Bjorn Staerk, on how Norwegian popular opinion favors the Palestinian position in the latest Mideast conflagration:

All the major parties and news media appear to agree that Israel is the driving force behind the violence, and holds the power to stop it. (In a recent poll, 44% sympathized most with the Palestinians, 9% with Israel, and 38% with neither. The 9% apparently consisted of elderly Christians.) Terrorism may or may not pay off in the long run, but it certainly is good PR. Who would have guessed that the road to the hearts of 21st century Norwegians would pass through the blood-soaked floors of Israeli restaurants?