Hamas/Israel & Random thoughts

Am I the only one confused by the Gaza/Israel situation? As I understand it, Hamas, a terrorist group, controls Gaza, and has been tossing rockets at Israel for several years. Israel counters by shooting down most of the Hamas rockets before they land and sending their own rockets into Gaza. If Hamas would quit launching rockets at Israel, Israel would quit doing the same. If Gaza residents don’t like the bloodshed, why don’t they get Hamas to stop? War is such a stupid activity. All through history wars have been fought for only four reasons: for power, for territory, for religion, and in some cases, for freedom from tyranny. Only that last one makes any sense—American, French, Spanish revolutions, and any other nation that’s risen up against tyranny. Increased territory and power are stupid reasons. Increased territory is only one aspect of the need for wealth and power. And who gets that power? Who gets that wealth? Some dictator or tyrant or governmental head, not the people. Then there’s that third reason—religion. More people have died because of religious wars than for all the other reasons combined. “Believe as I believe or I will kill you!” In this age of supposed enlightenment, who cares what anyone else believes? Hamas, stop shelling Israel; Russia, back off the Ukraine border; Irish Protestants and Catholics, learn to live together; terrorist groups everywhere, stop trying to kill all infidels. Let’s all just learn to leave everyone else alone.

A few random thoughts for you to ponder:

(On the style of some bad writers) I think of his writing as Milk Dud prose—soft and sticky and finger-messy, and it gives you a bellyache after just one box.

(On contemplating oneself in a mirror) The mirror has a way of hiding the truth, but I think I bring to it a fairly objective eye. Now and then I catch a glimpse of my father, but I don’t see myself as an old man.

(On getting old) Every now and then I get this wave of depression at the thought of my own mortality. It’s never an intellectual thing, something to ponder. One moment I’ll be thinking about what I’m doing and then suddenly it overwhelms me and I feel this rush of emotion about what it will actually mean when I die. This long (all too short) practical joke will be over and what will it mean, what will my existence have meant? Then the feeling goes away for several months, only to pop up again when I’m not paying attention.

(On male stupidity) It’s hard to find many men of his caliber—about a .22 small bore. Firing shorts instead of longs, or maybe even dum-dums.

(On anyone’s stupidity) Isn’t it sad that some people can turn on tv and not find a single program that insults their intelligence?

(On the difference between involvement and commitment) In Jonathan Kellerman’s book Self-Defense, Milo says to Alex, “Involved but not committed—know the difference? In a ham-and-egg breakfast, the chicken’s involved, but the pig is committed.”

(On taking a difficult exam) The oral comprehensive exam might be called a situation in which the testers slowly squeeze the testees.

(On paternity) You can’t feel paternal over every passing seed.

(On verbosity) You should give that nasty cut under your nose a chance to heal.

(On sensitivity) The kinds of things that make people cry say a lot about their sensitivity.

(On intelligence) The kinds of things that make people laugh say a lot about their intelligence.

(On word twisters) Misogyny almost always obviates progeny.