Gideon Levy: Stop The War, Immediately

[liberalpragmatist]

From Gideon Levy, a columnist at the Israeli paper Ha'aretz:

Stop now, immediately
By Gideon Levy

This war must be stopped now and immediately. From the start it was unnecessary, even if its excuse was justified, and now is the time to end it. Every day raises its price for no reason, taking a toll in blood that gives Israel nothing tangible in return. This is a good time to stop the war because both sides can claim they won: Israel harmed Hezbollah and Hezbollah harmed Israel. History shows that no situation is better for reaching an arrangement. Remember the lessons of the Yom Kippur War.

Israel went into the campaign on justified grounds and with foul means. It claims it has declared war on Hezbollah but, in practice, it is destroying Lebanon. It has gotten most of what it could have out of this war. The aerial "target bank" has mostly been covered. The air force could continue to sow destruction in the residential neighborhoods and empty offices and could also continue dropping dozens of tons of bombs on real or imagined bunkers and kill innocent Lebanese, but nothing good will come of it.

<snip>

...the price is skyrocketing. Every day increases international criticism of Israel and hatred of it. That is also an element in "national security." As opposed to the choir in Israel that makes a false presentation as if the world is cheering Israel, the images from Beirut are causing Israel enormous damage, and rightly so. Not only in the streets of the Arab world is more and more hatred being sown, but also in the West. Not only hundreds of thousands of Lebanese but tens of thousands of Westerners fleeing from Lebanon are contributing to the depiction of Israel as a violent, crude and destructive state.

The fact that George Bush and Tony Blair are cheering Israel might be consolation for Ehud Olmert and the media in Israel, but it is not enough to persuade millions of TV viewers who see the images of destruction and devastation, most of which are not shown to Israeli audiences. The world sees entire neighborhoods that have been destroyed, hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing in panic, homeless, and hundreds of civilians dead and wounded including many children who have nothing to do with Hezbollah ...

(cont.)

> http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/741435.html

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/741435.html

[alcibiades_mystery]

1. Levy said it, not Ha'aretz

n/t

[kentuck]

2. Levy is right...

....the price is skyrocketing.

[Joanne98]

3. Looks like the Israelis are getting censored news too...

The fact that George Bush and Tony Blair are cheering Israel might be consolation for Ehud Olmert and the media in Israel, but it is not enough to persuade millions of TV viewers who see the images of destruction and devastation, most of which are not shown to Israeli audiences. The world sees entire neighborhoods that have been destroyed, hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing in panic, homeless, and hundreds of civilians dead and wounded including many children who have nothing to do with Hezbollah

I'm really beginning to hate the MSM. When their not "sending messages" they're distorting reality. What ever happening to straight REPORTING!

[truedelphi]

5. There is straight reporting

Little outlets like those of us who write for the Coastal Post.

But again and again I read in the MSM that the alternate media only blogs, doesn't do interviews, doesn't do fact checking, etc.

Meanwhile at CBS over the last year, Dan Rather and Mary Mapes were run out of town. Their crime: twofold.

First they hit hard with the revelations of something stinky happening at a prison called Abu Gharib.

Secondly, Mapes spent five YEARS assembling information that gave conclusive proof that Bush Jr had flaked on his military service and his career in the Air Guard. Rather and Mapes had the NERVE to actually release this story in September 2004 before the election.

The Right wing quickly swift-boated both individuals. Then an "independent" committee, The Thornberg Group (all right wing neo-cons,) examined the evidence against Mapes and Rather. Theis kangaroo court found them quilty of failing to
determine the authenticity of their story. Both stood by their story; both went down in flames.

Sort of. Though Pariahs in the MSM, Rather and Mapes received the Peabody Award, one of the United States' highes tjournalism awards in SPring of 2005.

But don't expect either to ever file a newstory with CBS again. After deleting them, CBS planted "good girl" Katie Couric in their place.

[mom cat]

4. Isreal might just blow its carefully crafted image as the victim if

it continues the gross overkill in Lebanon. The US once had the support of the world after 9-11. We lost all that and then some after our illegal invasions and our threats of even more, and this time maybe with nukes.
Isreal cannot continue its illegal war without losing support.

[bloom]

6. Poll on Haaretz - What should Israel do now?

What should Israel do now?

Invade with ground forces - 42%

Continue with the air strikes - 15%

Start negotiating for cease fire - 19%

Stop the attacks unilaterally - 25%


Votes: 3774



http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/rosnerMain.jhtml

[katinmn]

7. DU that poll!

Maybe you should start a new thread and see what happens. :hi: