When the Lebanese Christian leader Pierre Gemayel was shot to death in his car on Tuesday, I was a few blocks away in southern Beirut doing a documentary with a FOX News crew. We were filming in the heart of Hezbollah territory. Just a few blocks separated us from the Christian community where Gemayel was killed. When we got word of the murder, we quickly packed up and pulled out since we thought the Christians might be coming in to target Hezbollah, who they blamed for the Gemayel murder.
What struck us as we drove back to our hotel was how close together all these warring neighborhoods are. In Beirut, short distances divide fanatics who want to kill each other. So far, the Gemayel murder hasn't rekindled a civil war in Lebanon. But what may develop in Beirut has already happened in Iraq. Terrorists who were intent on creating a civil war are pretty close to their goal. Hundreds are killed each week there, very often with our troops caught in the middle.
Since I came back from Lebanon on Wednesday, I was struck with a special feeling of Thanksgiving this week. We have a mix of religions and ethnicities in the States every bit as diverse as those in Beirut and Iraq, but we all get along pretty well. Sure, we have immigration problems. Yes, we can get worked up about racial slurs used by a comedian to attack hecklers. But compared to what happens in the Middle East, these divisions are small potatoes. The way all our religious and ethnic groups get along is nothing short of a miracle. It just seems normal to most of us because we don't know any different. But what seems normal here is really pretty unusual in the world today. It's worth holding on to, even thanking God for.
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David Asman is the host of "Forbes on FOX" which airs on the FOX News Channel, Saturdays at 11 a.m. ET.
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