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ARTICLE: "To Fuel Quest, Hezbollah Harnesses Youth Piety," by Robert F. Worth, New York Times, 21 November 2008.
The vehicle model is totally recognizable: the Boy Scouts.
Go back and see when the Scouts were started in the U.S. and why: leaders feared American boys were losing essential skill sets that would later prove usable in subsequent military experience.
Actually, that's the same reason why the NRA was started (shooting skills).
Hezbollah wants to guarantee its feeder lines, but don't kid yourself, they're also trying to stem any loss of skills as young people turn to Western-style pursuits that don't add up sufficiently in their struggle's equation.
It is a very comprehensive effort, including a network of schools, summer camps, field trips, charity work--all very Boy Scout-ish. Plus, there's big efforts to recruit and train up girls too.
Point: the bearded warrior who makes up Hezbollah's core, which is not that large, is not the prototypical recruit. Their goal with a lot of this recruiting is to go after professionals who have other options.
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