Thursday, June 29, 2006

Today's News

One of the first rules of businesses is knowing when to take it to the mattresses. Shortly lower on the list, below “cash is king” and “never get involved in a land war in Asia” is knowing when to cut your losses. Its times like these that i wish the government was run more like a business. I ran across the following article today.

http://www.neatorama.com/2006/05/17/penny-cost-more-than-one-cent-to-make/

Wow. Does anyone even use pennies? I've only been out of the country for about 8 months, but barring the recent modification of vending machine to accept pennies, i can think of no purpose for our little copper friend. Well, i can think of one use. Those annoying machines that form them into other, equally useless object at tourist spots along Americas highways...but are those reason enough to keep old copper Abe around? It had a good run, cut it loose! Maybe once they are rarer they'll climb in value.

And now this....

“You stole my land”.

“We were there first!”

“Yeah, 2000 years ago”

“So what, its still ours”

Will it never end? Will they never learn? Instead of moving forward it seems the Isreali-Palestinian Conflict (and i use that word loosely) will never end. First we had a family of dead Palestinians on the beach, then we had rockets fired into Isreal, then we had more rockets fired back into the Gaza strip and recently we seem to have had the proverbial straw that broke the camels back, Palestinian Militants have kidnapped an Isreali soldier. It appears this was all the Isreali's needed, they are back in Gaza with both barrels blazing, literally! Tanks in the South, tanks in the North, planes buzzing Syrian airspace. It's only been a year since Isreal pulled out of the Gaza strip. Isreal has even been talking recently about declaring (unilaterally) final borders. Maybe i missed something, but isnt that essentially what they've been doing since 1967?

I ran across this from the Wall Street Journal Opinoin Page...

".....The draft document also contains a clause that supports armed action against Israel, which it says should be "concentrated" in areas occupied by Israel in 1967 but not limited to them.
In other words, Hamas (Fatah too) "recognizes" Israel in the sense that, to take a random example, Nicole Simpson recognized her murderer. "

Does anyone else notice the irony in that statement? The WSJ is essentially comparing Hamas to Nicole Simpson...the Murderee, not the Murderer! This is obviously an error as anyone who reads the (very pro-isreal) WSJ would recognize. But in their error, they have mistakenly come closer to the truth than they would most likely care to admit.

Just for fun i went to Wikepedia and searched for “UN Palestine”. Wikepedia recommended i go to”List of UN Resolutions concerning Isreal and Palestine”. Well, here is a portion of what i got. I cut out the Pre 1955 resolutions as well as the Non-General Council resolutions.

1955-1992:
Resolution 106: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for Gaza raid".
Resolution 111: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for raid on Syria that killed fifty-six people".
Resolution 127: " . . . 'recommends' Israel suspends it's 'no-man's zone' in Jerusalem".
Resolution 162: " . . . 'urges' Israel to comply with UN decisions".
Resolution 171: " . . . determines flagrant violations' by Israel in its attack on Syria".
Resolution 228: " . . . 'censures' Israel for its attack on Samu in the West Bank, then under Jordanian control".
Resolution 237: " . . . 'urges' Israel to allow return of new 1967 Palestinian refugees".
Resolution 242: ". . . 'Termination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgement of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area"
Resolution 248: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for its massive attack on Karameh in Jordan".
Resolution 250: " . . . 'calls' on Israel to refrain from holding military parade in Jerusalem".
Resolution 251: " . . . 'deeply deplores' Israeli military parade in Jerusalem in defiance of Resolution 250".
Resolution 252: " . . . 'declares invalid' Israel's acts to unify Jerusalem as Jewish capital".
Resolution 256: " . . . 'condemns' Israeli raids on Jordan as 'flagrant violation".
Resolution 259: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's refusal to accept UN mission to probe occupation".
Resolution 262: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for attack on Beirut airport".
Resolution 265: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for air attacks for Salt in Jordan".
Resolution 267: " . . . 'censures' Israel for administrative acts to change the status of Jerusalem". Resolution 270: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for air attacks on villages in southern Lebanon".
Resolution 271: " . . . 'condemns' Israel's failure to obey UN resolutions on Jerusalem".
Resolution 279: " . . . 'demands' withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon".
Resolution 280: " . . . 'condemns' Israeli's attacks against Lebanon".
Resolution 285: " . . . 'demands' immediate Israeli withdrawal form Lebanon".
Resolution 298: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's changing of the status of Jerusalem".
Resolution 313: " . . . 'demands' that Israel stop attacks against Lebanon".
Resolution 316: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for repeated attacks on Lebanon".
Resolution 317: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's refusal to release Arabs abducted in Lebanon".
Resolution 332: " . . . 'condemns' Israel's repeated attacks against Lebanon".
Resolution 337: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for violating Lebanon's sovereignty".
Resolution 347: " . . . 'condemns' Israeli attacks on Lebanon".
Resolution 425: " . . . 'calls' on Israel to withdraw its forces from Lebanon".
Resolution 427: " . . . 'calls' on Israel to complete its withdrawal from Lebanon.
Resolution 444: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's lack of cooperation with UN peacekeeping forces".
Resolution 446: " . . . 'determines' that Israeli settlements are a 'serious
obstruction' to peace and calls on Israel to abide by the Fourth Geneva Convention".
Resolution 450: " . . . 'calls' on Israel to stop attacking Lebanon".
Resolution 452: " . . . 'calls' on Israel to cease building settlements in occupied territories".
Resolution 465: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's settlements and asks all member
states not to assist Israel's settlements program".
Resolution 467: " . . . 'strongly deplores' Israel's military intervention in Lebanon".
Resolution 468: " . . . 'calls' on Israel to rescind illegal expulsions of
two Palestinian mayors and a judge and to facilitate their return".
Resolution 469: " . . . 'strongly deplores' Israel's failure to observe the
council's order not to deport Palestinians".
Resolution 471: " . . . 'expresses deep concern' at Israel's failure to abide
by the Fourth Geneva Convention".
Resolution 476: " . . . 'reiterates' that Israel's claim to Jerusalem are 'null and void'".
Resolution 478: " . . . 'censures (Israel) in the strongest terms' for its
claim to Jerusalem in its 'Basic Law'".
Resolution 484: " . . . 'declares it imperative' that Israel re-admit two deported
Palestinian mayors".
Resolution 487: " . . . 'strongly condemns' Israel for its attack on Iraq's
nuclear facility".
Resolution 497: " . . . 'decides' that Israel's annexation of Syria's Golan
Heights is 'null and void' and demands that Israel rescinds its decision forthwith".
Resolution 498: " . . . 'calls' on Israel to withdraw from Lebanon".
Resolution 501: " . . . 'calls' on Israel to stop attacks against Lebanon and withdraw its troops".
Resolution 509: " . . . 'demands' that Israel withdraw its forces forthwith and unconditionally from Lebanon".
Resolution 515: " . . . 'demands' that Israel lift its siege of Beirut and
allow food supplies to be brought in".
Resolution 517: " . . . 'censures' Israel for failing to obey UN resolutions
and demands that Israel withdraw its forces from Lebanon".
Resolution 518: " . . . 'demands' that Israel cooperate fully with UN forces in Lebanon".
Resolution 520: " . . . 'condemns' Israel's attack into West Beirut".
Resolution 573: " . . . 'condemns' Israel 'vigorously' for bombing Tunisia
in attack on PLO headquarters.
Resolution 587: " . . . 'takes note' of previous calls on Israel to withdraw
its forces from Lebanon and urges all parties to withdraw".
Resolution 592: " . . . 'strongly deplores' the killing of Palestinian students
at Bir Zeit University by Israeli troops".
Resolution 605: " . . . 'strongly deplores' Israel's policies and practices
denying the human rights of Palestinians.
Resolution 607: " . . . 'calls' on Israel not to deport Palestinians and strongly
requests it to abide by the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Resolution 608: " . . . 'deeply regrets' that Israel has defied the United Nations and deported Palestinian civilians".
Resolution 636: " . . . 'deeply regrets' Israeli deportation of Palestinian civilians.
Resolution 641: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's continuing deportation of Palestinians.
Resolution 672: " . . . 'condemns' Israel for violence against Palestinians
at the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount.
Resolution 673: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's refusal to cooperate with the United
Nations.
Resolution 681: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's resumption of the deportation of
Palestinians.
Resolution 694: " . . . 'deplores' Israel's deportation of Palestinians and
calls on it to ensure their safe and immediate return.
Resolution 726: " . . . 'strongly condemns' Israel's deportation of Palestinians.
Resolution 799: ". . . 'strongly condemns' Israel's deportation of 413 Palestinians
and calls for their immediate return.
1955
Resolution 106: The Palestine Question (29 Mar)
Resolution 107: The Palestine Question (30 Mar)
Resolution 108: The Palestine Question (8 Sep)
1967
November 22: UN Security Council Resolution 242: Calls on Israel's neighbors to end the state of belligerency and calls upon Israel to reciprocate by withdraw its forces from land claimed by other parties in 1967 war. Interpreted commonly today as calling for the Land for peace principle as a way to resolve Arab-Israeli conflict
1973
October 22: UN Security Council Resolution 338: cease fire in Yom Kippur War
October 23: UN Security Council Resolution 339: Confirms Res. 338, dispatch UN observers.
1978
date: UN Security Council Resolution 425: regarding Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon, completed as of June 16, 2000
1979
date: UN Security Council Resolution 446: declared that the Israeli settlements in the occupied territories are illegal
1980
August 20: UN Security Council Resolution 478: on the status of Jerusalem

Take a moment to reread that. There sure are allot of “condems”, “deplores”, “reiterates”, “calls on” and “deeply regrets” on there when it comes to the UN's comments on Isreals actions. 242 is one of the most well known resolutions but the UN has been largely silent since 1980. To use one of the UN's favorite words, it really is deplorable what has and continues to happen between Isreal and “Palestine”.

But really how can you blame these people, for 100 years the world has been neglecting them and ignoring Isreal's aggression. For 100 years the world has turned a blind eye to the truth. Unfortunately, I fear, theres no change to that stance in sight. I predict the ultimate outcome will be Isreal completing its land acquisition all the way through Gaza. This action will be strongly supported by the world as being a decisive action against “terrorism” and will ultimately result in a further divide between the Muslim and Non Muslim community.

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