War! Huh. What is it good for?!

So the middle east is at war again. At least time it's only indirectly our fault. We're not actively in it, we don't have soldiers over there, and we didn't really have anything to do with it starting. But considering how much military aid we sell to Israel, we can't claim to be completely innocent. And the thing that really worries me is the all the other countries that could get involved. What we really don't need is an all-out Arab vs. Others war over there. There's plenty of tension in that region due to the religious differences, and some of those countries would appear to have zero reservations at just unleashing everything they have. Suicide bombs, terrorist attacks (but if they are in a war, is it really terrorism?), on top of conventional attacks. It could get really ugly and would really be the start of WW3. Not cool.
And while I have lots of complaints and views on the subject, I really don't have any answers. We really do need to get out of the area and stop meddling in their business just to get some oil. But since we did take out Saddam, we do have to shoulder the load to rebuild and get a new government in place. The trouble there is the fact Iraq is nothing but civil wars and unrest right now. And since they didn't start the uprising they aren't in any shape to fix it themselves. So it's quite the pickle we're in.
As for Israel vs. Lebanon/Hezbollah, that's a tough one. There really isn't an easy way to ease all those tensions quickly. Obviously the first step would be a cease-fire, but if we're being realistic that's just not going to happen. Or if it did happen it wouldn't last. This may be a case where you just need to let the 2 countries fight it out and settle it themselves. NATO and the rest of the world needs to just stand by and step in when it's really over. Kinda like a schoolyard fight. Everyone stands around just to watch and to make sure things don't get out of hand. But that's not a great idea for the people that have to live there. I wish I was a master at diplomatic relations, but I'm not.

Hockey
Well, the summer season is off to a rocky start for both myself and the team. We got beat up in our first 2 games. And I seem to have lost the ability to it the puck past the goalie. My shots are good, they just aren't getting past. I've got good speed on my wrister, it's getting up off the ice to about mid-goal, but I either hit the goalie in the chest or they make a slick save. And there's no rebounds for someone else to pick up. So it just sucks all around.
However, in game #3 I finally broke the cherry. After getting into a little arguement with a ref....
I pick off a bad pass at about our blue line and start to head up ice at full speed. I'm looking down cause I don't quite have a handle on the puck. I end up running over one of their guys who was just standing in the way. I didn't see him, so I had no chance to avoid him. I then get called for an interference penalty and just lose it. 2.5 games of frustration come out and I just start jawing at the ref. Every time he came within earshot I had something to say. Until he finally told me "One more word out of you and you're going to the lockerroom". He was really pissed at me, I was really pissed at him.
So then in the 3rd I get another break, cut hard around a slow defender, and lift it top shelf from a really bad angle. I was 10ft from the net and almost right on the side of it. I'm not sure how it went in, but it did. Hopefully now I can settle down and start playing better offensively. I need to just relax and check out my options. If the pass is there, dump it off. If not, aim for the corners of the net, not the middle.

Okay, it's late and I'm tired. So I'm cutting it off here and heading to bed. I'll see if I can't throw up something tomorrow while I'm at work. I'm just doing stupid data analysis this week, so I get bored pretty quickly.
PEACE!!!