War Crimes in Lebanon

As of this posting almost 300 people have been killed in Lebanon, and nearly all of them are civilians. An article on the front page of the New York Times quotes a U.N. official who's concerned these acts of violence and terror could amount to war crimes.

Sounding an alarm about humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon - where Israeli bombs, rockets and shells have pounded villages, roads and bridges, where much of the population has fled and where supplies are running short - the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, Louise Arbour, said the fighting might amount to war crimes.

"The scale of the killings in the region, and their predictability, could engage the personal criminal responsibility of those involved, particularly those in a position of command and control," she said. Ms. Arbour is a former war crimes prosecutor.

There is no mistaking this as anything other than a human rights disaster and still our national leadership will do nothing to stop it. In fact, U.S. leaders are going to turn their backs on thousands of innocent men, women and children, and give another nation a freebie week to carry out unspeakable violence.

This is such a double standard. The international community would never allow other countries in the region to mercilessly kill hundreds of civilians. Never.

I'm sick. I'm absolutely sickened that this is happening and no one is doing a damn thing to stop it. I'm also terrified that it's going to get worse. What's going to happen when wealthy western countries have evacuated all of their citizens? Will it be an open invitation to destroy southern Lebanon?

Birth control--not just for humans.

I've noticed that not very many pets are spayed or neutered in Sacramento, which I hate. On the whole, I would guess that people in Sacramento have fewer resources, both in terms of education and actual wealth, than people in the coastal urban regions of California, so I'm not suprised that people in Sac spend less money caring for their pets. I'm annoyed because I think it's not just that people can't afford to spay or neuter--I also think there's different attitude in Sac about spaying and neutering. I get the feeling more people think they have the right to own a pet who sows it seed all over the neighborhood, even if it means they're contributing to an abundance of unwanted and neglected animals that will ultimately be killed because nobody wants them. I can't stand this attitude. No one accidentally gets a pet, so there's really no excuse for being an irresponsible pet owner. Spay and neuter your pets!!!

Generations

This article is interesting in it’s own right, but look at the time between each generation: a woman had her son when she was 16, her son's daughter was born when he was 19, and this daughter had a baby when she was 17. In the time it has taken this family to produce 4 generations, my family has only produced two.

All judgement aside, it’s amazing how diverse this nation is and how different people’s lives are in different parts of the country.