Targets of Opportunity

Leave it to the architect of the Iraq War to find opportunity in the Israeli-Hezbollah war in Lebanon. The Washington Post reports today that BushCheney believes that Israel’s attack on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon is a step toward peace in the region.

In the administration's view, the new conflict is not just a crisis to be managed. It is also an opportunity to seriously degrade a big threat in the region, just as Bush believes he is doing in Iraq. Israel's crippling of Hezbollah, officials also hope, would complete the work of building a functioning democracy in Lebanon and send a strong message to the Syrian and Iranian backers of Hezbollah.

"The president believes that unless you address the root causes of the violence that has afflicted the Middle East, you cannot forge a lasting peace," said White House counselor Dan Bartlett. "He mourns the loss of every life. Yet out of this tragic development, he believes a moment of clarity has arrived." (emphasis added)

So let me be sure I have this straight. BushCheney believes that the Iraq War will bring peace to that region. It’s working so well that he is looking forward to similar results on the Lebanon-Israel border. Of course, he is viewing the whole thing in a different time frame from the rest of us mortals.

"He thinks he is playing in a longer-term game than the tacticians," said the former official, who spoke anonymously so he could discuss his views candidly. "The tacticians would say: 'Get an immediate cease-fire. Deal first with the humanitarian factors.' The president would say: 'You have an opportunity to really grind down Hezbollah. Let's take it, even if there are other serious consequences that will have to be managed.' "

Geologists posit that anything is possible given sufficient time. Funny that a man who so resolutely rejects scientific inquiry, BushCheney, is willing to accept “other serious consequences” over time. He can never be proved wrong because there is always more time.

Meanwhile, people who must endure the consequences are fucked.

By way of measuring results in real time, check out the metrics at Free Iraq.