barryg@sdcrdcf.UUCP (Lee Gold) (06/21/85)
So far the wierdest analysis of the hostage mess I have heard sounds like the most believable one too. The commentator explained that the Shiites had been living peacefully in Lebanon until the Christian Lebanese let the PLO settle there (on the grounds the PLO and Shiites were both Arabs), startinhg an escalating conflict between Shiites and PLO, with the Shiites now massacring the Palestinians to keep them from resettling there so the Israelis wouldn't keep attacking their area. All these attacks on the PLO have gotten the Shiites a bad name for being soft on Israel/Jews. So apparently at least one cause for the recent seizure of hostages is for the Shiites to get themselves a good press among their fellow Arabs as being properly anti-Israel/Jews. This bears out my belief that the Middle East is totally insane, worse than Northern Ireland. The best thing to do with both places is probably to lock all the people who want to die for their cause in an arena--and let them kill one another. Then maybe the people who prefer living can get on with doing so. --Lee Gold
mff@wuphys.UUCP (Mark Flynn) (06/23/85)
[The following excerpt has been edited to support my point of view.] > All these attacks on the PLO have gotten the Shiites a bad name for being > soft on Israel/Jews. So apparently at least one cause for the recent > seizure of hostages is for the Shiites to get themselves a good press > among their fellow Arabs as being properly anti-Israel/Jews. > > --Lee Gold Soft on Israel? Who do you think has been blowing up all of the Isreali soldiers in southern Lebonon? It's been your friend and mine, the Amal malitia. That's why this whole hostage thing got started (besides general Middle East insanity): the Isrealis are holding about 700 Shiites prisoner to try to convince Amal to stop. The main demand of the people holding the hostages is that these prisoners be released. Mark F. Flynn Department of Physics Washington University St. Louis, MO 63130 ihnp4!wuphys!mff ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "There is no dark side of the moon, really. Matter of fact, it's all dark." P. Floyd
reza@ihuxb.UUCP (Reza Taheri) (06/25/85)
> This bears out my belief that the Middle East is totally insane, worse > than Northern Ireland. The best thing to do with both places is probably > to lock all the people who want to die for their cause in an arena--and let > them kill one another. Then maybe the people who prefer living can get on > with doing so. > > --Lee Gold An extremely good idea :-). And let us not forget to let Reagan, Chernenko, and company to get in before you lock up the door :-). H. Reza Taheri ...!ihnp4!ihuxb!reza (312)-979-7473
jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA (John Purbrick) (06/25/85)
That's one thing this latest kidnapping outrage may do--bring home to Americans some costs (apart from financial ones, and we just borrow enough to cover those) associated with our uncritical support of Israel. Israel invades Lebanon, kills any number of people, sponsors Amal and the Phalange who kill any number more, and we pay for it all. We send a battleship to bombard their country at random and the CIA to train a few extra assassins of Shiites. Those Shiites who survive hate our guts, and do all they can to hurt us. But before reacting, let's think about why they're doing it, and what we can do, not to defeat them Israeli-style but how to stop them hating us. "Billions for defense: not one cent for tribute!" "Have you considered having fewer enemies?"
jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA (John Purbrick) (06/26/85)
[From my posting of yesterday] > Israel invades > Lebanon, kills any number of people, sponsors Amal and the Phalange who kill > any number more, and we pay for it all. What a twit. I meant, of course, that Israel sponsors the South Lebanon Army, not Amal. Amal is a Shiite group. Dumb, dumb, dumb. John Purbrick jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA {...decvax!genrad! ...allegra!mit-vax!} mit-eddie!mit-hermes!jpexg
mms1646@acf4.UUCP (Michael M. Sykora) (06/28/85)
>/* jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA (John Purbrick) / 3:20 pm Jun 25, 1985 */ >That's one thing this latest kidnapping outrage may do--bring home to >Americans some costs (apart from financial ones, and we just borrow enough >to cover those) associated with our uncritical support of Israel. I agree that we shouldn't be giving our uncritical support (clearly, we haven't been). However, there is no reason to distort reality in order to persuade people of this.