Sunday, December 13, 2009

Comparing Parades: Israel vs. Iran

Michael Zebulon has written an article for American Thinker on Tractors.
He kind of sets the tone with this opening:
In unmistakably peace-loving Tehran, Western observers have beheld street processions of missiles - conspicuously emblazoned with clearly stenciled words evoking all the charm and grace of a greeting card:  "To Jerusalem."
The Zebulon is getting at is not so much tractors as it is about parades...and tractors...and Israel, on Yom Yerushalayim:


...In most countries, it's safe to say that parades celebrating significant military victories (or even other accomplishments of comparable dimension) are characterized by, what? -- fireworks, brass bands, baton-twirling majorettes? -- plus the obligatory row-upon-row of uniformed marching soldiers? -- and the tanks, the floats, the flags [good God, the flags; flags out the wazoo, right?] -- not to be overlooking the half-tracks, the armored personnel carriers, maybe a motorized howitzer or three. . . . the whole shootin' match (to coin a phrase), yes?  And that's all fine; everything in its place, you know.

In Israel?  Tractors.

No tanks, no brass bands.  Tractors.

. . . ("Tractors"?)
Tractors.

. . . . hundreds upon hundreds of. . . . tractors -- each taking its turn, one at a time, snaking its way down the long and winding parade route, and each to the vigorous, sustained applause and ardent, delighted cheering of the holiday crowds. . . .

In that procession could be viewed representative units of every single make, model and year of every kind of tractor that has ever been employed to till and tend the blessed soil of the Land of Israel for the past 150 years -- including even a few horse-augmented, hybrid-automotive, contraptions dating back to. . . . the decade before our own War-Between-the-States-each-and-every vehicle neatly and prominently marked by its own sign designating the specific year, make, model name and code number, as well as the area of the Land where it was used, or is still in use, to this very day. . . .

Every one of those tractors had been restored (if necessary) to operating condition:  was fully tuned up and traversing the entire length of the parade route under its own power.

And that's my report on Israeli militarism -- as related four decades after an old lady answered a question about her mean, bad-assed, Israeli compatriots, who might one day find themselves getting off on the thrills, chills and spills of war-making. . . .

Yeah-bloodthirsty bunch, for sure; you betcha.
Those who have lived or studied in Israel will not be surprised.
Those who know nothing but how to criticize Israel will search for a deeper, more diabolical, meaning.

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