Our never-right brethren on the other side of the social divide are up in arms because Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been taking a Middle East tour, speaking before the Knesset, meeting with the evil Syrian nation’s evil President Bashar Assad, and finally meeting with Saudi Arabia’s advisory council.

Commentary has been diverse, with some of the nitrogen-breathers disliking Ms Pelosi’s visits to all three countries and some merely enraged at her meeting with Arabs in general. Something to do with scarves, I think, although I’m not completely clear about that because I believe she wore a scarf when she visited the Temple Mount.

Ms Pelosi is leading a delegation with several other members of the House, including Rep David Hobson (R-OH). There have been stories that Ms Pelosi is carrying a personal message from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to President Assad. This has brought the alternate reality crowd to a baying frenzy because apparently only Republicans (or perhaps only men) are permitted to carry messages.

It is noteworthy that Ms Pelosi’s delegation is arriving on the heels of a Republican delegation led by Frank Wolf (R-VA). Is it possible Ms Pelosi is carrying PM Olmert’s message because the Republicans didn’t visit Israel?

While addressing the Knesset Ms Pelosi reportedly toed the official Bu$hCo line, carefully agreeing with Likud Party’s decade-long insistence that Iran is the greatest danger facing mankind since maybe the Bubonic Plague. It has been reported that she stressed the sensibility of trying to establish a dialog first, rather than reaching for the gun. Isn’t that just like a woman? No wonder the War Chorus was outraged.

In Riyadh Ms Pelosi was invited to try out the chair of the speaker of the advisory council, commenting that “It's a nice view from here," and “[t]his chair is very comfortable." She also noted the lack of women in Saudi politics, where women are prohibited from just about all areas of public life.

In her talks with President Assad, she discussed peace initiatives with Israel.

After her talks with Assad in Damascus, Pelosi said she had delivered a message from Olmert that Israel was ready for peace talks. Assad had replied that "he's ready to engage in negotiations for peace with Israel," Pelosi said Wednesday.

Olmert's office later issued a statement saying such talks could take place only if Syria stopped assisting terror groups. Before leaving Israel, Pelosi had said she would tell the Syrians that Israel would make talks conditional on their cutting ties to Palestinian militants.

Pelosi's spokesman Nadeam Elshami said the speaker made it clear to Assad that if he wants peace with Israel, then he should stop support for Hezbollah and Hamas and prevent insurgents from crossing into Iraq.

Assad has repeatedly said he wants peace talks with Israel, seeking a return of the Golan Heights occupied by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war. But efforts to bring new talks have not gotten off the ground because of the issue of Damascus' support for the militants.

With more than 40 years of enmity between the two countries it will take two strong, committed leaders to make a lasting peace. Mr Olmert’s political party, Kadima, does not hold a Parliamentary majority, forcing it to create a coalition with Yisrael Beitenu, which is a far-right party led by Avigdor Lieberman, who left the Likud party, feeling it was not extreme enough in its dealings with Palestinians. With a firebreather like Lieberman as a political partner, chances of making peace with Syria are much more difficult.