Everybody's talking about it, everyone's watching it on the news, the 'net, the radio, the newspapers, the blogs, it's like a rash that won't go away!
This whole Lebanon thing, this age-old teeth-puller that just won't quit popping up. Why can't anyone find a solution already?? And for God's sake, who the hell would tease a regional Nuclear superpower with
WWII missiles??
OK, OK, so the cause is just, and it's been long overdue, like a boiling pressure cooker filled with Lentil Soup, but hey,
NUCLEAR WEAPONS, and a
lot more......HELLO??
Consider the circumstances; We're talking about liberating ourselves from the chains of defeatism and imperialism towards independance and self-sufficiency, further utilizing our natural resources for ourselves, (although i can't see how that still applies, we're living in a
Globalized world now!)and at the same time, we're morally supporting anything to do with Democracy and free trade! No wonder we're in this upheaval!
Personally, I believe that the Lebanese got a raw deal when Israel left them back in 2000, and it got a lot worse when Syria decided to pack up & leave Dodge as well, especially after the shady cincumstances in which Lebanon's most prominent
Philanthropist was assassinated! These withdrawls left behind a pissed off bunch of battle-hardened fighters looking for someone to adopt their cause. In comes Iran, with it's
never-ending supply of Chinese firecrackers & revolutionary ideologies, sucking up the power vacume and presenting itself as the first person to say "NO" to American/Israeli supermacy in the Middle East.
And down south, the poor Palestinians, who just live simply to back ANYONE mentioning the "Palestinian Cause" in their speech, go ahead and support the Hezbolla's rocket-chugging fanfare at the Middle East's best equipped & trained army, shouting provocative slogans an burning flags, like that's going to shed some tears.
It seems that the root cause of ANY conflict in the Middle East & Asia is the Israeli's belligerence to exist on Arab lands, and the Arabs tendency to be bullied & driven to shouting self-defeating slogans as well as their belligerence to kick the Israelis out of their '
God-given' right to live on the promised land..according to them. How are we to acknowledge rights of ownership without going into theological interpretations? Any
By the way, let's not forget (as Kuwaitis) that the same people we're supposedly backing & supporting for attacking Israel today are the very same people that were
involved in terrorist incidents throught our history in the first place! So let's not be too hasty in our emotions, and think logically instead of emotionally-for a change!
And if we daringly enter into the whirlpool that is the "Divine Inspiration" discussion, we'd always be alienating someone-never fails! You'll always find someone or some people with the inflexibility of refusing to abandon their cause, be they religious, political or economical. It's the nature of the beast for humans to differ, and will be the status quo for as long as there's human life on this planet.
So, for the sake of argument, let's drop the 'God-given right' thing for a moment, and focus on today's issues.
Let's assume-again, for the sake of argument-that we as Muslims believe that the Jews are, in fact, our
Semitic Cousins, and that both they and we have the same right to own the land in question. Let's then dissolve this issue down to 'rightful ownership', and not a divine right. How do we resolve this issue today?
By finding common ground, i say.
Consider this..FACT: 40+ years of military and Guerrilla conflict hasn't added up to anything more than even more hatred by either side.
FACT: Israel, since it's establishment in 1948, is here to stay, and nothing anyone will do will change that.
FACT: Jews, Muslims & Christians all have a say in Jerusalem
FACT: This is an age-old issue that will not be resolved by any one party, because no one is neutral in it.
Solution: Let's find some common ground in present day terms!
Now, since Money talks, here's my '
ahem' solution:
1-Stop retaliating to Israeli aggression (
An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind!)
2-Get them down on a conference table (shame them to that table by not retaliating to their bullets-
Ghandi kicked out the world's most powerful empire out of India by simply doing nothing-and he wasn't even a Muslim!)
3-Acknowledge their need to exist (it's a "Human" right, not a religious one!)
4-Make them acknowledge our need to exist (It's part of the deal, if they REALLY want peace!)
5-Discuss how to come up with an agreement to co-exist (1967 borders, right of return, settlements, et al.)
6-In return for being flexible, offer Israel some financial packages: long-term trade agreements, cash subsidies, etc.
7-BE PREPARED to make concessions in return..we're talking about buying lasting peace which was never achievable through force!
8-Accept what's on offer in light of what's being offered.
9-Sign the damn treaty already!
10-Get the rich Arab countries to back up the newly-established Palestinian territories with a strong, internationally-protected economy.
11-Create a thriving Tourism & Banking Industry based on
Islamic Financing Principles within the protected Arab lands. (Create more jobs, increase trade, attract investments, create more opportunities, etc.)
This would be the 'best choice, all round' for all concerned parties, and would eventually have a cascading effect on all the concerned parties in the region; Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Iran, Israel, the USA, the GCC, etc.
>The Lebanese will stop being bombed into the last 2 centuries;
)The Syrians, Jordanians & Egyptians will be able to free up their economy and quell the rising extremists that call for the destruction of Israel, now that there's no issue to talk about since the Palestine issue has been resolved;
>The Iranians may even stop pursuing nuclear weapons and spreading their revolution, and instead turn to become Energy generators for their neighbours;
>The GCC citizens will be able to spend their cash within the Middle Eastern touristic destinations;
>The U.S. will be able to 'spread the word of Democracy' once again, or better yet, be exposed as to it's true intentions in the region, in a way that would be as clear to the European Union-among others-as a the bright summer Sun.
Moreover, the Islamic-Revolutionary organizations all over the world would be able to stop calling for the establishment of Islamic States in return for the Islamic Economic systems that should be improving their lives within 3-5 years of their inception. At best, it could serve as a template for other clashes around the world, like the Kashmir issue.
True, some people cannot be bought, but I can't imagine a world where things remain as they are forever, nor can I imagine a
Utopian world either. But considering that wars over religion or belief systems have done little more than deepen old wounds or create even more schisms over the 2000+ years, it's time for "Mutually Assured Economies" to reign in, as opposed to "Mutually Assured Destruction.
Almost every concievable problem can be solved, if both we and the Israelis stop being so stubborn and investigate the long-term advantages of a lasting peace, one that would reap benefits far greater that killing each other until the end of days!
We can work out any differences if we had safe homes in which we can think!
Waste of time? Any other choice? You decide..
