Just defending themselves, of course

Somalia has been an Islamic country since, oh, forever. But now that it's been officially taken over by psychotics with a more global view on things, it is time to 'talk to the neighbours'.

Islamic militia leaders in Somalia have threatened to wage what they called a holy war [emphasis mine - Ed] against Ethiopia unless it withdraws its troops from Somalia.

headlines the BBC, and notice how they think they have the authority to make a distinction between what the Somalis call a holy war, and what REALLY consitutes a holy war! The BBC contradicting Islamic Somali militia leaders is not as weird as it seems, seeing we're talking about the Baghdad Broadcasting Cooperation of course.

Anyway. It seems Islam is alive and expanding in Eastern Africa. But don't worry, the UN is right on top of things:

The United Nations has urged all sides in Somalia to respect a ceasefire agreement and to resolve their differences through negotiations.

What we need is a smart bomb. One that determines the religion of a person, and then lobotomizes that person in case it's a muslim.

The Moral Highground?

Ilana Mercer (one of the brightest spirits in the blogosphere) paints the picture of Israel and its wannabe-destroyers exactly right:

True, the blame for civilian casualties lies indirectly with Hezbollah (and Hamas), which targets civilians and hides among them. Although necessary, this fact, however, is not sufficient to exempt Israel from responsibility for its direct actions. For those, Israel can't shirk accountability. It can't claim it didn't intend to take out civilians when Israeli generals can both see and foresee the devastating results of their bombardments.

But if the Israeli army is called off, what of Israeli civilians? The blunt protection of the state is all they have. The Murder Inc. of the Middle East has placed itself outside the law – national, international and natural. Does this mean it must remain forever beyond the reach of any law, however imperfect?

Yet she sees a risk that

Israel's pulverizing of Lebanon – blowing the place to kingdom come, killing hundreds of civilians and displacing thousands – threatens to sunder its moral superiority.

She continues to describe with 100% accuracy the present situation, as well as the future that would become reality if Israel does not take drastic action now. She is also aware that no one else will act appropriately.

And yet the biggest risk she sees is losing the moral highground?

How about losing Jewish lives? How about losing the state of Israel? How about making your mortal enemy pay a price he is unable and unwilling to pay?

Morals are a luxury. They are not even secondary.

Don't worry about losing the moral highground. Worry about losing the ACTUAL highground.

Proportionality

There has been much talk about Israel's disproportionate use of force in its fight against Hezbullah. Accusations go something like this: "Hezbullah only killed a few Jews, whereas Israel is killing dozens, perhaps hundreds of Arabs. This is disproportionate and therefore outrageous."

I agree with this observation. I think Israel should commit to this fight with the same intensity and intentions that Hezbullah is harbouring. Hezbullah is fighting this war with everything it's got, and its intention is to hurt Israel as much as possible. It wants to hit every major population area, and kill as many Jews as it can. It is using every weapon in its arsenal, and using every tactic, "allowed" or otherwise, in its quest to damage and destroy Israel.

Israel should be no less committed.

Which means that Israel should stop fighting with kid gloves on, and use as its only criterion for the application of force, the number of bombs and missiles left in inventory, the amount of fuel needed to deliver them, and the effort and expense to replenish both as quickly as possible.

Israel is a sovereign state. So is Lebanon. Israel was attacked by Lebanon, without any provocation whatsoever. Israeli military personnel were ambushed, killed and kidnapped, and are now being held hostage.

This is by any measurement a declaration of war.

Hezbullah is a Shiite muslim organization. Approximately 1/3 of all Lebanese are Shia muslims, and support Hezbullah unconditionally. The rest of Lebanon does not have the will or the power to stop Hezbullah from attacking Israel from Lebanese soil. Responsibility for combating Hezbullah would fall on the Lebanse themselves, but clearly, this never did happen, and it is never going to happen. So it is left to the victims of Iran's proxy to take action, and the action should be appropriate, and proportionate.

This can only mean the complete and total destruction of the terrorist infrastructure in Lebanon. The complete and total eradication of every single terrorist. Regardless of the cost on Israeli side, or on the Arab side.

Make Syria and Iran take notice. This war is not a war of conquest. It is not fought to effect the release of the kidnapped soldiers (no matter how important this is).
This war should be a war of annihilation, the annihilation of Israel's most urgent enemy. Pacify Southern Lebanon so that the Lebanese have a chance to show they want to live in peace with Israel. And let Iran see the effect of its genocidal aspirations, and regard it as a taste of what is to come.