In his first ever interview on Arab TV (in an interview with Dubai based Al-Arabiya), President Obama told the Muslim world that the United States is not their enemy. He proposed immediate engagement with various Muslim leaders as well as a pledge to speak from a Muslim capital within his first 100 days. The balls on him...:)
The best bit though was when the interviewer asked about Al Qaeda and how they seemed nervous about the Obama era. Our new president responded by saying
They are nervous. They are nervous because they are going to see a changed America on my watch. No longer will they have a devil to point at and the world will see their ideas for what they are..completely bankrupt. Show me a child that Al Qaeda has helped during the last eight years. The only way they understand is violence.
My guy hits one out of the park...all the way past Waveland.
10 comments:
I'm going to be honest and admit that I don't understand what is so great about statements like this. Perhaps this is the part of process where I get "left behind in this new era of politics." But it seems to me that this statement smacks too much of "if we're nice to them they'll be nice to us". Frankly, I think it grossly over-simplifies the situation to suggest that dealing with Iran (to use Obama's example) is a matter of sitting down, expressing our differences, and identifying avenues for progress.
I'm not trying to play the "they hate everything about us" angle, since I think that over-simplifies the problem in the other direction. However, it is a fact that policies that we deem to be necessary and/or benevolent have caused a great deal of the animosity between our nation and those that most actively/vocally dislike us. To suggest that relations between the US and the Middle East of 20-30 years ago is somehow idyllic is to ignore fact and to completely discount centuries of problems, not to mention the socio-economic factors that are not going to go away simply because we start smiling more.
Like much of what has come out of the Obama camp thus far I see this sort of message as being nothing but grandstanding. Effective to a degree, but void of any actual substance nonetheless. The fact that this man is great at making people feel all warm and fuzzy doesn't change the underlying dynamics:
** The Middle East has an abundance of something that we need.
** We will maintain a presence there in order to secure our interest in that something.
** We will not tolerate aggression that threatens our interest in that something.
** We will make more than a token effort to support nations in that region who are politically aligned with us.
Those realities have been, and will continue to be, more than enough reason to make many people think we are the devil. I'm not going to celebrate the potential to reduce that number by an inconsequential amount. If that's meaningful change to y'all then by all means - celebrate away.
statements like obamas are great only if someone has an emotional reaction to it Oh the Children! lets do it for the children! If you oppose our legislation then you oppose children! It wasn't that long ago on this blog that if someone said that The only way they understand is violence, then torch would come on here and ask how many times you have travelled to the middle east and markadelphia would call you simple minded. now obama says it and he has hit it out of the park. this new presidency is revealing you guys as hypocrits.
i agree 100% with PL about the underlying dynamics, well stated. those are not at all the main reasons why anyone in the me hates us policies - and an overwhelming majority of the PEOPLE from egypt to morocco to amman to ankara & istanbul do. everyone out there understands us interests. they are extremely well-read, extremely well-informed from much better, more comprehensive multiple-source tv & print coverage, from the poorest kid working age 6 to the rest of A world societies. what they don't understand and do not accept, are the worst kinds of weapons, US phosphorus, cluster, uranium-tipped or 6000 tonne bombs, killing kids, parents, neighbours over years and years and years of green lights (to closest allies) or us-led initiatives in different locations (beirut 82/2006, iraq 90s/03, jenin 2002, gaza 2008.) That's the part that Obama isn't getting -- and an interview on al-arabiyyah will solve nothing. most people in the arab world don't care about that interview / are shrugging it off. Words are easy in the ME. they've heard it all before. tough action (FOR PEACE) is hard but who knows? Could surprise everyone. And i like obama. joanne.
** We will make more than a token effort to support nations in that region who are politically aligned with us.
yep and sorry to take up more space. but this is another reason. talk of democracy & peoples rights. (it's not even funny anymore) while overwhelming political military and overt/covert support for the most unwanted & unloved regimes (i am being polite) on sandy earth, because 'they are politically aligned with us.'
its also kinda beyond belief (but hardly surprising, with the new tune from the w/house) that robert gates would say, today: "There is little doubt that our greatest military challenge right now is Afghanistan." give me a break. One of the poorest countries on earth, in which more than a million afghans have died in 30 years of war -- no 'Resistance' when the US invaded in 01 and now there is... hmmm... a spreading, growing and winning resistance -- i wonder what that says about military occupation..? this now bombed, occupied & desperately impoverished nation constitutes the GREATEST MILITARY CHALLENGE to the USA?? whatever. joanne.
Wow, solid spankings from left and right on the predictable naivety of the Mighty O (and his reliable minion M).
[smile]
im not 'left' or 'right' when it comes to politics and world affairs, thank u juris. i'm sherlock holmes (evidentially & logically, speaking :) humans are not one dimensional, especially the supercomputer of the mind (if we use it.) 'spanking' made me smile, but 'predictable naivety'? was a little more opinion than fact, i think. on so many things mark is awake, deeply questioning, thoughtful and probing and that's the opposite of naive, it's brave humane honest & direct. with regard to the middle east? maybe a little rose tinted when it comes to political considerations. but the bush years were not even tinted, they were sunblocked opaque (to the fanclub.) i have GREAT hopes for the region and i see it from a completely different, up close perspective. joanne.
u meant OB... i though u meant mark.. no comment on OB... will wait & c.. :) j
J - fair enough to haul me up short on using a one dimensional political spectrum!
I don't tend to have great hopes for anywhere, based on my observation of the human evidence. Oh, well.
know what u mean :| :) but we dont always see all the evidence on the news or tv. there's a lot of hope in so many places, including very much @ home, there are also obstacles. people want to survive and live and do well and be proud of themselves and their country or leaders. n o t easy but life is short & its supposed to train us for what we achieve and how we get there if it doesn't kill us. j2 (joanne. u r j1 juris.)
" The only way they understand is violence. "
I'd be nice if the President could actually understand this and apply it to other areas. There are people who only understand violence, and thus can only be dealt with through violence. This applies not just to Al Queda but to the average rapist/robber/burglar. The appropriate response is defensive violence by victims, just as is the case with nations.
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