This is the question we get most often from pro-Israeli callers. It goes something like this, "You guys say that Israel's bombing campaign has been disproportionate and counterproductive, but what are they supposed to do, just sit back and take it?"
I feel like I'm talking to Dick Cheney when someone says this. In Cheney's world, there are only two possible solutions to any crisis -- either do nothing or obliterate everything in your path. Either shoot the quail or shoot your friend in the face.
In reality, there are many different solutions, not just the extremes. In this case, Israel could have done some bombings and then pulled back and worked with the Lebanese government and international organizations to get an effective buffer zone in southern Lebanon. Early in the campaign, they had public support in Lebanon because most people felt that Hezbollah started this fight. Then Israel, as always, quickly lost all of its support and the moral high ground when it went ballistic, literally.
Now, they have all of Lebanon united against them and behind Hezbollah -- the exact opposite of what they wanted. They've pulled off a nearly impossible task -- they managed to create sympathy for Hezbollah. If Israel keeps pushing the local populations around them further into the arms of extremists instead of fostering moderates, they shouldn't be surprised to see their enemies multiply rather than melt away.
This whole idea of "shock and awe" is so profoundly stupid. Does Hezbollah look scared to you? Does the Iraqi insurgency look scared to you? Boy, we really shocked an awed them. If Israel likes the results we got in Iraq, they should keep up what they're doing in Lebanon. It worked wonders for us.
Israel keeps saying they are going to wipe out Hezbollah. How? Are they going to kill all 1.4 million people in southern Lebanon? If you don't do that, then you won't wipe out Hezbollah. And they will come back from the next bombing campaign with more recruits and more popular support.
In the short term everyone seems to agree that there should be a buffer zone in southern Lebanon patrolled by international forces (not patrolled or occupied by the Israelis) and some type of prisoner exchange (this happens all the time, so please put way the nonsense, disingenuous arguments about how you can't negotiate with terrorists -- you don't get to negotiate with your friends, you are forced to negotiate with your enemies).
In the long term, I have a better idea for how Israel should handle the situation. Some might think it is idealistic, but I think it's the only thing that actually has a chance of working. I call it the Israeli Marshall Plan. It worked for the United States. In fact, it is one of our greatest accomplishments -- to turn our biggest enemies into our biggest allies.
So, here it is. Click on the picture below to hear my Israeli Marshall Plan:
