The Middle East...

[stogie bear]

The Middle East!

Ever since I was a kid watching the BBC 1 news the lead story has been "Today in the Gaza Strip" or "Overnight in Lebanon..." or "Bethlehem gets bombed!"

And still 40 years on it's not changed a bit! I couldn't care less if those violent twisted God-lovers all slowly blow themselves to Kingdom come!

I have absolutely NO interest whatsoever in this arsehole end of the world and I'm bloody annoyed that it gets in the way of more important news stories like who won the lottery and Anjelina Jolie having a baby in Namibia!

With all the focus on these Middle Eastern lowlives I'm missing the latest installment of Michael Jacksons amazing life, so I wish they'd drop a few nukes on each other and be done with it.

Then we can retire about 10,000 journalists and turn the place into a gambling mecca for rich retires!

But of course if there was really no interest then it wouldn't be slamdunking every nnews broadcast, but I just don't see it...

Am I missing something here, or has the press and media vastly overstated its' importance and our interest in it?

Does anyone out there think that this IS a vital and important news item? I'd love to here from you if you do so I can get what I'm missing!

[PigDogg]

It's apparently quite important given all the blood that's been spilled for oil.

The real violence is in Africa but the Western powers couldn't give a shit except in places like Nigeria which has black gold.

[rxpharm]

PD has it right, it is important because events there have an impact on the price of oil. If you have noticed the prices of almost everything have started to increase. This is due to the increased transportation and production costs being passed to the consumer.

The way things are going it would not be surprising to see oil go over $100 USD a barrel, unless things settle down.

Sooner or later this will translate to increased prices for the things we love!

[Tomcat]

Its pretty important in the scale of worldy affairs. The next world war is going to kick off around there someday
. Thats a given....Another local war at least within 4 years.

The Israelis must be mad and are completely to blame.
Talk about over reaction to a situation....madness...

When China ascends to the throne as a World Superpower in the not to distant future it may be Israel that gets its arse kicked. Also Russia is getting back on its feet big time and they also want respect.

Its only because Russia is weak that Israel can get away with it.

[vangough05]

On a business basis its very important as oil and gold prices then share prices are linked to what happens . One small mumor and the shit can hit the stock market.

As I export and also as I am a contracter for business visa's, when the shit hits the fan in the East we are inaudated with applications for business class applications form these countires almost hourly.

The oil prices hit my export buisness as transport prices are going through the roof at the moment.

In the last 2 weeks we have had over 734 visa applications from Lebanon. 3 have been approved , all others are in the cue and will be for weeks and in reality are told yeah maybe but will never be approved.

Due to the fact it is easy to litigate in Australia and all visa applicants have the right to free legal aid to apeal any refusals, the system will never unclog its self.

Its a fact that even if you have a criminal record when u apply for a Australian visa you will not be refused at the first stage and will never be told officialy verbaly or in writing as to save litigation.

Australia has avery large Lebanese population from the 1980's but the experminet has failed due to gang violence and a seemingly unwilliness of them to adopt to Australian way of life.

In reality Im with Stoogie. I really don't give a monkeys what they do as they have been doing this shit for thousands of years and to me they seem to thrive on it.
I am just commenting on a business level and how it affects the economy. In the long run it does shove up prices such as jet fuel, travel insurence prices etc.

Let them get on with it and the more we advertise there cause the more it will never end

[Guest]

Now simmer down, Mr. Bear.

Whether we like it or not, the world has become so interdependent that events such as the one's you're sick of hearing about will have the major role in determining what your life is like in the months and years to come. Railing against 'globalization' is like railing against the Law of Gravity. Maybe we don't much like either one, but we're stuck with both.

Some nearly solitary act by a few loons that might not have even been mentioned in the papers twenty years ago now gets breathless wall-to-wall coverage on CNN, BCC, Al Jazerra, Fox, and Christ only knows where else. What's worse, it can roil markets worldwide and cause governments to rise and fall half a world away.

Now we're watching two heavily armed and idealogically crazed nations bashing away at each other with another half dozen even more heavily armed and more idealogically crazed powers circling around ready to jump into the flight. You may not care how it all comes out -- there's certainly nothing you can do about it either way -- but, whatever the result is, it has the potential to remake your life in all sorts of unpleasant ways.

It seems to me that keeping a weather eye on developments is a pretty reasonable thing to do.

[BAM]

When I was in Pattaya I picked up a copy of Munich. I didn't get around to watching it until just a week ago. This movie is still stuck in my head... can't stop thinking about it. It€™s a very well done and a very powerful and thought provoking film.

[Looker]

There is one thing to say..if you are not in there, in the middle of the bombardments, you don't really know what it feels like.
We are carrying on our lives trolling from one Starbucks to a McDonalds and bothering about who will win the next sport match or other minor things.
I consider myself to be very lucky for not having experienced directly any of what these people are but that doesn't allow me to fall "asleep" and ignoring what's going on around the world.

[stogie bear]

but, whatever the result is, it has the potential to remake your life in all sorts of unpleasant ways.

No it doesn't. Or at least in the last 45 years of my life it hasn't! It's the same headline for the last 4 decades and it's more annoying than the insipid (and waste of airtime) weather reports.

We are carrying on our lives trolling from one Starbucks to a McDonalds...

I'm one of these people. I have NO intention of letting these buffoons interfere with my quality of life. I couldn't point to these shit-heaps on an atlas and I'll be damned if I am gonna keep myself informed about screwballs with guns in crap places of the globe that I never want to visit anyway.

Still - judging by the poll I am very much in the minority!

[katoeylover]

I can see where you are coming from SB. It seemes it goes from Israel to Lenanon to Iraq then Iran and then start again.

All the time in ever decreasing circles, and yes it is all about oil and money.

There are much worse things going on in the world, in Central Africa, in Zimbabwe, and poverty in India and even Laos and Cambodia have major problems. However we don't seem to hear too much about these problems as all is centrified around the Middle East, Oil and the Israelis.

[Tomcat]

Israel has bombed another soveriegn state and put the clock back 25 years. Roads, bridges,etc etc.
Its a War Crime according to the Geneva convention.

If this excalates into a prolonged conflict then you will see a spate of worldwide terrorist attacks for sure.
I suppose London will get hit again......

The actual base problem is bigger now for the following reasons.

@ The populations in the Middle East are very young.
e.g Half the population of Iran is between 15- 29. This is the bas news. as...

@There is not much employment and outlook bleak.
@ Its a very hot summer.( this does matter believe me)
@ Governments out there are looking to divert attention
+
@ Oil will go sky high as will gold and other commodities so we all will be fucked and no one is immune.. anywhere.


what a nightmare....

[Guest]

I wonder if you might have the same attidue when there is a huge bomb blast in Bangkok that kills scores, if not hundereds, of people. Its only a matter of time and I am a bit surprised it hasnt happened already. By the way, I can safely predict that blonde haired blue eyed Swedes will NOT be the perps when it happens!!! BE CAREFUL OUOT THERE!!!

[Tomcat]

I agree with you BB. Its gonner spread.....its already happening in India last week with the train bombing , like a virus spreading.

Personally i dont support either side in the conflict but
blitzing Lebabanon just because two soldiers were kidnapped wil give the bearded ones in their caves all the motives they need to send more idiots into the martydom they crave.

News is like evolution , if it doesnt sell print they change the story pretty quick. What paper or news blog you read will also make a difference , i read a quality UK paper but some of the tabloids only have sex related stuff and the latest soap news.

[stogie bear]

I tried 'quality' papers in the past but they are so dull. I'd much rather see tits and read about Catholic priests!

If a bomb went off in Bangkok I would think about the bomb in Bangkok! That's because I live here. When the London bombs went off I barely gave it any attention other than it was the news for a week or so. When the earthquake in Turkey killed thousands I didn't even stop to read about it. When the Chinese mines and african slaves and Indian child-prostitutes... well - you get the idea.

I still can't bother my selfish soul over the Middle East stories.

I'm hearing a similar vein of feelings here - ie 'You had better care because it will affect you!"

Well, it hasn't for the past 40 years so I don't imagine it will for the next.

To me the Middle East is about as important as my nose hairs. I'm much more content to bury my head in the sand and Gifs pussy!

Sorry, folks. The global state of things means absolutely nothing to me and I still think that this part of the world is getting waaaaay to much attention!

[donnnnnny]

Israel  controls america .Not the other way around. To get   to be top boy in the states (prez) YOU HAVE TO  GET THE LOBBY MONEY BEHIND YOU  98% of all lobby money is jewish money. so  bush is prez or  clinton is prez  who cares they still ow  the money favors. so they dont step in and pull israel into line.  the lebs  and hezbolah  are  fucking imbosiles, the  palastinians are not much better. by the way there is no oil in any of these countrys.  that is  in saudi   and iran and iraq.
its a mixed up fucked up waist of time that will inevetably cause a big war  based on religion but in reality  its about money. (oil)
JUST ON OIL the middle east would still be a backward medi evil place if it was'nt for western technology which gets the stuff(oil) out of the ground.
what the west should do is use  our  brilliant bains and come up with an alternative  for oil (fuel cell engine)  hydrogen is very expensive to  produce with present levels of technology ,battery cars are a waist of time. it will happen but until it  does the world will scabble over control of the money(oil)
If america stopped waisting money on wepons  and used the money for developmet of  technologies for the better of man kind   we would have a wonderfull world  with clean cars and no polution.and no worrys about fucking middle east oil. there days are numbered
cheers
by the way if you take a bible into saudi arabia they will throw you in prison. if muslims come to christian countrys we let them build temples. now tell me who are the racist and religious zelots here? ive also noticed they are causing truble in southern thailand
i also believe we should have sharia law for all muslims in western countrys. ill cut all the hands of the thieves and stone all the adulterers with plesure