraq, we will cut and run, just like our good pals, the Israelis.
GWB hopes somebody will take the knife out of his back. ==

Iraq cause was about to gather all world islamists at one place and eliminate them there. It worked but the cure exacerbated the decease. Iraq produced more islamists then it was eliminated.

America and Israel cann't fight with whole Islam world alone. The EU, Russia and China don't participate in it. All of them has big muslim communities on thier territories.

America and Isarel cann't find muslims who will fight for them and turn the conflict to intermuslim recount(as Russia did in Chechnya). Without that what else left is just fortify against muslims and wait.