Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine:
Who Likes Hamas?
With even the Arab League blaming Hezbollah and Hamas for the violence in the Middle East, it seems the terrorist organizations' last bastions of support are Iran, Syria — and parts of California. Left-wing protesters chanting their support for the two groups in front of the Israeli consulate in San Francisco had to be separated from pro-Israel demonstrators by police the other day. Many protesters waved Palestinian flags, while some mask-wearing demonstrators wore t-shirts advocating violence against Jews.
And in a Los Angeles Times op-ed today, UCLA literature professor Saree Makdisi says Israel, not Hezbollah, is the true terrorist group, writing that the country has killed "whole families," and is engaged in "collective punishment of the entire Lebanese population."
Investigating Israel?
The U.N.'s human rights chief is looking into whether Israel's attacks on Lebanon and Gaza constitute war crimes. Louise Arbour called the "indiscriminate shelling" of cities and civilian sites unacceptable — and says the scale of the killings in the region "could engage the personal criminal responsibility of those involved."
Meanwhile, EU foreign policy head Javier Solana says there is insufficient data to determine whether Hezbollah can be listed as a terror organization, calling it a legal, not an ethical issue.
Presidential Contenders
Rudy Giuliani and John McCain top the list of prospective GOP presidential contenders in the latest Gallup poll, but not all the news was good for McCain. More than four in ten Republicans think the Arizona Senator would not be an acceptable candidate in 2008 — compared to just 25 percent who thought Giuliani would be unacceptable.
Meanwhile, New York Senator Hillary Clinton tops Al Gore, John Kerry, and John Edwards among the Democrats, and just 29 percent call her an unacceptable presidential candidate.
Locked Up Language
Staff at British juvenile prisons have been banned from referring to young offenders as "prisoners," "inmates," or even "juveniles," as part of a Home Office policy to provide a positive environment. A letter from one prison warden instructs staffers to call the inmates "Mr." or "young man," or to simply use their first names. What's more, the Daily Mail reports that staffers can no longer refer to "feeding" the prisoners, but must instead "serve them meals."
Earlier this year, the Home Office was criticized for spending thousands of taxpayer dollars on video games for juvenile inmates, including "Grand Theft Auto," which rewards players for car-jackings, dealing drugs and killing policemen.
—FOX News Channel's Aaron Bruns contributed to this report.
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