So anyway, how's about a two for one sale today. I know that's (the title, that is) a bit of a paranoid alarmist statement, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little concerned about affairs around the world at the moment. I'm sure that the grandparents of people my age expected World War III a long time ago. And as for my generation, I think most of them figured they could just put the war-mongers of the world in time-out before anything serious happened. Honestly I was hoping never to see a major global conflict in my lifetime...but as things are currently shaping up, I'm not so sure that's going to happen. I wonder if any pools have been started as to when this will bust out into all out war? I'm not entirely up on my Middle Eastern politics, but I'm assuming that these Hezbollah rebels that took the Israelis are based out of Beirut...and that's why Israel is seeing fit to lay the holy smack down on Lebanon.
The word for the day boys and girls is escalation...can you say escalation? This is just going to get worse, I can feel it. The trick will be to see just who will get involved over the next few days and weeks. I can't help but think Egypt may actually have enough collective sense to stay out of it at all costs, lest them silly Jews smack'em 'round like bitches again. The Iraqis are currently too busy slaughtering themselves right now to get in on the action. The Iranians, I would imagine, are now really in a rush to get "the bomb". The Saudis will probably stay out of it or risk losing all that oil moolah from the U.S. And as for Syria, Jordan, and Libya, only Allah knows what they're up too!
I don't know. I'm something of an incurable optimist so I'm hoping this will end swiftly and quasi-peacefully. But I'm also a cynic, which means my realist tendencies are trampling all over my positive Chi and telling me that I have a very bad feeling about this.
Thoughts?
That is all.
6 comments:
why can't nasa hurry up and terra-form mars...so we can migrate away from the craziness and live in a normal martian society where nothing weird ever happens.
I'm sure the baptists and other like-minded (though we'll consider the ability to think among these folks in loose terms) holy-rolling, the sky is falling types are relishing this as what is no doubt the first sign of the coming apocalypse.
Yeah, right. Because if that actually happens human beings can possibly know the mind of an all-powerful, all-knowing Creator of the Universe.
You know, I'm all for Israel doing whatever it needs to in order to defend itself. They've taken enough crap for the past 5,000 years or so. They're not acting in the name of Faith, either. They're acting in the defense of their people. Not that I'm a war monger or anything but it's about time someone showed these "Islamic" Militants (which is really just a cover for being murderous thugs, not people of faith; the same way Klansmen are "Christian") a disproportionate response. I think turning the other cheek is a good enough way to live most of the time. But when your enemy's sole goal is nothing less than the total annihilation of you, your people and your way of life, then I believe you have the resonsibility to defend yourself.
word verification: pihna
And sign me up for Mars, too!
Actually, people say the death of John Paul II is a sign of the end times. Supposedly, the new Pope is the last good Pope before the Anti-Christ... I think. Whatever. Peope have been saying it's the End for centuries. Every generation has a secret desire to be the last one.
Well, I have a secret for you: the Anti-Christ is really... *gasp*... Oprah!
Maybe not. But I agree with the professor that Israel needs to open up a can of global whoop-ass. I'm not advocating World War III, but I think sometimes the one turning other cheeks all the time has to put their foot down.
Escalation is indeed the word. It seems like the conflict will be quickly resolved--or at least delayed for a few years. I'm also a cynical optimist.
Maybe I should start watching CNN more... if this is how interesting things have gotten. Two major international conflicts independently going on at once? If they are independent, that's not technically "World" War III, is it?
Am I the professor?
Anyway, I believe if two conflicts are, in fact, independent it cannot yet be considered a "World" War. We'll wait to see what happens in Syria.
I saw an interesting documentary Saturday night on History International (yes, this is what we do on Saturday night) about the Book of Revelation and how it's merely a product of it's time and that it shouldn't be taken literally and blah, blah, blah...things like "the army to the east" referring to the eastern empire of the time (I forget which) that was constantly threatening Rome's doorstep (Judaea making a great buffer) and the "mark of the beast" (666 - Reed's next tattoo? You know you want to!) being a gematrical (the Hebrew mystic context in which each letter has a numerical equivalent) reference to Emporer Nero.
People have been reading whatever they want into these sorts of things thinking that they can predict them and when the rapture is going to take place (an idea that doesn't appear anywhere in the Bible and didn't appear in theological teaching until the 1830s). These people annoy the crap out of me.
If God does exist, we can barely contemplate Its existence, let alone what It thinks or plans.
Like I said, escalation. If it's to be WWIII, it'll start because of what's going on in Lebanon. Again, as I pointed out and Brad reiterated, it'll likely all depend on what Syria (and to a lesser extent Jordan and Libya) do. The U.S. peace process is destined to fail meaning we'll end up in the fight, or rather, we'll get sucked in by the Israelis. Then...it's on...
God I hope I'm wrong!
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