George W. Bush has turned us into an irrelevant paper tiger

It's entirely possible that the reason for the Bush Administration's peculiarly weak response to the conflagration in Israel and Lebanon is that they truly are just sitting around waiting to be raptured to Jesus. I wouldn't rule that out.

But if you're not an Apolcalyptician, what Washington's near-absence from the world stage where this disaster is concerned means is that having shot their proverbial wad in Iraq and just made things worse, the Bush Administration, and by extension the United States, has absolutely zero moral authority in the world community.

Bush:

"Our message to Israel is defend yourself but be mindful of the consequences, so we are urging restraint."

We see how well THAT'S working; Ehud Omert now says that today's Hezbollah strike on Haifa will have "far-reaching" consequences for Lebanon. Translation: Syria and Iran, you're next.

Condoleeza "Lizard Queen" (™ PJ Sauter) Rice isn't doing a heck of a lot better:

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she had told Olmert her country was deeply concerned about civilian casualties in Lebanon and hoped Israel would exercise restraint.

And millions of American kids hoped Dad would put in a pool this summer. So what's her point?

George W. Bush is in Germany making faces at crying babies and wondering when he's going to get to eat pork. Here is what a REAL Administration does; one that doesn't have apocalyptic delusions and one who didn't decide to play G.I. Joe for no good reason -- just in case you've forgotten.

CNN, January 7, 2000:

U.S. President Clinton flew back to West Virginia on Friday to try again to get Israel and Syria moving forward in peace talks, which are in their fifth day.

"This is difficult stuff. This is very hard," Clinton said just before he left the White House. "They're working hard and they're trying to find ways to resolve their differences."

Clinton is making his fourth trip to rural Shepherdstown since the negotiations began Monday. He met separately with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa on Thursday.

Clinton said he believed both sides were working in good faith and that he was "just trying to be helpful."

"I just try to get people together and identify what they have in common, identify what their differences are," Clinton said. He added he was trying to get the two sides "to keep in mind the big picture at the end ... what we hope and pray the Middle East will look like in five years or ten years from now."

A source close to the Syrian delegation says there will be a three-way meeting between Clinton, Barak and al-Sharaa on Friday, but there was no confirmation of that from Israeli or U.S. officials.

U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, acting as a facilitator in the Israeli-Syrian talks, recommended that Clinton visit Shepherdstown. It's hoped that Clinton's continued presence will get both sides "rolling up their sleeves," said U.S. State Department spokesman James Rubin.

Albright held a lengthy morning meeting Thursday with al- Sharaa, who was reportedly displeased that there have been no talks over Syria's key demand: a timetable for Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights, which Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast War.