It's Sacco vs. Bush on Palestine

Joe Sacco knows a thing or two about Palestine. He spent time there writing not a mind-numbing academic tome, but a heavy comic called Palestine, which went on to become an academic regular at English, art and journo classes worldwide. Along the way, Palestine has also become one of the underground and overground's most respected graphic novels, as well as the recipient of a recent deluxe reissue books with stature always get when they make deep impact.

So when I got a chance to interview Sacco about his comic and the troubled territory it takes its name from, which will go live in next week's LA Weekly, I couldn't resist. Especially since the Bush administration has suddenly and serendipitously found its abandoned road map for the region, a stunning turnaround given their disaster capitalist obsession with Iraq. But as Sacco told me during the interview, just because George Bush remembered Palestine doesn't mean his memory is worth anything.

"Everyone's seen these talks about talking before," Sacco said. "But it's a sorry spectacle to see a president of the United States using such a wretched conflict to get himself a Clintonesque photo on the front pages and three or four days of lukewarm press coverage. The man can't see further than next week."

Maybe not, but he's sure acting like it, uttering that which must remain nameless -- "occupation" -- and more or less promising a peace treaty by the time he leaves office. His chatter on Palestine is reaching a rhetorical fever pitch, but will Bush's words actually translate into on-the-ground action?

Yeah, right.

Forget the suspicious Sacco, to say nothing of almost unanimous regional disbelief in the possibility. Bush has got so far to go on this issue that, even if he does broker some sort of detente by the time he thankfully vacates the White House, whatever he achieves is certain to be as thin as his evidence to invade Iraq. Plus, now that he's pulling the same nonsense with Iran as he did with Iraq, his credibility on the issue is worse than bad. Let's just say he owes the world a shitload of geopolitical back pay.

But who's really going to pay? With Bush, that has always seemed to be the question no one really wants to answer. But the smart money says it's always someone else. Always.