It is said that when the ephors of Sparta were brought news of the surrender of the Spartan army to the Theban general Epaminondas at Leuctra in 371 BCE, they maintained their stoic demeanor, notwithstanding the heretofore unimaginable nature of the disaster.  I suppose that a calm public demeanor is what we should aspire to now, as we receive the news that Israel has hauled down the war flag, and, in effect, capitulated without repelling the most successful attack on its homeland since 1948.

As Winston Churchill said about the 'peace in our time' agreement by France and Britain to permit the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia by Hitler in 1938, 'we have sustained a defeat.....and have passed an awful milestone....'

Who would have thought that Israel would have been drained of the will to prevail, but what other conclusion can we come to?  The on again/off again nature of the ground offensive certainly looked dangerous, and it turned out to be every bit as dangerous as any pessimist could have contemplated.   Something has happened.  We won't know what it is until we get the books, probably some years hence.  But we do know something now.....'the whole equilibrium......has been deranged.' 

Greg Richards   8 12 06