Middle East: This is the US diplomatic effort?

Condi Rice might be going to the Middle East - probably more for show than effect - but what the US is also sending across to Israel is far more troubling if this report in the NY Times is correct:

"The Bush administration is rushing a delivery of precision-guided bombs to Israel, which requested the expedited shipment last week after beginning its air campaign against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, American officials said Friday.

The decision to quickly ship the weapons to Israel was made with relatively little debate within the Bush administration, the officials said. Its disclosure threatens to anger Arab governments and others because of the appearance that the United States is actively aiding the Israeli bombing campaign in a way that could be compared to Iran’s efforts to arm and resupply Hezbollah."

This seems a rather "odd" way of engaging in diplomatic efforts to stop the carnage presently underway. No less importantly what a wonderful re-inforcement of the already existing view that the American-Israel axis is as one - and that the US cannot really hope to play any realist role as the honest-broker in seeking a settlement of the present conflict.

Read the full NY Times article here.

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Mahler's Prodigal Son

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