Spoken Like a True Neo-Con

Ok. So I'm tired of hearing Americans talk about the U.S. 'forcing' OUR brand of democracy on Iraq. (Can you "force democracy"? Isn't that an oxymoron, or something?)

Here's what Walid Jumblatt, the leader of the Progressive Socialist Party in Lebanon, had to say about the recent events in Iraq, in an interview with the Washington Post:

"It's strange for me to say it, but this process of change has started because of the American invasion of Iraq," explains Jumblatt. "I was cynical about Iraq. But when I saw the Iraqi people voting three weeks ago, 8 million of them, it was the start of a new Arab world." Jumblatt says this spark of democratic revolt is spreading. "The Syrian people, the Egyptian people, all say that something is changing. The Berlin Wall has fallen. We can see it."

You can read the whole article here at washingtonpost.com.

The reason that these remarks are strange coming from Jumblatt is that he has been an outspoken critic of the U.S. Here are some excerpts from an article at FrontPageMagazine.com by Steven Stalinsky.

This is significant because Jumblatt is known for his vehement anti-American statements and antagonistic stance toward the U.S. On November, 19, 2003, it was reported that the State Department cancelled Jumblatt’s diplomatic visa following revelations that he expressed regret that Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz was not killed in a missile attack during a visit to Baghdad.

More recently, Jumblatt gave an interview to the Arabic London-based Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat on February 12, 2004, in which he said: “We are all happy when U.S. soldiers are killed [in Iraq] week in and week out. The killing of U.S. soldiers in Iraq is legitimate and obligatory.” The Progressive Socialist Party leader has also said he felt “great joy” at the destruction of the U.S. Space Shuttle Columbia in 2002, because it carried an Israeli astronaut.

The Lebanese MP is also known for espousing conspiracy theories against the U.S. On April 28, 2004, he gave an interview to United Arab Emirate-based Al Arabiyya TV, in which he detailed how the U.S. was really behind September 11: “Who invented Osama bin Laden?! The Americans, the CIA invented him so they could fight the Soviets in Afghanistan together with some of the Arab regimes. Osama bin Laden is like a ghost, popping up when needed. This is my opinion.”

Jumblatt was asked “Even 9/11?” and answered: “Even 9/11…Why didn’t the sirens go off when the four hijacked planes took off?…The U.S. always needs an enemy…According to this plan or ideology of the born-again Christians who formed an alliance with Zionism – Islam is the monster, Islam is the target.”

Hmmmm....if there's hope for him, maybe there's hope for Teddy Kennedy.

For a good FAQ site on the Syria/Lebanon situation, go to The Council on Foreign Relations website.