Friday Afternoon Roundup - Wake Up To The War

- Over in Gaza, the Hamas party is going on with the execution of such crucial figures in the Fatah power structure as Abbas' guard's cook. Human rights groups are baffled as are western observers because they've spent the last decade fervently insisting that terrorists aren't evil, just misunderstood people protesting against oppression and looking for a better life. Throwing a cook off the top of a building doesn't seem to really fit well into that bigger picture. But the fun part of viewing people through an ideological lens and insisting that no matter what they do is part of the ideology, no matter how out of whack, is that you're never wrong until they shoot you.

Someone over at DailyKos had the following solution to the problem

invite the leaders of both hamas and fatah to become partners in a solar energy water distillation agricultural project using the profits to build infrastructure that enhances the quality of life for all involved.

Somehow unless the solar energy powers death rays, I doubt Fatah or Hamas will be too interested. They've got other uses for fertilizer than agribusiness.

The best proof of that is that even Westerners living and working in Gaza still don't seem to have quite grasped that Hamas and Fatah are nothing more than armed gangs with an ideological leadership at the top. Imagine the Crips and Bloods fighting for control of L.A. and that's all you've got here. It isn't a real national liberation movement, it's a power base backed by America and Iran.

Meanwhile Egyptian and Jordanian intelligence chiefs are claiming that Al Queda is behind the fighting in Gaza, staging an attack on Haniyeh, which would suggest that Al Queda has infiltrated either Fatah or Hamas and that Al Queda is even directing house to house and street to street fighting.

It's unclear whether this is actually true or not and whether the intelligence chiefs actually believe this or are just trying to find a way to push America into intervening in the fighting before it spills over into Jordan and Egypt.

Either way we're now facing two Palestinian states, more chairs at the negotiating table and the likelihood that between Al Queda, Hamas and Fatah, Iraq is about to come home. If only the Sunnis and Shiites begin taking whacks at each other, the party will be complete.


- The nutroots are mourning the loss of Finkelstein's tenure. For a guy with all the academic publications of Jerry Lewis, whose chief specialty was hatred and whose primary occupation was smearing Israel, Jews, Holocaust Survivors and whose main supporters were affiliated with Holocaust deniers; it couldn't have come too soon. But of course the ranks are screaming, "SUPPRESSION OF ACADEMIC FREEDOM". Well you know you can't keep a good Zionist conspiracy down.

The repulsive Tikkun Hamas blog run by Richard Silverstein, the sort of fellow who would have been directing Hizbullah shelling of Haifa if he had the guts, is of course mourning the tragic loss of Finkelstein to the evil suppressive forces of the Vast Jewish Conspiracy that's also targeting poor Richard Silverstein as exemplified by Alan Dershowitz, Steven Plaut, Aussie Dave, the Dunkin Donuts guy and Screech from Saved by the Bell.


- Over at Israpundit, Ted Belman comments on the danger of a West Bank First option

- At Maggie's Notebook, who graciously cross-posted my Factionalism post yesterday, continues fighting the good fight against illegal immigration and the amnesty bill. Be sure to read it all.

- The Big Pharaoh is back and at Daled Amos there's a good roundup of posts on the situation.

- Lemon Lime Moon tells us that the solution is to reach out to G-d.

"We do not want a restrained people, we want a renewed people! A people whose spirituality is true and real. Not a people who are fake and far from G-d but glossed over with a veneer of imposed restraint.

Holiness doesn't come from things you do. It comes from the presence of G-d in the things you do. If he is not in you then there is no holiness and you are walking in a dark path. If you do the right thing with an evil heart, the presence of G-d is not with you. As it says, No evil abides with him.

No, restraints will not cut it. You need more. You need a clean, sound, G-d fearing heart that longs to do right. We can begin by cleaning up our own lives and houses and if we can't save the world, we can escape it's coming punishments as Noach did.

- At MeAnder, some photos taken over at the mall and at Ignoble, a visit to the lower east side.

- Right Truth has a dream. A Fred Thompson and John Bolton ticket. Now that would be a ticket to victory.

Shabbat Shalom and a Happy Weekend to Others.