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Dressed in military fatigues, Kuntar wasted no time making a public statement when he visited the burial site of another terrorist, Imad Mughniyeh, killed in a car bomb in neighboring Syria. "We swear to God ... to continue on your same path and not to retreat until we achieve the same stature that Allah bestowed on you," Kuntar promised. "This is our great wish. We envy you and we will achieve it, God willing," he said.

Just a few short years ago after the assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri in 2005, it seemed Lebanon was on the verge of a democratic rebirth. Millions took to the streets to demand Syria, which had occupied the country for 30 years, withdraw its troops -- which it did. Lebanon held its first relatively free elections a few months later. But this week's public adulation of a stone-cold killer dashes any hope that Lebanon has abandoned its culture of violence.

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Linda Chavez is the author of "An Unlikely Conservative: The Transformation of an Ex-Liberal." To find out more about Linda Chavez, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2008 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.

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Note -- The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, views, and/or philosophy of GOPUSA.

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