JUUST IN ROCKETS LAND IN HAIFA...!!!! 20:02.
 

I don't have details yet, but this has just gone up a notch!

Hoepoe

Godspeed to Israel and the IDF.

All of this because Hamas snatched a soldier and refused to give him back.

Unintended consequences, or with intent to start this?

TR

I can't imagine they didn't know what the reaction would be...my thought is the latter.

Give 'em hell. They knew what they were doing.

I think that Hizbollah expected a much smaller response, and wanted to get Israel bogged down with talks about releasing the soldiers. I think they miscalculated .. big time.

I think they are looking far afield; looking at Syria, and ultimately Iran which is likely pulling Syria's strings!

And Iran is building a bigger hammer!!

I was thinking the same thing. I think the PM of Israel has reached the breaking point with this knowing full well that there is a drooling dog sitting in Persia who has vowed to drive him into the sea after he turns Israel into an obsidian parking lot for Jordan, Syria,Saudi Arabia and Egypt. He also knows that Iran had their own engineers in N. Korea when puppet boy's missile provided a less than stellar display, but non-the-less they where still there anxious to get these missiles N.Korea provided to them up and running with the addition of their own technology or another couple of hampsters on the treadmill. Mossad probably has a better handle on where they are with this program than anyone and I am sure Israel is looking at all the political support wanning for anymore military action by the US and has realized that about the only way to garner support against Iran is to show that Hizzbolah has joined forces with Hamas under the support and guidance of Iran/Syria. They see the US sitting on the border with Iran and are weighing the discontent Iraq has with Iran's support of the insurgents. Throw in that the price of oil has hit $77 a barrel and will only climb higher the longer this latest episode goes on with very unhappy US folks about the continuing upward price spiral. Now, says Israel, there might not be a better time to pull the trigger on Iran if we can only properly prepare the battlefield , manage popular opinion in the US, and show this to be a last option action for Israel's self-defense because once Bush leaves office we are screwed:D

They are only screwed if the whinny left gets into office! I don't think they have gone as far as they have without a nod from the White House. Maybe Bush is going to let them do what he can't do right now for political reasons.

In addition to Col M analysis.....the G8 summit is fast approaching. What better distraction than a new Middle Eastern war to draw G8 attention away from the Iranian Nuke problem? The Iranian desired result being a shift in attention from thier Nuke program to the G8 attempting to address the "Disproportionate Isreali reaction". Likely senerio...Iran orders Hizbollah to make some noise in N Israel knowing full well the violent reaction it will cause thus shifting the spot light from the Iranian nuke program to Isreal. I hope POTUS does the right thing on this and support one of our few allies in this GWOT. Just my .02

I wouldn't really call my post an analysis-more like a brain fart than anything else:D

Sir...I just saw lots of words squeezed together and figured it looked important.

Col M - if that was a brain fart, can I get the name of your bean supplier?:eek:

I wish my brain would fart like that. Oh wait, I'm a gurl...we don't do that. :p

Very insightful post, Sir; I certainly appreciate your educational perspective.

Yeah, at least not until hardware and "I do...":D

I agree, very insightful Col M, thank you.