Peter Worthington wrote a great piece in the Toronto Sun last week titled, “War cannot be waged ‘peacefully’”.
Excerpts:
“Want to know why we (meaning the West) won’t win the war on terror?…
The other day, after a rocket attack, Israel announced it was attacking the home of a suspected terrorist leader where explosives were stored. It gave the occupants 30 minutes warning to evacuate before war planes obliterated the house.
So what did the residents do? Well, not only did they not evacuate, but neighbours formed a human shield at the targeted house and, guess what?
The Israel war planes were called off. So now, every time the Israelis give the 30-minute warning which, apparently, is policy, the “human shields” of women and children head for the targeted house, secure in the knowledge that the Israelis won’t attack.
This is madness — no way to fight a war, or terrorists. And this is Israel — the toughest democracy on the block. And yet Israel hasn’t even gotten its kidnapped soldiers back from Hamas and Hezbollah, which provoked Israeli retaliation.
…War cannot easily be waged peacefully. Restraints often mean prolonging the war and increasing its casualties.
…Today, humane considerations are paramount. The symbol of peaceful protest is Mahatma Gandhi, the creator of passive resistance that anti-military activists like to cite as a way to thwart authority. Often overlooked, is that Gandhi’s formula worked against the British. If he and his followers had lain down in front of Cossacks, the Wehrmacht or the Golden Horde of Genghis Khan, Gandhi would have become an asterisk of history rather than an icon.
…Remember the U.S. bombing of Baghdad prior to the 2003 invasion? Peace activists from the West pompously announced they’d be human shields around prospective targets.
Once the bombing started, these people fled — outraged that the Americans could be so inhumane, even though none were targeted.
…As for Israel, if its government is nuts enough to give warnings of attacks, then it deserves what happens. The next warning should be that if human shields remain, they will quickly become ex-human shields.
One attack should be sufficient to persuade Palestinian human shields to take cover.
It’s idiotic to give warning of an attack. Hezbollah and Hamas don’t warn intended targets of rocket attacks and suicide bombings…”
B Shantanu
4 comments:
Jai Hind,
I am glad to see that you and I are in agreement on this subject. Gandhi's tactics would only work on a humane culture like that of Britain.
It wouldn't work, for instance, on the Nazis.
1) War is cruelty and you cannot refine it, the crueler it is, the sooner it is over
2) All attempts to make war easy and safe will end in humiliation and disaster
3)This war differs from other wars, in this particular. We are not fighting armies but a hostile people, and must make old and young, rich and poor, feel the hard hand of war.
WT Sherman
All attempts to deviate from these unalterable facts will result in utter failure.
100% of the time
Epa,
Will result in failure, as it has in Iraq.
Reminds me of something I wrote on September 12, 2006:
"The Left praises Gandhi for his non-violent resistance against British rule, and urges the West to follow his example, while sympathizing with the quite non-non-violent resistance of the 'Palestinians'. Nor do the Leftists realize that Gandhi's non-violent resistance gained India her independence only because her rulers were the relatively civilized British; had Gandhi flourished during the rule of the Muslim Aurangzeb, the result of his non-violent resistance would be the independence of his head from the rest of his body."
Another thing is that the British were, following World War II, tired of armed conflicts and therefore ready to pack their bags and decolonize. Somewhat like the Americans following Vietnam, I'd say.
Gandhi's irenic stance was of little use in stopping the slaughter of Hindus during the formation of Pakistan. His assassination in 1948 was like the assassination of Rabin in 1995: an attempt to halt the march toward disaster with the Muslims. Both assassinations were wrong and failed to sway the people to the non-appeasing position. In Israel, the shift rightward has happened about ten years after, following the failure of the Gaza and South Lebanon evacuations to secure permanent peace. I hope the Hindus will not have to endure many great trials before they shift to the position of resisting Islamic aggression.
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