It's always darkest just before the dawn

As if there isn't enough turmoil in the world, two of the most dangerous places are heating up even more. Israel today killed more than 200 Palestinians in air attacks aimed at stopping rocket attacks from Gaza. Meanwhile, Pakistan is moving troops to its border with India in the wake of raised tensions between the two nations following the recent terror attacks in Mumbai.

Both of these locations have teetered back and forth between violence and tenuous peace for decades, and both claim the self-determination of Muslim peoples as their root cause. The Palestinians want Israel's occupation to end, and the Pakistanis want control of Kashmir from India.

In the former, Israel's superior fire power and backing of the US has staved off their being overrun by the surrounding Muslim states. In the latter, both countries are nuclear powers and are seemingly the most likely initiators of an exchange of such weapons.

The president-elect, it seems, will get a complete panoply of issues to deal with when he takes over in 24 days. Financial catastrophe, global warming, Iraq and Afghanistan, Somalian pirates, a nightmare in Zimbabwe -- the fates have decided that these and more aren't enough for Barack Obama to deal with.

I hope he's enjoying his time in Hawaii -- uh oh...wait...this just in...the power is out on Oahu, where Obama is vacationing with his family.