No Fences
As we are plodding along the same path we have seen dozens of times between Israel v. Arab conflicts, the Middle East has been largely taken out of the news, replaced by hurricanes and September 11 anniversary pieces.
However, don't think for a moment that there is not a lot going on in the region. Here are some highlights.
Saudi Arabia
While not widely reported, and not new news, Saudi Arabia announced in April that it was going to erect a electrified fence along their 560-mile border with Iraq. The irony of course is that Saudi Arabia is concerned about insurgents from Iraq upending their political system and creating a new terrorist state, not unlike Afghanistan or even Sudan.
Lebanon and Iraq
Dangerously close to becoming states ruled by extremists. Again, ironically, Iraq is acting as a real-time battlefield training ground for young radicals, while in Lebanon, Hezbollah is obviously driving the boat.
Afghanistan
Not in the news at all, Afghanistan is seeing it's worst fighting since late 2001, and is beginning to resemble Iraq in many ways, including the rising trend of suicide and roadside bombings.
Syria
Islamic militants attempted an attack on the US Embassy in Damascus yesterday.
So, why does it all seem to be falling apart? Is it the Bush administration that is to blame? Is the region inherently unstable, and beyond repair? Is the draw of Islam so powerful and corrupting that it seeps deep into Arab governments, making political change impossible?
The question of why the failure of the US and allies to plant a peaceful democracy is complicated, but when considering the answer, one should take into consideration these things:
1. Liberal Power. Let's face it, liberals hate Bush. Like extreme Islam, this kind of hate drops a fog over dissidents, preventing them from applying logic to anything Bush. Unfortunately, these hatemongers control most of the media, so your average Joe and Jane, who probably couldn't even point to Iraq or Israel on a map, are subjected to extremely biased news coverage and commentary. Let's face it, unless you spend a lot of time looking, there is no unbiased news out there. Jane and Joe have no time to look for real news, so they take at face value what CNN (Clinton News Network) has to say.
2. Bush Failures. There are a lot of really good things about our President. He is a man of his word, he does not back down, he calls a spade a spade, and he is, I believe, doing his very best to try and protect the U.S. from another 9/11. Can you imagine Al Gore or John Kerry dealing with the hand that Bush has been dealt. Scary indeed. To top it off, Bush has had to fight for every inch of ground, as the Democrats disapprove of every move he makes, whether it is best for the U.S. or not. However, Bush has done himself no favors for not reaching out more to his detractors, simply for the sake of greasing the pole in the interest of national security. And, it looks like the Bush administration continues to be surprised by the way the ball bounces in the Middle East. The administration was completely taken aback that the demise of Saddam Hussein wasn't the yellow brick road to a stable Iraq. No one expected the insurgency to be so strong and lasting.
3. You and I. Talk to anyone who has been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan and you see the sad truth of the widening gap of support for this war on terror. The troops are all for it. They are there and see the need. Very few of them, and maybe none of them, see this as Bush's war for the control of oil. They are engaged in a battle between good and evil, and they are on the front lines. Yet, we continue to back-seat QB this conflict, and question every step made, capitalizing on every failure. Some of us even scream "Viet Nam" with righteous indignation, comparing apples to oranges in an attempt to drum up even more support for the anti-war movement. In truth, the only way this war compares with Viet Nam is the brazen lack of support our troops are receiving from the average American. Would it surprise you to see John Dean or Cindy Sheehan waiting for the troops to come home so they can protest, spit on, and ostracize them? Just wait. We should all be standing on chairs, waving our arms back and forth in support of what those soldiers go through everyday. When was the last time someone shot at you, or that you saw your colleague's arm blown off by a roadside bomb? How many days have you spent living in a tent with 30 other sweating men as the heat tops 120 degrees? How many days did you spend away from your loved ones in the past year? How many of your children were you not able to see born? Do you have to carry a gun around with you all of time, as well as full body armor?
The troops are the real heroes, and we are all guilty of not supporting them as we should. Wave a damn flag for them, for goodness sake! They are dying for a cause, and if they weren't, there would be more of us dying at the hands of Islamic nutballs who believe that killing you and I is a free ticket to Heaven.
Get past the politics and get in the game.
However, don't think for a moment that there is not a lot going on in the region. Here are some highlights.
Saudi Arabia
While not widely reported, and not new news, Saudi Arabia announced in April that it was going to erect a electrified fence along their 560-mile border with Iraq. The irony of course is that Saudi Arabia is concerned about insurgents from Iraq upending their political system and creating a new terrorist state, not unlike Afghanistan or even Sudan.
Lebanon and Iraq
Dangerously close to becoming states ruled by extremists. Again, ironically, Iraq is acting as a real-time battlefield training ground for young radicals, while in Lebanon, Hezbollah is obviously driving the boat.
Afghanistan
Not in the news at all, Afghanistan is seeing it's worst fighting since late 2001, and is beginning to resemble Iraq in many ways, including the rising trend of suicide and roadside bombings.
Syria
Islamic militants attempted an attack on the US Embassy in Damascus yesterday.
So, why does it all seem to be falling apart? Is it the Bush administration that is to blame? Is the region inherently unstable, and beyond repair? Is the draw of Islam so powerful and corrupting that it seeps deep into Arab governments, making political change impossible?
The question of why the failure of the US and allies to plant a peaceful democracy is complicated, but when considering the answer, one should take into consideration these things:
1. Liberal Power. Let's face it, liberals hate Bush. Like extreme Islam, this kind of hate drops a fog over dissidents, preventing them from applying logic to anything Bush. Unfortunately, these hatemongers control most of the media, so your average Joe and Jane, who probably couldn't even point to Iraq or Israel on a map, are subjected to extremely biased news coverage and commentary. Let's face it, unless you spend a lot of time looking, there is no unbiased news out there. Jane and Joe have no time to look for real news, so they take at face value what CNN (Clinton News Network) has to say.
2. Bush Failures. There are a lot of really good things about our President. He is a man of his word, he does not back down, he calls a spade a spade, and he is, I believe, doing his very best to try and protect the U.S. from another 9/11. Can you imagine Al Gore or John Kerry dealing with the hand that Bush has been dealt. Scary indeed. To top it off, Bush has had to fight for every inch of ground, as the Democrats disapprove of every move he makes, whether it is best for the U.S. or not. However, Bush has done himself no favors for not reaching out more to his detractors, simply for the sake of greasing the pole in the interest of national security. And, it looks like the Bush administration continues to be surprised by the way the ball bounces in the Middle East. The administration was completely taken aback that the demise of Saddam Hussein wasn't the yellow brick road to a stable Iraq. No one expected the insurgency to be so strong and lasting.
3. You and I. Talk to anyone who has been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan and you see the sad truth of the widening gap of support for this war on terror. The troops are all for it. They are there and see the need. Very few of them, and maybe none of them, see this as Bush's war for the control of oil. They are engaged in a battle between good and evil, and they are on the front lines. Yet, we continue to back-seat QB this conflict, and question every step made, capitalizing on every failure. Some of us even scream "Viet Nam" with righteous indignation, comparing apples to oranges in an attempt to drum up even more support for the anti-war movement. In truth, the only way this war compares with Viet Nam is the brazen lack of support our troops are receiving from the average American. Would it surprise you to see John Dean or Cindy Sheehan waiting for the troops to come home so they can protest, spit on, and ostracize them? Just wait. We should all be standing on chairs, waving our arms back and forth in support of what those soldiers go through everyday. When was the last time someone shot at you, or that you saw your colleague's arm blown off by a roadside bomb? How many days have you spent living in a tent with 30 other sweating men as the heat tops 120 degrees? How many days did you spend away from your loved ones in the past year? How many of your children were you not able to see born? Do you have to carry a gun around with you all of time, as well as full body armor?
The troops are the real heroes, and we are all guilty of not supporting them as we should. Wave a damn flag for them, for goodness sake! They are dying for a cause, and if they weren't, there would be more of us dying at the hands of Islamic nutballs who believe that killing you and I is a free ticket to Heaven.
Get past the politics and get in the game.
posted by The Curious Bonefish at 13.9.06
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