<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">
<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1">
</head>
<body bgcolor="#ffffff" text="#000000">
<div class="article_detail_body">
<p>From
<a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-chait/84059/tom-friedmans-volcano-wakeup-call"><http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-chait/84059/tom-friedmans-volcano-wakeup-call></a>:
<br>
</p>
<p>A very clever friend sends over <a
href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/23/opinion/23friedman.html?_r=1&hp">today's
Tom Friedman column</a> edited down to nothing but mixed
metaphors and cliches:</p>
<blockquote><font size="3">A wake-up call’s mother is unfolding.
At the other end is a bell, which is telling us we have built
a house at the foot of a volcano. The volcano is spewing lava,
which says move your house. The road will be long and rocky,
but it will trigger a shift before it kicks. We can capture
some of it. IF the Middle East was a collection of gas
stations, Saudi Arabia would be a station. Iran, Kuwait ,
Bahrain, Egypt, Libya, Iraq, and the United Arab Emirates
would all be stations. Guys, here’s the deal. Don’t hassle the
Jews. You are insulated from history. History is back. Fasten
your seat belts. Don’t expect a joy ride because the lid is
blowing off. The west turned a blind eye, but the report was
prophetic, with key evidence. Societies are frozen in time. No
one should have any illusions. Root for the return to history,
but not in the middle.</font></blockquote>
<p>My friend could have published this himself, but he was between
a rock and a hard place with no easy answers.</p>
</div>
</body>
</html>