Also on today’s menu:
Good News For High-Tech Companies
A Mixed Forecast On Groundhog Day
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has argued that it requires full military pressure to get Hamas to release more hostages, and he denies that Israel has deliberately targeted civilians. Members of Hamas hide in and around civilian infrastructure, and the army says it has destroyed a significant amount of the group’s underground infrastructure, including command centers, weapons sites, and facilities for holding hostages. On Saturday, the Israeli military said, “Throughout Khan Yunis, we have eliminated over 2,000 terrorists above and below ground.”
Yet more than 800 civil servants in the United States, the European Union, and 11 European countries, including the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, have signed a “transatlantic statement” warning that their own governments’ policies supporting Israel’s actions amount to “grave violations of international law” and make them complicit in “one of the worst human catastrophes of this century”. They say Israel’s military actions have shown “no boundaries … [resulting] in tens of thousands of preventable civilian deaths; and … the deliberate blocking of aid … putting thousands of civilians at risk of starvation and slow death.”
“Israel’s military operations have disregarded all important counterterrorism expertise gained since 9/11,” the statement alleges. “[T]he [military] operation has not contributed to Israel’s goal of defeating Hamas and has instead strengthened the appeal of Hamas, Hezbollah, and other negative actors.”
Discussion: The names of those signing the statement have not been released, but the BBC reports, “the largest numbers of signatories are understood to be working in EU institutions, the Netherlands, and the US. Most of the US government officials who signed are understood to work for the State Department, while others are officials serving at the White House, Homeland Security, Justice, and other government departments.” They claim that their expert advice has been ignored by their government leaders. While that may be true, we should keep in mind that past attempts to solve the problems in the Middle East have not eliminated them. If the current approach — slowly increasing pressure on Israel to back off while supporting the country’s sovereign right to strike back after Hamas’ deadly attack — ends with the long-sought two-state solution that recognizes both Israeli and Palestinian rights to peace and self-government, it may be the right path forward. What is clear is that blocking humanitarian aid and subjecting civilians to the risk of “starvation and slow death” is, indeed, wrong and a grave violation of international law. Doing so does, indeed, strengthen the appeal of terrorist groups, as we saw with the US invasion of Iraq on bogus claims that Saddam Hussein had amassed weapons of mass destruction. We need to learn from the past.
Good News For High-Tech Companies
Meta, the social media firm that owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, made its first payout to investors in the Zuckerberg-owned company’s 20-year history — 50 cents per share — while reporting quarterly profits of more than $14 billion. It has experienced a surge in users, higher advertising sales, and lower costs. The BBC reports, “Even its much-ridiculed, money-losing virtual reality unit hit a milestone, generating $1bn in revenue.”
The company said its strong financial position allows it to invest more money in the business while still paying dividends on a quarterly basis going forward.
Amazon sales also increased 14% from a year ago, and Apple’s revenues grew for the first time in a year, with its earnings exceeding expectations.
Discussion: Tech has rebounded amidst restored consumer confidence, following continued good news on the economy under President Joe Biden Jr. While gasoline and grocery prices remain high, dampening the recognition of how well the economy really is doing, consumers have increased spending for the products and streaming services that high-tech companies provide. The unfortunate part is that much of the tech companies’ high profitability is based on the harvesting and sale of personal information their devices and services collect. Their success also makes the owners and top executives obscenely wealthy — which would be fine if their wealth trickled down to the workers and consumers who support them, as Ronald Reagan envisioned. Biden’s policies have helped lower-income Americans, but not enough to offset the advantages of a tax policy that favors the wealthy.
A Mixed Forecast On Groundhog Day
Punxsutawney Phil, the most famous of the groundhogs, did not see his shadow in a ceremony this morning at Gobbler’s Knob in Pennsylvania, according to the Associated Press. That is supposed to mean that there will be an early spring.
Residents in Eastford, Connecticut, rely on Scramble the Duck to do the prognosticating, and Scramble emerged from his little white building onto a red carpet where he cast no shadow, confirming Punxsutawney Phil’s findings.
However, Woody the Woodchuck, in Howell, Michigan, “wobbled forward, looked around, and turned around before taking another glance at the nearly silent group of adults and children waiting for his season prediction. Woody had 30 seconds to decide. If he remained outside for that half-minute, spring would arrive early. But if Woody shambled back inside, winter would hang around a bit longer. Alas, Woody turned and went back inside.”