Understanding the Middle East Problem

[60Shock]

Dennis Prager defines the problem in the simplest terms.

http://www.prageruniversity.com/Political-Science/Middle-East-Problem.html#.U6ocJBbe71r

[DUShock]

The only caveat is the timing of Jewish settlement expansion into Palestinian areas. This is not to say that the message changes, it does not, most Arab states want Israel gone entirely. In recent times Jordan and Egypt gave been the exception but time will tell. Also as we learned under GW Bush and Obama that the people of some states are not mature enough to handle western democracy. Both of these men, GW relying on hawkish draft dodging ******* and Obama on ivory tower academics, failed to grasp the second rule of international relations, "The known is almost always better than the unknown". Sometimes an oppressive regime with common interest of the west is better than a freely elected government.

[WstateU]

Worth reading if/when you can spare a few minutes. Although I don’t agree with all of Steve Kerr's political views, I gained additional respect for him as a coach and person. What a terrible tragedy for anyone to endure during their youth.

Tragedy Made Steve Kerr See the World Beyond the Court

"“It’s really simple to demonize Muslims because of our anger over 9/11, but it’s obviously so much more complex than that,” he said. “The vast majority of Muslims are peace-loving people, just like the vast majority of Christians and Buddhists and Jews and any other religion. People are people.”

He delved into modern Middle East history, about World War II and the Holocaust and the 1948 creation of Israel, about the Six-Day War in 1967, about peace accords and the Israel-Palestine conflict and the Iraq War and the United States’ scattered chase for whatever shifting self-interest it has at any particular time.

“My dad would have been able to explain it all to me,” Kerr said. Instead, he absorbed it as a boy and applies it as an adult. “He at least gave me the understanding that it’s complex. And as easy as it is to demonize people, there’s a lot of different factors involved in creating this culture that we’re in now.”"

http://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/tragedy-made-steve-kerr-see-the-world-beyond-the-court/ar-BBxrrSJ?li=BBmkt5R&ocid=spartandhp#image=5

[CBB_Fan]

The Middle East problem is far bigger than Israel/Palestine, though I understand the focus traditional Judeo-Christian elements (like PragerU) put on the area. The problem with Middle East is that most of the countries there AREN'T countries. They are artificial constructs created by outsiders, which puts traditionally warring tribes and ethnic groups in the same regional boundaries and calls them a nation. There is a reason why we see such turmoil in Israel and Iraq and more stability in countries like Iran and Saudi Arabia. The countries that formed naturally have a shared culture that is essential for lasting internal peace.

I think a century of Western intervention has shown that we cannot simply create and prop up a country for our own needs to any success. If a dictator is installed it leads to militant rebels, and the democracy leads to a dictatorship by the majority that usually will go against our interests. If we stop supporting the country, it falls apart at the ramparts. Our aim should not be to rebuild these countries that aren't countries, nor to control them, nor to prop them up, nor to try and force western democracy down their throats. We need to work with the stable countries in the region and allow the unstable countries to dissolve and reform along proper ethnic, religious, and cultural lines.

We can also look to South America to see what happens when the west tries to rule a country from afar, as the situation is much the same. We can defend our interests, our trading routes, and our bases without installing dictators or overthrowing governments. Panama, Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Iran, Guatemala, Lebanon, Cuba (multiple times), Chili, Afghanistan, Nicaragua again, Grenada, Panama again, Kuwait, Haiti again, Iraq, Syria, and Libya have shown what happens when we involve ourselves in regime change and nation-building. The few countries we've left untouched (Brazil, Saudi Arabia and the other peninsula countries) have far outpaced their counterparts economically if not culturally.

[DUShock]

The Middle East problem is far bigger than Israel/Palestine, though I understand the focus traditional Judeo-Christian elements (like PragerU) put on the area. The problem with Middle East is that most of the countries there AREN'T countries. They are artificial constructs created by outsiders, which puts traditionally warring tribes and ethnic groups in the same regional boundaries and calls them a nation. There is a reason why we see such turmoil in Israel and Iraq and more stability in countries like Iran and Saudi Arabia. The countries that formed naturally have a shared culture that is essential for lasting internal peace.

I think a century of Western intervention has shown that we cannot simply create and prop up a country for our own needs to any success. If a dictator is installed it leads to militant rebels, and the democracy leads to a dictatorship by the majority that usually will go against our interests. If we stop supporting the country, it falls apart at the ramparts. Our aim should not be to rebuild these countries that aren't countries, nor to control them, nor to prop them up, nor to try and force western democracy down their throats. We need to work with the stable countries in the region and allow the unstable countries to dissolve and reform along proper ethnic, religious, and cultural lines.

We can also look to South America to see what happens when the west tries to rule a country from afar, as the situation is much the same. We can defend our interests, our trading routes, and our bases without installing dictators or overthrowing governments. Panama, Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Iran, Guatemala, Lebanon, Cuba (multiple times), Chili, Afghanistan, Nicaragua again, Grenada, Panama again, Kuwait, Haiti again, Iraq, Syria, and Libya have shown what happens when we involve ourselves in regime change and nation-building. The few countries we've left untouched (Brazil, Saudi Arabia and the other peninsula countries) have far outpaced their counterparts economically if not culturally.

I have mentioned this previously whenever a serious mid-east discussion rises on this board, but I recommend this classic to anyone interested in the middle east. It provides a solid run down into the history of how and why we have the current quagmire.


"A Peace to End All Peace" by David Fromkin

Link: https://www.amazon.com/Peace-End-All...+end+all+peace