Not everyone who bullies knows
That some he hurts can break his nose.
It’s only when the victim shows
That he can also break a nose,
A bully yields and runs away
So peace abides another day.
So, what’s going on in the Middle East? Seems that Iranian-backed militias in Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen have attacked American forces dozens of times. Where’s all that appeasement talk that the Obama and Biden Administrations believed would bring Iranian leaders into the fold of peaceful mankind? Is it possible that the only solution to the attacks is a counterattack, maybe even a preemptive strike on Iranian proxies coupled with the toughest enforceable sanctions possible?
Lessons from Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Al Qaeda, Afghanistan, the Isis Caliphate, Hamas’ Gaza
Piecemeal responses to attacks only postpone the need for punching the bully in the nose. That sounds reductionist, even simple-minded, but when has the piecemeal process worked? Iran has a systematic approach to the West, one that involves disruption whenever and wherever opportunities arise, as they have in uncivilized vacuums within the Middle East. In contrast, the West, meaning of course the United States and its allies, have taken an unsystematic approach that Iranian leaders see as the weakness of appeasement.
Over and over, voices in the West arise to remind politicians that Neville Chamberlain failed miserably with appeasement. The bully victimizes until the bully is victimized. Millions had to die in Europe because of that appeasement before WWII and Europe’s piecemeal approach to Hitler. Since that time, untold millions have suffered because of the West’s approach to people intent on destroying and killing.
Remember Truman and MacArthur? The latter wanted to use greater force and invade the source of the conflict, namely, Chinese supply lines. Truman said, “No” and fired the general. The war dragged on. Remember the piecemeal development of the Vietnam War effort? Initially just some military advisors. Then some regular troops. Then a draft that sent Americans to fight a piecemeal, defensive battle that enabled the North Vietnamese to funnel fighters and weapons to the Viet Cong through the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Appeasement and ceasefire? Lyndon Johnson said on October 31, 1968, "I have now ordered that all air, naval, and artillery bombardment of North Vietnam cease as of 8 a.m., Washington time, Friday morning. I have reached this decision on the basis of the developments in the Paris talks. And I have reached it in the belief that this action can lead to progress toward a peaceful settlement of the Vietnamese war.” Well, how’d that work out? North Vietnam used the cessation as an opportunity to send men and supplies down the Trail. Was Johnson not alive during the Korean and the earlier WWII conflicts? Did he not remember that the Japanese had diplomats discussing peace with Americans at the very time their fleet was sailing toward Pearl Harbor?
Remember Iraq? Two wars, not one. Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan? Remember Obama’s comment that ISIS was a “JV team” as they were initiating their deadly march through the Middle East to establish a caliphate? And, of course, I can ask whether anyone remembers the appeasement attempted by Israel to accommodate Palestinians that recently ended in the October 7 attacks by Hamas, Hezbollah, and other Iranian proxies on Israelis and American troops. Bullies. Seems like a simple-minded solution, but there really is historically only one successful way to deal with them. One has to bloody their noses.
But No Retaliation or Defense Occurs in a Vacuum
The problem of course is Western Ethics, that is, in the belief that human life has both dignity and sanctity. Bullies don’t care about harm to others. Ethical Westerners begin every defense with care. But because of amoral, or immoral, or unethical bullies, any defense has its collateral harm. A big roundhouse swing at a bully’s nose can by chance hit a bystander. And when bullies hide in the midst of bystanders, such collateral harm is inevitable.
That’s reason enough to argue against any piecemeal appeasement at the outbreak of threats. Before a bully hides in a crowd of innocents, his nose is isolated. It’s easier to bloody the guilty early on than it is after the bully entrenches in a crowd and recruits a gang among the innocents.
Globalization Entails Global Responses for Civilization’s Sake
Isolationists beware. If you don’t get involved in international affairs, those international affairs will become involved in you. It’s virtually impossible to separate countries bound by essential trade. Yes, it is unfortunate that the British and other western countries became involved over oil. But, like water under the bridge, that’s petrol burned in combustion engines running in the twentieth century and long before North Sea oil gushed into European engines. It’s also unfortunate that western nations divided Middle Eastern countries once dominated by distinct tribal units into “western-style nations.” But that’s the past. Today’s realities pit disruptive forces against the needs of a global economy.
Reductionist thinking, yes. But if the West chooses to continue its dependence on Middle East oil, then the inevitable conflicts will arise. And in an age when drones and rockets can reach well beyond a particular border, confinement of conflict is almost impossible. No war is “Napoleonic” anymore. Every war becomes an asymmetrical battle; every war has its proxy contenders. And in an age of drones and rockets, no one can afford to allow ill-intentioned people to wage an off-and-on conflict.
Hate to Say It, but There’s Only One Way to Stop a Bully
It’s only when the victim shows
That he can also break a nose,
A bully yields and runs away
So peace abides another day.
That some he hurts can break his nose.
It’s only when the victim shows
That he can also break a nose,
A bully yields and runs away
So peace abides another day.
So, what’s going on in the Middle East? Seems that Iranian-backed militias in Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen have attacked American forces dozens of times. Where’s all that appeasement talk that the Obama and Biden Administrations believed would bring Iranian leaders into the fold of peaceful mankind? Is it possible that the only solution to the attacks is a counterattack, maybe even a preemptive strike on Iranian proxies coupled with the toughest enforceable sanctions possible?
Lessons from Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Al Qaeda, Afghanistan, the Isis Caliphate, Hamas’ Gaza
Piecemeal responses to attacks only postpone the need for punching the bully in the nose. That sounds reductionist, even simple-minded, but when has the piecemeal process worked? Iran has a systematic approach to the West, one that involves disruption whenever and wherever opportunities arise, as they have in uncivilized vacuums within the Middle East. In contrast, the West, meaning of course the United States and its allies, have taken an unsystematic approach that Iranian leaders see as the weakness of appeasement.
Over and over, voices in the West arise to remind politicians that Neville Chamberlain failed miserably with appeasement. The bully victimizes until the bully is victimized. Millions had to die in Europe because of that appeasement before WWII and Europe’s piecemeal approach to Hitler. Since that time, untold millions have suffered because of the West’s approach to people intent on destroying and killing.
Remember Truman and MacArthur? The latter wanted to use greater force and invade the source of the conflict, namely, Chinese supply lines. Truman said, “No” and fired the general. The war dragged on. Remember the piecemeal development of the Vietnam War effort? Initially just some military advisors. Then some regular troops. Then a draft that sent Americans to fight a piecemeal, defensive battle that enabled the North Vietnamese to funnel fighters and weapons to the Viet Cong through the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Appeasement and ceasefire? Lyndon Johnson said on October 31, 1968, "I have now ordered that all air, naval, and artillery bombardment of North Vietnam cease as of 8 a.m., Washington time, Friday morning. I have reached this decision on the basis of the developments in the Paris talks. And I have reached it in the belief that this action can lead to progress toward a peaceful settlement of the Vietnamese war.” Well, how’d that work out? North Vietnam used the cessation as an opportunity to send men and supplies down the Trail. Was Johnson not alive during the Korean and the earlier WWII conflicts? Did he not remember that the Japanese had diplomats discussing peace with Americans at the very time their fleet was sailing toward Pearl Harbor?
Remember Iraq? Two wars, not one. Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan? Remember Obama’s comment that ISIS was a “JV team” as they were initiating their deadly march through the Middle East to establish a caliphate? And, of course, I can ask whether anyone remembers the appeasement attempted by Israel to accommodate Palestinians that recently ended in the October 7 attacks by Hamas, Hezbollah, and other Iranian proxies on Israelis and American troops. Bullies. Seems like a simple-minded solution, but there really is historically only one successful way to deal with them. One has to bloody their noses.
But No Retaliation or Defense Occurs in a Vacuum
The problem of course is Western Ethics, that is, in the belief that human life has both dignity and sanctity. Bullies don’t care about harm to others. Ethical Westerners begin every defense with care. But because of amoral, or immoral, or unethical bullies, any defense has its collateral harm. A big roundhouse swing at a bully’s nose can by chance hit a bystander. And when bullies hide in the midst of bystanders, such collateral harm is inevitable.
That’s reason enough to argue against any piecemeal appeasement at the outbreak of threats. Before a bully hides in a crowd of innocents, his nose is isolated. It’s easier to bloody the guilty early on than it is after the bully entrenches in a crowd and recruits a gang among the innocents.
Globalization Entails Global Responses for Civilization’s Sake
Isolationists beware. If you don’t get involved in international affairs, those international affairs will become involved in you. It’s virtually impossible to separate countries bound by essential trade. Yes, it is unfortunate that the British and other western countries became involved over oil. But, like water under the bridge, that’s petrol burned in combustion engines running in the twentieth century and long before North Sea oil gushed into European engines. It’s also unfortunate that western nations divided Middle Eastern countries once dominated by distinct tribal units into “western-style nations.” But that’s the past. Today’s realities pit disruptive forces against the needs of a global economy.
Reductionist thinking, yes. But if the West chooses to continue its dependence on Middle East oil, then the inevitable conflicts will arise. And in an age when drones and rockets can reach well beyond a particular border, confinement of conflict is almost impossible. No war is “Napoleonic” anymore. Every war becomes an asymmetrical battle; every war has its proxy contenders. And in an age of drones and rockets, no one can afford to allow ill-intentioned people to wage an off-and-on conflict.
Hate to Say It, but There’s Only One Way to Stop a Bully
It’s only when the victim shows
That he can also break a nose,
A bully yields and runs away
So peace abides another day.
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