US Doubles Funding for Israeli Missile Defense

Here is a rare occasion where exactly the right thing is being done. The Lebanon War showed that the overwhelming majority of Muslims worldwide support the war crime of deliberately targeting civilians with missiles. It also showed that the West has no defense whatsoever against short-range rockets, largely due to traditional Democrat opposition to Ronald Reagan's "Star Wars" vision of missile defense:

The US House of Representatives appropriations committee nearly doubled American funding for Israel's Arrow and short-range missile defense programs this week, bringing the 2008 total to $150 million.

The amount is not only more than last year's $135 million, but comes earlier in the budget process, holding out the expectation that the allocation will be increased considerably more by the Senate before the final bill is voted on in the fall.

Israeli officials see Wednesday's funding boost as a sign of growing awareness of the risks that Israel faces from the likes of Hizbullah and Iran, as well as appreciation for the success of the Arrow program.