Yesterday, Master Kos made a pronouncement: he shall be silent regarding the Israeli/Palestinian/Lebanon conflict. The reason for his silence is, according to the First Kossack, that the problem is intractable and will not change until all sides simply tire of fighting.
Kos is single-minded in his mission to build an infrastructure rivaling the GOP's war machine and, apparently, cannot and will not turn to matters of substance. Although his efforts are necessary, indeed critical, to the success of the democratic/progressive movement it is not sufficient by itself to win in 2006 and 2008.
What he is missing (or leaving to others) is that the machine needs ideas to disseminate. But, on the pressing issue of the day, war in the Middle East, the First Kossack has decided not to opine. Worse, his Army of Kossacks (read ditto-heads), came out in droves to comment on the Masters pronouncement--and it wasn't pretty.
Reading the posts that followed was eye opening and depressing. For the most part, Israel was eviscerated. Loosely summarizing a massive thread, the Israeli's were charged as being agents of oppression, war criminals, unjust, and warmongering, to put it mildly (the post was rather long, but I did read it all). Most blamed the whole thing on Israel. One post called Israel's 1948 settlement an "invasion." Another post, couching his language in barely disguised Marxist rhetoric, proposed "evening the playing field" and "sitting back and watching them fight it out."
It is amazing to me that progressives, who, for the most part, are skeptical of religion, hate despots, and cherish free speech, would so lovingly embrace Hamas, Hezbollah, Syria, and Iran (two religious fundamentalist terrorists groups, a totalitarian regime, and a Theocracy). Instead, the enemy is Israel and its sponsor, the US, who is guilty of funding Israel's "oppressive" war machine. I guarantee all of you that evading foreign policy or, worse, taking the side of Syria, Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah will mean a defeat in 2006, 2008, and beyond.
Foreign policy is EVERYTHING today, tomorrow, and for the foreseeable future. The Middle East is a festering wound, a problem that needs to be confronted. An OBJECTIVE analysis of the situation needs to be made and a plan put forward; hiding your head in the sand is not an option. Indeed, it will lead to defeat.
And, for those of you who professed a loving admiration of such barbarous regimes as Iran and Syria, and have so much sympathy for Hamas and Hezbollah, I would remind you that, as infidels, if you came anywhere near these organizations or regimes you would either: 1) Be taken hostage, 2) Jailed without due process and for an exceedingly long time, 3) Shot on sight, 4) tortured, or 5) beheaded as the progressive infidel and heathen you are.
Please, before you opine, know your enemy. Your enemy is not the US and it is not Israel; it is Jihadist's and the totalitarian regimes that support them. If we come to 2006, 2008, and beyond without a plan to deal with them, we are all fucked, physically as well as politically.