Diane Mason of Lawrenceofcyberia.com has put together an extraordinary series of images of international Arab protests against the murder of Sheik Yassin, the leader of Hamas. The collage of rage gives one a humbling feeling when one thinks of the level of hatred and mayhem that will be coming Israel’s way in the very near future. Saying this gives me no pleasure whatsoever because Israelis have as much right to live in peace and security as their Palestinian neighbors. But “those who sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind.” And Sharon and his henchmen have sown the bleakest wind with this horrible act.
They have not increased Israeli’s security. They have not even wiped out their worst enemy. They have, in fact, just raised up a thousand or even ten thousand Yassins who will do their best to raise the level of destruction against Israel even higher than whatever level Yassin achieved.
As I viewed Diane’s page of rage, I had the kind of admiring (& slightly jealous!) reaction that an actor or writer gets when he/she sees a brilliant performance or reads a great work of prose and wishes that he/she had performed or written it him/herself. Great work, Diane!
I worry that you’re getting sucked into some screwed up media portrayals. I don’t consider myself a conservative (indeed, I am very critical of the Sharone gov’t, and I believe in the creation of a Palestinian state), I have trouble with how the elimination of Yassin, a cold-blooded murderer, is being painted as an act of violent aggression on the part of Israel.
From the link below:
Nearly all news reports claimed within the first two sentences that the IDF strike is “likely to escalate violence,” and constitutes “an enormous gamble by Sharon” that “risks triggering a dramatic escalation in bloodshed.” (Associated Press)
This claim ― which belongs on the editorial page, not in the same breath as the actual news report of the event ― was so widespread that one almost forgets that it represents only the Palestinian position: The official PA statement characterized the Israeli strike as inviting “more violence and further escalation.”
The absent Israeli position: Though terrorist efforts may increase temporarily, in the long run the elimination of Yassin will upset Hamas’ leadership and violent capabilities, and serve as an essential deterrent to ongoing Palestinian terror. As Israeli spokesman Avi Pazner said:
“His elimination will serve peace in the long run. He is personally responsible for all the most dreadful attacks in Israel. He was a dangerous extremist Islamic ideologist. He was danger to the entire region. By eliminating this threat to peace we will improve chances for a better Middle East.”
http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/critiques/Sheikh_Yassins_Happiest_Day.asp
I just found this link on your page from a survey of the
Technorati.com service where you can check the web for
sites that mention your blog. How did you happen to find
it? I am guessing that it is due to my association with
leftists…er…I mean, “progressives” in Open Source Politics
at http://www.ospolitics.org. So, I’ve read your post on the
murder of the Palestinian leader, and I am glad to see your
comments and link. I don’t see too much on blogs or the web
right now about all this. Yet it is another MURDER sanctioned
by the US administration. I’d find it hard to believe that the
Bush folks did NOT know about this plan, ahead of time. So, the
US officially murders those two sons of Sadaam Hussein, and the
Israelis murder the spiritual leader of the Palestinians. And
no one much blinks. I’ve been wondering about the whole “eye for
an eye” concept. How can this revenge serve modern humanity? I
despair for the future of the world.