Israel is Wrong. Hamas is Wrong.

And now that we have a pair of children poking each other into armed conflict once again, the world will have to face that it must get involved to keep these people from killing each other and half the people in the region.

It's like a long car ride with kids in the back seat. They just can't keep their hands to themselves. They've got to throw things at each other, try to take most of the back seat, put their finger in the face of the other while claiming "I'm not touching you." The charge of immaturity was advanced by former U.S. National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski on Morning Joe on MSNBC. I just added the imagery.

How to keep these immature people from goading each other? An international mechanism needs to be in place, which is what is being suggested now as a resolution to this conflict on more than a temporary basis.

Hamas needs to be prevented from arming and Israel needs to be prevented from overreacting. And the United States really needs to get involved soon.



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Gaza Scholars

Thank you, Secretary Rice.

Thank you for having a common sense head on your shoulders and restoring the Fulbright scholarships to the Gaza winners. There will be a long-term ramification of being reasonable in this matter. I call it the "payoff of reasonableness." None of these future Palestinian leaders will forget your compassion for them. They are going to be around a long time and the benefit may not be immediately apparent, but it will be there.

Thank you again.

Hamas and Fatah

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter has criticized the international community for its open support of Fatah over Hamas. They express this support by giving money to the Fatah government and not to the Hamas government.

I think Carter's a little wrong on that one. Former President Carter says that Hamas was elected and the world is making a big mistake in ignoring the voice of the Palestinians.

Yes, Hamas was elected. No, Hamas cannot govern. They can't even work with other groups of Palestinians. And when real bare-knuckled politics of governing is required, Hamas pulls out its guns.

So Jimmy Carter complains that the global support of Fatah over Hamas will create a divide between Palestinians. Maybe. But why should anyone support a government they oppose? One calling for the destruction of Israel? One that can't even negotiate a political solution with its own brethren?

There is a democracy of international support as well. No nation MUST give the Palestinians money. If there are two governments, as there are now, support can be given to either, or both. If you act like gun-toting lunatics, don't be surprised if you don't get money from other nations.

Hamas and Fatah and the Palestinian Authority

Is anyone surprised that Hamas and Fatah are killing each other? Not me. And that tenuous cease-fire they've got going on is not going to last. Hamas and Fatah are fighting for control of the Palestinian Authority. It is a natural outgrowth of Hamas winning electorally.

Because, again, if the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Hamas has expressed itself politically through violence for years. Now it has the chance to govern and it can't do it. Not without killing people. Its only political expression is violence and wild-eyed rhetoric. To be more balanced, Hamas also has many charities and feeds the poor, etc. But it is how you communicate and negotiate with your enemies that makes you a leader.

The worst possible denouement would be Israel's involvement in this fight. Let them kill each other or learn how to talk themselves. It is a struggle they are going to have to resolve.

Peace in the Middle East: The Payoff for Peace

The Israeli paper, Haaretz, reported that the King of Jordan supported the idea of giving Palestinians a payment rather than a guarantee of a return to their old land. Hamas went bonkers and has returned to sending rockets into Israel.

Let's face it, all of the Palestinians are not going to return. Just give them the money and let's move on. Of course, Hamas will no longer have any reason to keep on killing people except that they are bloodthirsty jerks. They will probably invent another reason.

Sunni vs. Shiite

The bloodshed in the Palestinian Authority is the beginning of the entire region disintegrating. Centrufigal forces within Islam are now unstoppable, and every nation is going to be affected.

Europe and the U.S. will find fuel efficiency and alternative fuels to be fascinating very soon, and worthy of their attention and resources like never before. It will be amazing how quickly alternative fuels become cost-effective.

Russia will see its interests rise again. The immediate demand for oil will have them strutting around again like the old days. Maybe then Putin will smile. Europe will not be as calm the next time Putin throws a tantrum.

Venezuela will become even more insufferable. Brazil will join them.

The trade embargo against Cuba will be lifted.

Israel will have to confront its own problems and grapple with a potential civil war. The religious right will not be a winner in that one.

The political force that is modern Islam is a powerful one. Now let's watch them use that power to kill each other.

Usama bin Laden to Allah: I could have been a contender!