Why Obama Is Ignoring Europe

I'm too fucking lazy to grab all the links, but it ain't only Europe.

Try Russia, China, Korea, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Palestine, Japan... ad nauseam.

Any instances where Obama has improved US relationships with foreign countries after Shrub's horrible administration he's pretty much pissed away by now.

There's an old (really) routine by Mort Sahl where he says the President is standing before a globe with all the trouble spots colored black. He continues, "So the President is standing in front of this black globe..."

Its all black out there, folks.

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Note: Headline links to source.

Israeli military announces plan to uproot 440 olive trees from Naalin village

Olive tree
If what Israel is doing to the Palestinians doesn't amount to genocide and terrorism then I have no idea what those words mean.

In a town that has become the forefront of the Palestinian non-violent resistance to the Israeli annexation Wall, the Palestinian residents of Naalin received notice today that the Israeli military plans to uproot hundreds of olive trees - the only source of revenue for most villagers.

Note: Headline links to source.

Must read IMHO

Is there any country outside a handful America is not supplying with munitions?

So, what does this all mean for US policy? If, as I'm suggesting, we can't effectively prop up Fatah by such means as military aid, are we doomed to sit this one out and just hope that Hamas doesn't win? No, definitely not. It's actually quite simple: when it comes to strengthening Palestinian moderates, the best approach is to show that the path of moderation and dialogue actually brings results. That means, for instance, that the Bush administration should be involved in brokering a deal between Olmert and Abbas that, upon completion, leads to Israeli withdrawals from some Palestinian territories, the closing down of certain checkpoints, and other positive outcomes.

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Secret memo said to prove Israel knew occupation was illegal

Now this is something I doubt will get much attention from the MSM unless someone can find a way to discredit it. Which should prove rather difficult considering the guy who wrote the memo is still alive and says he still believes what he wrote.

A secret memo proves that the Israeli government knew that its occupation of Palestinian land was illegal after it won the Six Day War in 1967, a British newspaper reported Saturday.

Theodor Meron, who wrote the memo as the Israeli foreign ministry's legal advisor at the time, said "I believe I would have given the same opinion today," according to The Independent newspaper.

With Israel now celebrating the 40th anniversary of the war, the 76-year-old Meron, who went on to become a leading international jurist, challenges Israel's long-held argument that settlements do not violate international law.

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US probe uncovers terror financing by Arab Bank: report

And the point is?

US investigators have uncovered evidence that Arab Bank, one of the largest in the Middle East, has channeled tens of millions of dollars from wealthy Saudi Arabians to Palestinian groups that finance suicide bombers and their families, The Los Angeles Times reported on its website Saturday.

I ask because further down in the story is this.

In 2005, the bank agreed to pay the federal government 24 million dollars in fines for violating US laws aimed at preventing terrorist financing, according to the report.

This, folks, is 2007 in case you've forgotten. Are these nefarious activities still happening? Is this information of any use at all in the fight against terrorists? Is anyone placing sanctions on the people and organizations involved?

Twenty four million? Big fucking deal. Its probably reimbursable and little more than pocket change. It takes $60 million more than that to buy one F-15 fighter plane.

Each F-15 cost [Israel] approximately $84 million.

From what I can gather, Saudi Arabia has at least 72 F-15s. I apologize, but I don't have more accurate military hardware info.

So who's kidding who here? Just asking.

Addendum: I realized I'd left this post a little open-ended. I do not mean to imply the Saudi government is behind this financing. I only referred to the F-15s to put the $24 million in perspective. The financing seems to be coming from private individuals only. Sorry if it appeared otherwise.

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Must Read IMHO

It is an article on what 'Israel's right to exist' means to Palestinians. Via Anything They Say.

The article is very informative and for those who enjoy precise language, and politicians do when it suits their purpose, it is a great education.

"Recognizing Israel's right to exist," the actual demand being made of Hamas and Palestinians, is in an entirely different league. This formulation does not address diplomatic formalities or a simple acceptance of present realities. It calls for a moral judgment.

There is an enormous difference between "recognizing Israel's existence" and "recognizing Israel's right to exist." From a Palestinian perspective, the difference is in the same league as the difference between asking a Jew to acknowledge that the Holocaust happened and asking him to concede that the Holocaust was morally justified. For Palestinians to acknowledge the occurrence of the Nakba – the expulsion of the great majority of Palestinians from their homeland between 1947 and 1949 – is one thing. For them to publicly concede that it was "right" for the Nakba to have happened would be something else entirely. For the Jewish and Palestinian peoples, the Holocaust and the Nakba, respectively, represent catastrophes and injustices on an unimaginable scale that can neither be forgotten nor forgiven.

To demand that Palestinians recognize "Israel's right to exist" is to demand that a people who have been treated as subhumans unworthy of basic human rights publicly proclaim that they are subhumans. It would imply Palestinians' acceptance that they deserve what has been done and continues to be done to them.

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