Letter: The ³root² of the problem

Editor: Typically it would be bad form to try to extend
another¹s metaphor, but in this case, properly extended, Secretary
of State Condoleeza Rice¹s call to deal with the ³root² of the
problem is precisely on point. She does not, however, probe deeply
enough. She seems to believe that Hezbollah and Hamas and their
champions in Iran and Syria are the ³root² of the problem and that
cutting them out will bring peace to the Middle East.
What Secretary Rice doesn¹t see (or isn¹t willing to
acknowledge) is that these are merely the ³leaves² and the
³branches² of the problem. The ³limbs² of the problem include the
continued Israeli occupations of Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese
lands seized in past and current conflicts and the plight of
refugees in the Palestinian diaspora. For most in the Middle East,
the ³trunk² of the problem is the belief that the creation of
Israel was purely and simply the imposition of a Western colony in
the heart of Palestine. Furthermore, there is the belief that
nothing less than ethnic cleansing occurred which drove the Arab
population of Palestine into the refugee camps in which they
languish today in Lebanon, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza.
So then, what is the ³root² of the problem?  Ultimately, century
upon century of Western empire-building, military adventurism,
religious crusading, energy exploitation and other meddling in that
part of the world. Just as the West created Israel, so it created
Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and virtually all of the other so-called
³states² (most notably Iraq!) in what we call the Middle East. In
that sense, we reap what we sowed.
Secretary Rice prescribes a pruning operation to deal with those
pesky leaves and branches. Here in the Wine Country we understand
the effects of pruning ‹ it reinvigorates the plant, strengthens
it, and stimulates new growth. That is hardly the outcome that
Secretary Rice envisions regarding Hezbollah. It would be a
stretch, perhaps, for her to take on the root or trunk causes
described above, but at a minimum she should be dealing with the
limbs. At the end of the day, even Israel would gain.
Theron O¹Connor, Healdsburg