Jimmy Carter says it all in his editorial on the best way forward in dealing with the new Hamas-dominated parliament in Palestine.
Nowhere is the schizophrenia of the Bush administration’s attitude toward democracy more evident than in their decision to collude with Israel to deny Palestine with the funding they need (including their own honestly earned tariff revenues) to pay for basic services.
The reaction of the Israeli government and the Bush administration to the success of Hamas is to ensure their failure to be able to govern. And to accomplish this they do not care how many people are denied health care, how many schools cannot open their doors, or how many crimes go uninvestigated because there is no money for the police.
Everyone should read Carter’s editorial and share it with their friends and family.
As he says:
It would not violate any political principles to at least give the Palestinians their own money; let humanitarian assistance continue through U.N. and private agencies; encourage Russia, Egypt and other nations to exert maximum influence on Hamas to moderate its negative policies; and support President Abbas in his efforts to ease tension, avoid violence and explore steps toward a lasting peace.
Update [2006-2-20 2:1:26 by BooMan]: Oh, Jesus. The New York Times has the most dishonest article/headline I have seen since Judy Miller last compared Saddam Hussein to Robert Oppenheimer. I’m going to sleep. Someone please take Steven Erlangar apart. Please.
