Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
The Internal Divisions of Hamas By Volkhard Windfuhr in Cairo
Sunday, January 11, 2009
The Egyptian-French cease-fire proposal for the Gaza Strip remains on the table. Hamas, though, is divided. One camp is calling for a decisive battle while others continue to negotiate. And it remains uncertain which side will prevail.
It was a minor scene that took place on Thursday in the heart of Gaza City. But it was a noteworthy one. In front of a closed chicken restaurant not far from the empty culture center, masked men in uniforms were handing out inspirational flyers. "No Peace with the Murderers of our Children," reads one. Another says, "Resist to the Death, Allah Is with You."
But very few passers-by took one of the leaflets. The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, which becomes worse by the day, seemed on Thursday not to be driving Palestinians into the arms of the fanatical Hamas propagandists. "Why are you handing out paper instead of bread," a mother with her two daughters called out and hurries on.
For 14 days, Israeli bombs have been falling on the Gaza Strip -- over 700 Palestinians, many of them civilians, have already lost their lives. The Palestinians are just as tired of this war as the Israelis are. If Hamas thought they could unleash a popular uprising, they seem to have erred.
But scenes like the one above, described by a Gaza Strip resident over the phone, is just one element of a reality that is becoming ever clearer. And it is a reality that has relevance to international efforts currently being made to establish a cease-fire in the Middle East: Hamas is currently unable to speak with a single voice. Continued here...
