Screwing for Peace

Have you heard that phrase "Making war for peace is like screwing for virginity." An ironic comparison I always thought, but unlike virginity, I am of the opinion that peace can be restored.

I used to have a fairly decent opinion of Condoleezza Rice. Truthfully, I didn't know much about her personal politics. She supports President Bush, so that is one strike against her, but I was prepared to reserve judgment. Sometimes one can do more good by working from within than protesting from without. I have changed my mind.

The very idea that we should try to not stop the blossoming war between Israel and Lebanon until we are certain it will remain stopped seems ridiculous to me! Isn't the FIRST thing to be done when making peace is to STOP THE WAR? Then people can try to keep it stopped permanently. People are DYING. As long as the Israelis and Lebanese keep killing each other, animosity will continue to build and the fighting will become more and more difficult to stop.

Israel, and the Bush administration, seems inclined to continue bombarding southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is subdued, but I'm not even sure that is possible. They can retreat, go to Syria or Iran, lay low, and wait to pop up and start this entire thing over again a year from now. Negotiation doesn't seem like an option either given Hezbollah's goals and ideology. The only solution which seems possible is a strengthening of Lebanon's legitimate government to the point where they are able to exclude Hezbollah from Lebanon entirely. Israel seems to be doing more harm than good.

I don't pretend to know all the answers, but the very idea that we shouldn't call for an immediate cease fire is beyond my comprehension. The rest of the world is doing just that. I don't really even blame Israel for trying to fight back, but surely there must be a way to do it that doesn't kill more civilians than militants? They don't seem to be making a dent in the number of attacks Israel is suffering right now anyway, so how can ending their own bombardment hurt at this point?

In order to make peace, you must first MAKE PEACE.