The Middle East Crisis

What's going on overseas may not be as interesting as Nicole Ritchie's weight - or a Sega commercial from a decade ago - but it's important. Even though I know you hate being told what is objectively important in the world, it's the truth. You've got to know a little bit about it to keep afloat.

The New York Times has an article that outlines the newest developments in the

A cartoon on Coldbacon.com explains the situation poignantly.

The Blog, Blogging the Middle East, seems to have it down pat as well.

And a sufficient response is posted on the blog too.

Phew! Blogging this issue gets confusing! With all of the opinions out there, how do you know who to trust? It's hard to say. People who support or hate Israel too much tend to be a little idiotic, but they sometimes have valid points.

The article in Newsweek about President Bush's trip to Russia for the G8 Summit is pretty good. I always like to see the inside view of the President in a time like that. Although the article played down the hilariously awkward neck rub that Bush gave to German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Some of the players:

This is not a complete list, only a partial collection of the people involved in this newest Middle East Crisis.

King Abdullah II - Jordan's Leader

Hosni Mubarak - The President of Egypt

Fouad Siniora - Prime Minister of Lebanon

George W. Bush - President of the old U.S. of A. (Just to be sure).

Oh and don't forget Iran, whose supreme leader is Ali Khamenei. Iran is the tricky element in this whole thing, along with Syria. Syria's head is President Bashar al Assad. Personally, I'm scared of the guy.

The Newsweek article states that

Bush tells the leaders he's trying to calm the situation, by warning Israel not to topple the young government in Beirut. He lays out what he sees as the risks: that Iran is trying to control the region, that Israel might collapse the Beirut government and that Syria might take back Lebanon. Yet his main goal is to win their agreement that the villain is Hizbullah. They all need to apply pressure on Syrian President Bashir Assad, who supports the extremist group. "The real culprit in this case," he tells them, "is the militant wing of Hamas and Hizbullah."

Hezbollah (or Hizbullah) would like to see the destruction of Israel. The Big H is probably the big ingredient in this current Mid-Eastern goulash, having formerly had tied to Hamas and wanting to see an Islamic Republic started in Lebanon.

To simplify things, Islamic Republic=Bad. If Hezbollah has its way, it proves a strong case that America's involvement in democratizing the region has been a bust thus far. Syria and Iran wouldn't mind seeing that happen, either.

Poor Kim Jong Il His fireworks display did little to terrify the nation in the midst of this latest debacle in the Middle East. And we've never had a very good reputation over there, either. If you get a chance - or can make heads or tails of it - you should read about the history of the Middle East and America's involvement with it.