The Debate

To prove that this is not an alienated blog, yes I will talk about war. The biggest debate these days on TV here is Hizbollah and Syria saying Hizbollah won the war and then Israel and the US saying Israel won. What ticks me off is, how do you win a war when 1200 have dyed and there is not even a promise of peace?

Fact of the matter is, in the aftermath, once again, hate (or love it's only a matter of perspective) won this war. Let's talk a bit about Lebanon:

• It is one of the smallest countries in the Middle East.
• It is by far one of the most liberal.
• It is known as the "Switzerland" of the Middle East.
• A major tourist destination.
• Biggest number of Christians (mostly Catholics Maronites).
• Until not long ago, it mostly had a Syrian army instead of its own.
• Has a government still trying to be.
• A national army that was considered a joke around here.

Does that sound like a terrorist state of any kind to anyone?

Then comes the fact that they also have Hizbollah. It is considered to be a terrorist organization, but most Lebanese people would strongly disagree (including Christians). And why is that? Because something needs to be understood about the Middle East, when there is a moment of crisis, it is usually not the government that comes to the rescue, it's organizations such as Hizbollah that provides aid, including now when they promised to help rebuild the country. They also provide the ideology and the hope for a different future. Now do you' all see what I see? Israel went there and destroyed their country infrastructure and their homes, then comes someone and helps them. Who are they to love? It is as simple as that, I am no expert on politics to understand this, and I have never lived on a situation like that but it is as clear as water to me how I would feel, imagine if you are in the middle of such mess.

Hizbollah is a shia organization, and the majority of Muslims are Sunnis. Shias and Sunnis differ on many things, it's almost like a different religion and they criticize each other endlessly trying to get their point across of who is right about Islam and who is wrong, and went to war many times cause of that (see Iraq right now as we speak). Fact is they have a common enemy, and that is Israel occupation of Arab territories, and when it comes to that they will all agree on hating. So again we see that all this only created more hate for both Shias and Sunnis, and to be honest right now they are not to blame for feeling that.

I do not think anyone won this war, but in the end of the day Hizbollah only got stronger and more loved. I also don't believe in utopia of a perfect world where we all love each other regardless of anything, but I strongly believe that none of this will be solved with bombs, and we got a clear vision of that in the last month. It is time to sit down and talk, and that everyone agrees that all human life have the same value, because right now we are led to believe by the media that there are worthy and unworthy victims and in this case they were some 40% children under the age of 5. It is time to stop and think for a moment.

"Only the dead have seen the end of war."

(George Santayana not Plato)