The Cause Of, And Solution To, All Of Life's Problem's

Hi Everyone,

We all know that Barack Obama is big on unity. He has taken on a multitude of approaches. Know what the most recent one is? Bipartisanship? Meeting without preconditions? No. His approach utilized an age-old weapon in every man's arsenal. Homer Simpson called it "The cause of, and solution to, all of life's problem." I am talking, of course, of beer.

Remember how the last President was "the guy who you could have a beer with?" This was no doubt part of his appeal. Well, his successor has taken it to a whole new level. While the last President only used this as a hypothetical, this President has literally taken that approach to solving the latest controversy.

You may have heard about the Gates incident ("Gates-gate" is what it's being called now), where Henry Louis Gates returned to his home, to discover he had to jimmy his way into the door. A neighbor called the police, and after Gates produced proof of his residence there and his tenure at Harvard, backup was present, Gates got agitated, so they took him to the police department.

How did Barack Obama get involved in this? Well, as I reported last Thursday, the last question in his primetime press conference was about his take on the incident, since he had apparently known Gates well. Obama said that the Cambridge police officer in question, Sergeant Jim Crowley, had "acted stupidly" in the incident. The Cambridge police department and the union of police officers took offense at this, demanding an apology on behalf of all the nation's police officers.

So on Friday, Obama made a surprise appearance at the White House Press Briefing, with Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, to clear up the mess. He said in effect that he had talked to the officer in question, and that he had a lot of respect for Sergeant Crowley and the Cambridge Police Department. He said that he had made a poor choice of words, and that he thought this situation was a matter of two guys caught in a bad situation who acted wrongly. Then he mentioned that he invited Sergeant Crowley and Professor Gates to the White House for a beer some time this week.

It seems like that's what this was, a misunderstanding, a case of two guys trying to live their lives getting bent out of shape and handling a situation poorly. Gates had just returned from a two-week trip to China to discover that he couldn't get back into his home. Imagine getting back from a long trip, you're tired, and then you can't get back into your home. Wouldn't you be annoyed?

Crowley was responding to a 911 call. If you're a cop (and for anyone reading who works in the law enforcement business, you probably know what I mean) and you're responding to a 911 call, you've gotta be ready for anything. The guy could draw a shotgun or charge the officers. Cops are trained to be ready for any situation when they respond to a 911 call.

So anyway, on to this beer. There are times when a good cold beer can really be what you need. There are plenty of things you could use to ease tensions and resolve a situation. However, there are times, like when you come home from a long week of hard work (of which the President has ahd plenty and will have many more), when you just need a nice cold brewski. now that I'm done with this post, I think I'll grab one. Cheers!

This is the Daily Reeder, Over&out.

Israel, Palestine: The fun never ends

To one&all,

Well, we're only 2 days into the new year, and already I've got lots of material. Of course, it is the kind of material that you don't know if you want to have. Let's put it this way: if you want to have a job that will be in demand for a long time to come, work to find a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Lord knows we want it to end, but who can figure out a way? Every time we think we have it figured out, something happens and we're back to square one.

Apparently, in the last week, the Palestinian group Hamas launched rocket attacks against Israel. Israel then called in airstrikes against territory where Hamas was. However, Hamas operatives were scattered throughout, so many civilian casualties have been reported on the Palestinian side. As of January 2, 2009, 1 Israeli soldier, 3 civilians have been killed, 31 Israelis have been wounded. On the Palestinian side, around 400 have been killed, including 100 civilians, according to the UN, and more than 1,400 have been injured. And if this isn't enough, the Israelis are considering a ground attack against the Palestinians.

So who's at fault here? And what should be done to correct the situation? Well, this is a tricky issue, and will not be solved quickly or by one party alone. But it seems like Israel's vowing an all-out war against Hamas probably isn't the best idea. I do support Israel's right to defend itself. However, the more intense the attacks, the more likely civilian casualties. Civilians on both sides will suffer. And there is the issue of politics. Some speculate that heavily shelling Hamas could actually strengthen them by casting them as the victims, like what happened in Israel's war with Hezbollah in the Summer of 2006. So what options are we left with?

Now, I got a unique perspective on the event, which is very rare for me. My affiliate blog recently published a story of protests here in Denver against Israeli actions which involved Muslims and Christians alike. The encounter involved us talking to a man who was from here who had visited the area, and another man who was a Muslim originally from Morocco. One insight that we gained is that the great majority of people want to live in peace.

However, the Palestinians also bare some responsibility. According to this observer, Israel's actions are a necessary act of self-defense, and those in Hamas are cynically manipulating the civilian casualties to advance their agenda. I obviously don't support terrorist actions or terrorist organizations, and like I said earlier, I do support Israel's right to defend itself. It seems that on this side as well as the Israeli side, they have not honored the ceasefire agreement, and their refusal to make any concession can only worsen the situation.

So, what to do? On both sides, the powers that be, on both sides, have an extraordinary emotional momentum that keeps any kind of change from happening. Thankfully, there are some there who recognize that this simply cannot continue. But the momentum keeps the attacks going, whether it be the militant Hamas, or the Israelis, wanting vengeance.

Unfortunately, the US has had a hand in this. No politician in America could ever afford to admit anything wrong about Israel. This was one of the things that the McCain campaign accused Obama of, hence Joe the Plumber and others proclaiming that a vote for Obama would mean death to Israel. However, Obama, considered one of the more dovish politicians, fully asserts his support of Israel. On the website change.gov, where he outlines his agenda (look under foreign policy and scroll about halfway down), he says his administration will seek to "ensure a strong US-Israeli partnership...Support Israel's right to self defense, and...support foreign assistance to Israel".

Now, again, I'm not against Israel, and I am as much concerned about the well-being of their civilian population as I am about Palestine's. I should also note that on that same page, the Obama team pledged to "work with Israelis and Palestinians-to achieve the goal of two states, a Jewish state in Israel and a Palestinian state, living side by side in peace and security", and that he will use diplomacy to achieve this end. My point here is that our political discourse does emphasize too much one side of the issue. To side totally with either Israel or Palestine, I believe, would be irresponsible and would work against any solution that could present itself. It doesn't help that the media seems all too happy to present this one side of the issue, rather than look at the complexity of it.

Anyway, I'd like to leave you with these videos. They present a wonderful argument on the subject. In fact, check out the channel of the guy who makes them. Anyway, I hope that the video leaves you with some more understanding of the issue. I also hope that this post could give you a little insight into a complex and persistent issue, which lies very close to this blogger's heart. To sum up, one hurdle we will have to overcome in this is pride.

Whether you are allied with Israel or Palestine, you are going to have to admit that your side made some mistakes. As long as both sides don't the problem will keep spiraling out of control. The situation unfolding there is likely to keep Obama and Hillary busy from the first day, but it will take more than just them to fix this. It will take the courage to fess up and admit that you made mistakes, grave ones. But, this is a true act of courage. Anyway, that's it for now. Hope to have another post up soon.

For the first time in the year 2009, This is the Daily Reeder, Over&out.