I haven't been blogging much in the past week as a result of the destruction of Lebanon. Been feeling so impotent. Everytime I get an e-mail from a friend who's managed to evacuate my heart rests a little bit easier. I have, thankfully, not lost (or have any friends who have lost) family or friends. Each e-mail I get (and I've received nine so far) tells of the relief of having escaped, but each e-mail is full of rage at what's happening and the indifference of the world.

Condoleeza Rice this past weekend, with a huge cheshire cat smile on her face, compared the crisis to a woman giving birth; the violence in Lebanon was merely the "birth pangs of a new Middle East". Funny. The only thing my friends felt in Lebanon were the bombs. Her smile enraged me...I wanted to smack it off her face.

If I hear one more senator regurgitate the whole "Israel has the right to defend itself" defense I'm going to break something. When the Senate was set to vote on a resolution defending Israel's attacks on Lebanon, only one Senator blocked the vote. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner (R-VA) noted the following on the Senate floor:

"I urge those...to make sure there is not an ambiguity there because the people of Lebanon are suffering enormously at this time, as are the people in Gaza. Many of those people are not aligned with either Hezbollah or Hamas.

"Now we see today that so many nations say the United States must take a stronger role in trying to work our way through this conflict, yes, supporting Israel but at the same time trying to bring about some resolution to spare the life and limb and suffering in Palestine, Lebanon, and Israel, to see that it not spread to other areas.

"I conclude our support for Israel is very strong, Mr. President, but it cannot be unconditional."

I'm just sick of all this. I'm sick of the politics, sick of the posturing, done with the bullshit.