so now his previous friends are his enemies...and his political enemies are now his friends...read that Bob Woodward praised him to high heaven recently....who knew??
Israel has got the US whipped....we are their b****, we are on a leash, we wimper when they speak, we demand things with no repurcussions or authority to enforce those demands, etc. etc. etc. . Case in point....Bush, Powell demands Sharon withdrawal. Well, how the hell can you demand anything if you cannot back up what you say? When asked if the US might apply sanctions to Israel, the answer was a flat out "no". The response was were a democracy and their a democracy so we work things out through dialogue and discussions. Bush, Powell demands don't mean jack squat without repurcussions. They might as well be on a leash. Sharon owns us and this guy is a war criminal that should be tried by the Hague tribunal over his war crimes in 1980...not to mention the way they go about taking care of militants today with basically little regard for civilian life or those who are in the way. The US will succumb to anything Israel wants because they are the only true interest and democracy the US has in the ME. It's amazing how foolish and stupid our own administration can look with their political talk and that's all it is....a bunch of talk. It doesn't mean anything. They green light an invasion by saying "we understand Israel has a right to protect itself" which basically means they can do whatever they want. When we "demand that Israel withdraw now" we basically mean when you feel like your mission is complete...then withdraw as you see fit. It's no wonder the Arab world hates us so much. We are so one-sided it's not even funny. I don't know what law or rule said we had to be Israel's b****es but we are...there is no doubt about that. Then, their soldiers turn around and criticize our unwavering support. Unbelievable. I think the future looks like crap. How many Arabs can we turn against us? War against terror? We just created several million of them in the last month alone. It's a good thing they don't have any technology or we would be in WW III by now. Their governments can barely contain their own peoples' hatred. We're all doomed...terror isn't going away any time soon. Whereever there is hatred...there are seeds for more terrorism. I think we are going to get hit again many times. God help us all and God help our children's future. Surf
Israel is right. George W. Bush is completely useless. He's been completely disengaged in the Middle East until recent events FORCED him to get engaged. Why? Because he wants to invade Iraq, and nobody was paying attention to him because the West Bank was going nuts. On top of that, the guy declares a "war on terrorism" yet when Israel is taking care of terrorists that kill innocent Israelis on a daily basis, he demands that they stop. We are now seeing the real George W. Bush. He's great at sabre-rattling, and coining tough phrases like "axis of evil", but when the sh*t hits the fan, he hides under the bed.
but when the sh*t hits the fan, he hides under the bed. Yup, like after September 11th. He sure botched handling that one.
Afghanistan was a total failure right? That was only step 1, do you expect us to nuke the world overnight or something? Bush has told everyone from day 1 that we need to have patience. He hasn't ran from jacksh*t and I think he has done a great job. BTW, what is your suggestion to the Middle East? What would you do? Bush is doing the best he can without alienating both sides. I think Israel is getting out of line, but we have to try peacful means of negotiation first. They are one of our strongest allies. We can't just attack them because they won't pull out of an area that is full of people who want to kill them.
He brought the country together, and bombed the crap out of Afghanistan. Outside of that, what did he do?
Give the Palestinians their homeland on the West Bank, and then build a wall between Israel and the Palestinian Homeland that makes the Berlin Wall look like a curb on a residential street.
Not sure where to start here... Surfguy -- the world has always dealt with violence...bloody, awful violence. death and war is no different today than it was years ago. i'd hate to live with your perspective on this issue. Israel has the US whipped because we won't issue sanctions against them?? are you serious??? they're our ally!! they've supported us time and time again, and right now they believe they're fighting for their own survival. We recognize that...we also recognize we have to be diplomatic in this whole mess. You can't issue sanctions against your only ally in the most unstable region on the planet...but you can't turn a blind eye like they're doing nothing wrong, either (for fear of making Arab nations even madder than they are at you.) I mean...Bush previously took criticism for being too far aligned with Israel...now he's taking heat for denouncing Israeli aggression. So which is it?? It just depends on who you talk to. Rocketman Tex -- completely disengaged in the ME??? you do realize before 9/11 he was the first US president to call for the creation of a Palestinian state, right?? that was the policy of the administration pre-9/11. the whole being attacked thing kinda sidetracked the administration, in case you missed it. He is not saying he disagrees with Israel fighting terrorism...he's disagreeing with the measures and methods they're using in that fight. You may not see the distinction, but many people do. I honestly have no clue what you mean when you say he hides under the bed...I see no evidence for that. He's got Powell in the ME now...he's been dealing with terrorism domestically...he's been managing a war in Afghanistan...making plans for fighting terrorism elsewhere...etc. His cup is one I would not be willing to drink from...he's got the toughest job in the world at a very tough time.
I've heard a couple of radio reports recently that have talked about an increasing anti-Israel backlash in the US. There was one report that said that some are suggesting that members of the administration in Washington are losing their patience for the Israeli's in more ways than one. Sharon and members of his cabinet have recently had phone calls and meetings with US administration members including Powell and Bush that have been "tense" at best. One report said that a discussion between a US administration member and an Isareli cabinet person decended into a shouting match. There have also been reports that some conservatives who have never held a high opinion of Israel and feel we have given them too much over the years are backsliding against them now as well. Bottom line is the situation is becoming a mess. Israel is looking like a bunch of jack-booted thugs who could give a **** about what the rest of the world thinks. Amazing that someone as screwed up as Arafat has actually gained SYMPATHY from around the world because of the way his people have been treated. Frankly, it's about time for them both to get slapped down once and for all. Surfguy: Why all the doom and gloom? Cheer up, man. To quote a lyric I like: Some say we're all coming to an end. Some fool themselves with thoughts of new beginnings. I don't buy it. It's just to clean. We're in between. Life is messy - always has been, always will. But, we gotta stay positive.
Here are some facts... Under dubya we will have the largest increase in defense spending in 20 years. The defense budget will be 400 Billion dollars!!! and most conservatives will go along with it, so they don't look "soft on terrorism"!! I'm at a loss for words.
you understand why this is, right?? you understand that Clinton spent a ton of existing weapons on days where people testified in hearings related to his impeachment?? this is particularly true of cruise missiles. We are in the midst of a war and we are unprepared for it from a buildup perspective...you're telling half the story when you talk about the buildup...the questions become, how many of our weapons were previously spent without being replaced, and what do we need to prosecute the war against terrorism effectively. You can't talk in a bubble and simply say, "we're spending this much...and it just sounds like too much!!" That's not giving a full and accurate picture of the situation.
