I can't help but think that Sharon has done about the only thing he could which would make a bad situation worse. Much worse.

Powell’s failure felt beyond Middle East

“Powell acknowledged at his parting news conference that without a complete Israeli withdrawal from Palestinian areas, a cease-fire is impossible. And without an Israeli pullback, Arafat can’t be expected to do his part to end the cycle of violence in the Mideast.”

This would seem to indicate that the start of the process is in Sharon’s hands. As we used to say in some negotiations, the turd is in his pocket. But, he’s busy with his brand of ethnic cleansing, again. Gonna take another week, so it can’t happen yet.

(“Ethnic cleansing”, you say. Isn’t that too strong? Well, what do you think is going on behind those lines? OK, not “ethnic cleansing”. But why no reporters? What is “terrorism” by an army under orders called, anyway?)

Whaddya wanna bet that when Sharon is done, he’ll pull out, and then become a peacenik? Forgive and forget, live and let live, bygones be bygones, move forward into a new world, a new era of respect and cooperation, and so on. The Israelis press will start trumpeting peace.

Who is going to accept? He’s systematically clearing out the leadership. Who will be left?

And what kind of leadership does he expect will emerge from the hatred and despair he's leaving behind? If those people felt despairing and abused before, what do they feel now? Does Sharon, or the world, think that from this carnage will come a people with any shred of self-respect who would be interested in cooperation, mutual respect, or peace? If you were the mother, father, wife, husband, son or daughter of one of the murdered folks, would you be interested in more Israeli occupation? Realistically, what can come of it?

Violence begets violence, and unless Sharon can keep assassinating the leadership I would think he has done the only thing which could make a terrible situation worse. In order to make his brand of “peace” work he’s going to have to have a tank on every corner. And, in doing so he’s cost Israel a lot of the respect and admiration it once had. Not all of it, but a lot.

Sad.
Arf