Why Syria will be stronger for the Lebanon debacle.

[splat@14]

Intersting take on the failed Middle East policy thus far. full post at:
http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/Joshua.M.Landis-1/syriablog/index.html
Splat



Syria will Emerge Stronger from the Lebanon Debacle
Joshua Landis
July 26, 2006
Syria Comment



The present Israeli campaign in Lebanon will strengthen the Syrian regime. Many analysts are beginning to come to this conclusion. Why?

1. The three states in which the US has promised to create democracy and a better future – Palestine, Iraq, and Lebanon – have experienced chaos, growing radicalism and a decline in their economies. Syrians see this and will cling tighter to their regime, whether they like it or not.

2. Democracy, the American export, has been further discredited in the eyes of Middle Easterners. The US promised Lebanon’s new anti-Syrian democratic coalition that it would be protected and backed by Washington in its struggle with Damascus. This turns out to have been a false promise. Democracy led to weakness and division in the Lebanese government. Washington and Israel lost patience with the Lebanese government after little more than a year and chose to punish it for not showing the characteristics of a powerful dictatorship that can destroy opposition groups. Washington has turned against its own democratic experiment. The lesson is that Washington cannot be trusted, is not sincere about democracy, and will not back its Arab allies against Israel.

3. Authoritarianism as a model of government in the Middle East and Bashar al-Asad’s interpretation of events over the last three years will be strengthened by the fighting in Lebanon and weakening of Lebanon’s democratic government.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

1. Those durned "unforeseen results" strike again.

It never fails to amaze me how far up their asses the geniuses who plan these little ventures have their heads.

I can just imagine some Israeli politicians and generals being surprised the Lebanese aren't flinging flowers at the tanks and celebrating their "liberation". The same way their similarly brilliant counterparts in the Pentagon and White House are shocked to discover that the Iraqis aren't nearly as grateful for having their country destroyed.

[splat@14]

2. Yep, its hard to figure what to expect when your making this shit up. Also

what I think is important to note in all this is that the last person in the cabinet that had ever seen the chaos of war first hand left with Powell. His credibility gone but he knew something about the demon unleashed that these idiots can't comprehend in an air-conditioned office in DC.

[mom cat]

3. Bushy just luvs deMOCKracy. It is so durn obvious.

My main question is why Israel continues to trust this creep ... or do they?