I’m just saying …
… if politics is the art of compromise, then today’s Republicans are not engaged in politics;
…if I knew half the stars in the commercials I see on television I might enjoy the ads more;
…if star troopers are supposed to be elite soldiers, how come they keep missing when shooting at Luke, Hans and their successors?;
… if the House of Representatives continues to be dysfunctional, President Biden should evoke President Harry S. Truman and run an aggressive campaign against the “do-nothing” Congress. Of course, that assumes Biden can channel the “Give ‘em Hell, Harry” spirit of 1948;
… if you thought there was any chance Donald Trump would be a witness in his own defense in the Stormy-Daniels-sex-scandal-falsifying-business-records trial you are not just deeply disappointed, you are extremely naive;
… if you want an explanation as to why millennials blame Israel and not Hamas, and why anti-semitism and neo-Naziism are flourishing, ascribe some of the reason to a change in cultural touchstones. Unlike Baby Boomers and the following cohort, the next two generations were not subjected to a treatise through film on the evils of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. Indeed, during the millenials’ formative years Germany and Japan were not our enemies but rather our strong partners in democracy and economic success. They were replaced as enemies by space aliens or post apocalyptic tyrants. Israel, during its first 25 years, was the underdog. Newer generations have only known Israel as a fierce and successful warrior and master over millions of Palestinians. There is no context for Israel’s struggle to survive and the repeated refusal by Palestinians to accept a two-state solution;
… if recognizing a Palestinian state, as Spain, Ireland and Norway espouse, is desired, then greater understanding of the Middle East is required. It would be a symbolic gesture, meaningless until Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad the Palestinian Authority and other Islamic entities accept Israel’s right to exist in peace and security. A non negotiable condition for any Palestinian state is recognition of Israel in secure boundaries. In 1948 Israel accepted partition of the British mandate into a Jewish state and an Arab state. Arab states and their people rejected Israel, have done so repeatedly over the ensuing decades and subsequently have lost wars and territory. The path to peace in Gaza requires Hamas to renounce violence against Israel and Jews. Will it recognize Israel’s right to exist? How would any such promises be monitored and enforced? Remember, the Taliban promised to be more tolerant toward women once it reclaimed governance of Afghanistan. How’s that working out? Not as promised. Why would anyone expect Hamas to be any more compliant with terms of a cease fire when it was Hamas that violated the ceasefire on October 7? Why would anyone expect Hamas to be any more democratic, have any more acceptance of democratic values than it has been since ousting Fatah in an election in Gaza 18 years ago, the only election it has sanctioned? Hamas has been awash in money from Qatar and its own businesses around the world. What makes anyone expect Hamas to use its funds to enhance the lives of Gaza residents when it has failed to do so in the past, diverting its monies into tunnel construction and rocket making?
… those voters who say they have abandoned President Biden because of his handling of the Israeli-Gaza war surely should not expect Donald Trump would be more even-handed and sympathetic to the Palestinian cause. Trump has denounced Biden for withholding arms shipments to Israel. And those who believe Trump would stop the flow of migrants, asylum seekers and refugees across our southern border, they do not realize that even with all the mayhem Trump would bring to America and its border, the U.S. still is better than other countries, thus the desire by the desperate to risk all to come here.
