LTTE blames RayGun for the survival of Hezbollah

[theHandpuppet]

I HATE what's going on in the ME right now and do not agree with the conclusion of the writer of this LTTE, but I thought it was interesting how this person blames RayGun for the whole mess with Hezbollah. I guess if the neopukes can pile blame on Jimmy Carter for Iran, maybe it's time to take a look at how ol' Ronnie handled ME terrorism.

From today's Cincinnati Enquirer:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060718/EDIT0202/607180329/1090

How would we react to Hezbollah attack?
My first thought when I read "Hezbollah: Organized and armed" (July 15) was - What would America do if the same population percentage of American troops (120) was Israelis was captured by Hezbollah?

But, then I remembered that former President Ronald Reagan did nothing in 1983 when Hezbollah bombed the United States Marine barracks and killed 241 U.S. troops.

What would Hezbollah be like today if Reagan had done what Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is doing? Would Hezbollah exist today? Probably not. Unfortunately, Olmert is doing the necessary thing. It is a pity that innocent civilians have to die or be injured...that is what Hezbollah rocket and suicide attacks have been doing to Israelis for decades. Somebody should have done this sooner and many lives would have been saved by the death of Hezbollah.

Alvin Stamler
Wyoming

[cantstandbush]

1. And i blame Israel for the formation of Hezbollah. nt

[theHandpuppet]

2. What is the history of Hezbollah?

I'm interested in hearing not only your personal opinion but reading a concise and objective history of the organization.

[displacedtexan]

3. Remember Islamic Jihad?

Scholars differ on when Hezbollah came to be a distinct entity. Some organizations list the official formation of the group as early as 1982, (GlobalSecurity.org, 2005) whereas Diaz and Newman maintain that Hezbollah remained an amalgamation of various violent Shi’a extremists until as late as 1985 (Diaz & Newman, 2005, p. 55). Regardless of when the name came into official use, a number of Shi’a groups were slowly assimilated into the organization, such as Islamic Jihad, Organization of the Oppressed on Earth and the Revolutionary Justice Organization.

Since then, the party has publicly declared that it will suspend its attempts to create an Islamic state in Lebanon "because the conditions are not yet met" until there is no other viable alternative but to elect an Islamic government. It remained underground for a number of years and did not make a public announcement of its existence until 1985.

Much more...

[Kagemusha]

4. I know neocons resent Reagan for not fighting Hezbollah then

but I can't help but feel that he swallowed his ideology and made the right decision at the time and saved the US an awful lot of trouble. In case anyone forgot, the US was still in the Cold War and had a lot of other problems to deal with. Getting bogged down in Lebanon would've drained away strength. Sorta like oh, getting bogged down in Iraq, actually.