Instahoglets Sunday

By Cernig

Playing catch up with some stuff.

- The Gaza Ceasefire is bilaterally unilateral. How does it feel to lose two wars in a row? And how come Israel gets to demand Hamas must be disarmed but its own reward for breaking the truce and launching an attack that killed or wounded thousands is US troops and shiploads of US weapons?

- When the spin doesn't work - National Press Club turns off microphones of reporters questioning Israeli foreign minister.

- Mookie al-Sadr and his movement still aren't dead despite dozens of premature obituaries written by rightwing fans of the occupation. And while David Ignatius tries to put lipstick on a pig, Ryan Crocker knows a US victory worth the name isn't attainable in Iraq: "Not this year, not in five years, maybe not in 10 years."

- It's simple. Binding US law requires prosecution for those who authorize torture. Those who have the power but who won't prosecute become criminally complicit.

- "We have not yet hit the third week of the New Year, or even the first minute of the new administration, and yet we have a nominee for Most Ridiculous Blog Post about the Obama Administration of the Year and it comes from Stop the ACLU, and is entitled Could Obama Be Planning a Chavez?."

- Eastern Europe's spring of discontent? "Riots and street battles are set to spread through Bulgaria, Romania and the Baltic states as inflation, unemployment and racism fuel tension."

- SNL thinks torture is Teh Funny. I'll write a skit for them - SNL is so old, doddery and incontinent that euthanasia is the only humane option.

Comments

[arshi]

what a callous existence she must lead. and its very cool that she was called a terrorist to her face like that. its the least she deserves.

Edited for language. Keep it clean, please. - C

[Peter G.]

In a previous comment I mentioned that a unilateral ceasefire and withdrawal by Israel would be perceived as a loss along the lines of the 2006 debacle. Hamas showed some smarts here in effectively joining in the "unilateral" ceasefire. Had they continued to fire rockets it would not have helped their cause. Of course, it could be that they're just out of munitions and require replenishment. A ceasefire is a ceasefire whatever the reason and it can't hurt. Hamas should probably not have demanded a withdrawal of Israeli forces since Israel will look weak if they comply. They probably would have disengaged from this mess without the threat. All Hamas accomplished with that demand is to ensure that Israel won't withdraw in a week. Sadly Hamas's requirement that all the checkpoints be opened is unlikely to be gratified. We'll have to wait and see if the Obama administration can bring any new iniatives to bear on this mess.

[Steven Taylor]

I have to stand corrected on that Stop the ACLU post--it was from 10/28/08--I just came across if today, and I simply assumed it was from this month. So, they are ineligible for the 2009 award! :)

[Dave Anderson]

Steven, it's certainly a top contender for the 2008 one though.

Regards, C

[SRW1]

Because I tend to agree with a lot of what you write, it sort of makes me queasy to see you call Al-Sadr 'Mookie'. Unless I am wrong, that name originated from right-wing blogs, at least it is used an awful lot there and it is clearly meant in a derogatory manner. Continuously belittling someone easily slips into underestimating him/her, and whatever one might think of Al-Sadr, that may be a big mistake.

[Peter G.]

Time for a light crow lunch. I would have bet heavily that Israel would not pull out of Gaza quickly because Hamas demanded they should. Despite Israeli military spokesman Avital Leibovich's statement that "Hamas will not give Israel a deadline to pull out its troops" it appears that they are doing just that. Who knew that common sense could prevail?