Eric's Beijing Diary

Had a discussion this afternoon at Leisha's with a group of Israelis about the situation in Lebanon. I was expressing my frustration with Israel's approach (apparently copied from the Americans) of using bombing (which tends to be indiscriminate) as a substitute for a ground invasion, which admittedly kills more soldiers, but saves civilian lives. I have long been a critic of Israel's lack of regard for the lives of Arab civilians, but I do believe they need to put Hezbollah out of business. I told the Israelis that I believe Israel will need to occupy Southern Lebanon, because no one else seems capable of governing it. The Israeli young people were adamant in stating that Israel had no interest in being responsible for Lebanon. They seemed to feel that Lebanon should be "forced" to keep the area in control. I told them that I didn't think the Beirut government was capable of that. I also told them that the key issue here was the land. Israel is different from other nations in this regard. Israel's right to be on this land goes back to the Old Testament. They told me that that was only of interest to religious Jews. They said, "We are not religious; we don't care about that." I have heard this sentiment expressed by many (actually most) Israelis I have met in China. But I told them that even if they were not religious, they could not escape the issue. There is a reason that the nation of Israel was set up in Palestine rather than in Uganda. Sharon was not a particularly devout man, but that is one area where I have to give him credit. He is one modern Israeli who understood the principle of the land (though some would debate that, given his disengagement policy).

Pulled a long beautiful black hair out of my yoghurt last night. The Swiss lady who is studying the Tibetan language and planning to migrate to this area said it was "natural." I couldn't argue. I still prefer the hairless yoghurt, but it didn't seem to affect the flavor much. Speaking of yoghurt, I was talking with a guy from Italy about yoghurt, because he had advised everyone in his group not to eat the yoghurt, and I was telling him how good it was. He said that sometimes local yoghurt can be a problem for travelers, because they have not built up resistance to the bacteria. I am not sure how much this is a factor, but I do know that my first year in Beijing, I did have a lot more trouble with stomach disorders, mostly in the spring and summer, than in subsequent years.