Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Being Immune from Public Opinion
The article written by George Friedman, The Limits of Public Opinion: Arabs. Israelis and the Strategic Balance, is very disturbing, for it posits that the only way to get Israel to abide by international law is through an alliance of Arab nations whose intention is annihilation, if only by threat alone. This is how power works, through the threat of war or annihilation. This is the only kind of respect it seems. The article posits that in the short term Israel can act without impunity as an Arab alliance doesn't exit because of factions. This can't be allowed by any country anywhere at anytime and the mere threat of annihilation, with countries with nukes whose purpose it is to be safe, annihilates itself anyway with their use.
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4 comments:
Judy, Judy, Judy (hope you don't mind me being familiar... imagine me saying that with a Cary Grant voice!!), you pick some deep stuff to write about.
Nations base their actions on risks and rewards. The configuration of the Palestinians and Arabs rewards Israeli assertiveness and provides few rewards for caution. The Israelis do not see global hostility toward Israel translating into a meaningful threat because the Arab reality cancels it out.
That selection from the article essentially sums it all up for me. The survival of the Jewish homeland is an imparative for Israel... being driven out would simply mean the fulfillment of religious prophecy and that is something that is underestimated in the state hood of Israel and why I Palestine nation could never come to pass.
The Arab countries are bogged down by their own different brands and the politics that evolve from their differences. As long as there is no strong presence in the Arab world to unify and pressure Israel, there is no immediate need for Israel to fear reprisal on the world stage.
What is worth wondering is what will happen when one of the big Arab nations go nuclear?
Funny, Mark. We definitely have a difference of opinion of religious prophecy which I shall not go into now, but perhaps at another time. As usual, thanks for your comment.
Hope to be around when you do decide to speak on that topic!!
It is sad, but in a way, there is truth to the statement. The US became a power truly post WWII and its "nuking" of Japan.
Before that, England had been a power because of its military prowess and its fleets that roamed the seas. The Spaniards didn't really feel the Brits were to be reckoned with until the Spanish Armada was destroyed.
Israel has really only managed to establish its existence by fighting fiercely. In one way, I don't blame Israel - it was built on land taken from a people who had lived there. Had it not fought so hard, it would have been destroyed eons ago.
But the question now is, after its presence has been established...whether it has to persist the legacy upon which it was built?
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