The war between Israel and Hamas could plunge our world into a global tragedy.
If fundamental justice isn't established a horrific WMD event seems likely to eventually occur.
7 October 2024: Numerous updates and some refinements.
A nation and its people are two quite different things. Individuals must never be blamed nor viewed skeptically carte blanche for their nation's misconduct and sickness. I speak of governments here, not of their people, many of whom are equalled incensed with their government's insane behavior. With that understanding:
A history of suffering from horrific violence confers no right to inflict horrific violence upon innocent children, women, or any civilized defenders of their homes and lands today. The Israeli government, bereft of any sense of the critical importance of a measured response to violence, seems to believe they're entitled to engage in absolutely obscene levels of wanton savagery sans any criticism from anyone. They are not. Currently they're nothing short of monsters. They're behaving just like a deranged gunman in the heat of his killing spree - they're a deranged nation engaged in a seemingly eternal hissy fit style murdering rampage. And just as a mass murdering lone gunman must be stopped, at this time so must Israel, by immediate intense and overwhelming diplomatic pressure, cessation of all support of any kind, and utterly crippling full spectrum sanctions.
The longer this insanity goes on the longer Israel's naked unmitigated savagery will scar their nation as the world perceives its grotesque aggression and violence with ever increasing clarity. History will not be kind - the entire nation will have blood and mud on its face for at least decades. As will, in very heavy measure, any nation which failed to act to protect basic human rights in this bloody fiasco, including the United States, which has already lost all credibility as a defender of human rights or a practitioner of rule of law. But the most serious problem is that Israel and its myopic supporters are putting the entire world at grave risk of a far greater calamity...
However even the best American journalism, which is usually reasonably meritorious, fails so miserably in this case that it simply can't be trusted, so people must explore news and opinion sources broadly and much more carefully to find accurate accounts and opinions about this war and Palestine / Israel history.
So fact check entities such as Oct7FactCheck.com, which is focused on this war, or others are essential in these times. A review of broad coverage fact check entities is here, or consider their home page.
I especially recommend this superb article. Also the general theme in this article is similar to mine here. And five more exceptionally insightful and incisive articles are here, here, here, here, and here. And among a great mass of other superb journalism about this and other wars and matters at Aljazeera.com, including excellent opinion articles such as this, this, this, this, this, this, this, and this, is this comment in this article:
"However, what is apparent is that the suffering will be borne by the innocent civilians in Gaza who are being subjected to a fierce operation by air that leaves nowhere for them to go, and who analysts expect will also soon be invaded by land. The civilians of Israel are also suffering, as they mourn their dead and search desperately for the missing."
That informative article suggests to me that Hamas or other combatants may soon devise additional surprisingly effective strategies and tactics. Their vicious acts, born of desperation from decades of oppression by others and the vacuous ethical metrics which spring from obsession for justice at any cost, are horrific but they're an important element in a bully versus bully theater wherein Israel's current government conducts brutal programs of illegal colonialism and apartheid which are profoundly unjust, inhumane, and make life Hell for ordinary Palestinians, and is reacting to the 7 October uprising not with a measured response, but with almost completely unrestrained murderous and genocidal fury.
The damage is massive, multifaceted, and enduring. The grotesque inhumanity will hang for decades over Israel and supporting countries, especially the USA, as a great dark cloud of intentional heinous human rights abuse, leaving Planet Earth with no credible or trustworthy superpower - we're now a world dominated by heartless bully nations who embrace a reptilian brain driven 'might makes right' mentality. This provides more than ample hate inflamed rationale for opposition groups or nations who side with terribly oppressed people to respond with WMDs. And they likely will.
Israel's decades long continuous theft of Palestinian land and oppression of Palestinian people is clearly criminal as has been amply registered by the UN and oft reported by numerous globally respected institutions, several of which warned of the severe dangers such injustices create well before the 7 October uprising but were callously ignored. Neither past nor recent crimes against Israelis or Israel by immoral murderous nations or groups grant Israel license to overt race or ethnicity based oppression and brutalization of Palestinians. Surviving tyranny and murder is a great honor. But those who then tyrannize and murder others sacrifice all honor once held, replacing it with profound eternal shame.
Israel's primary benefactor, the US government, appears to view the Palestinian people as so subhuman that they've made only token efforts to discourage atrocious Israeli government oppression over decades, and is thus complicit in the tragedy of the amply predicted uprising. And most shockingly the US government supports Israel's brutalities as the world watches this horrific tragedy unfold. My own country's behavior in this matter is absolutely disgusting and remarkably myopic. And that'll likely cost all of us very dearly later.
Human beings are inherently prone to discount the possibility of a surprising event. Even after a quite recent one. So most casual observers probably expect Israel to crush all Palestinians in the region until they're too exhausted to resist ordinary oppression, after which an extended stable period of the normal daily grind of injustice against Palestinian people will resume.
But this insane war is amplifying hatreds to extremely intense and enduring levels, and human beings do not soon forget nor forgive such injustices, nor ever forget nor forgive ongoing injustices. And the outrageous brutality of Israel's response to the 7 October uprising might prompt a far more devastating than usual reaction because the most egregious examples of long term asymmetrical warfare eventually make an extreme response, such as use of a WMD, seem amply justified. This could happen.
It would of course be an appalling catastrophe. But it should not be viewed as surprising. It will, just as many viewed the 7 October uprising as surprising. But it shouldn't - ample warning was and is perfectly clear in both cases.
This substantial danger will grow ever more likely until the global community, including the USA, applies effective and relentless pressure on Israel to compel it to:
1. Completely cease aggression and brutalization against the mass of Palestinians who simply want fundamental justice.
2. Genuinely seek a two state solution.
3. Make substantive amends for past injustices to innocents.
Practical realities are such that Israel must be allowed to exist in peace, but it has no right to force Palestinians from existence nor oppose swift creation of a generously broad and robust Palestinian state. The United States should provide only enough aid to Israel to insure that it can survive against those who seek to eradicate the nation, but with a strictly enforced condition that they completely cease oppression of others, including of course by illegal land occupations. America must force Israel to choose between survival related aid or wanton heartless oppression of others. Anything less than strict enforcement of such terms is a profound American ethics failure which is utterly transparent to the entire civilized world.
In my estimation time is short. The current rage is white hot. Hamas, their supporters, and their proxies seem likely to act as soon as the necessary logistics can be arranged. It won't be easy of course. But they demonstrated patient, clever, skillful, and tenacious asymmetrical warfare in the 7 October uprising - they're skilled fighters. If they elect to use a WMD they'll likely eventually succeed. The only way to prevent this is to thoroughly eliminate injustice against all people. Which is what everyone should want and demand anyway of course.
The DoomsDay clock stands at a mere 90 seconds to midnight. For good reason. But key governments wallow in ignorance and denial as they seem far more focused on forging a world of just two groups of clearly defined belligerent adversaries, one led by the USA and the other by China with major partner Russia.
No rational human being wants to live in such a world, but major governments seem to view it as inevitable and consider its formation a race to urge states to join their side. And the most powerful nations seem willing to set ethics aside whenever they think doing so will help persuade a smaller nation to join their group. In the process the Palestinian people and others are thrown to the wolves as disposable collateral damage in the supposed greater competition to form the stronger of two competing global empire bullies.
Most of these countries, including the USA, lost the courage to put respect for genuine justice, human rights, and a sense of humanity first and relegate empire building at any cost to dysfunctional and destructive autocracies. Shame on all of us. And not just for the ethics failures, but also for pure stupidity by forgetting that America stands strong only to the extent that it's a country and culture of genuinely and uniquely high ethical standards. America's comparative strength is waning not because of relative loss of industrial opportunity, but because it's increasingly indistinguishable, both within and without, from morally bankrupt nations.
And this ghastly cowardice of moral conviction may cost all of us very dearly. Because in a world with WMDs brutal criminal oppression of a skillful adversary is remarkably stupid and utterly irresponsible.
If tyranny and oppression completely end and functional peace is established, at least one change of generation must still pass for hatreds in this matter to substantially subside. Every day of continued oppression just defers such a time another day. Currently the region is rife with murderous rage. All outside parties must absolutely insist that all physical hostilities and oppression completely end, followed by forging a just two state solution.
Let's face a horrific possibility squarely, sans any denial: If outside parties fail to do this a mammoth WMD catastrophe could occur. It would be shockingly inhumane. But nobody would be in any position to claim it came as a surprise.
Trump is an absolute flaming demagogue and a dangerously reckless and immature buffoon. Harris is every bit an equal demagogue but more coy with her deceptions, which is at least equally dangerous. And her posturing clearly suggests that she won't change Biden's ignorant policy of unqualified support for Israel's depraved bloodlust or indifference for the suffering of its innocent victims. And neither they nor anyone in their inner circles even modestly comprehends the crucial role authentic justice plays in civilization - they and their inner gangs are far more focused on prevailing over their power brokering adversaries - right or wrong matters not as rivers of innocent blood flowing in Gaza and elsewhere amply illustrate - their highest priority by far is holding power by any means available. Both are merely empty shirt class political operatives - demagogues to their bones, and desperately fearful of truth and authenticity. Both are mammoth disasters for the cause of fundamental human rights - neither actually care a whit about anyone other than their closest confidants who broker them into and maintain their positions of power. And irrespective of very deep, broad ranged, and plainly obvious ethics deficits, Trump is simply too old and shallow of mind for such a demanding position of responsibility.
In shining contrast Jacinda Ardern is a superb class act and one of Planet Earth's very rare glistening leadership treasures. The total mass of integrity and intellect in America's two slithering despicables plus everyone in their inner circles added together measures far, far less than the mass of Jacinda Ardern's moonlit shadow on a foggy night. People everywhere already pay dearly for America's penchant for electing such gross human failures, and are at grave risk to pay far more dearly in future times. America, do you really want ever more growth of this insane dystopia? No matter how much largess of sovereign treasure they insincerely promise you, please stop voting for ignorant narcissistic power crazed war mongering champions of destructive dysfunction. Just don't vote for them. Just don't do it. Just don't...
Because if you do the ever growing unrelenting weight of extreme injustice and suffering will ultimately burn through the last tip of finger hold bleeding victims have for humanity. Then a WMD will be unleashed somewhere. Quite possibly spawning more.
And those who survive will look back and say "Oh my God we actually voted for this... How could we have been so bloody, bloody stupid...?"
In the meantime consider setting Miss Swift aside for a while - immensely more important matters are afoot. Fill the streets with completely peaceful and property respecting but intense and impassioned voices, signs, and flags of protest.* As often as possible. And artists too - compose and sing of your sense of offense and disgust. Make it clear that Harris absolutely will not be elected. Nor Trump nor any other ridiculous posers or their pet squirrels - they're all done, good riddance. Wholly innocent Palestinian people are trying to survive in an often oppressively hot or bitterly frigid war zone with little or no food, clean water, medical care, hygiene facilities, fuel or firewood, or shelter as they desperately try to dodge sniper bullets, artillery, and bombs with their only hope springing from your rising and tenacious voices. They are human beings. They need you. (Miss Swift - not so much - she's not suffering quite so terribly...) So get out there and voice your humanity against this insanity. They need you...
And do it for yourselves too, because the last thing this planet needs is a WMD, or a flurry of them. But that's what we'll likely get if we don't stop this madness. And then no artist on Earth, no matter the crest of fame they're riding, will console our souls. Because we'll know we failed an entire people when they desperately needed our help and humanity. And that we failed ourselves. How will we live with that eternal weight on our shoulders?
(* Don't damage property nor harm anyone, not even slightly - that's exactly the behavior we protest against. But be relentless in voice and passion and thus impossible to ignore. And let the posers know with perfect clarity that they'll never in a million years get our vote - that their hollow vacant war mongering hearts are done. Tell them to go play golf or tend their gardens in absolute obscurity and keep their monstrous nauseating faces off our screens forever. They're done.)
Bruce Campbell
Copyright 11 October 2023 through 7 October 2024 Howard Bruce Campbell
Addendum: Conversation with ChatGPT about the genesis of monster class power brokers plus a relevant Wikipedia link:
Bruce Campbell: "ChatGPT, many leaders who purport to support equal rights for all people instead prioritize acquisition and maintenance of power by any means available, including overt dishonesty and demagoguery, for themselves and those who support them. Other than the superb story "Animal Farm", what credible research studies, commentary, or literature best describes how and why this [scourge] to humanity arises and grows ever worse?"
ChatGPT: "The phenomenon you describe, where leaders may prioritize power acquisition over the stated values they claim to uphold, has been explored and analyzed by scholars and authors in various fields. Several works delve into the dynamics of power, leadership, and the potential for corruption. Here are a few recommendations:
"The Prince" by Niccolo Machiavelli:
This classic work discusses political leadership and the pragmatic use of power. Machiavelli explores how leaders can gain and maintain authority, often emphasizing realpolitik and the ends justifying the means."Lord of the Flies" by William Golding:
This novel examines the descent into chaos and tyranny when a group of boys is left to govern themselves. It provides insights into the darker aspects of human nature and the potential for abuse of power."The Anatomy of Revolution" by Crane Brinton:
This historical analysis explores the common patterns and dynamics of revolutions, including the emergence of new leadership and the potential for the revolutionaries to become oppressive in their own right."The Road to Serfdom" by F.A. Hayek:
Hayek's work discusses the dangers of centralized planning and the concentration of power. It explores how well-intentioned efforts to promote equality can lead to authoritarianism."1984" by George Orwell:
This dystopian novel examines a totalitarian regime where those in power manipulate language, control information, and suppress dissent. It provides insights into the abuse of authority and the impact on individuals."Leadership in War" by Andrew Roberts:
While focusing on military leaders, this book provides insights into leadership qualities, decision-making, and the ethical challenges faced by individuals in positions of power.
These works offer diverse perspectives on the complexities of leadership, the pursuit of power, and the potential for corruption. They can provide valuable insights into the dynamics you've described."
Remember George Orwell's "Animal Farm" as well - it's a wonderfully clear view of our species' inability to establish or maintain pure hearted leadership.
I recommend reviewing the "Realpolitik" Wikipedia page too.
Bruce Campbell: "ChatGPT, what credible research is available which examines and purports to support or refute the adage "Power corrupts. And absolutely power corrupts absolutely."? Does any credible research provide tangible or otherwise compelling evidence that given sufficient time the adage is substantially or nearly invariably accurate based upon human psychology, group or population relationship dynamics, or other factors?"
ChatGPT: "The adage "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely" reflects a common sentiment about the potential negative effects of having power. While it is often attributed to Lord Acton, the idea that power can lead to corruption has been explored by various scholars and researchers. Here are some perspectives and research findings related to this concept:
Psychological Research:
Studies in psychology have explored how individuals in positions of power may experience changes in behavior. Some research suggests that increased power can lead to a reduced concern for others, decreased empathy, and a greater focus on one's own interests.
Social Psychology:
Social psychologists have investigated the impact of power on interpersonal relationships and group dynamics. Research indicates that power imbalances within groups can affect decision-making processes and contribute to inequality.
Neuroscience:
Neuroscientific studies have explored the neural mechanisms associated with power and decision-making. Some findings suggest that powerful individuals may exhibit patterns of brain activity associated with reduced sensitivity to others' perspectives.
Historical and Political Analysis:
Scholars in political science and history have examined the behavior of leaders and the impact of power on governance. Historical examples often illustrate instances where individuals in positions of unchecked power have engaged in corrupt practices.
Institutional Studies:
Research on institutions and organizational behavior has explored how power structures within organizations can influence ethical standards. The concentration of power in certain individuals or groups can contribute to corruption if accountability mechanisms are lacking.
While there is evidence and scholarly discussion supporting the idea that power can lead to corruption, it's essential to note that individual responses to power can vary, and not everyone in a position of power becomes corrupt. Additionally, research in this area often emphasizes the importance of accountability, transparency, and checks and balances to mitigate the potential negative effects of power.
For more in-depth exploration, you may want to delve into academic journals, books on political psychology, organizational behavior, and related fields. Researchers such as Dacher Keltner, Deborah Gruenfeld, and others have contributed to the understanding of power dynamics and their effects."
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