A Big Mess
It appears as though the Middle East and Africa have been infected with the bug of social-political conflagration. As one nation after another observes what is happening with their neighbours and discontent piles upon discontent. Long-stifled resentment of authoritarian rule and lack of basic liberties and human rights have simmered for too long. Built to the point beyond anger and desperation people have begun to realize that they can and will protest.
Each of the countries is different, with varying degrees of repression and exploitation of their publics. Each of the administrations reacts differently in small, rather than large part. As the protests simmer and grow, their countries' leaders react cautiously with promises to consider the source of discontent and to listen to the peoples' disgruntled demands. Those countries for whom riches resulting from petroleum sales can purchase loyalty, do so.
Some leaderships make a real effort to meet the protest demands in part, to stifle further dissent. The moderate regimes react moderately. The brutal ones react as might be expected. In either instance the people are emboldened. Only in Iran, at present, is the opposition stifled to a surprising degree; the surprise being the unwillingness of the population to sacrifice themselves further in a regime which has no scruples about its willingness to kill.
Other regimes are far more stealthy about their killing intentions. For them the trouble is that Internet access makes secrecy far less possible than it was a decade earlier. Now, with access to social networking sites, and with the easy availability of cameras and cellphones it takes but an instant to document and relay real-life drama to alert the world of what is occurring.
From Tunisia to Egypt, Bahrain to Saudi Arabia, Algeria to Jordan, Libya to Syria and Yemen, the Arab and Muslim world is turning itself inside-out. The initiators of these little revolutions claim to be eager to see their countries become more liberal, democratic, freer, less corrupt, lawful. And it is entirely possible that what will result from the revolts will inevitably become otherwise. For the simple fact appears to be that fundamentalist Islamism is on the rise.
Some choice these people have; unscrupulous authoritarian, self-availing rulers or fundamentalist, jihad-driven theocracies determined to spread Islamism far and wide as a political, religious, social, ideological tide that drowns out all other opposing/conflicting alternatives. The way of all Muslim and Arab states is to classify those of their citizens who rebel as terrorists, spurred in their protests by nefarious outsiders, infidels and Zionists.
And as the West finds itself haplessly sucked into yet another Middle East/Arab/African/Muslim conflict, in an attempt to restore order in a volatile area of the world whose impact spreads far and wide, it becomes the victim attempting to rescue other victims. It is the West, the Christian West, attempting to protect the Muslim world from itself.
And the Muslim world content to permit the West these psychological contortions. Unwilling themselves to become involved in protecting their own from their own. Calling upon the West to do what they should be doing. And when the West becomes embroiled and matters do not proceed as the Arab and the Muslim world anticipates, the West is once again the Crusaders intent on undoing the Muslim world.
And there is Israel, tiny Israel, attempting to protect its viability its integrity, its territory, its population. And there is Hamas in Gaza, intent on drawing Israel yet again into another battle where the rest of the world will instinctively rise up in horror that a democracy 'attacks' a Muslim entity, disproportionately, unjustly.
And should Israel be sufficiently provoked and rise to the provocations in protection of her own, why then what else appears inevitable but that all the embattled Arab and Muslim states turn upon her to divert attention from themselves, applauding the Arab street that jubilantly proclaims "Death to Israel!"
As one high-ranking Israeli stated from Israel's Southern Command overseeing Gaza: "The region is a big mess right now. Everything is unpredictable. And it could turn against us quickly."
Each of the countries is different, with varying degrees of repression and exploitation of their publics. Each of the administrations reacts differently in small, rather than large part. As the protests simmer and grow, their countries' leaders react cautiously with promises to consider the source of discontent and to listen to the peoples' disgruntled demands. Those countries for whom riches resulting from petroleum sales can purchase loyalty, do so.
Some leaderships make a real effort to meet the protest demands in part, to stifle further dissent. The moderate regimes react moderately. The brutal ones react as might be expected. In either instance the people are emboldened. Only in Iran, at present, is the opposition stifled to a surprising degree; the surprise being the unwillingness of the population to sacrifice themselves further in a regime which has no scruples about its willingness to kill.
Other regimes are far more stealthy about their killing intentions. For them the trouble is that Internet access makes secrecy far less possible than it was a decade earlier. Now, with access to social networking sites, and with the easy availability of cameras and cellphones it takes but an instant to document and relay real-life drama to alert the world of what is occurring.
From Tunisia to Egypt, Bahrain to Saudi Arabia, Algeria to Jordan, Libya to Syria and Yemen, the Arab and Muslim world is turning itself inside-out. The initiators of these little revolutions claim to be eager to see their countries become more liberal, democratic, freer, less corrupt, lawful. And it is entirely possible that what will result from the revolts will inevitably become otherwise. For the simple fact appears to be that fundamentalist Islamism is on the rise.
Some choice these people have; unscrupulous authoritarian, self-availing rulers or fundamentalist, jihad-driven theocracies determined to spread Islamism far and wide as a political, religious, social, ideological tide that drowns out all other opposing/conflicting alternatives. The way of all Muslim and Arab states is to classify those of their citizens who rebel as terrorists, spurred in their protests by nefarious outsiders, infidels and Zionists.
And as the West finds itself haplessly sucked into yet another Middle East/Arab/African/Muslim conflict, in an attempt to restore order in a volatile area of the world whose impact spreads far and wide, it becomes the victim attempting to rescue other victims. It is the West, the Christian West, attempting to protect the Muslim world from itself.
And the Muslim world content to permit the West these psychological contortions. Unwilling themselves to become involved in protecting their own from their own. Calling upon the West to do what they should be doing. And when the West becomes embroiled and matters do not proceed as the Arab and the Muslim world anticipates, the West is once again the Crusaders intent on undoing the Muslim world.
And there is Israel, tiny Israel, attempting to protect its viability its integrity, its territory, its population. And there is Hamas in Gaza, intent on drawing Israel yet again into another battle where the rest of the world will instinctively rise up in horror that a democracy 'attacks' a Muslim entity, disproportionately, unjustly.
And should Israel be sufficiently provoked and rise to the provocations in protection of her own, why then what else appears inevitable but that all the embattled Arab and Muslim states turn upon her to divert attention from themselves, applauding the Arab street that jubilantly proclaims "Death to Israel!"
As one high-ranking Israeli stated from Israel's Southern Command overseeing Gaza: "The region is a big mess right now. Everything is unpredictable. And it could turn against us quickly."
Labels: Africa, Conflict, Crisis Politics, Culture, Middle East
posted by Pieface | 7:33 PM
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