Asked whether the Administration's policy of spreading democracy in the Middle East had produced instability and democratically elected terrorist governments, Dr Rice angrily called the suggestion "pathetic".
There was always going to be turmoil as democracy took hold, she said, and there was no going back to policies that never tackled the region's problems. - Sydney Morning Herald
US President George W Bush, who commented on Lebanon from Germany 24 hours after violence had spiraled out of control, described the situation as "pathetic". He also expressed concern that Israel's offensive into Lebanon could destabilize or even topple a Lebanese government that Washington supports. He made things worse and further infuriated the Arab street by expressing Israel's "right to defend herself". - International Middle East Media Center
Hizbullah's decision to snatch two Israeli soldiers evinced poor judgment and even worse timing, but the Israeli response has been out of all proportion to the original incident. The numbers speak for themselves. As of Wednesday evening, Israeli attacks had killed at least 292 civilians in Lebanon, while Hizbullah rockets had killed 13 noncombatants in the Jewish state. Lebanon has approximately 3.5 million people. On a per-capita basis, that means that as of Wednesday, the rough equivalent of 9/11 has happened every day here for eight days. - Western media fail to tell the real story in Lebanon
