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August 3, 2005
What A Fine Mess You've Made Here, Alice
Read an interesting piece in the New York Review of Books. Two intereting pieces, actually.
1) In all our self-congradulation on bringing "democracy" to Iraq, very little has been said on who is actually being elected. The new Iraqi Shi'ite government is linked to theocracy in Iran and many are making plans to bring theocracy into Iraq. (Which, believe me or not neocons in my own family, was NOT an Islamic state under Saddam. Man, do we all get tired of saying that, or what?) In many southern towns, Islamic rule has already taken effect, in everything down to woman's dress code. Iran has spies in every corner of Iraq; has interests taking deep hold. You can't blame the Shi'ite Iraqis. Iran has been a better friend to them than us, who abandoned their uprising against Saddam AFTER OUR PRESIDENT INCITED IT and let 100,000 Shi'ites die without lifting a finger. Don't even ask how to Kurds feel all about all this.
2) Our efforts to understand the feelings and rationalizations of the young men in Al-Qaeda usually boil down to this: "Dem A-rabs must be crazy!" If we were to treat them as rational actors, than we might be able to combat their efforts more effectively. Confusion and anger (and the want to belong to something larger than themselves) drive many men into bin Laden's open arms, not a collective brand of insanity. It's also key to understand that this paticular Jihad will eventually burn itself out, with or without America's GSAE (Global Struggle Against Extremism... yes, they are just fucking with us.) Not that there isn't one waiting in it's place, but angry poor young drifters are a dime a dozen around the world. It just takes a superpower stupid enough to arm and train them. Oops.
Posted by emily at August 3, 2005 11:24 AM