By Tom Kando
The (Muslim) world explodes in a frenzy of anti-Americanism. There is much confusion in the media, among some of our readers (see the exchanges following my recent post “The Time for Pacifism has not yet Arrived”), in letters to the editor, and of course in the Muslim world.
What we have is a resurgence of the old and virulent disease of anti-Americanism. This disease is not unlike anti-Semitism. The millions who are again singing that song do so because it’s a knee-jerk habit, ingrained into them by mullahs and other brainwashers, because they don’t know any other songs.
President Obama’s best efforts to turn world public opinion away from the extreme anti-Americanism of the Bush years, may have been all for naught.
Even now, as American power and foreign intervention decline, irrational anti-Americanism resurfaces. In Libya, it was the Europeans that did all the bombing. America is too timid to intervene in Syria. The US government is restraining Israel from going after Iran. As to economic imperialism, the “exploitation” of the Middle East and the rest of the world is done every bit as much by Europe, Japan, China and others as by the US. But whenever in doubt, it’s still the US flag which the mobs choose to burn. For no rhyme or reason; it’s mass hysteria.
‘The Innocence of Muslims’, an obscure movie which practically no one has seen, sparks riots and murder around the world. For No rhyme or reason. The assassination of Bin Laden, I would understand. But this?
The video isn’t even American, it is produced by a couple of Egyptian immigrants. As in the case of the derogatory Danish cartoon a few of years ago, and of Salman Rushdie’s book, does alleged blasphemy against the Koran justify world revolution and mayhem? Does bible desecration evoke a similar seismic response, as in the case of Andres Serrano’s’ Piss Christ? Why don’t Catholics execute atheists? What is it about Muslim fervor that makes this faith so lethal?
I know, I know, these reactions are only symptomatic. The real underlying grievances are economic, political and historical. The Muslim world’s quest for dignity and respect from the Western world, the end to injustice, the plight of the Palestinians, the offensive video is only a trigger, etc. Pundits do not cease to remind us of these verities, because they cannot imagine that both the US government and the American people could in fact be utterly innocent of the charges.
Consider the irrationalities:
1. 99% of the rioters haven’t even seen the blasphemous movie!
2. Republicans claim that it is Obama’s fault that our embassies were not protected properly. As if there had been any recent changes in the level of embassy protection.
3. Political groups in Egypt and elsewhere are demanding that US ambassadors be expelled and that the US authorities punish the movie makers.
4. Last year, a poll revealed that 86% of Pakistanis believe that 9/11 was the work of the Bush administration in cooperation with Israel’s Mossad. How can one deal with societies where political madness has advanced to such a level?
5. Liberal outlets like MSNBC and NPR desperately try to spread the blame - yes, the rioters and assassins are doing wrong, but we should understand their grievances, and much of the blame also lies with the blasphemous video. But are there two sides to EVERY issue? Hitler? Intelligent Design vs. Evolution? The Flat Earth theory? The current worldwide wave of anti-American violence in response to a crackpot video seen by almost nobody and supported by zero Americans is WRONG, period.
6. Americans themselves are also confused. This episode reminds me of my differences with my academic colleagues 33 years ago, when the Iranians took our Teheran embassy hostage: At that time, I published an innocuous letter in the university student paper recommending that President Carter be “strong.” This resulted in a decade-long war between myself and dozens of my colleagues, who accused me of being a racist, a McCarthyist, a bigot, a war monger, a xenophobe and a John Wayne.
It was difficult then and it is difficult now for such people to see things clearly, to move beyond the knee-jerk mea culpa attitude, beyond the selective use of ancient historical facts. The American far-Left is at a disadvantage, due to flawed and deeply ingrained intellectual habits. Its hubris is a mirror image of the far Right. They both believe that everything in the world is caused by all-mighty America.
It took a Frenchman, the philosopher Bernard-Henry Levy, to provide a clearer perspective on the recent murder of Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens: “This time, the imbeciles have won,” he said. He referred to the fact that the imbeciles killed perhaps their bravest advocate in the Western world.’
History can be used in many ways. Yes, yes, the Shah, Mossadegh, etc. But then, what about the Balfour Declaration? Or the Crusades, for that matter. At the very least, we must mention all of European colonialism, i.e. the carving up of the planet by Britain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, etc. Why are the descendants of these empires collegial clubs today - the Commonwealth, the former French Union, etc.? I have not tallied which country has the bloodiest hands, but I doubt that it is “Satan America.” There is no rhyme or reason.
Every time Muslims terrorize America, they drive the country to the Right. The 1979 Iranian hostage crisis helped defeat Carter and elect Reagan. The 9/11 attack helped re-elect George W. Bush. The current crisis may help Romney defeat Obama. Which of these administrations do you think are friendlier to Muslim interests?
It is not yet clear whether we are experiencing a clash of civilizations (see Samuel Huntington’s The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order). What IS clear is that America must reduce its dependency on Middle Eastern oil and vastly reduce its military and economic involvement in the Middle East.
Yes, yes, we live in an intertwined global world, isolationism is not the answer, etc. etc. But there is no way that America can control developments in the Middle East. It does not have the power and the resources. It can’t be done. Get out of Afghanistan now.
Some day the Middle East may become democratic and secular, some day Iran may cease being a theocracy, some day Muslim women may acquire equal rights. But the best thing for America to do is to leave the Middle East to its own devices. This will enhance the dignity, autonomy and independence of the Muslim world. It will put an end to its neo-colonial status. Above all, it will be better for America as well. And since I happen to be an American, that is what matters the most to me.
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