text: Over 20 years after it was published, the story of the Israeli attempt to eradicate massive and repeated terrorist attacks emanating from the PLO (Bubba's/Jacques/UN's buddy Yasser) in Lebanon is no less important.  Interestingly, Lebanon is still struggling to rid itself of Syrian occupation.  They have gone from the vegan dictator Hafez Assad murdering opponents and journalists to the Syrian optometrist dictator murdering opponents and journalists (another killed last week 7/2005).
  
  In this review, I will attempt to explain the story, the left-wing/doves reporter's views (and on so many levels his mistakes), and most importantly to Americans who love and support Israel, the correlation between Israel's actions and our "War on Terror."
  
  First to the journalists, the main one being the left wing newspaper Haraatz Ze'ev Schiff.  As the brilliant reviewer givbatam3 points out nearby, Mr. Schiff is a member of the Israeli left/dove/Peace Now group.  This "coalition" consists of myopic people (with all due respect) that don't seem to understand good and evil.  Just as our great President Bush was criticized for denouncing the "Axis of Evil" (he forgot to mention Syria and the House of Saud), these doves conveniently choose to ignore the problems with cooperating with our/their enemies.  This is what lead to the fraudulent Oslo accords and the creation of the terrorist supporting Palestinian Authority.  It is this "authority" that unleashed a wave of terror on Israel immediately after Clinton helped the murderer Arafat receive a Nobel Peace Prize.  Fittingly, Arafat walked away from the Clinton/Barak  plan in 2000, which would have created a Palestinian state, which to this day (7.8.05) does not exist despite the charade of the Road Map.  The authors accuse Prime Minister Sharon of illegally leading Israel into the war in Lebanon.  Most of the books I've read about Israel seem to have been written by journalists out to discredit Sharon.  He seems to be the Donald Rumsfeld of Israel.  I don't live there so it is impossible for me to get a read on the situation, but he WAS democratically elected, so most of the voters must disagree with the left's assessment of Mr. Sharon (yes, I know his "disengagement" is an illegal abomination, more on that later.  Wear Orange to support the settlers.)
  
  On page 39, Mr. Ze'ev describes Sharon as "a cynical, headstrong executor who regarded the IDF as his personal tool for obtaining sweeping achievements-and not necessarily defensive ones-and a minister prepared to stake the national interest on his struggle for power."  Those would prove to be the "kindest" words he would have for Mr. Sharon.  On page 58, he accuses Sharon of implementing a quasi-coup d'etat.
  
  And on and on it goes.  The author also accuses Sharon of duping the American government, details forthcoming.
  
  Later on, we learn of the "courageous, freedom fighter" (my emphasis) Arafat's decision to deploy all Palestinians including 12 year old boys to kill Israelis.  Of course, to this day the PA affiliated Fatah and other groups use children to murder Israeli civilians (the best non-child attack recently was the Palestinian woman who was granted permission to receive medical care in Israel who tried to kill innocent Israeli doctors/nurses using "bomber pants."  Great video of her discovering the bomb wouldn't activate, however US MSM {mainstream media} other than FOX refused to air it.)
  
  On page 92, we learn of Arafat crony and current PA leader Abu Mazen's (the same Oslo and Road Map violating, terrorist supporting/enabling, holocaust denying, chain-smoking Mazen that GW brazenly brought to the White House) recommendation to target specific ethnic types of Jews for murder.
  
  Throughout the story, if indeed the cabinet was mislead, we learn that this deception had negative military preparedness consequences.  Specifically, a failure to call up the reserves.
  
  To his credit and unlike journalists Robert Fisk (Pity the Nation) and Thomas Friedman (NY Times, From Lebanon to Jerusalem), Mr. Schiff reminds us of the level of terror practiced by Ray-Ban Wayfarer wearing Arafat even inside his own PLO.  On page 147, we learn of Palestinians killing Palestinians that were given the chance to evacuate an area prior to IDF action.  In this episode, three children were gunned down in front of their father.
  
  On page 149, the authors engage in a disgusting bit of analysis about the minds of IDF members.  In discussing a particularly brutal phase of the operation, the author's ask "was it perhaps fueled by an even deeper sense of vengeance for all the harm and hatred that the Jews had suffered at the hands of others over the centuries?"  And further, "How would the grandparents of these boys have reacted to the scene of mayhem...?"  Are you kidding me??  These members of the citizen army were probably quite sick of repeated murders of innocent Israeli citizens and committed to seeing their country living in peace.  Meanwhile, the UN, the left/doves, the media, and others seemed to downplay or turn a blind eye to Arafat's involvement in the many terrorist attacks conducted by the PLO prior to the Lebanon operation.  In my humble view, something had to be done.  Prime Minister Begin agreed with Sharon's initial plan on eliminating the terrorists in Beirut. 
  
  Page 152 features more America bashing, culminating in an accusation that the US was an Israeli dupe.
  
  The story of the military operation is detailed completely.  And no discussion of the Lebanon operation would be complete without mentioning the incidents in the refugee camps in Sabrit and Shatilla.  I'll leave it for the reader to decide on this operation, but in short, Israel relied on their "allies" in Lebanon to rid the camps of terrorists.  Most assuredly, after the Palestinians brought havoc to these people, they wanted revenge.  The result: some civilian deaths to go along with the "clean up" operation and a rebuke of several Israeli figures including Prime Minister Sharon.  
  Folks, war is not pretty and the US faced similar choices in partnering with the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan.  Many to this day say that is why we allegedly "lost" Bin Laden in Tora Bora instead of adequately deploying our troops on the Pakistan border.  General Tommy Franks says this would not have been possible and I believe him more than the Kerry/Kedwards crowd.  Our "ally" Pakistan would not have tolerated a US presence, given that they were one of only three governments with relations with the Taliban.
  
  As for the author's attempts to rid Israeli society of Prime Minister Sharon, it didn't work.  He forcefully fought the charges emanating from the investigation into the Lebanon operation.  After Yasser walked all over Clinton in Barak in 2000 and launched/restarted the intifada, Israel voted for "Arik" and his platform of not negotiating with Arafat.  Sadly, no tragically, he is haphazardly implementing his "disengagement plan."  Six weeks prior to its start, it appears the plan is not well thought out and polls show that Israelis are increasingly against it.  Moreover, turning land over to terrorist supporting Mazen will embolden those that seek Israel's destruction.  Israel expects terror gangs of Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Mazen's own Fatah to immediately set up shop in the West Bank and begin terror operations.  
  
  So looking back Mr. Schiff and Ya'ari, who was right?  Terror coddling doves such as Rabin (who at least acknowledged the danger in trusting Arafat) and Peres or Likud hawks such as Sharon (and Netanyahu)?  
  
  Let the reader decide.  I know who I would trust with my security:  Likud members Sharon and Netanyahu.
  