It seems to me that the old addage:
" Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it"
has been forgotten.
The news that has prompted this blog is the incursion (invasion) once again, by Israel into Gaza.
The somewhat vague notion that they are going to scare those bad boys who have, as a hostage, an Israeli soldier, cuts no ice with myself.
Standing back, the situation as I read it is this:
Israel puts barbed wire around the area known as the Gaza Strip, it, on an ad hoc basis bombs said strip as part of the on/off peace[sic] negotiations. As a result of an action by the internees, Israel cuts off all power and water suplies.
Now my memory may be failing but I remember that another heavy handed regime did this in the nineteen forties. Did not the Nazis herd Jews into a gheto in Warsaw and do likewise
?
A second example of this Historical forgetfulness is at this moment being demonstrated by our own government.
Back in the time when we did actually have an Empire we got our noses bloodied on The North West Frontier, when we had a lot of trouble with the damned natives who took umbrage with our commings and goings through The Khyber Pass. Damm those Pathan tribes.
Not withstanding our own little bust up in that area, we can't even learn from more recent history.
Did the Russians not get their arses kicked bigtime by the locals, who went under the funny name Taliban.
I think they did.
Even with a border to Afghanistan and the full might of the Soviet war machine they still got stuffed by a few smelly natives. OK, so we, the west did train them and supply them with modern weapons ( yes those same weapons are being used to kill our soldiers).
I put it to you that we'd not be in this pickle if Blair wasnt so far up the arse of Bush that you only know it is him from his shoe size.