Their own vested interests

After 3 days of violent exchange between Fatah Islam and the Lebanese army, now Hezbollah is backing the army. Very interesting.

Yes Fatah Islam is Sunni. So let's not forget that Hezbollah is predominantly Shia and was involved in conflicts with the Lebanese government for tensions between the opposing sect. They've also been suspected to be backed by Iran who are predominantly Shia.
Yes, yes, we are BACK to talking about sectarian agendas. But should this come as a surprise in the complex Arab world? This has been going on for centuries and people still are trying to hope for the best that it will get any better.

What's likely to turn out is that Hezbollah will back the army just like they did in last summer's conflict with Israel. They get in good graces and win the Lebanese people's confidence that they are just as credible as any other political party among the already fractious groups within their government. Then after they help, and other groups make nice for a while, internal agendas will resurface once again. Sooner than Lebanon can breathe a sigh of relief, they will quickly realize they've compromised their people to a majority Shia agenda. Now I don't know how Sunnis and Christians will take it but let's just wait and see.

The start of the fighting came from oppressed and depressed Palestinians living in desolate conditions in refugee camps in Tripoli. When someone takes to heart that they are not only poor and hungry but belong to a specific sect (Sunni for this matter) , then all of a sudden it becomes a religious issue. This is where the propaganda starts to proliferate. The Lebanese on the other hand just plain want non-Lebanese out of their country. They feel like this with Syria manipulating their government and economy, now with Palestine for camping out and seeking refuge for Israeli oppression. The problem is they don't have the manpower or the political stability to gain autonomy from other countries. Seems like some people just can't decide on who to trust; especially themselves.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070522/ap_on_re_mi_ea/lebanon_violence_hezbollah

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=15&entry_id=16826

What for democracy?

Here's what it comes down to. In a year, America will be electing a new president. This president will bear the biggest burden of responsibility in easing the country out of this huge mess in the Middle East. More soldiers will die, more people will die and oil prices will fluctuate like a mother. Americans will get blamed more. And for what. It's sad that our country is in this mess that's been going on for centuries. And it's substantially more tragic to see the reality that a majority in the Middle East still just can't hold their peace. Do the Iraqi majority really want democracy? Seems like for a time, Saddam Hussein had sectarian violence fractionally under control. But he was a dictator and did get his hands bloodied by killing many innocents while in the process of quelling unrest. Now that he's gone and the U.S. military has gotten involved, we might as well have painted bullseyes on our soldiers' foreheads. Look at Lebanon. After 20 years, they're at it again. Last summer's war is proof that there are more people living there who have no strength in upholding economic or social progress, undecided and at the brink of another civil war. Two years after Hariri's murder, their government is deadlocked into moving towards a tribunal that was supposed to prosecute those involved in his untimely demise. Let's see what it's government and divided people will do next to set the country back another twenty years when elections come around. As for Palestine, Hamas and Fatah just broke their truce again. So far eighteen Palestinian people died after three days of fighting and Israel was also taunted into this clash by causing an airstrike since it took place along their border. People here are so disillusioned that it's futile to hope that this eye for an eye strategy is clearly doing excessive damage. This is not a holy war. This is about power and the use of religion to proliferate propaganda over nothing more than a struggle to shift power to other selfish politicians. Sad it is that Bush and Cheney arethe worst people to carry out diplomatic missions on our behalf but one thing's for sure. These men don't have a mind sick as that of Ahmadinejad who will twist things around to benefit his agenda. Yes, his agenda. What makes me so ill that the Muslim community is blind to his politics. Doesnt anyone see his predominantly Shiite agenda? He is Shiite, people. Who doesnt see Iran's involvement in smuggling arms to Iraqi insurgents and to Hezbollah(who are predominantly Shiite) in Lebanon? Iraq's future will literally disintegrate if it fails to make a decision on its alliances. They dont have to love Americans; they just have to understand that we are not out to get them the way Iran has plans to manipulate and conquer them. I dont see Iran proactively helping to quell the violence in Iraq. Did they deploy troops trying to quell the sectarian divide? NO. This concludes my latest entry. No disrespect to Shiites on my last comment. But anyone like Ahmadinejad who has a lofty agenda and is Shiite is highly likely to take advantage of his religious status to gain votes. In the end, if Shiites continue to follow him blindly, they'll realize he is no longer the man for the masses like he originally claimed.

They are at it again

Hezbollah builds a Western base
Link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17874369/

This is just another example of sickness corrupting the minds of frustrated Lebanese. This has Iran's involvement all over it. But I wouldnt stop to limit just them or Shia Muslims. The ambiguity of Lebanon's societal makeup increasingly covers the tracks of where these generally prejudiced bastards come from. You'll see them from those who immigrated back in the 80s to escape civil war and who still harbor the bitterness of leaving their motherland. No one told them to leave and yet they blame others instead of facing their conscience and defending their own country. Where's the nationalism in that?

Happy Anniversary Lebanon

Thirty two years marks a glaring reminder that the Lebanese are still as blind about the nature of their conflicts as ever.
They'll blame the Americans for their involvement, which is not insignificant, but come on. They can only blame themselves for their infidelity towards their own country by not recognizing that their own government is receiving aid from other countries (like Iran and Syria) who have their own agendas.

America is no saint country but it wasnt the one who started sectarian conflicts in Lebanon.

Tensions have in fact not only produced a divided government but a divided people. What makes me sick are those who are living in the U.S. and bash the American government while they continue to complain and collect paychecks without making a difference. (I apologize to any Lebanese who read this but you know who these people are and if you dont share this view, then please respect that this is a mere observation. There are other hypocrites out there who dont want change. ) Looming in the background too are archaic Arab traditions that continue to demean women in society and extremists who misinterpret the Koran. People who misshape perceptions of the West and consider America as a temporary haven until they can return to their land carrying their wealth and breeding yet more prejudice over a country that had nothing to do with their centuries old battle over sectarian issues.

Lebanon marks civil war anniversary
By SAM F. GHATTAS, Associated Press Writer1 hour, 32 minutes ago
Lebanon marks the anniversary of its civil war this week, a conflict that began three decades ago under circumstances that, to some, are starkly reminiscent of the political divisions and sectarian violence seen today.
On April 13, 1975, an ambush by Christian gunmen of a busload of Palestinians sparked a civil war that lasted 15 years, killed 150,000 people and caused $25 billion in damage.
Marking this year's anniversary, the rusted bullet-scarred bus was displayed at a former crossing point on the line that separated Beirut's Christian and Muslim sectors during the war.
Ibrahim Eid, a Lebanese civil society coordinator, said the bus was "a symbol of this day" and should "raise awareness after what we've seen in the last year."
Sectarian tensions have been out in the open, and there is incessant talk in the media and by rival politicians of various groups rearming. The situation seemed especially perilous in January when nine people were killed in sectarian violence between government and opposition supporters.
The current instability started in 2005 when former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was killed by a massive truck bomb in Beirut. Since then, a series of bombs have targeted politicians, journalists and commercial centers.
Tensions have produced a divided government. The opposition, led by the Shiite Muslim militant group Hezbollah, has camped outside Prime Minister Fuad Saniora's office since Dec. 1 in an effort to force him to step down, and six members of the opposition have resigned from the Cabinet.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, has refused to convene parliament, and both he and President Emile Lahoud no longer recognize the Cabinet as legitimate.
The investigation into Hariri's assassination is yet another issue pulling the government apart. The U.N. Security Council has authorized the creation of a tribunal to try the suspects, but the opposition has refused to endorse it. In response, the government has asked the U.N. Security Council to impose the court, a request New York has said it is studying.
Analysts warn the current political crisis could leave the country with two rival governments who battle each other, as was the case in the last two years of the civil war.
Both the government and opposition are sticking to their positions, drawing strength from ties to foreign powers. The government is banking on support from the U.S. and its allies, while the opposition is backed by Syria and Iran, key opponents of Washington's policy in the Middle East.
However, none of the major political parties advocate going back to a time when kidnappings, car bombs, mortars and assassination were regularly used to subdue the other side. Nor do foreign armies that have intervened in the past — those of Syria, Israel and the U.S. — seem eager to get sucked into another Lebanon quagmire.
While Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned at a rally last week that political solutions were at a dead end, he said he would not resort to violence.
"We don't want civil war ... No one wants to burn down his country over political differences," said the leader of the heavily armed guerrilla force that fought Israel in last summer's war and is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S.
On the Christian side, a deputy leader of the Phalange Party, which led the Christian militias during the civil war, discounts a rekindling of the conflict despite the rising tensions.
"No one wants to start a civil war. No one has an interest," said Joseph Abu Khalil in an interview on LBC television Thursday.
In this spirit, the Lebanese group Joy of Giving has asked citizens to assemble in downtown Beirut on Friday to remember the civil war's outbreak in "a day of prayers, forgiveness, unity and a return to dialogue."
However, many analysts predict the violence and instability that has plagued the country for the past two years will continue, even if it falls short of all-out war.
Columnist Zayan warned in the leading An-Nahar daily Thursday that Lebanon faces an uncertain future, where "talk about divisions and the possibilities of civil war has become part of the discussions in the cafes, the morning gatherings and on buses."
Copyright © 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Obvious viewpoints that dont get enough press

-Religious propaganda in the Middle East has long gone out of control.
-Iran and Syria are Hezbollah's puppet masters.
-Syria is involved in Lebanon's political turmoil.
-Lebanon is just as involved and responsible for its own political turmoil.
-Conflicts in Lebanon are largely about ethnic origin, not just land.
-Lebanon is likely to turn into a Shia Muslim majority constituency.
-Iraq is in a state of civil war.
-Lebanon could revert back to civil war if the people dont take responsibility for their own weaknesses in establishing a more cohesive message.
-U.S.'s level of involvement in Iraq could have been executed differently but now that they're in deep, there's no turning back.
-Many people criticizing the U.S. for their involvement in the Middle East, are from the Middle East and comfortably living in the U.S.
-While Iran criticizes the U.S. for its 'Western' culture, lack of religion and political agenda in the Middle East, many of its own people are suffering from secular and gender discrimination and are cloaked in secrecy over their own involvement with countries like Lebanon and Syria.

New Testimony on Hezbollah tactics

Amidst all the bad press Israel had been taking for actions during the recent conflicts in Lebanon, here's something on Hezbollah. I'm not taking sides here but a group that refuses to legitimize itself by working alongside the Lebanese government through more peaceful means, while receiving aid from a pseudo noble country like Iran who uses religious propaganda for political gain is just deceitful.

JERUSALEM - An Israeli think tank with strong links to the military released videos and testimony Tuesday it said proved Hezbollah guerrillas used civilians as human shields during last summer's war in Lebanon.
Click here for more on article(Yahoo link)

Video 1
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http://www.ajcongress.org/site/PageServer