Many US critics want to push a war of cultures, a "West vs. Islam". However, a recent survey indicates that it is the total opposite, when you speak with the Muslims in the Middle East countries. (http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/0,1518,345550,00.html)
Here some excerpts:
The words most associated with the US and the UK were "racist," "aggressive,"
"morally decadent" and "imperialistic" among other uncomplimentary concepts
Or
Indeed, anger is directed squarely toward the US (a country that many feel is
steered by a "Zionist lobby") and the UK. Over 70 percent in the countries
surveyed, with the exception of Lebanon, felt that the US and the UK attempt to dominate countries through the offer of foreign aid and fewer than two in 10 Egyptians, Syrians and Palestinians see the US as supporting democracy in the region. The US was also seen as a major violator of human rights. France, on the
other hand, a country which steered clear of the Iraq war and which is lauded
for its respectful dealings with the Middle East, came out smelling like roses.
And
Over 85 percent of the population in four of the five countries surveyed
felt that the war against Iraq was an act of terrorism (the exception being
Lebanon where 64 percent felt that way)
"Thus," write the authors of the study, "while the survey reflected the growing
tensions between the Arab world and the West, it does not support the
caricature of an Arab public that fully and uniformly rejects the West."
So the Conclusion was:
"The current conflict," the study concludes, "is based in deep-seated
frustration with Western, and particularly American, foreign policies, and a growing distrust of America's underlying regional objectives."
So, I have to reject the notion of many Objectivists, Neocons and Pro-Wars, that the foreign policy of the US is doing well and will spread democracy and freedom. I think they will be surprised by the way those countries will develop. Even to this answer, imo, the survey gave an answer:
Surprisingly, while many in the West are fed on a steady diet of coverage that
plays up "the West versus Islam," those in the Middle East do not see the
current conflicts as being driven by a Muslim-Christian divide. In fact, most
feel the US places little value on religion.
So, we will soon see a Middle East that will give rise to "demoratic" nations that will adopt the principle of Sharia (may be not as strict as the Taliban, but Saddam refused the Sharia, too) and have a deep hatred against the US. I think this is nothing that would justify an intervention abroad by the US military, nor is it something to applaud (at least not if you are a liberty-loving US citizen).
Commentary: smg.max@gmx.net
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