Obamania in Israel

Much to the surprise of the exploding sandbox ilk both McCartney and Obama survived their trips to Israel. The rest of us never even considered otherwise until we were told by outsiders that we are supposed to always assume that everybody who comes here is in danger.

A more important difference between the two is that I saw Paul McCartney perform. It was a very good show and the only time I did not have to make any special plans to see him. I paid very little attention to the Obama visit.

Island of Peace

Now that King Hussein is dead and political life in Jordan has changed, there are more frequent calls for the unconditional release of this murderer. Prominent leaders have tried to get him released since it happened, and came close in 2011. Now they are trying again, only with more public support than usual. With all of the revolutions and civil wars in Arab states, this is exactly the kind of thing that a government might cave in to just to appease the masses.