[speaker001:] what do you feel about the um present situation in the Mideast
[speaker002:] well it looks like it's just about as volatile as it usually is
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] what do you think Mark
[speaker001:] yeah I'd agree I think I think there's definitely been some changes um and I think you know the the um end of the Soviet Union will definitely have it's effect on on the situation
[speaker002:] oh yeah
[speaker001:] um you know in that there's there's not you know there you know if you know it's basically since the end of World War II there was always you know that little proxy war going on
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] you know with um the US funding Israel and you had the um Soviet Union funding the Arab countries
[speaker002:] and then we'll see what happens when uh they're not funded quite as much or supplied with arms the same way
[speaker001:] yeah um-hum yeah but on the same token you know Israel has lost a lot of their you know value to the US in being you know the foothold of capitalism
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] you know in in the Mideast
[speaker002:] well I we tend to be pretty strong supporters of Israel ourselves you know we support kind of cringe when they make mistakes but yet
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] overall tend to support them but I think one of the most interesting things to me recently was you know during the war uh in uh Kuwait was uh
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] the fact that they did not retaliate for the uh Scud missiles that were
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] uh launched there that just seemed to me to be a uh a phenomenal uh demonstration of restraint and it must have reflected uh uh some awful good uh diplomacy on the part of the US
[speaker001:] um-hum  yeah but on the other hand you know if they would've had a hard time retaliating because they you know they they wouldn't have been given access to the friend or foe codes
[speaker002:] I see
[speaker001:] they basically would've you know had a had a fly they'd had they would've had had to fly through you know two enemies
[speaker002:] uh you don't think they've got the codes from the US already
[speaker001:] the US had claimed that they would have not given them to them
[speaker002:] I see
[speaker001:] I mean of course you know public statements can be taken for
[speaker002:] that's true they can can't they
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] yeah well what do you what about this situation with uh you know the uh
[speaker001:] do you
[speaker002:] continual uh harassment by Iraq right now and uh apparently failing to let the in uh arms inspectors have free access
[speaker001:] um-hum you know it  well to begin with you know I pretty much question our what what the US's motives were in uh in in actually the original involvement
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] um I the cynical side of me says that you know who it was more for uh um the the domestic political situation than for anything else
[speaker002:] hm yeah okay
[speaker001:] you know and that you know and for portraying Bush as a strong president
[speaker002:] sure
[speaker001:] um I mean I really I really think that that my gut feeling is that that that you know he pretty much picked picked a fight with um with um Hussein I mean I'm not not saying at all that Hussein wasn't quite willing to get enter that fight
[speaker002:] um right
[speaker001:] but I I think I think that that um we chose to have our official feelings hurt
[speaker002:] um-hum well do you think that uh we should ignore it and just allowed him to go ahead and uh
[speaker001:] we're a lot
[speaker002:] you know move on into Kuwait and see what happened
[speaker001:] I think I mean I thought I think that um in the past we've allowed lots of things like that to happen
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] and I I really don't I really don't think that I think I think it was it was there were there were a lot more demographic related interests involved than true foreign policy interests
[speaker002:] right
[speaker001:] um
[speaker002:] yeah well may have been you know I'm not saying that that's not the case uh
[speaker001:] yeah and I mean in in in along those line since
[speaker002:] it
[speaker001:] since you know it really it really didn't accomplish very much except we're getting getting uh the Iraqis out of Kuwait
[speaker002:] right
[speaker001:] I just don't I just don't I I I don't I I I don't foresee Bush making the decision to invest a lot of manpower and money and you know in in fighting a second battle
[speaker002:] no
[speaker001:] um you know over over the um over over what what what probably won't accomplish him accomplish much for him politically
[speaker002:] no it doesn't look like we're getting ready to do to do much more in there
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] even at this point yeah well what about uh do you have any any views on uh Israel's relation to the US do you think we ought to you know back off on our support of the country or what do you
[speaker001:] well I have I have very mixed feelings about Israel um I think that that for a long while we've we've had almost a you know had had this