Sunday January 8, 2006

I've Been Thinking:

Israel and the United States have a big brother/little brother relationship. In almost every sphere, the US is the big brother, Israel the little brother. Not so in the sphere of world terror.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was the perfect partner for the United States in confronting the world wide threat of terror. Even as the Israeli prime minister lies in Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem this essential dimension of his leadership must be emphasized. Actually, from Sharon's point of view it was Bush who became partner, not the other way around.

Sharon and Israel saw terror as a world threat way before 9-11.
Sharon and Israel adopted a philosophy of zero tolerance before most American leaders had even heard the name Osama bin Laden. Sharon and Israel are the architects who constructed the lingo, the attitude and the operational style that the United States used in Afghanistan and in Iraq. Israel created the model, the United States built upon it.

Sharon and Bush saw eye to eye on the threat of terror. There are only a few leaders in the world that did not equivocate when it came to terror. It was a bond the two shared.

Ariel Sharon was the older, more experienced coach, tutoring his protege in the intricacies of the world in which terrorists live. George Bush, the younger, stronger, faster athlete recognized the threat, mastered the new techniques and then directly confronted the terror.

A good coach takes pride in the achievements of his star athlete.