email conversation with my friend Amer H. in Dubai, UAE
I met this guy in Florida in spring of 2000
we had a lot of fun together for several weeks
walking along ocean in Clearwater, a few dinners out, some lunches, girlwatching along promenades, a movie, but highlight was a Greek dinner in Tarpon Springs (Greek fishing village north of Clearwater)
he actually embarassed me a couple times, as he was driving and tried to pick up 25-yr old women who were walking down the street, using his considerable charm and bold style
"where is the party, ladies?" -- he claims the line works!!!
he was born to parents, one Palestinian, one Greek
he is not accepted by either
he knows both cultures, plus the American
he grew up in Riyahd Saudi, then many years in WashDC USA
he attended college in the USA, feels affection to Americans
he recently had a jaunt to Eastern Europe (Czechoslavakia and Moravia)
I think he was chasing some woman, and of course caught her
he is a software expert, who knows networking and internet
I like to touch base with him periodically
a very smart guy, very charming guy, communicates well, with humor, and is something of a stud
I relish relationships like this one, with much to learn from a guy who has lived all over the world, has much to teach, and gives as much as he takes
in the past he has complained about treatment of a cousin living in the West Bank
the cousin is rousted and occasionally beaten up by Israeli soldiers
the cousin has no connection with any terrorism or armed militia
"this is standard treatment of Palestinians" he says
I sent him a probing email, which he replied to
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To: 'AH'
Subject: what the hell is going on?
Amer,
you old hound dog!
hey, buddy dude big guy
this insanity has me very concerned
democracy and arab world and concepts that dont mix easily
we have opened Pandora's Box
I would much rather open up Theresa's, more predictable fun
is incursion by USForces into Syria next?
how long before we either screw Kurds, or face off Turks?
when and how will Iran enter?
a million questions
and Americans have zero answers
the only weapons of mass destruction I observed were:
- tomahawk cruise missiles (700 of them)
- bunker busters (dozens of them)
- cluster bombs (used on troops)
- puff magic dragon gattling gun (70 bullets per second)
we killed Iraqi troops on the field who largely wanted to surrender
these are war crimes in my view, but zero attention given
I am very upset, and am NOT a bleeding heart liberal at all
I usually mock them to death, exposing their stupidity
so far, zero WMD unearthed
but more dangerously, NOT FINDING WMD now is cause for entering Syria !!!!!!!!!
we doctored evidence presented before United Nations on WMD in Iraq
that was made clear in recent FBI analyses
this is getting scarey
Iran and Saudi leaders must be getting nervous
while the iron is hot, we might attempt more regime changes
we think we are stabilizing, but we are turning the heat up on a raging dangerous kettle
your thoughts?
open up, dont hold back
what is going on?
an unknown angle here is stemming the conversion of Arab PetroDollars into Euros
France, Germany, Russia are now the leaders of Europe in opposition to USA interests
this is fast turning into a fight for MidEast dominance
USA or Europe leads?
so far, Europe is looking like they are in bed with the devils
but it will have more chapters to follow
/ jim
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Jimmy,
As I tell most of my Arab friends and colleauges. It is not Israel or American that is the enemy it is ourselves, the Arabs. We allowed this to happen, we are responsible. (So much for ignorant self-serving words from a US graduate of Arabic ethnic roots.)
This is too deep and way beyond you and me. But you sure are good at asking the right questions. Perfect. You echo my thoughts exactly about WMD and who the real aggressors are. However, there is no sure fire solution, except I wish it were initiated by a real wise President, with depth and aptitude. A Kennedy, Carter, Hell even Clinton. But this guy Bush. ......I dont know. If your gonna jump into the Middle of the Middle East you better have white hairs, and wisdom on your side, otherwise you dont get respect. Its the law of the "Desert". And in many cases rightly so. This is no place for the meek at heart and it sure aint for the academics.
There are a few that got it right and thats what we need to highlight. Let me explain. Pls tell me if you saw what I witnessed two weeks ago when the troops were in Najaf. It was on all the new stations am sure. One US Marine commander got it all right, and he reinvigorated my beliefs in the GREAT US of A. If it wasnt for him, we could have a mass slaughter of US troops that uneventful afternoon in Iraq. US troops were heading toward the great mosque of Sharif Ali, a major holy site. They were escorted by an Imam from the city. But the mobs didnt see him and had no idea what was going on. They were just mobbing the troops in the street. The imam called for peace but no one saw or heard him really. All of a sudden the troops set up a line, a perimeter around their positions, HUMvees and their commanders. Right smack dab in the middle of a junction. They were surrounded big time. U could tell the grunts were sweatin' it out, but somehow they seemed in control. Their commander was running up and down the line yelling commands to them. The first of which shocked me. As the mob was getting closer and as scuffles broke out with troops, he called upon all the troops to kneel and keep their guns pointed downwards, never up!!. The crowds still kept getting closer. The troops didnt budge but immediately bowed down and onto their knews with guns pointed down. Still it got worse. Then, the commander, did something amazing. He held his M-16 up in his left hand, stretched as high as possible for the crowds to see. What, I thought is this guy doing? He walked up and down the line with this M-16 in his hand outstretched. The clincher? He was holding it by the muzzle!! not by the arm rest portion. In other words, he was ceding to the crowd, but in a controlled fashion. The result was nothing short of breath taking. The crowds began to calm down, hands were lowered, the jeering stopped and the heat was gone. The imam made his way through to the front and every one began to smile. This commander totally disarmed and charmed the crowd like a seer and his cobra snake. Now he, deserves a medal and coke! Did u see that caption?
We need to start from this point and work on our humanity going forward as leaders in the world. Bush just aint got humanity, he is too plastic, we are all too plastic. This is the real harm to our society, we dont know how to be humans anymore. Iraq and places like Iraq, give rise to humanity because of the depravity. There are occassions where we can shine, we are given chances to get above it all in such difficult circumstances and harsh conditions. The economics, the politics, the money, the oil, that is all secondary.
So much for philosophy....now, how do we keep this guy from creating more chaos? Clamp down on PACs [Political Action Committees], monitor the source of funds, no politiking during wars or invasions. I dont know, whatever it takes. Because there are those that will allows us to self destruct what we hold dear in the US.
Hold back? hmm...actually very difficult now. Totally confused, have to regain a sense of identity and see where I want to go from here. So much faith put into the American way, paying my taxes on or before April 15th, Johnny Appleseed, Daniel Boone, civil rights, John Wayne and Clint Eastwood. Now, it's beyond that. Mass imprisonment of male Arabs between 18-45. Dont think I like that. Without due process? Locals in Dubai, refuse to even visit the USA now. Not for any other reason other than the fact they want to avoid being harrassed and thrown in jail without due process. Hell, some wont even visit Europe either. I'm talking about die hard US, American lovers here. They used to adore the states. Are we mad!! Is this the signal we want to put out to high spending meek people from the Gulf region? These are the ones that will assist us in a critical time. These people have long memories and plenty of oil.
I have never been to Iraq, but it meant quite a bit to the Arabs. Regardless of the cruelty of Saddam, Iraq and its people meant a lot. I dont think we are in any position to assess what has happened only time will tell. I am all for spreading democracy and 7-11's across the face of the Iraqi landscape....but how do u feed the little one's until that time? How do u create stability while Israel continues bombing innocent Palestinians and wreaking havoc on Gaza? If you see this and are SOL. Then wat to do? Think like an Arab and u will get the answer. "If, you go down, u takin a few with you." Dont know who coined that phrase.
Jim, do u by any chance listen to media other than US media? There are Arab satellite stations that are rushing to set up English speaking channels as we speak. I used to flip through, BBC, EURONEWS, JAZIRA, ARABIYA, LEBANON, JORDANIAN, and IRAQI TV channels. The western media I tell u right now is messed up. Such liars, and so slanted. So slanted, they are feeding us canned bull I tell u.
By the way, I tried applying to some jobs in Kuwait, but all want some sort of damn security clearance. I aint got it. What to do?
Its amazing, everything you have written is right on target and u never even lived here. U aint even a poly sci grad. Are u? Economics right?
Anyways,
Sincerely,
Amer |
