Transitioning to war…

A war on TV. That’s what it was for me until yesterday afternoon. While online yesterday I got an instant message from a friend who lives in a village outside of Carmiel. His wife just called him at work after hearing explosions over the hills where Carmiel sits. Found out last night that one of the soldiers killed is from the town next to mine. While rumors circulate, no one I know has been called up for reserve duty…yet.

It’s weird living in the center of the country in a modular town bereft of character that has a somewhat Sim City feel to it. I’ve spent most of the past few days at home due to illness so the feeling on Israeli street has escaped me. A house a few doors down decided to go on with a party. Major lack of respect. Break out of your bubble people, we are at war. I heard a lot of gunshots and firecrackers coming from nearby Arab villages last night. Obviously celebrating the Katyusha “rockets” falling on Haifa. It’s happening all over the West Bank. Let’s stop calling them rockets. Rockets are what were used to explore space in the sixties and seventies. Rockets are used to launch fireworks into the air. Missiles. Missiles. Missiles. They are launching missiles at our cities.

As I was watching Rockstar: Supernova last night I suddenly felt a pang of guilt and self-disgust. No, not over the fact that I was watching Rockstar: Supernova. Ok, I’m a little embarrassed that I was watching it but you have to admit, the show is much better than American Idol.

Thousands of children are sleeping in bomb shelters tonight. In Beirut too, children are suffering because of the actions of fundamentalists and here I am, screaming at the television, “That dude owned that song,” and “I find her chin piercing distracting.” Weird. Just weird.

Make no mistake, the responsibility of the situation falls on Hezbollah. But ignoring a problem doesn’t make it go away. And that’s the mistake of the Lebanon’s government. Well, we certainly can’t defeat them so let’s just give them control of a section of the country. Well, that plan backfired…Of course it can be argued that they didn’t have a choice. After being someone’s bitch (i.e. Syria) for so many years, it’s hard to let go. Especially when you really don’t have the military power.

Sadly, the people of Lebanon are paying for their government’s kowtowing to Hezbollah. I spent a considerable amount of time reading lebanese bloggers last night. While it was positive to read how mush resentment most of the bloggers have for Hezbollah and their actions, I wonder if it’s just the Western educated upper class who blog that feels this way. Does the average Lebanese agree with dismantlement of Hezbollah? Perhaps they will now after Nasrallah caused destruction in their country.