Call it spring fever or another minute down toward the impending end of the world, but two events out of the Middle East have me waxing optimistic today.
First, Nancy Pelosi's visit to Syria, predictably poo-pooed by W and the Right, has opened the door for dialogue with this country which is tetering dangerously close toward becoming another Iran for us. And let's face it, with our military tapped out on Operation Iraqi Freedom, we need more friends than enemies anywhere in the world.
And to be clear, Ms. Pelosi didn't go to Syria to wrap an Hermes scarf around her head and flash her gorgeous legs at the world. Items on her agenda included:
-- Asking Syria to distance itself from Iran
-- Condemning Syria's support of Hamas and Hezbollah
-- Opening the door for dialogue between Syria and Israel
Of course, President shoot-em-all-and-let-God-sort-em-out couldn't care less about any sort of diplomatic progress in the Middle East. His answer, much to the relief of his friends in the defense sector, is to throw more money at the disaster that is Operation Iraqi Freedom.
But I digress...
The second double-take comes from Iran, whose President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced that his country would release 15 British sailors and marines captured at sea in March. The unabashedly anti-U.S. and anti-Israel head of state called the marines' release a "gift" to the British people.
And what a gift...how many of us were expecting to see the video of those poor marines being decapitated? I know that's not necessarily an Iranian practice, but things weren't looking so promising for a while.
So on an April day when parts of this country were being battered by snow and hail in the middle of "spring," we see that it's quite possible that, just like Mother Nature, man is capable of some doozies -- pleasant and not -- all surprising just the same.
Nevermind that it's NOT PELOSI'S JOB. She gave Bush the finger and that's all you care about. You don't mention how Syria's been playing her as a useful idiot either just like Bill Nelson.
ReplyDeleteOf course, President shoot-em-all-and-let-God-sort-em-out couldn't care less about any sort of diplomatic progress in the Middle East.
And that's based on what, exactly?
His answer, much to the relief of his friends in the defense sector,
Such as...? Oh you mean DiFi's husband? I would doubt that he's a one of Bush's friends.
is to throw more money at the disaster that is Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Throwing money at problems is the liberal way of doing business. If you're so fucking worried about the money, where's your condemnation of the libs tacking on almost $24 BILLION to the spending bill?
And what a gift...
The liberal drive-by media will attribute it to Nancy Useless Idiot's visit to Syria.
how many of us were expecting to see the video of those poor marines being decapitated?
More than likely, just you libs who get off on that sort of thing. Showing US soldiers shot and how to shoot down our helicopters on CNN, that's just your sort of pornography.
I know this is just another of your drive-by posts that you lack the gonads to reply to, but if you get around to it, I'd really like you to answer my question.
Mahmoud's "Gift"
ReplyDeleteI am trying to figure out why Democrats are so excited at the prospect of a major US official going to Damascus to meet with Assad. Is it to reopen relations with a dictator who assasinates his political rival? Is it to lend crediblity to a regime who is in Lebanon only to destroy its Democracy and take it over? Or how about its unabashed support for Hezbollah - whose core goal is to eliminate Israel - and openly wished all Jews were in Israel so they could get rid of us all in one fell swoop? What Syria - and the rest of the world just learned - is that if you are good, we're an ally. If you're somewhere in the middle, we won't pay attention. But if you're an absolute threat to humanity on every level, Nancy Pelosi will come over for a photo op and shop in Damascus. One more thing, Ms. Pelosi may have "condemned" Assad all you want...do you think he gave the slightest shit? Do you think he thought for a moment that the condemnation was anything but an extension to the photo op tour she was having?
ReplyDeleteI don't agree with Bush on a lot, but he once (and not often) said something very poignant. "When the UN says SOMETHING, does it mean ANYTHING?" Now that is an important question. Maybe Pelosi should but their viscous "condemnations" to rest and actually DO something - like isolate Assad's terrorist regime and make it clear that they are not to have diplomatic ties with ANY western country until they stop trying to DESTROY it. Sound fair? It does to me.
Waaaay back, in the first century, one Longinus, giving advice to a writing student, told him to put his writing away for a year or so and then re-read it; if it still made sense, then it should be published.
ReplyDeleteMy problem, and I'm happy to share the ownership of it with so many, is that blogging and posting and responding demand a speed which bodes ill for thoughtful, not to mention well-edited, prose.
Somehow I missed the photo of the Speaker of the House giving the President the finger, or the news story which delineates just exactly how Syria's been playing her as a useful idiot. These comments make for wonderful metaphors and conjure terrific imagery, but I wonder about the substance underscoring the diction.
(OK, that doesn't make much sense. Shame on me.)
Um...we have diplomatic relations with Syria. Imad Mustafa is the name of the Syrian ambassador to the United States. Are there other relations to open?
(vicious) ("who" for people; "which" for non-human entities: regime which)
Agape. (Really.)
Guys, I keep screwing this up, but if this Belgravia Dispatch link doesn't work, you might go directly to Belgravia Dispatch, which has a quote from Haaretz which mentions the Pelosi trip.
ReplyDeleteHere's the "money quote:" The speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, is scheduled to meet with Syrian President Bashar Assad in Damascus today, and will deliver a message of calm from Israel.
Politics and diplomacy--seldom are they easily understood by those of us on the sidelines.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteGene -
ReplyDeleteThanks for the grammar lesson - but I wouldn't be talking about "substance" when telling me that a regime is a "which" rather than a "Who" is your core point.
Congratulations. Terrific point. You've added nothing to the discussion
and will deliver a message of calm from Israel.
ReplyDeletePolitics and diplomacy--seldom are they easily understood by those of us on the sidelines.
Especially when you ignore the fact that Israel denies sending any "message of calm".
This is a link to a NYTimes story published on April 4, and here's a relative quote: "Mr. Olmert’s office issued a clarification of his message, insisting that, “although Israel is interested in peace with Syria, that country continues to be part of the axis of evil and a force that encourages terror in the entire Middle East.”
ReplyDeleteIt's easy to interpret the quote as saying there is a message but characterizing it as "of calm" is not precise.
So, some news accounts describing Mr. Olmert's response use "denial" in some form, others use "clarify."
It's the continuing conundrum of diction and controlling the way a message is received and interpreted.
Gene -
ReplyDeleteI am not sure it's a matter of diction. In fact, I think that has little do with it. I would guess that Israel is fairly pissed off that Pelosi took it upon herself to complete bungle a message from Israel with perhaps its worst enemy - outside of the PA - in the world. An enemy that disseminates the most disgusting anti-semitic bile about Jews, finances terrorist organizations that function to kill as many Jews as possible and eliminate Israel off the map, and are a living affront to freedom and personal destiny. I would doubt it's a matter of "clarification" either. If anything, Olmert is holding back how pissed he is because the U.S. is a major ally. Either way, I think your point on "diction" is wearing a bit thin...don't you think?
When I worked for American Express in the 80s and 90s, I remember the big execs telling us that Visa and Mastercard need not be addressed because the Amex card was a "charge" card and not a "credit" card. These "other cards" were not as prestigious as the Amex card so the best marketing strategy was to ignore them and they would go away. Instead, they gained phenomenal market share.
ReplyDeleteI know this analogy is a bit out there, but the US needs to keep their enemies closer through dialog instead of pretending they don't exist and refusing to recognize them. Although Pelosi's reasons for going to Syria are undoutedly politically motivated and her intentions questionable, the concept is a good one in my opinion.
For example, if Iran is such a problem for us, why aren't we talking instead of screwing up visas so that the President of Iran couldn't attend a U.N. meeting? Couldn't someone in the White House solve that little problem if they wanted to? Sure, but they chose to marginalize Ahmadinejad instead.
So why are we surprised that Iran is interested in building up their arsenal and refusing to comply with US requests when they see death and destruction across their borders every day. I'm not a fan of the Middle East, but can you blame them for wanting to defend themselves against their perceived enemy? Let's keep that dialog closed. Maybe we can blow up Iran too. Let's all brush the dust off our old "Bomb Iran" bumper stickers. It's disgusting that in this day and age, we can develop cures for diseases and build space shuttles, but we can't solve problems without killing each other. Sure, that sounds like liberal bullshit but if you really think about it quietly for about 5 minutes, it's really pretty mind-blowing.
It's the continuing conundrum of diction and controlling the way a message is received and interpreted.
ReplyDeleteNo matter how much you polish a turd, it's still a turd. Pelosi misrepresented what Olmert had said, most likely blatantly.
I know this analogy is a bit out there, but the US needs to keep their enemies closer through dialog instead of pretending they don't exist and refusing to recognize them.
ReplyDeleteIt's absurd to buy into the liberal lying point that Bush ignores the leaders of other countries. Just because it doesn't get covered on CNN doesn't mean it didn't happen. The administration has had dialog with Syria many times over the years. Guess what? Assad is still a dick. Warren Christopher, lord BJ's DOS Sec. made 22 visits to Demascus. Guess what? It didn't make a lick of difference. Assad is still a dick.
Looks like James doesn't give a shit about a liberal war profiteer. Not going to touch that with a 10' dildo, are you?
ReplyDeleteGay Conservative:
ReplyDeleteJust out of curiosity, do you have a direct line to the White House or do you just watch CNN and read the papers like me?