Friday, July 21, 2006
How to Make An Omlette: The G.W. Bush Way
Bush, the Peacemaker * Bush, the Black Vote Seeker
It was not a secret. At the beginning of the current conflict in Lebanon our president made his position clear about the right side with some platitudes about minimizing civilian casualties in Lebanon. For him the timing couldn't have been better. He probably gloated about the developments -- the opportunity to strike back at a Shiaite militant group backed by arch-enemies Iran and Syria without being directly involved in military action. An example of how to make an omelette without breaking an egg. Michael Abramowitz writes in the Post: "In Mideast Strife, Bush Sees a Step To Peace". He would....I mean "see a step to peace" in the inferno that is Lebanon. A good return for all the financial and military aid to Israel.
- When hostilities have broken out in the past, the usual U.S. response has been an immediate and public bout of diplomacy aimed at a cease-fire, in the hopes of ensuring that the crisis would not escalate. This week, however, even in the face of growing international demands, the White House has studiously avoided any hint of impatience with Israel. While making it plain it wants civilian casualties limited, the administration is also content to see the Israelis inflict the maximum damage possible on Hezbollah.
Bottom Line: Republicans Need Black Voters
He went there not quite with his hat in his hand but admitted that the Republican Party had neglected black voters. What falling poll numbers will do! Apparently, Karl Rove decided that it was time to repair the damage. After scornfully avoiding appearance at NAACP's annual convention in the past five years, yesterday President Bush read a speech before the gathering. Black voters are not going to shift their allegiance en masse because of the speech but his appearance could sway some of them. The President's support of the Voting Rights Act didn't hurt. The administration's records display an abysmal failure of programs for benefit of people at the lower end of our society, not only African Americans. That is not going to change. The courtship will not last. The Post: "I understand that many African Americans distrust my political party," Bush said at the gathering in Washington. "I want to change the relationship."
- Bush's remarks met with largely lukewarm applause from the crowd and at one point near the end of his speech, two hecklers threatened to disrupt the address. The president pressed ahead undaunted, though.Bush said the Republican Party wrote off the country's African-American vote for too long and many African-Americans also wrote off the Republican Party. "It's not good for our country," Bush said.
"The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour has warned that war crimes may have been committed in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. BBC News website World Affairs correspondent Paul Reynolds examines the issues."
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I think you are, as many on the arab side of the arab-israeli do, placing too much weight behind the idea that Washington can pull Israel's strings like a puppetmaster. The US may be Israel's "best friend", but they are not unconditionally friendly, noris Israel unconditionally friendly to eht US (google "USS Liberty" to see what I mean).
It's hard to find a harsher American critic of Israel than me; but even I have difficulty seeing how israel could have attempted to settle this (the kidnapping and rocket firing) through negotiation. I think the wantonness and level of destruction is disproportionate, but its very clearly a result of frustration felt by Israel, the frustration brought on by a totally intractable and foolish Hezbollah.
At this point Hezbollah can't give the soldiers back, because it would lose face (which makes Israel's public invasion rather stupid, they should have counterkidnapped Nasrullah's cousin or something and privately squeezed his balls, allowing Hezbollah to make a "magnanimous gesture" or something, of course of their own free will.)
What's really pathetic is that Hezbollah is, much like a drug dealing Los Angeles street gang, more concerned about "street cred" than the people it purports to defend and represent. The only reason they kidnapped two people is because Hamas kidnapped one, and they HAD to look better than Hamas. It started out as a Hezbollah-Hamas pissing contest, and unfortunately the Lebanese people are the ones taking the consequences.
As far as the USA being involved, I think not. You can't argue for the USA to get involved in the conflict in Lebanon, but not in Iraq. Either the USA is an imperial arbiter, or it isn't. I prefer it not to be.
It's hard to find a harsher American critic of Israel than me; but even I have difficulty seeing how israel could have attempted to settle this (the kidnapping and rocket firing) through negotiation. I think the wantonness and level of destruction is disproportionate, but its very clearly a result of frustration felt by Israel, the frustration brought on by a totally intractable and foolish Hezbollah.
At this point Hezbollah can't give the soldiers back, because it would lose face (which makes Israel's public invasion rather stupid, they should have counterkidnapped Nasrullah's cousin or something and privately squeezed his balls, allowing Hezbollah to make a "magnanimous gesture" or something, of course of their own free will.)
What's really pathetic is that Hezbollah is, much like a drug dealing Los Angeles street gang, more concerned about "street cred" than the people it purports to defend and represent. The only reason they kidnapped two people is because Hamas kidnapped one, and they HAD to look better than Hamas. It started out as a Hezbollah-Hamas pissing contest, and unfortunately the Lebanese people are the ones taking the consequences.
As far as the USA being involved, I think not. You can't argue for the USA to get involved in the conflict in Lebanon, but not in Iraq. Either the USA is an imperial arbiter, or it isn't. I prefer it not to be.
".......on the Arab side"? Not quite true although I often find myself on the side of the underdogs. In this instance my position is based on what you described as "wantonness and level of destruction" and compassion for the hapless civilians caught in the middle.
Thanks for your comments.
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