The pieces of war - returning to Israel for another look [PART 3], as Ukraine's civil unrest and the Kremlin's Crimea land-grab begs our attention, Forces within the Middle East haven't stopped their maneuverings. They never do... “Never has there been a good war or a bad peace.” – Benjamin Franklin An Objective look at Israel Part 3: Israel have tempered the foul winds of conflict, and the threat thereof, since the country was born, or reborn. If there is one thing they must have learnt by now, it is how NOT to pull the trigger. The professionals are exceedingly good at doing just that, and killing in every way known and/or discovered. There are people dedicated to studying the ‘art’ of killing – simply finding new and devious ways of taking a human life, and hiding any trace of outside interference. This, is the machine that the region and a warring history has created. With enemies pronouncing their intentions outright, and being such a small country, and the only Jewish state in the Middle East, they have been, and have needed to be ever prepared for the summons of war. Shortly (as in 24 hrs later) after David Ben Gurion declared Israel’s Independence in 1948, they were under siege by 5 countries. One could go as far as to say, Israel lives with war as a house guest, or even a spouse. So, in walking this hard path, the nation has learned what it takes to survive, and what’s needed to keep ones enemies at bay. The Israelis are experts at manipulating global warring politics to suite their agenda. The fact is, that many believe this to be the region where a possible (some believe it to be inevitable) World War 3 will be launched. The pieces are certainly in place, or the foundations have been laid, and as most of us know, we are closer to the brink than it looks; actually most times many men and women are hard at work to steer the world away from ruin, and Israel are at the centre of all this, playing both protagonist and antagonist as it suits them. They are no saints. I would say that looking at things within their borders that, though they are God’s chosen nation, they have strayed very far from his will, from his commandments – in the simple treatment of your fellow man – “do unto others”. That being said, the IDF is one of the most ruthless, and equally accurate armies in the world. Proficiency is everything; and they, more than most, are mindful of the consequences of their actions, or inactions. “Violence is the first refuge of the incompetent.” – Isaac Asimov The world is quick to pick out their shortcomings and trespasses (not that the Knesset seems to care) due in part to their uncompromising nature, but how big of a role has Israel played in preventing war? This of course is not something that can be measured easily (and then one could say that they’re already engaged in a ‘passive’ war with Palestine), but the strange complex of the matter is, how much human life has been spared by a state which has forgotten the very value of it? So this then is a brief look at that first weathered and scorched domino which remains standing, and Israel, the nation which has worked hard not to topple it, because to do so, would not benefit anyone. Perhaps the reason it has not proverbially fallen, is because the Knesset’s index finger hovers over it, poised to set it all in motion on its own. Am I overestimating Israel’s role? I doubt it, though I do acknowledge the larger players at hand, players that are hard (if not impossible) to control or manipulate, just casting my thoughts to the recently voted Forbes’ ‘World’s most powerful man of 2013’, Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin. It is thus quite amazing that such a small nation like Israel can punch well above their weight and exact so much power globally, by guile and simply shadow tactics. What if their stance toward Palestine were only a grand distraction? I have always asked myself when trying to consider both sides of conflict: What do they know that I, or we, don’t? What are we NOT told? Hence, it is easy to judge (and Israel does make it easy to be seen as the bad guys), but in this crazy world, who are the good guys really? Should we be content, just so long as that domino remains standing? – Well I suppose we have to be. On the one hand we have dirt and shame, and on the other we have only blood and pain. Or have I been looking at this all wrong; could Israel, the state, be that first domino? And who would benefit from WW3? There’s no honour left in war (perhaps a topic for another day). “They wrote in the old days that it is sweet and fitting to die for one's country. But in modern war, there is nothing sweet nor fitting in your dying. You will die like a dog for no good reason.” – Ernest Hemmingway Another domino - different country… With Russia taking back Crimea in the wake of the Ukrainian riots and unseated president, we’ve once again been witness to another close shave with war. It is only that a number of parties have NOT involved themselves that we’ve avoided a fallout because at the moment Russia, or the Kremlin, or rather Vladimir Putin (the former FSB spook) is doing what he wants. The sanctions that western powers have imposed on selective Russian politicians, many part of Putin's inner circle, are superficial – it’s the least they can do, and at the very least makes them look like they’re not doing nothing about it. This is one arena wherein America cannot get involved because the history just runs too deep, though mostly they just fear Russia, and they should. So whilst all this goes on, we’ve yet to mention the other Far East ‘elephant’ in the arena -so far as danger and unpredictability goes – North Korea. As we can see, with the world powers, some random jihadists or an ill judged trigger pulled, all ever ready to take the shape of the catalyst, all forming elements dancing around that one domino, which does seem to shift toward any two parties concerned who get a little too close... we’re that far from disaster. What has been highlighted by at least one news broadcaster, is the immense discipline displayed by the Russian Forces in Crimea - yes there was a few exchanges of gunfire, but by all accounts, it was a peaceful takeover, avoiding mass bloodshed. Knowing full well the path that no one wants to take seems to have everyone, including the west, tiptoeing around, because just as bad as all out war is, the threat thereof is an ancient tool of intimidation. - Lets not forget that many Russian's have family in both Crimea and Ukraine (especially in the Russian speaking/dominated Eastern half), so war will benefit no one... Some recent Vladimir Putin quotes: “Some Western politicians are already threatening us with not just sanctions, but also the prospect of increasingly serious problems on the domestic front. I would like to know what it is they have in mind exactly: action by a fifth column, this disparate bunch of ‘national traitors’, or are they hoping to put us in a worsening social and economic situation so as to provoke public discontent? We consider such statements irresponsible and clearly aggressive in tone, and we will respond to them accordingly.” "Anyone who doesn't regret the passing of the Soviet Union has no heart. Anyone who wants it restored has no brains." -- Vladimir Putin [Image credits: theglaringfacts.com, euangelizomai.blogspot.com, desertpeace.wordpress.com, obeygiant.com, rt.com, telegraph.co.uk, businessinsider.com, cnn.com, cbsnews.com, washingtonpost.com] Related articles on this blog: An Objective look at Apartheid Israel Israel: An Objective look, Part 2 5 Reasons Ukraine is Rioting Protests of the world in Pictures Picture quotes above from: Top 10 Powerful quotes from Putin's historic Crimea address
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Evolution and decay Poem by Steven Benjamin Walking through the infield, I hear the whistling trees The howling wind, and the rustling reeds. Listen to the silence. As the sun dawn’s, over the lonely racetrack Secretly. There was a time when championships were run here, Emotions too. The track is clear now, the crowd long silent, passed on even. I still hear their roar, or is it the engines An echo of memories, or imagined. Here, the earth moved once, The chequered flag was there, raised, waiting… breaths were held heroes were made and lives were claimed. With weeds glancing my shins I stride through the beautiful decay, A monument to past untamed passion. Abandoned, ever waiting Whispers of her past on the backs of leaves tumbling down the embankment over cracked tarmac. A past of danger, and of glory. She dared men. A different time, a different world. And in the minds of a brave few, long gone This patch of brokenness, was a frightening and daunting giant of chance. The world evolved around her. She remained, now Half claimed by time Waiting for death, or an odd few wanderers Willing to linger, and listen, to her soft whisper, that was once an old taunting song of vigor, once vibrant and wild, now just a cold, distant hum *** The original host of the 1950's French Grand Prix at Riems, the circuit is abandoned, but the main pit straight with Grand stand opposite, is part of a main road. Authorities have left it as a monument - tourists are free to roam and investigate, but asked to respect the place, hence no graffiti or demolition. I would’ve brought this post to you yesterday but it took me a while to actually look for the original poem in uh, shall we call it my ‘personal archives’. The thing is that the original version of this poem is one of the first I ever wrote – I was around 14 at the time and it was for a school project… so I wrote about something that I loved, but with a slight twist. The original had to do specifically with the first Formula 1 race in 1950, entitled ‘Evolution’, and I wrote it as though I was actually there, living the experience through the ‘memories’ and pictures of others – a fabricated memory so to speak. I went looking for it again because I was reminded of it after watching the film ‘Rush’. I reviewed it last year for ‘In The Kan’, and I recently bought the DVD… I highly recommend it. The feelings of nostalgia I felt prompted me to have another look at this piece. The changes I made (call it the 'decay' portion) were simply to reflect a lifelong desire of mine to visit some of the old racetracks of the world – something I imagine only aficionado’s dream about. You see, the old tracks weren’t governed by how many spectators could be seated in the stands (some didn’t even have stands) or which corners could best be captured on TV to cater for the massive audience and commercial rights… no, the best tracks were carved or laid out on unforgiving landscapes – a niche sport that was half banished to rural back countrysides, mountains and forests, well outside city limits (barring Monte Carlo of course, the first anomaly and part of what made it the jewel in the F1 crown, because it was and still is – 100 years on – the center stage filled with glitz, glamour and not to mention royalty - the first street circuit). Tracks like the old Nurburgring around the Medieval castle from where it got its name, the old Monza Oval, Spa Francorchamps – the original was a 15km monster track in a rough triangle connecting 3 towns, the original Osterreichring in the Styrian Mountains, the beautiful Charade Circuit in central France – and those are just the famous ones… there are so many that lay forgotten, overrun with weeds, half demolished, like forgotten cities of yore. Just like the Roman Colosseum and other such ruins, these tracks are ruins with less age but a folklore all their own. It says something about time – something like the automobile, that has captured the hearts of so many men, yet as it has evolved and outgrown eras and arenas, so we can see how fleeting it all is, just like the moment when one of those cars speeds past – it’s all recorded by time… one race after another, trying to beat the next man or just the clock, and that, as it turns out, is ultimately what always wins. --- Here's a short story I wrote with similar nostalgia "Black Velvet Ring"... Days of Glory [Image credits: silodrome.com, tumblr, pinterest, basementgeographer.com, wikipedia.org, retrorides.proboards.com] Story of remoteness, 8. Voice in the Distance Poem by David Martinez Romero I always return from the far land to where I always head for. And each time, my hands, delicately hardened by time, quiver just with the presence of the sparse memory of a past that never was, that only happened because we dreamed, and inside our dreams the lies also disappear, already lost the right to cling onto what we know is not true. That’s why I speak from remoteness, because lying down here, beside you, I prefer to remain in silence, I choose not to take the floor, but your hands in mine. I choose to die in the quietness and to be reborn in the sense of touch, into the inhospitable region of the very lamenting creatures which sinuously crawl into the chrysalis, the future, the enormous wall, made of sky and music, that descends over the sea and generates horizons, frontiers, distances. The remoteness amongst one and another man: behold the Eternity. Read more at David Martinez Romero's blogspot... "I brought you another poem by David Martinez Romero, included here because despite its humble length, he and I did wrestle a bit with it, such that it may have taken on new or added meaning in the translation from Spanish to English. But, such is the nature of poetry and writing, when even the poet himself sees that his creation may speak its own language. Personally, I see it as quite a vague piece, that communicates the same message as reflected in the title, because it feels wispy, faint and subtle, even in the actions, which are sleight; the voice, a voice, the echoes of small gestures. Ultimately, I also needed something a little lighter compared to heavy content I've shared recently, so in effect it feels rather relevant that the poem communicates a soft message of purity, something which one needs to remember, especially in these chaotic times..." [Image credits: devpolicy.org, photosof.org, dejavouz.files.wordpress.org, deviantart.net, media.massal.net] |
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