If that statement were made from some reasonably disinterested perch, say someone studying, in a careful manner, the cultural variations in geographical locals which could be called Arab
...it would receive exactly the same dismissive response from you. I know, because that's what happened every time I tried to recomend Patai's The Arab Mind. Raphael Patai has made such a study, trying to separate out local difference from Arab commonalities.
amazon.com
You dismissed it anyway.
As it stands, it lumps too many different groups into a situation in which the simpler way to an explanation would include something about the perception of living in a zone occupied by a foreign power.
Lots of people have been occupied by a foreign power at various times. A cursory observation would enable you to make some basic predictions about their reaction, based on their cultural background, and the nature and purpose of the occupation. However, you are going to prevent yourself from being able to predict anything about anyone on the grounds that...well, I guess that a perfect, specific study of exactly that occupier and exactly that group of occupied people had not been done.
Meanwhile, other people need to function in the real world, so they will use what knowledge is available to make predictions. |
