THE "POWELL DOCTRINE" VERSUS "PROPORTIONALITY"

Scowcroftians have long favored the use of American military force only when the Powell Doctrine can be applied.

Powell - a disciple of Scowcroft - articulated this post-Vietnam policy as simply this: that no US military forces should be used except when there's popular support and unless they're applied in overwhelming numbers, and only if there's an exit strategy.

I think this "doctrine" is bullshit; sometimes you have to fight back - mount a counter-offensive before you can cover all the points in the doctrine. FDR didn't use the Powell Doctrine, and he wouldn't have had it been around back then. And GW Bush ignored it when he counter-attacked Afghanistan after 9/11.

But many MANY heavy-weights in foreign policy and military affairs regard the Powell Doctrine very highly and use it as the ultimate test - the Occam's Razor, if you will - to determine if the use military force is wise.

MOST SIMPLY RESTATED:

• use overwhelming force
• attack only after gaining popular support
• and have an exit strategy

[ASIDE: Tom Friedman referred to the Powell Doctrine this way - (he was referring to a deficit-increasing stimulus package last November): "I am worried about a deficit, but I'm much more worried about another d-word, and that's depression. I think we need not only a bailout, I think we need, to put it in Colin Powell terms, overwhelming force."]

Well, Many of the very same pundits who laud the Powell Doctrine are currently berating Israel because they say that Israel's counter-attack against Hamas is DISPROPORTIONATE.

And they criticize Israel's counter-attack despite the fact that the Olmert Government waited and waited and WAITED before counter-attacking and even pleaded with Hamas to renew the truce - EVEN THOUGH AN OVERWHELMING PERCENTAGE OF PUBLIC OPINION HAD FOR A LONG TIME DEMANDED A COUNTER-ATTACK TO WHAT HAD BEEN NEARLY 7200 UNANSWERED ROCKET ATTACKS BY HAMAS ON ISRAEL.

And they criticize Israel for Israel's goal: wanting to so severely degrade Hamas's command structure and military assets and smuggling networks as to make it impossible for them to threaten Israel for several years.

Er, um... it seems plain to me that all Israel is doing now is APPLYING KEY ASPECTS OF THE POWELL DOCTRINE, and the Weinberger Doctrine:

• Israel is using overwhelming force
• Israel is attacking only after gaining popular support
• and Israel has an exit strategy

• THEREFORE: Scowcroftians - and everyone else criticizing Israel's counter-attack as "disproportionate" - should STFU.

ISRAEL - AFTER ABSORBING 7200 ROCKET ATTACKS AND PLEADING FOR A CONTINUATION OF A MEANINGFUL CEASE-FIRE - IS MERELY USING OVERWHELMING FORCE.

IT'S ONLY WHAT ALL OTHER NATIONS WOULD DO.

HOLDING ISRAEL TO A DIFFERENT STANDARD THAN ALL OTHER NATIONS IS NOT ANTI-ZIONISM; IT'S ANTISEMITISM.