By the way, The Arab News is chock-full of stories that drip with anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism. Wander over if you dare. But don't expect to read stories about rescuing kitties from trees -- actually, since it's published in Saudi Arabia, you're more likely to read a story about a kitten being shoved back into a burning tree for not wearing its headdress.

Another (as always) fun little piece from The Arab News, which describes Powell leaving the Middle East with his head hanging in shame, which no doubt stems from his inability to get Palestinians to stop murdering Israelis and themselves.
But, the fact that this article made me realize how the word "humiliation" is thrown around made me take a second look. Jonah Goldberg wrote yesterday about the Middle East being a "shame-based society" -- the ultimate goals in such a society are gaining honor and avoiding humiliation.
It's funny how, in order to denigrate the USA's efforts in the Middle East -- which, ironically enough, would benefit the Palestinians the most (since, let's face it, Israel can take care of itself as long as we're not asking it not to) -- the Arab community ascribes to it the ultimate insult it can muster. And all Powell was doing there in the first place was trying to help, and ultimately, the Palestinain people will suffer the most as a result of Arafat's (and other Arab leaders') knotheaded policies which seek to chase Israel from its land.

As the once-popular rock song says, "It's been a while."
Boy howdy, ain't that the truth? My trip to our nation's capital was rousing, however; I'd have to chalk it up as time well spent. Had a couple of interviews, did a bit of sightseeing (especially around the Capitol), and attended the Israel Rally(read about it here), which pretty much blew me away. It was stirring to see that many people brave some sweltering heat in support of a state that really needs as much support as it can get -- especially since those who vilify Israel are louder, more violent, and more persistent than those who do, and therefore pro-Palesetinan demonstrations get more attention.
A thought struck me while milling about the crowd: Why, I wondered, is everyone so orderly and so positive here at this rally? Where are the professional agitators who go in, get the people riled up, and incite the smashing of things? And then it struck me -- there are none of those types (or very few) that support this particular cause.
Why? Well, I think for a few reasons. First, it's certainly not a cause celebre, like the environment, PETA, or anti-WTO, and therefore doesn't attract as many poseurs who just want attention for themselves and not the cause. Second, and maybe the main reason, is that those who support Israel's right to exist, and its right to be free from constant terror attacks, are necessarily law-and-order type folks. If they (we) weren't, they'd have a much harder time trying to explain why suicide bombing isn't an OK thing to do.
There was no anger, no rage, no stone-throwing, no tire burning, no looting, no smashing, and no fights. The counterprotestors were treated civilly or ignored. There was passion, informed argument, civilized disagreement, and a remarkable feeling of hope, beauty, and kinship in the air. It was the kinship between those from all over the world who support freedom, security, and human life. And, except for some Europeans, most of the attendees were Americans -- white Americans, Jewish Americans, black Americans...hell, just Americans. It was enough to make any American proud.

I'm off to our nation's capital this weekend for a job interview, as well as, I hope, some general merriment. But it won't all be fun and games -- no, it certainly won't.
Flying in on Saturday, so I have that night for fun, as well as Sunday. I have my interviews on Monday, but splitting them is an event that I will luckliy be able to attend.
Many thanks to NRO's The Corner for pointing this out. I'll be there. If you're in DC AND you support democracy, please throw your weight behind the only Middle Eastern nation that does too.

James Taranto extends his streak to 1,347 (rough estimate) consecutive days on which he's made astutue observations and straight-to-the-heart-of-it analyses with this gem:

"'Violence of whatever form, whether one would call it an act of terrorism or an act of resistance, at this point is counterproductive.' That's Secretary of State Colin Powell, commenting on this morning's suicide bombing near Haifa, in which a Palestinian Arab hit man murdered eight Israelis.
Is Powell speaking for the Bush administration here? Is it not the administration's position that the deliberate slaughter of civilians is terrorism, and that it is not merely "unproductive" but evil and intolerable?"

Ouch, James. Ouch. And this is only the first item on today's BOTW, and the only one I've read yet. Can't wait to read the rest.

The Arab News, Saudi Arabia's English-language daily, is a hoot to read -- well, it's a hoot if you find rabid anti-Semitism, willfull mendacity, and utterly insane theories funny.
Here's a tidbit from the Opinions section:


"We are witnessing a great tragedy as it unfolds in Palestine. The Israelis are attacking our brothers there with unspeakable brutality and cruelty. And we seem powerless to do anything but look on with feelings of sorrow, hopelessness and desperation.
The single most dangerous thing that can befall the Muslim nation is hopelessness — the feeling that we are unable to do anything to save these wronged and oppressed people.
The main goal of the Zionist American plan is to instill into us a feeling of desperation so that we remain submissive and servile beneath their feet. We must not give in to desperation because those who believe in God’s mercy and blessings can never be hopeless."


And here's the "War on Palestinians" section, complete with pictures and letters, including some from Americans.
The fair and balanced Arab media at its finest, folks...

Martin Peretz unloads on The New Republic's web site -- unloads in a poetic, moving kind of way. It's a real breath of fresh air; almost as fresh as seeing his name on William Kristol's "Open Letter to President Bush." I don't know, I just get a bit of a tingle when I see support for such an important issue come from the Right and the Left.
And don't talk to me about campaign finance reform. This is real, inspired, across-the-board support for an important issue -- actually, the word "issue" does the situation in the Middle East no justice at all. It's a war on democracy going on over there, led by those who embrace fascism, totalitarianism, and oppression.
I mean, how often does one see the names "Martin Peretz," "Rich Lowry," and "James Woolsey" all in a row? There's gotta be an element of absolute truth to it if all these guys are on board!

Wow. A fiercely argued, finely tuned, and ultimately spot-on piece by Rich Lowry today. Of course, as Lowry states, he didn't have to stretch too far to prove his point -- a Saudi prince did most of the work for him.

I was settling in for a relaxing evening of cable television when I relaized that if my site meter is accurate, more people seem to be stumbling across my site. And, even though cable TV was a much-missed commodity during my yearlong sojurn in Chicago, I was drawn to the computer by what could only be described as a sense of duty. I thought to myself, "It's been a week, and you've relaxed enough. Get to steppin'!"
So, here I am...

So I'm back in a certain Midwestern city (south of Detroit, west of Cleveland, northwest of Columbus), and not a moment too soon, apparently -- the people here need a local blogger. Why, you may ask? Because our esteemed Congresswoman, Marcy Kaptur, has been making some pretty silly remarks lately. (Thanks to James Taranto's Best of the Web for pointing it out).
Well, I guess "silly" isn't the right word -- spacy is more like it. And, to add insult to injury, her remarks were made in a Saudi paper. Read it yourself if you don't believe me...
A funny story about Marcy Kaptur. She came to speak at my high school, and a good friend of mine was removed from the auditorium for challenging her anti-Gulf War stance. Guess she wasn't accepting questions (or, more accurately, disagreements) that day.

It sure has been some time since I last posted, but I was moving, and you know how THAT is...