CUTTING IN BOTH DIRECTIONS In his piece for the Arabic Media Internet Network, Ghassan Khatib explains how both the Israelis and Palestinians have had to rely on public opinion to shape their policies over the past 30+ years. One of the more interesting points he makes is that the suicide bombings are designed to do two things: inflict harm and terror on Israel, and to destabliize the Palestinian Authority. I can't think of a single news report I've read recently that talks at any depth about how Hamas and the Al Aqsa Martyr's Brigades attacks are a political act pointed both at Israel and at the Palestinian government. While the bombers themselves may be manipulated or motivated by theological or nationalistic passion (or simply by despair), those who arm them and point them to their targets seek to destabilize more than Sharon's government.

THE SELF-MADE CRITIC GOES TO THE FLICKS The Brunching Shuttlecocks take a look at this summer's hottest flicks. Forget what the NYTimes or NPR or that crazy wacko fraulein on WWBT tell you about this summer's hot flicks. The Shuttlecocks do it better. Spot-on two paragraph previews of why everything from Star Wars to Spiderman to the Ya-Ya Girls is going to be a flash in the pan or set the world afire. "Sounds about as entertaining to me as removing a toenail or two, but then I don't think I'm the target audience. I hear they make hats in the film. That sounds nice."

GREEN HOUSES "Desperate for solutions, coalitions of citizens, conservationists, and public officials are organizing behind campaigns known variously as "smart growth," "new urbanism," and "sustainable cities." Their visions and goals differ according to local conditions. But the intent is the same: to change present patterns of local land use and development. " So reads a great article with useful links from the National Geographic news desk. The piece looks at the evolution of development trends in the United States, and the growing need to move away from micro-planning of urban and community environments (everything driven by short-term zoning regulations) to a more macro-approach (vis-a-vis the old school and holistic master plan approach). Read, copy and mail to your local government officials.

AN IRON FIST CLOTHED IN A VELVET GLOVE Reuel Marc Gerecht lays out an argument in the (cough, cough) Weekly Standard that the U.S. is on just the right track when it comes to the Middle East. His premise is that the Arab states are more inclined to deal straight with the U.S. when the U.S. is coming to the table from a position of strength. Maybe, maybe not. His analysis isn't shoddy in the least, but I'd argue there is a gulf of difference between dictating from a position of strength (a great way to breed resentment and hostility) and negotiating from a position of strength. Somewhere between the heavy hand of the Paul Wolfowitz's of the world and the more compromising wing of the diplomatic corp is the ability of our government to speak forthrightly about our interests, demonstrate our resolve to push for those interests, and listen with genuine charity to the views of other countries involved.

DILPOMATIC PICK-UP STICKS Found yourself thinking that laser-sharp, focused thinking from Washington will solve the situation in the Middle East? Yeah, not many people have lately. A battle royale between the State Department and the Pentagon has been brewing since September, and it's brought the White House's policy initiatives in the Middle East to a standstill, as this Washington Post piece explains. State feels battered, the Pentagon is drawing new maps and alignments. Add to this public opinion (informed or not) more firmly in Israel's corner than any time in the past 20 years, and the Republican wing of Congress preparing to proclaim support for Sharon, and you've got all the fixin's for trouble. Meanwhile, the President himself continues to chase butterflies...

NOW HE TELLS US An editorial cartoon with some punch from The Guardian. "Kissinger admits possible errors on Vietnam April 25: Henry Kissinger yesterday responded to calls for his arrest for allegedly aiding and abetting war crimes by admitting that mistakes were "quite possibly" made by the administrations in which he served."

NEW AND IMPROVED. NEW, AT LEAST. I've been tinkering a bit, and will tinker more. The new look is obvious. The empty boxes floating bove are waiting to be filled with dashing graphics that will lead you to the rebirth of Caffeine Magazine. New poetry continues to be tossed into the tumbled glass section of the site (link down there to your right) and there is now an archive of the web log (also to your right).

ESCALATING TO NOWHERE An apt title for another short piece from the Center for Strategic & International Studies' Cordesman. He lays out an analysis that covers the heightened "fog of war" brought on by urban combat in Jenin, the challenge of the U.N. fact-finding mission, and the emotions on the ground may well keep an accurate assessment of the combat there from coming to light in the near future. More importantly, he emphasizes the futility of the actions of both the Israeli's and the Palestinians. The situation may be back to a high simmer from the full boil of last week, but anyone who believes this ongoing violence will lead to a satisfactory conclusion for either side is misguided.

YOU SAY TOMATOISM, I SAY TERRORISM The lead editorial in today's Washington Post comes at the "define terrorism, please" challenge by looking at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through two lenses: the justifiable effort to protect Israeli citizens from terror bombings and the questionable tactics of the IDF that involve the complete destruction of the Palestinian civil government. As has been noted many times in the past eight months, the task of reaching a consensus on what terrorism is might be a challenge -- but defining what it isn't ain't all that hard.

HAVE YOU HUGGED AN ANARCHIST TODAY? More and more often these days, I miss the small handful of intelligent anarchists who once roamed the earth. Not the kids kicking the streets with their black masks and spraypaint cans, but the honest-to-God throw-a-damn-wrench-in-the-machine thinkers who applied their intelligence to their task of destroying organized corruption. Edward Abbey was a loon, a genuine nutcase, and an environmental anarchist with appeal.

ISRAELI & PALESTINIAN FAILURES The Center for Strategic and International Studies website has a wealth of information and analysis on world issues; these documents on the Second Intifada are solid. "Escalating to Nowhere: The Israeli and Palestinian Strategic Failure" is a downloadable PDF analysis that pulls together the litany of short-term and long-term strategic mistakes and failures made by Sharon and Arafat. While some might take issue with Cordesman's even-handed approach to the military conflict, his analysis on the outcomes, I think, is spot-on. Both sides have failed their people, and the longer-term consequences of those unresolved failures make for a bleak view of any future settlements between Israel and Palestine.

SCORE ONE FOR INDEPENDENT JUDICIARY" Isn't this much more than an administrative procedures case?" (U.S. District Judge Gladys) Kessler asked, not pausing for an answer. "Aren't there very serious legal issues involved here. . . . It seems the government's approach is too simplistic." This from the judge hearing arguments in a suit filed against the U.S. government by the nation's largest Islamic charity, which was raided by federal agents last fall in the opening salvo of the Justice Department's War on Terror. It's refreshing when someone taps lightly on the brakes of justice, isn't it?