On the Costs of National Honor

I had lunch with the guys yesterday. Granted, it wasn't a representative sample, but I was surprised at the extent of the pro-Israel sympathy with regards to its conflict in Gaza.

I took the opportunity try out some of Steve Sailer's arguments and received a respectful hearing. But one of them asked me this:

Suppose that a group of Mexicans, with some nudging and winking from their government, started hurling rockets over the border into El Paso, in an quixotic effort to recover the Southwest. What do you think would be our reaction?

A fair question! In the long run, I suspect that we would pursue some combination of defensive measures and accomodation, and in this respect I would anticipate that our political parties would play to type.

In the short run, however, even our president-elect would recognize that in the suffering of the people of El Paso our national honor was on the line. And the measures by which we would vindicate that honor would be unlike those by which Israel is now vindicating its honor in Gaza.