Hamas rules Gaza. Hezbollah rules Lebanon. The Turks have turned hostile. The Palestinian Authority has given up on Barack Obama and is demanding a state from the Security Council and U.N. General Assembly. Israel’s partner in Egypt, Hosni Mubarak, is gone. The Israeli embassy in Cairo has been sacked. Mobs in Amman have sought to do the same.

Patrick J. Buchanan says things are looking bleak for Israel, as she grows more isolated and less accepted in the post-Arab Spring world of 2011.

Sandy Tolan says that regardless of diplomatic trouble, Israel is winning the battle-on-the-ground for physical control of the West Bank. Whether or not the UN grants any kind of state recognition to the Palestinian Authority, winning a symbolic battle, they’re losing the physical one. The isolation Buchanan mentions may only further be exacerbated by such a precarious situation.

The latest GOP debate in Florida has ruffled a few feathers among various camps. The same Romney vs. Perry narrative subsisted last night, with Romney and Perry still receiving the lion’s share of speaking time.

If speaking allotment is to reflect polling trends, Google and Fox clearly failed in this endeavor.

Ron Paul, who is now hitting third place in most polls, is still being shunned by most of the media, and it continued last evening. Other than Gary Johnson, he received less speaking time than everyone else on stage. Last night, Mitt Romney received 12:09, while Rick Perry clocked in at 11:10. Ron Paul, on the other hand, spoke for 4:33 — not even half a minute more than polling caboose Gary Johnson, who received only five questions, no responses, no follow-ups and spoke for a total of just 4:10. John Huntsman, who is polling significantly lower than Paul in most polls, received the third greatest amount of time at 7:41.

Also worth mentioning: Rick Perry was on fire, rhetorically speaking of course. Will he be able to keep up with Romney for much longer?