What you are describing is more tactical than fundamental. The biggest supporter of you call "local tyrant" is the US without whom most of them would not last a year. It should not surprise you that the animosity robs off. As well, the failures of the intellectual class with all their western "ism" philosophies, be it communism, liberalism, secularism, etc has caused a disillusionment amongst the local population about all things western. It is true that many of the fundamentalist leaders are anti-western. But how many leaders do you think there are? Their hate of the west would not have found an audience if the western methods had managed to win with the natives. Militant Islam, which is what you are confusing any Islamist with, is simply the front that the locals believe will bring change the fastest. Most of them think that after victory they can change it from inside. As I said before, this is a defense mechanism that says "I will eat poison so you will find me distasteful. Once I know you will not eat me, I'll take vitamins to feel better".
May be I should repeat this: many of the leaders of fundamentalist Islamic movements are anti-American. This is the nature of anger and revolution. But local support for them is only temporary and the nature of these movements will change once the native population is satisfied they are no longer in danger from the west.
> Don't agree?
I know you did not mean me, but since the original post was mine, no I don't. See above.
> Find a counter-example.
The first modern Islamic regime was The Islamic Republic of Pakistan. By and large the prior to the slew of generals who are deemed as US puppets by their population, the Islamists were not waging war against America.
Another example is Iran. So long as Shah was in power, and for few years after that, America was the great Satan. Iran stopped being overtly anti-American long ago. Which incidentally was when the people decided they were safe from American control.
Third example is Saudi Arabia. Though they have always been strongly Islamist, militant anti-western Islamists only found an audience when the government became overtly pro-US.
Are these enough examples? |
