Max, STOR's lockup was pushed back to the end of February, but they are going down in anticipation of that.
Regarding Saddam, Max, you may disagree with me, but Saddam actually serves US interests in the Middle East because he engages Iran, keeping their brand of expansionist radical Shiite philosophy away from the Gulf and our oil. We engage Saddam to keep him weak, but to make him go away would open up a huge vacuum that could sweep Shiites into power in Iraq, something nobody wants.
Besides, if you can look up the recipe for the A-Bomb on the internet, what can keep any country from eventually getting this technology? Most of the know-how Saddam has came from the US anyway, and he acknowledges it.
I'm not advocating what has happened, but I'm just being realistic. I also blame Sharon for instigating the problems in Israel. It was a shrewd political move on his part to march on the Temple Mount, and it seems to be playing out exactly as he planned.
The part he didn't plan is that the Palestinian people are getting sick and tired of the corruption of Arafat and his buddies, and it is possible that in the next couple of years Israel won't have the predictable Arafat to deal with anymore. Hopefully, some more pragmatic leadership will prevail and stop looting the aid that is supposed to be helping that territory. Economic growth should help the rage fizzle out. |
