Israel: Second Guessing

Israelis learned faster than their American cousins that invasion cheerleading is different from critical and difficult thought.

After enjoying four weeks of unwavering public support, Mr Olmert’s Government woke up to an unprecedented barrage of criticism today for its handling of the war in Lebanon. One headline in the Haaretz newspaper declared: “Olmert must go”

Olmert comes under fire for Lebanon failures

Olmert must swallow his pride, adopt UN resolution

Israel, the Middle East and the World are in a set of overlapping serious situations. Like watching the slow drip drip of glaciers in Greenland and the Antartic and knowing a catastrophe is coming, so we hear the increasing volume of all the players in the war zones, from Nashrallah to Olmert to Bush to Blair, we know of the increasing shipments of arms, we hear the increasing lamantations for OUR dead and dismissal of the deaths of the-criminals-over-there, we know that stench is being wrapped in the leaves of righteousness, that the Good Book is being intoned with all the blood glittering phrases and know, as with the melting ice, that humans could stop all this. We know from looking at the past that those once tearing out each others throats are now allies and friends, trading partners, tourists in old war zones. It seems possible that we could skip the children’s limbs being tossed into the jaws of stupidity in payment for today’s reconciliation.