Israel Uses a Sledgehammer to Kill a Mosquito: Major Disaster in the Making and the Bush Administration is Acting as the Israeli "Yes-Man."

Missiles and rockets are flying in both directions over the Israeli/Lebanese border as Hezbollah and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) continue to mix it up.

One has to wonder why the Israelis targeted a power plant in Gaza and why the fledgling democratic Lebanese government has been targeted by Israeli bombs and missiles. Israel knows where Hezbollah is firing their rockets from, and they also know where Hamas is doing it from as well. Yet Israeli bombs and missiles are hitting civilian targets as well as legitimate terrorist targets in both Gaza and in Lebanon.

By the way, the power plant that was destroyed in Gaza was insured....by a U.S. government agency. So the U.S. taxpayer will be replacing the plant that Israel wrecked.

And why isn't the U.S. offering alternative U.N. Security Council resolutions to the ones that have been proposed so far? Lebanon is asking for a cease-fire, which the Israelis and the U.S. both rejected. What does Lebanon have to do, offer to unconditionally surrender to beg Israel to stop targeting civilian assets?

Israel does have a right to defend itself, but not to punish noncombatant civilians who have nothing to do with Israel's missing soldiers. Bombing civilian airports, power plants, bridges, and roads to hurt Hezbollah actually hurts ordinary civilians more.

Remember, Israel has invaded a fledgling democracy that is still struggling to emerge from the shadow of Syria. This is a country that was hailed only a few short months ago as a shining example of the Lebanese people choosing democracy over foreign military occupation. Yet President Bush quickly turned on Lebanon to support Israel's right to self-defense. This could be a very costly decision.

The weak Lebanese government may be toppled by this war launched by Israel. What's going to replace it? Has President Bush or the Israeli Prime Minister considered that?

Israel should limit itself to fighting Hezbollah and Hamas, and the U.S. should be insisting on that point instead of handing the Israelis a blank check and a permission slip to do what it wants in the name of self-defense.