Turn Back the Clock on Lebanon

This is a pretty sad story of how a group like Hezbollah can bring what was a country on the rise right back to its chaotic years just like that.

Days before the violence erupted, newspapers had been full of gleeful predictions of a prosperous summer tourism season. But for the past six days, the headlines have told of fresh devastation.

Tourists from Europe and the Gulf — who just a week ago thronged the streets, Parisian boutiques and restaurants — are fleeing. Hotels that boasted almost full occupancy now are almost empty.

After reading about all of the runup to their elections (and them kicking Syria out) Lebanon seemed like a potential tourist destination. Now it will be years before that industry gets back on track. I think Lebanon needs to take a hard line on Hezbollah and maybe even go so far as to ban the organization from its government.