UMNO Youth held protests against Israeli counter-attacks against first-strikes by Hamas and Hezbollah. Gee, where was their strong stand against atrocity when Hamas launched over 1000 rocket attacks against Israeli civilians, or when Hezbollah launched shrapnel-filled Katyusha rockets into heavily populated Israeli cities? Oh, I get it.

It’s okay for Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinians, Arabs and others like them to attack and maim others, but it’s not okay at all for Israel and the United States to lay a finger on them, right?

That’s their standard of "human rights".

Day after day, we are only fed pictures of Lebanese civilians killed in the conflict. But we don’t ask why. We don’t ask why these civilians are in the line of fire. Maybe we did ask why, but we’d assume that it’s due to the Israeli’s inherent predisposition towards committing atrocities. Never once does it cross our minds that being a professional army that is fully accountable to external inquiry, and rated as one of the top five in the world, the Israeli Defense Forces certainly wouldn’t be so reckless and merciless, especially not in the face of media coverage that is already so anti-Israel.

We hardly realize that day after day while Israel carries out their offensive deep into Lebanon with the objective to destroy the Hezbollah organization, Israeli cities are coming under rocket attacks and terrorist strikes as well. It’s not a mere one-sided military response. It’s an ongoing battle with casualties on both sides. Israeli civilians end up being the victims of terrorist violence, while Lebanese and Palestinian civilians end up being the victims of Israel’s military response. Any responsible state government would have clamped down on non-regular non-state players (i.e. terrorists or ‘freedom fighters’ as they are called) and enforced a cessation of hostilities early on into the conflict. Instead, we have the leaders of Palestine, Lebanon and Syria basically telling Israel to "Bring it on".

And Israel’s taking the blame for calling their bluff?

It’s unfortunate that the Lebanese crisis have become so severe, with heavy civilian casualties. The Lebanese government, on the other hand, hasn’t been very cooperative either. Hezbollah, even worse, are using civilians as human shields. And the world over, most people are condemning the United Nations and Israel for not "stopping this humanitarian crisis". Where were these voices when Hamas and Hezbollah declared war on Israel and started launching terrorist attacks on civilian areas? The humanitarian crisis started there, back then, and not now. Are Israeli lives worthless compared to Arabs? Why is it that when tens of Israelis are massacred by terrorist attacks when they go about their daily business isn’t considered a massacre or a potential humanitarian crisis, but when the aggressors suffer human losses it’s the avenging victim who is at fault?

This is a mentality that we’ve seen all too often: Somehow, those terrorists and their sympathizers are of the belief that "It’s alright if I do it to you, but not alright if you do it to me". It’s an ideology that lacks the universal Golden Rule of "Do unto others as you would want others to do unto you". It’s alright if they label Buddhists as idol-worshippers, saying that Jews are damned by God, that Christians are cultists and pagans. But it’s not okay for others to say similar things about them. That would be considered ‘racism’ though it has nothing to do with race. That would constitute a phobic reaction of the hate-and-fear variety. That would constitute hate speech.

Anyway, back to UMNO Youth’s silly rally. Khairy was inciting anger towards the United Nations, saying that they didn’t take action against Israel.

Did he realize that in effect, he’s speaking out against international law, by saying that the United Nations should support an unprovoked attack against a UN member nation within internationally-recognized borders, bolstered by a declaration of war by the aggressors against the victim? The best that the United Nations can do is to ask Israel to tone down on the aggressions, and strong-arm Lebanon, Syria and Palestine into calling off their declaration of war. The United Nations definitely cannot condemn a transgression of international law as committed by these three aggressor states.

Here’s looking at the Lebanese crisis through the UN’s prism:

BEIRUT, Lebanon - The U.N. humanitarian chief accused Hezbollah on Monday of "cowardly blending" in among Lebanese civilians and causing the deaths of hundreds during two weeks of cross-border violence with Israel.

The militant group has built bunkers and tunnels near the Israeli border to shelter weapons and fighters, and its members easily blend in among civilians.

Jan Egeland spoke to reporters at Larnaca airport in Cyprus late Monday after visiting Lebanon to coordinate an international aid effort. On Sunday, he toured the rubble of Beirut’s southern suburbs, a once-teeming Shiite district where Hezbollah had its headquarters.

During that visit, he condemned the killing and wounding of civilians by both sides and called Israel’s offensive "disproportionate" and "a violation of international humanitarian law."

On Monday, he had strong words for Hezbollah, which crossed into Israel, captured two soldiers and killed eight others on July 12, triggering fierce fighting.

"Consistently, from the Hezbollah heartland, my message was that Hezbollah must stop this cowardly blending … among women and children," he said. "I heard they were proud because they lost very few fighters and that it was the civilians bearing the brunt of this. I don’t think anyone should be proud of having many more children and women dead than armed men."

"We need a cessation of hostilities because this is a war where civilians are paying the price," said Egeland, who was heading to Israel next.

At least 600,000 Lebanese have fled their homes, according to the
World Health Organization. One estimate by Lebanon’s finance minister putting the number at 750,000, nearly 20 percent of the population.

During his visit to Lebanon earlier Monday, Egeland issued an emergency appeal for $150 million to help Lebanon through the next three months. He told reporters in Beirut the money was needed to pay for food, health care, water and sanitation.

"Approximately 500,000 to 800,000 people have been affected by the conflict, of whom some have become displaced persons or refugees," a U.N. statement said.

The United Nations has contracted 100 trucks to deliver aid coming into Beirut around the country. Egeland said the U.N. hoped to send its first land convoy to Tyre on Wednesday. Similar convoys will be scheduled every second day after that. An international Red Cross convoy was expected in the city Monday.

Egeland said he was asking Israel for safe passage for aid ships to enter the northern port of Tripoli and the southern port of Tyre, which has been heavily bombarded. So far, Israel has loosened its sea blockade of Lebanon only to let ships in Beirut port.

"We’re hopeful that in the course of this week, you’ll see real progress on the ground. Lebanon has a right to be frustrated," he said.

He said the U.N. was also asking Israel to also guarantee safe passage throughout Lebanon.

Hundreds of thousands of refugees have flowed out of mainly Shiite regions — the south, the Bekaa and the crowded Shiite neighborhood of Beirut — crowding into cities including the southern port of Sidon, the remainder of Beirut and parts of the north and central mountains.

"We are particularly worried about the population in south Lebanon and the (eastern) Bekaa Valley. It’s here that they’re in the crossfire and from where they’re being displaced," Egeland said.

Continued Israeli bombardment makes the aid mission risky.

"Only cessation of hostilities can make it safe for us and our humanitarian colleagues," Egeland said.

Honestly, I really don’t want to see a refugee problem over there… because when it concerns Israel, refugees will still be refugees three or 100 generations later to "remind the rest of the world about Israel’s crimes".

"Human rights", what?

Pop quiz: If I purposely shot my own foot with a pistol, can I continue blaming the pistol’s "aggression" for this tragedy for years to come instead of admitting my own stupidity?

Images that have yet to show up in local papers

Here are some pictures to remind people that what’s going on is a two-sided affair, and not a one-sided "Israeli aggression" as people would like to believe.

Israelis at a refugee camp, evacuated from their cities that have come under fire from Hezbollah. Well, at least they look happy here, with some friendly pet dogs to play with.

The Israeli city of Kiryat Shmona up in smoke after being attacked by Hezbollah.

Israeli girl walks through what’s essentially an Israeli refugee camp.. makeshift tents and structures set up to provide shelter for Israelis fleeing from the terrorist attacks against their homes and cities.

Temporary shelters set up to house Israelis affected by the Hezbollah attacks.

An Israeli policeman inspect the site of a Katyusha rocket attack. These rockets carry metal splinters and ball bearings to inflict a maximum loss of human life. The rockets are not designed for precision strikes against structures and vehicles. They are designed specifically to maim and kill humans in densely-populated areas. They have no guidance systems, no aiming capabilities, and the warhead detonates upon impact to throw out shards of steel at supersonic speeds. Think of it as an airborne nail bomb.

Mourners carry the coffin of 48-year-old Christian Israeli-Arab Habib Awad. He is one of the many Israelis who have been killed by Hezbollah attacks.

The funeral procession of Shimon Glicklich, yet another casualty of Hezbollah attacks. The difference between Israeli funerals and Palestinian/Lebanese ones is that the deceased person is not made into a martyr and an object of hate-inciting propaganda.

The Israelis get their fair share of destruction, too, courtesy of Hezbollah. But of course, the scale of destruction in Israel is to a much lesser degree than what’s going on in Lebanon, due to the Israeli military’s heavy firepower and more advanced weapons (and their promise of a disproportionate response).

Right now, many people who read only local liberal news outlets like The Star, NST, heck, basically every newspaper in Malaysia, would be screaming at Israel, condemning their ‘atrocities’ and what-not.

But before we start yelling for this use of ‘disproportionate force’, let’s examine the situation from a few simple questions.

1) Who started the latest round of conflicts?
2) Is this a war?
3) Who is the aggressor and who are the victims?
4) Who is causing civilian casualties?

We won’t have to answer these questions point-for-point but we’ll let the situation answer these questions for themselves.

Hamas is the democratically elected government of Palestine by a big majority. Obviously, they are well-qualified to represent the voice of Palestine. But here’s where they went wrong:
1) The militias launched rocket attacks into Israeli territories recognized by the UN. They launched illegal military attacks into Israel within internationally-recognized borders, not within occupied territories. This constitutes an act of war.
2) They dug a 300-metre tunnel under the Gaza-Israel border to launch terrorist attacks and kidnappings. This is obviously an act of war by any international law.
3) They labelled the Israeli kidnapping victims as "Prisoners of War". This is a declaration of war in no uncertain terms.

Therefore, we can conclude that the Hamas government has declared war on Israel. When one party has declared war on another, they have to be prepared to fight. But here, we have Hamas whining like cowards, crying out for the international community to tie up Israel’s hands so that Hamas can continue bashing Israel without facing such a strong military response.

However, Israel has done something insane. They are sending in humanitarian convoys to provide food, water, and fuel for the Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, while Hamas militants are still waging a war against Israeli ground troops in the same area. What a stark contrast to the way Hamas operates, actively targetting civilians for destruction.

Now, what about this Lebanon thing, that is making some quarters scream "occupation" and "Arab-Israeli war"?

Well, let’s have a look:

1) Hezbollah launched Katyusha rockets from South Lebanon into northern Israeli territories. Again, into internationally-recognized Israeli territories. This is an act of war.
2) Hezbollah conducted cross-border raids into Israel and kidnapped 2 soldiers. Again, an act of war.
3) Hezbollah boasted that they have been planning this attack for quite a long time, and they plan to continue their terrorist attacks. This is a declaration of war.

The Lebanese government has provided safe haven for Hezbollah terrorists, and when asked by Israel to cooperate and undo this Hezbollah nonsense, they refused to. This makes the Lebanese government complicit in Hezbollah’s terrorist attacks, hence they’re also complicit in the declaration of war against Israel.

Lebanon is reaping what they sow. Why are they complaining and bitching to the United Nations when they were the ones who picked a fight?

Notice how this time around, the international community can only stand aside and slap Israel on the wrist for using "disproportionate force", but they can’t legally label it as "aggression" or "occupation". Even Kofi Annan, who’s usually anti-Israel, doesn’t have an opportunity to dig into his usual dictionary of anti-Israel terms.

Why?

Because Palestine and Lebanon have violated international laws and have declared war. Therefore, they can’t be defended by anyone, and have to shoulder the responsibility for bringing this crisis unto themselves.

Here’s a rare gem:

Saudis blame Hizbullah for Lebanon Crisis

Saudi Arabia indicated on Thursday that Hizbullah
bore the responsibility for the current crisis in Lebanon, Israel Radio
reported.

In an official statement, the Saudi government said that a
distinction must be drawn between "legitimate resistance" and
"adventurous, irresponsible acts" committed by groups in Lebanon who
don’t recognize the government and don’t coordinate with other Arab
nations.

The statement said that these groups must take responsibility and solve the crisis themselves.

The Arabs have picked a fight with Israel, forgetting the immortal truth that "It’s not the size of the dog in the fight that matters, it’s the size of the fight in the dog".

And they’re learning out the hard way just how much fight there is in this little dog.

Did anyone notice how much Germany 2006 resembles a WWE skit? Players roll on the ground trying to gain sympathy only to pick themselves up because the ref didn’t see their acting.. Players getting bashed up but the ref was unaware as he’s looking elsewhere.

And now, Zidane, to cap off his stellar career, has done something decidedly French - he helps his team surrender in the last minute, clawing with every last breath to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. A beautiful 12-year career that saw him as a technical strategist and playmaker, marred by the last 10 minutes of his professional competitive career. Imagine that. Going down in history as one of the few players who have ever been red-carded in a World Cup final, and I would say, for the most entertaining reason ever!
Apparently, he was reacting to a racist slur from Materazzi. Check out his headbutt.. if that isn’t proof that Zidane trains in the Shaolin Iron Head skill, I don’t know what is!! This scene is bound to be a cult favourite for the wrong reasons much like how the legendary Rene Higuita’s “scorpion kick” is. While the “Scorpion kick” captured everyone’s attention and imagination with its grace and with an effective save, Zidane’s headbutt will be forever etched in the minds of many due to the sheer force behind it that in no uncertain way led to France’s defeat.

Expect more clips like these in the coming days.. I’m amazed.. these people slapped together these funny shit just hours after the World Cup! Don’t they have jobs to do or something?..

It seems that the culture of victimhood is EVERYWHERE, including Malaysia! Apparently, there were 1000-strong rallies led by PAS to protest against the ‘Israeli aggression’. They marched to the US Embassy and burned an effigy of Bush, and an Israeli flag.

News articles here and here.

"Democratic principles"? Oh, yes, of course. Hamas democracy, I guess. Launching rocket attacks into a UN-recognized country is fine, as long as you don’t recognize the existence of that country. It’s like waking up one day and suddenly thinking that Singapore seceded illegally from Malaysia, and the island is still our territory but a bunch of commies annexed it and ‘occupied’ it.. It’s alright for us to launch rocket attacks on Singapore and say it conforms to ‘democratic principles’ as long as we don’t recognize Singapore, right? Who gives a shit if the UN recognizes Singapore?

And these are the people who endlessly talk about Israeli ‘violating UN resolutions’? Why isn’t anyone kicking these idiots in the nuts?

Why is it okay if terrorists do it, but when military powers launch a counter-offensive, it’s always ‘oppression’ and ‘massacre’ even though the death toll from terrorist attacks are higher?

Why is it that portraying oneself as the ‘victim’ lets one get away with terrorism, and why is it that terrorists and their supporters never take responsibility for their actions, saying that "The Evil West made us do it", or "Years of oppression pushed us over the edge" and other such nonsense? Look at the British bombers, or those responsible for 9/11, and most other high-profile terrorists. Most of them come from middle-class families, at least. Some of them are well-off. All of them are well-educated. And all of them are described as mild-mannered and helpful by those who know them. Are they oppressed? Are they victimized? Something else triggers the tendency towards terrorism in them, blaming oppression and racism are just excuses.

The article here is interesting, particularly for the comments that follow.

Screw this "I’m the oppressed victim" bullshit and pick yourselves up, for goodness sake. And of course, the Arab-Israeli conflict is supposedly one of the factors that keep this perception going. It has gone to the extent where we don’t have to give a damn about it, but somehow our society reacts to it, much like how some people ‘feel the pain of our fellow brothers in Iraq’. Based on the actions of the United States, which many erronously perceive as a Christian theocracy, there have also been incidences of discrimination against Christians right here, in Malaysia, including hate slurs against Christians and slander against Christians openly published in some popular supernatural-themed local tabloids.

This is how hate spreads, when people see each other as a great global ‘brotherhood’ who ’shares the pain’ and are hence collectively "victims" of "oppression" and "Western hegemony". And where does it originate? In the Arab-Israeli conflict, where Arabs are the ‘oppressed’ victims AND yet, in a puzzling way, they also happen to be the ones who have repeatedly rejected peace.

All the more reason to end it soon.

Just something that caught my attention just now. On the one hand, I feel sorry for this guy. On the other hand, this is kinda funny.

A Palestinian youth pretends to fire at Israeli troops behind a burning
barricade during an Israeli army incursion in Beit Lahiya, in the
northen Gaza Strip, Friday July 7, 2006. At least twenty-four
Palestinians and one Israeli soldier were killed in fighting that broke
out in the Gaza Strip after Israeli tanks and troops, backed by
aircraft, seized control of a ribbon of land in the northern part of
Gaza in an attempt to win freedom for a captured soldier and put Israel
out of the militants’ increasingly longer rocket range.

On the other hand, others are making more valuable contributions to their society:

BEIT LAHIYA, Gaza (Reuters) - A dozen small boys, not yet teenagers, were among relatives gathered at a funeral in Gaza on Friday for a young man killed in clashes between Palestinian militants and Israeli troops.

Asked if they would learn from the death of 19-year-old Mohammed Maher Shahine, killed while watching Thursday’s fighting as Israel stepped up an offensive in the strip, the boys answered almost with one voice.

"No. We want to be martyrs too," they said, seemingly oblivious to the danger of following around bands of gunmen as they battle more powerful Israeli troops, who are backed by tanks and helicopters.

"What is there to learn?" asked Jamal Shahine, 42, a cousin of the deceased as dozens of relatives gathered under a mourning tent. "All these boys just want to fight."

The streets of Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoun and other Gaza districts were filled with funerals on Friday as many of the 20 Palestinians killed on Thursday — the biggest death toll from a day of violence in nearly two years — were buried.

Militants from various factions, including Fatah, the ruling Hamas movement and Islamic Jihad, fired bullets into the air as the bodies of militants and civilians, wrapped in faction flags, were taken from morgues to mosques and on to burial.

The crowds watching the funerals said most of those killed on Thursday were civilians, but as the bodies were carried past, mourners also described many as fighters killed in battle.

"He was a Qassam launcher," explained one mourner as the body of Ahmed Abu Askar was born aloft through the crowd, saying he and two others had tried to fire a rocket at Israel.

CIVILIAN CASUALTIES

Mohammed Maher Shahine wasn’t a fighter. Instead he had left his job at a shop and jumped on his bicycle when he heard about clashes between militants and Israeli troops in Beit Lahiya.

"His father tried to tell him not to go, but he didn’t listen," said Jamal Shahine, the cousin.

He said Mohammed was killed in an Israeli missile strike on a house that also killed three others and wounded seven. "They were all civilians in the street," he said.

Israel said the strike killed only militants hiding in the house. Its offensive, aimed at forcing gunmen to free a captured soldier and stop rocket fire, began last week.

During Thursday’s clashes, which came as Israeli troops battled to build a buffer zone to prevent the rocket fire, small children followed Palestinian fighters at every turn, greatly increasing the risk of civilian casualties.

The boys at Mohammed’s funeral, taking place under a green awning provided by Hamas, said they would like to go and watch the next clashes, if there were any.

The only one who was silent was the brother of Mohammed, 16-year-old Mahmoud.

"My brother is dead, what can I say," he said.

Damn the Zionist oppressors for brutally murdering innocent Palestinians!

The Italy-versus-France World Cup finals is coming up soon! I’m gonna sleep throughout Sunday just to stay up and watch the finals.

World Cup Fever is catching on EVERYWHERE!

Somalia celebrates Italy’s triumph over Germany

Iran hopes to be a major World Cup supporter in the near future

Saudi Arabia, failing to enter the World Cup for quite some time now, still backs it all the way.

Mahmoud Ahmedinejad is a soccer fan! Who would have thought (seriously)!

Saudi cleric encourages people to watch the World Cup

Another Saudi cleric expresses interest in football and the World Cup

Hamas encourages Palestinians to watch the World Cup

Truly, The Beautiful Game unites people the world over in a common interest. Within a short space of a few weeks, everyone puts their problems aside and just enjoy a simple game. We’ll have Malaysians rooting for French, English people supporting Brazilians, Germans cheering on Iranians.. How strange it is, that a simple game is more effective in blurring racial and geographic boundaries than most ideologies.

On an aside, it’s a pity that Germany won’t make it to the finals. In any case, Italy vs France would be an interesting game. Let’s see if Germany 2006 will be a fitting conclusion to Zidane’s career!

Whoever said that UN supports Israel and US must be utter morons. The United Nations is now preparing a draft resolution that basically treats Israel like a pariah while giving terrorists within Hamas the go-ahead to continue their illegal activities.

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - The UN Security Council debated a draft resolution demanding an immediate withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the release of detained Palestinian officials but the United States described it as "unbalanced".

Experts from the 15-member council met behind closed doors to discuss a draft, presented by Qatar on behalf of the UN’s Arab Group, which also calls on Israel, as the occupying power, to abide by its obligations under the Geneva Convention on the protection of civilians in time of war.

The UN debate took place as Israel thrust deep into the Gaza Strip in its largest and deadliest operation in months, reoccupying areas evacuated 10 months ago. Twenty Palestinians and an Israeli soldier were reported killed Thursday

The Israeli army created a buffer zone in northern Gaza as it widened its offensive against the Palestinians, upping the pressure on the embattled Hamas-led government to free a captured soldier and stop rocket attacks.

The draft demands that "Israel, the occupying power, immediately cease its aggression against the Palestinian civilian population in the occupied Palestinian territory, withdraw its forces to positions outside the Gaza Strip and release all the Palestinian officials it has detained."

It also expressed "grave concern about the dire humanitarian situation of the Palestinian people and calls for the provision of emergency assistance to them."

The text urged the Middle East diplomatic quartet — the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations — to take immediate steps, "including confidence-building measures between the parties" to ensure the resumption of the peace process.

"The Security Council cannot remain silent while they see this massive tragedy take place, this massive Israeli onslaught against Gaza," Palestinian UN observer Ryad Mansour told reporters.

"One can say that the great majority of members of the UN do condemn this aggression by Israel and demand the cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the release of all (detained Palestinian) elected officials," he added.

He pointed to expressions of support from the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the nonaligned movement.

But the text in its present form appeared doomed in view of opposition from the United States, a veto-wielding permanent member, because it does not mention the Palestinian rocket attacks and the capture of the Israeli soldier that triggered the tough Israeli response.

US Ambassador John Bolton said he concurred with his French colleague, Jean-Marc de La Sabliere, that the draft "is not balanced".

Okay, let’s analyze this step-by-step.

1) The UN recognizes Israel as a state WITHIN the Green Line border

2) Israel painstakingly withdrew from the Gaza Strip barely a year ago, surrendering the Gaza Strip back to Palestine. Thus, on the Western side, they have retreated to UN-recognize borders.

3) Since then, Hamas terrorists have been launching attacks from Gaza Strip into the UN-recognized Israeli territories, targetting civilian populations all the time. But has the UN condemned this act? No. In fact, for the past year, Hamas has launched OVER 1000 ROCKET ATTACKS on UN-recognized Israeli territories!

4) Gaza is no longer an "occupied territory". A military maneuver into Gaza does not constitute "reoccupying" Gaza. Furthermore, the incursion into Gaza is the result of Hamas rejection towards an Israeli ultimatum, which also involved defiant rocket attacks into Israel, including the targetting of schools.

5) "Dire humanitarian situation"? Let’s see what this means.

When Israel left Gaza, they left behind intact infrastructures including greenhouses and other facilities that can be used for Palestinian self-sustenance and even an agricultural economy. What did Palestinians do? They destroyed everything. The Fatah-led government of the day then threatened the world community indirectly, demanding in no uncertain terms that if Europe and the US doesn’t provide $10 billion in aid to rebuild the Gaza strip, the outbursts of violence towards Israel could be unpredictable. This is nothing but a demand for ransom - give us $10 billion, or we’ll continue attacking Israeli civilians.

Dovey philantropists like Bill Gates even spent millions of his own money to build new greenhouses and other facilities in the Gaza Strip. Months later, everything was destroyed (again) and the Hamas government demanded for more "aid" from foreign countries (again).

6) This draft UN resolution does not at all mention about a compulsory cessation of Qassam rocket attacks, and doesn’t condemn at all the positioning of Hamas terrorists in civilian areas to intentionally use civilians as human shields.

7) Neither does it mention about the illegal underground tunnel built by Hamas from the Gaza strip into Israeli territory, with which they conducted terrorist raids and kidnappings.

The UN Arab Group also mentioned in this draft that there is a "massive tragedy" taking place - what tragedy? Of Israel purposely destroying empty buildings to rattle Hamas while avoiding civilian casualties at the same time? Of Israel choosing to send in troops for risky door-to-door operations to minimize civilian casualties rather than bombing the shit out of Gaza Strip and killing all terrorists and civilians alike? The Israeli Defense Forces is a professional military outfit that is transparent and open to investigation by international bodies, and who abide by professional military codes of conduct. They must never be equated with terrorist militants such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad and Al-Aqsa Martyr’s Brigade. These terrorist groups violate every known rule of military conduct and actively target civilians, and thumb their noses at international law all the time.

Yes, the silly UN resolution is one-sided, and this selective myopia is truly mind-boggling.

The usually-leftist Time magazine, surprisingly, made an objective observation of what’s going on. Looks like liberals have a limit to their patience as well. This time around, common sense prevailed.

Remember What Happened Here
Gaza is freed, yet Gaza wages war. That reveals the Palestinians’ true agenda
By CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER

Israel Invades Gaza. That is in response to an attack from Gaza that killed two Israelis and wounded another, who was kidnapped and brought back to Gaza …which, in turn, was in response to Israel’s targeted killing of terrorist leaders in Gaza…which, in turn, was in response to the indiscriminate shelling of Israeli towns by rockets launched from Gaza.

Of all the conflicts in the world, the one that seems the most tediously and hopelessly endless is the Arab-Israeli dispute, which has been going on in much the same way, it seems, for 60 years. Just about every story you’ll see will characterize Israel’s invasion of Gaza as a continuation of the cycle of violence.

Cycles are circular. They have no end. They have no beginning. That is why, as tempting as that figure of speech is to use, in this case it is false. It is as false as calling American attacks on Taliban remnants in Afghanistan part of a cycle of violence between the U.S. and al-Qaeda or, as Osama bin Laden would have it, between Islam and the Crusaders going back to 1099. Every party has its grievances–even Hitler had his list when he invaded Poland in 1939–but every conflict has its origin.

What is so remarkable about the current wave of violence in Gaza is that the event at the origin of the "cycle" is not at all historical, but very contemporary. The event is not buried in the mists of history. It occurred less than one year ago. Before the eyes of the whole world, Israel left Gaza. Every Jew, every soldier, every military installation, every remnant of Israeli occupation was uprooted and taken away.

How do the Palestinians respond? What have they done with Gaza, the first Palestinian territory in history to be independent, something neither the Ottomans nor the British nor the Egyptians nor the Jordanians, all of whom ruled Palestinians before the Israelis, ever permitted? On the very day of Israel’s final pullout, the Palestinians began firing rockets out of Gaza into Israeli towns on the other side of the border. And remember: those are attacks not on settlers but on civilians in Israel proper, the pre-1967 Israel that the international community recognizes as legitimately part of sovereign Israel, a member state of the U.N. A thousand rockets have fallen since.

For what possible reason? Before the withdrawal, attacks across the border could have been rationalized with the usual Palestinian mantra of occupation, settlements and so on. But what can one say after the withdrawal?

The logic for those continued attacks is to be found in the so-called phase plan adopted in 1974 by the Palestine National Council in Cairo. Realizing that they would never be able to destroy Israel in one fell swoop, the Palestinians adopted a graduated plan to wipe out Israel. First, accept any territory given to them in any part of historic Palestine. Then, use that sanctuary to wage war until Israel is destroyed.

So in 2005 the Palestinians are given Gaza, free of any Jews. Do they begin building the state they say they want, constructing schools and roads and hospitals? No. They launch rockets at civilians and dig a 300-yard tunnel under the border to attack Israeli soldiers and bring back a hostage.

And this time the terrorism is carried out not by some shadowy group that the Palestinian leader can disavow, however disingenuously. This is Hamas in action–the group that was recently elected to lead the Palestinians. At least there is now truth in advertising: a Palestinian government openly committed to terrorism and to the destruction of a member state of the U.N. openly uses terrorism to carry on its war.

That is no cycle. That is an arrow. That is action with a purpose. The action began 59 years ago when the U.N. voted to solve the Palestine conundrum then ruled by Britain by creating a Jewish state and a Palestinian state side by side. The Jews accepted the compromise; the Palestinians rejected it and joined five outside Arab countries in a war to destroy the Jewish state and take all the territory for themselves.

They failed, and Israel survived. That remains, in the Palestinian view, Israel’s original sin, the foundational crime for the cycle: Israel’s survival. That’s the reason for the rockets, for the tunneling, for the kidnapping–and for Israel’s current response.

If that history is too ancient, consider the history of the past 12 months. Gaza is free of occupation, yet Gaza wages war. Why? Because this war is not about occupation, but about Israel’s very existence. The so-called cycle will continue until the arrow is abandoned and the Palestinians accept a compromise–or until the arrow finds its mark and Israel dies.

Why should we take notice of thse events? Simple. Look through every instance of terrorism, extremist sermons and calls for Holy War. What is the main supposed source of the grievances?

The Arab-Israeli conflict.

When attacks are carried out against revellers in Bali, when bombers in Britain killed plenty of commuters, when terrorists in Canada planned attacks against it, what were their common excuse? Besides the Iraq War, they pointed out the the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The Iraq War is a temporary excuse, much like the Afghanistan War. These wars did not and will not last long, but the Arab-Israeli conflict is a convenient long-term excuse for terrorists to justify their actions.

If this conflict can be stopped, we would be depriving terrorists of their main excuse and that is when their true motives will be revealed - the unconditional conquest of the rest of the world, the ‘liberation’ of dar-al-Harb.

Some quotes from FDR that will be helpful to us if ever history repeats itself before our very eyes in this generation.. besides that, some of these quotes are also relevant in some aspects of our daily lives.

These were among the ideas of great men such as FDR, during an era when men were men, not metrosexuals or "in touch with their feminine side". These were from a time when men were separated from mice, political correctness had not eroded the strength of nations and weakend the minds of people.

Those were times that will forever live in infamy, the finest hours of the greatest leaders during the world’s biggest challenge.

The time is ripe to bring back FDR’s Four Freedoms!

On impending danger

"The Nazi danger to our Western world has long ceased to be a mere possibility. The danger is here now–not only from a military enemy but from an enemy of all law, all liberty, all morality, all religion."

On the personal freedoms of human beings

"I respect the aristocracy of learning; I deplore the plutocracy of wealth; but thank God for the democracy of the heart."

"We would rather die on our feet than live on our knees."

"Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds."

"We believe that the only whole man is a free man."

On democracy and governance

"The ultimate failures of dictatorship cost humanity far more than any temporary failures of democracy."

"Government can err;  Presidents do make mistakes, but the immortal
Dante tells us that divine justice weighs the sins of the cold-blooded
and the sins of the warm-hearted in different scales. Better the
occasional faults of a Government that lives in a spirit of charity
than the consistent omissions of a Government frozen in the ice of its
own indifference."

"The object of government is the welfare of the people. The liberty of
the people to carry on their business should not be abridged unless the
larger interests of the many are concerned. When the interests of the
many are concerned the interests of the few must yield. It is the
purpose of the government to see not only that the legitimate interests
of the few are protected but that the welfare and the rights of the
many are conserved. These are the principles which we must remember in
any consideration of the question.  This, I take it, is sound
government–not politics. Those are the essential basic conditions
under which government can be of service."

"For too many of us the political equality we once had won was
meaningless in the face of economic inequality. A small group had
concentrated into their own hands an almost complete control over other
people’s property, other people’s money, other people’s labor — other
people’s lives. For too many of us life was no longer free; liberty no
longer real; men could no longer follow the pursuit of happiness.

Against economic tyranny such as this, the American citizen could
appeal only to the organized power of government. The collapse of 1929
showed up the despotism for what it was. The election of 1932 was the
people’s mandate to end it. Under that mandate it is being ended."

"These economic royalists complain that we seek to overthrow the
institutions of America. What they really complain of is that we seek
to take away their power. Our allegiance to American institutions
requires the overthrow of this kind of power. In vain they seek to hide
behind the flag and the Constitution. In their blindness they forget
what the flag and the Constitution stand for. Now, as always, they
stand for democracy, not tyranny; for freedom, not subjection; and
against a dictatorship by mob rule and the over-privileged alike."

On war and conflicts

"Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself– nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance."

"We cannot escape danger, or the fear of danger, by crawling into bed and pulling the covers over our heads."

"Many causes produce war. There are ancient hatreds, turbulent
frontiers, the "legacy of old forgotten, far-off things, and battles
long ago." There are new-born fanaticisms. Convictions on the part of
certain peoples that they have become the unique depositories of
ultimate truth and right."

On civil liberties, free societies and sound economies

"If the fires of freedom and civil liberties burn low in other lands, they must be made brighter in our own. If in other lands the press and books and literature of all kinds are censored, we must redouble our efforts here to keep them free. If in other lands the eternal truths of the past are threatened by intolerance, we must provide a safe place for their perception."

"The lessons of history, confirmed by the evidence immediately before
me, show conclusively that continued dependence upon relief induces a
spiritual and moral disintegration fundamentally destructive to the
national fibre. To dole out relief in this way is to administer a
narcotic, a subtle destroyer of the human spirit. It is inimical to the
dictates of sound policy."

"The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance
of those who have too much…it is whether we provide enough for those
who have too little."

"All work undertaken should be useful — not just for a day, or a year,
but useful in the sense that it affords permanent improvement in living
conditions or that it creates future new wealth for the Nation."

On peace and continued determination for the future

"We have learned that we cannot live alone. We cannot live alone at peace. We have learned that our own well-being is dependent on the well-being of other nations far away. We have learned to be citizens of the world, members of the human community."

"Lives of nations are determined, not by the count of years, but by the lifetime of the human spirit. The life of a man is three score years and ten, a little more, a little less.  But the life of a nation is the fullness of it’s will to live."

"The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today, so let us move forward with strong and active faith."

"If civilization is to survive, we must cultivate the science of human relationships–the ability of all people of all kinds, to live together and work together in the same world, at peace."

"We must begin the great task that is before us by abandoning once and for all the illusion that we can ever again isolate ourselfs from the rest of humanity."

"We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future."

Churchill’s words may be elegant, but he’s not quite as expressive and eloquent as FDR.

FDR had the distinction of bringing America back on its feet after the Great Depression, and for leading the United States through World War 2, emerging victorious and stronger than ever.

He was a liberal, but he’s not a left-wing coward. Many of his policies tend to slant towards libertarianism, and he’s repeatedly looked up upon till this day as one of the great presidents alongside George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.

MULTAN, Pakistan (Reuters) - Fateh Mohammad, a prison
inmate in Pakistan, says he woke up last weekend with a glass
lightbulb in his anus.

Wednesday night, doctors brought Mohammad’s misery to an
end after a one-and-a-half hour operation to remove the object.

"Thanks Allah, now I feel comfort. Today, I had my
breakfast. I was just drinking water, nothing else," Mohammad,
a grey-beared man in his mid-40s, told Reuters from a hospital
bed in the southern central city of Multan.

"We had to take it out intact," said Dr. Farrukh Aftab at
Nishtar Hospital. "Had it been broken inside, it would be a
very very complicated situation."

Mohammad, who is serving a four-year sentence for making
liquor, prohibited for Muslims, said he was shocked when he was
first told the cause of his discomfort. He swears he didn’t
know the bulb was there.

"When I woke up I felt a pain in my lower abdomen, but
later in hospital, they told me this," Mohammad said.

"I don’t know who did this to me. Police or other
prisoners."

The doctor treating Mohammad said he’d never encountered
anything like it before, and doubted the felon’s story that
someone had drugged him and inserted the bulb while he was
comatose.

Temple demolitions in Malaysia

Samy was told to get cracking to stop further temple demolitions.

On a broader scale, it’s affecting us all.. Churches having a hard time to get approved, and having their applications delayed for years.. Chinese temples being closed down or relocated a couple of years back.. And now, Hindu temples being demolished and idols destroyed.

I see where this country’s heading. But don’t worry, we’re being governed by people who adhere to the epitome of peace and tolerance, right?

From The Star today.. what a load of shit!

PUTRAJAYA: Compelling a Muslim to get an apostasy order from the
Syariah Court to renounce his or her religion does not infringe on a
person’s Constitutional right to profess another religion, the Federal
Court heard.

Pass-the-buck Alert: "I didn’t say you can’t renounce Islam, I’m just asking you to go ask the Syariah Court for permission to do so. Therefore, I didn’t infringe on your constitutional right". As if the Syariah Court would say "Okay, sure."

Sulaiman Abdullah said the Federal Territories
Administration of Islamic Law Act 1994, which conferred on the
religious council the power to govern Muslims, was consistent with the
Constitution.

“The Act was created to smoothen the administration of Islam among
Muslims so that the harmony and well-being of the community are
protected,” he said yesterday.

“The provisions strike the correct balance between individual rights and the interest of public order,” added Sulaiman. 

Ah yes, of course, we have to maintain ‘public order’, lest the mobs demand for the death of Lina Joy. Doesn’t it sound strangely like a threat: "Well, we’re reasonable people to deal with, as long as you do as we say or else.."

Lina Joy is appealing against the Court of Appeal’s majority decision
on Sept 19, last year, which ruled that the National Registration
Department director-general was right in not allowing her application
to delete the word “Islam” from her identity card.

The ruling was on the grounds that the Syariah Court and other Islamic
religious authorities did not confirm her renunciation of Islam. 

The syariah court and other Islamic religious authorities will either send you off to religious rehab, or inform you in a peaceful and gentle manner that there’s a death penalty associated with this maneuver. Therefore, it’s not surprising that they didn’t confirm her renunciation of Islam.

In his submission, Sulaiman said the constitutional issue must be viewed historically. 

“We have to take into account that Islam was here from the 13th
century. The Malay Sultanate became Muslim and, later, its people,” he
said, adding that the system was interrupted with the intrusion of
colonial powers.

“The law that was applied then was Islamic law and several centuries later, Malaysia became a fully Islamic country.”

Says who? Fully Islamic while maintaining Hindu customs and referring to God as "Dewata Mulia Raya"? Come on, let’s skip the revisionist history here. I know the Federal Government is on a roll destroying Hindu temples, but there’s no reason to completely delete the legacy of Hinduism in this country, is there? Unless, of course, we have a bunch of supremacists at the helm, bent on rewriting history to bask in an imaginary glory.

He said everything about the Malays then was governed by Islam and
Malay customs. On the other hand, British law was limited and based on
Christianity.

Ahh, nothing like more supremacy to clear the air. And why is it alright to be governed by "Malay customs", a lot of which are considered ‘unIslamic’ nowadays?

“Unfortunately, the British were the stronger party and had their way
on what should be Malay customs and Muslim law,” he said, questioning
the need to conform to the British legal system after the country’s
independence.

Ah yes, blame it on Might Is Right evil imperialists for messing up what was once our utopian ecclesia. Never mind the fact that the way things were done over here were a bloody mess before the British cleaned up the administration by putting in their more well-organized systems. If it weren’t for the British, the Malaysian Civil Service would be many orders worse than what it is now. And it was because of the British that our civil service was so efficient right after Merdeka.. and we’ve been on a backslide ever since.

Sulaiman said the Malaysian Constitution was unique in that it had a special place for Islam.

He added, however, that Muslims could not declare their renunciation of
Islam without the involvement of religious authorities because there
would be Constitutional repercussions.

“For instance, one may declare himself a Muslim in the morning and by
the evening he is not a Muslim. Or, he is a Muslim when it’s time for zakat and not a Muslim during the fasting month,” he said.

Constitutional repercussions aside (is that relevant?), don’t forget about that even more immediate threat of street justice. We might end up like Pakistan or Iran!

And the argument about one may "declare himself a Muslim in the morning and a non-Muslim in the evening" goes to show how retarded this whole thing is. Note: When there’s nothing to uphold an argument, use distraction. Doesn’t work all the time, but it’s worth a shot.

This prompted Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim to ask:
“Are you saying that a Buddhist can be a Buddhist in the morning and a
Christian in the evening?”

Sulaiman answered there was nothing to stop anyone from doing so. 

For brainless people, yes, nothing can stop you from doing so, much like nothing will stop you from jumping off the 20th floor if you feel like it, or crashing head-on into an incoming truck just to see how it feels like.

For people with brains, we know how absurd and retarded this sounds. Again, when an argument doesn’t stand up to reason, distraction is a valiant effort to keep standing.

He said several legal representatives of non-governmental organisations
had, in their submissions last week, made attacks on the position of
Islam.

“That is a total reversal of what the Government had set out to achieve,” he said.

The NGOs had supported the view of Justice Gopal Sri Ram, who gave his
dissenting judgment in the Court of Appeal, that the NRD’s refusal to
make the amendment in Lina’s identity card without an order or
certificate from the Syariah Court was null and void. 

On April 23, 2001, the High Court refused to decide on Lina’s
application to renounce Islam on the ground that the Syariah Court
should decide the issue.

The appeal continues today.

Nobody made attacks on the position of Islam. If you’re saying that "YES, we want to continue labeling a hypocrite who dislikes Islam as a Muslim for the sake of keeping Muslim numbers high", then yes, the NGOs probably infringed on your position.

If Lina Joy isn’t allowed to renounce her faith, it would indicate that the Government would prefer to have hypocrites (or prisoners of ideology) rather than apostates. She has already considered herself as a non-Muslim, and she was Muslim in the first place by birth and not by choice. By continuing to imprison her within a forced ideological framework, that will only serve to increase her hatred towards Islam.

If the Apostasy Law is there to so-called maintain the ‘purity and strength’ of the religion, what good does this do? If a Muslim is forcibly asked to be a Christian although his heart and soul isn’t with the religion, given a choice to betray fellow Christians or to condemn Christians, this person would, wouldn’t he?

Ultimately, God is divine and He will judge everyone as He sees fit. He doesn’t need any hitmen to carry out His Will and His Word.

Palestinians (L) are blocked by Egyptian police after Palestinian
militants exploded a part of the border wall in the southern Gaza Strip
city of Rafah. Palestinian militants have blown a hole in the
Palestinian border wall between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.(AFP/Thomas
Coex)

Where’s Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International when you need them? Look at that - Egypt has built an APARTHEID WALL between themselves and their fellow brothers, the innocent, oppressed Palestinians! And now, the Palestinians have brought down a section of the wall but they are being stopped by the Egyptian police from reaching freedom! Ohhhh, the oppression and tyranny!!!!

Hmmm.. shouldn’t Kofi Annan be joining a chorus of left-wing moonbats to condemn the construction of this strangely familiar "Apartheid Wall"? Oh, ya.. of course, they forgot that the "Apartheid Wall" in Israel was partially financed by Fatah under Yasser Arafat with constuction materials imported from Egypt, hence the similarities.

What? You don’t expect Israel to import the components of their Apartheid Wall all the way from the United States, do you?

I was actually laughing when England and Brazil lost on Saturday. These two teams are the most over-rated in this World Cup, and many people would like to see them go through. But alas, the quarter-finals is as far as they could go.

I had this dumb mail in my inbox not long ago, before the World Cup began:

This is an excellent calculation. Anyhow the result will be known by
9^th July!!!!! 

Brazil won the world cup in 1994. Before that, it had won
        the title for the last time in 1970.

1970 + 1994 = 3964

Argentina won the world cup for the last time in 1986. Before
        that only in 1978.

1978 + 1986 = 3964

Germany, though, won the world cup in 1990. Before that, Germany
        won in 1974.

1990 + 1974 = 3964

This could lead us to guess the winner of the World Cup in 2002,
        since it should be the winner of the 1962 World Cup

3964 - 2002 =
        1962

And Brazil won the world cup in 1962 and 2002.

This numerology seems to work…

And now, who would be the winner of the 2006 world
        cup?

3964 - 2006 =
        1958

And who won in 1958?

BRAZIL

Yeah, sure. So much for numerology.

Here’s hoping to see Germany vs France in the finals.. the Teutonic Knights vs. the Appeasers. On another note, with England’s defeat on Saturday, I wonder how much destruction have the English hooligans wreaked upon German cities that night.. If the World Cup had coincided with Oktoberfest, how much worse could the hooligan problem had been?..

During the England vs Portugal match, it wasn’t as rivetting as the Germany vs Argentina match but it got us all focused on the game nevertheless. On the other hand, during the Brazil vs France match, most of the mamak shop patrons were chit-chatting 15 minutes into the game. No one was paying attention to the game that early into the first half itself.

The game was absolutely dull.

Thiery Henry kept getting caught offside time and again. Brazilian midfielders and strikers just wanna do their own thing, attempting goal shots from halfway between the midfield and the goalpost and other stupid maneuvers. None of the Brazilians were doing stuff like helping strikers to set up shots and things like that. Everyone wants to be their own personal hero, hardly any teamwork. Most of the time, Ronaldinho gets the ball only to lose it to the French defense, though not as bad as how Crouch loses the ball repeatedly during the earlier match.

After France had scored a goal, the Brazilians started getting desperate as it was getting late into the game. And their lack of cohesion became more evident. There was absolutely no teamwork, it was like ‘every man to himself’, and in one bizarre moment, Ronaldinho, I think, dived for the ball, grabbed it with both hands and skidded past the goal line. We were like, "Huh? New Zealand’s THAT way, kawan. We play FOOTBALL here, not rugby".

Apparently, my pal told me that the Brazilians were so over-confident the whole time, as if they will definitely reach the finals at least and every stage in between is just a formality, that they only had their practice rounds with the junior team and didn’t really push themselves to the max.

They should have known better - all eyes are on this match as it’s something like "1998 redux", an opportunity for Brazil to settle the score. Being Zidane’s last World Cup outing, Brazil might have just helped to cement Zidane’s reputation as France’s Brazil-killer, helming the team that defeated Brazil decisively on two occasions.