By Alan Caruba
I have a novel idea. Let’s just let the Middle East stew in its own Islamic juices. Along with the Maghreb, the northern tier nations of Africa, down into Nigeria, wherever you find an Islamic regime, you find millions of very unhappy people.
I am not the only one who feels that way, a Monday, May 14 Rasmussen Reports poll found that 63% “believe there is a conflict in the world today between Western civilization and Islamic nations, but most also think the United States should leave the Islamic world alone.”
Will the Muslims ever practice tolerance or accept peace with the West or anywhere else for that matter? No, never. The Koran—which Obama always refer to as the “holy Koran”—is replete with directives to fight for “Allah’s cause” (Koran: 9.88), to “fight and kill the disbelievers wherever you find them” (Koran: 9:5) and twenty other calls to war and murder. There is a reason why their weapon of choice is a Muslim man or woman who is willing to kill themselves in order to kill you.
It is just my opinion, but I believe the present “war on global terrorism” will best be fought covertly with a well-funded, covert intelligence and a counter-terrorism program, not by a massed army followed by a decade of “nation building.”
In the recent past, people throughout the Middle East forced out Tunisia’s despot, killed Libya’s despot, removed Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak from office, and are fighting and dying to get rid of Syria’s despot, Bashar Assad. Both Yemen and Somalia are basket cases with tribal warfare the order of the day. Even the Iranians have demonstrated their unhappiness, taking away Amadinejad’s majority in their parliament. He recently abandoned his usual bellicose talk of wiping Israel off the map.
You cannot point to a single Islamic nation from Morocco to Bahrain that has not had demonstrations intended to pressure their monarchs into granting greater freedom and what we would call democratic reform. As long as Sharia law is in the mix, that’s not a likely outcome.
It took just over seventy years from 1917 to 1991 to bring about the collapse of the Soviet Union, but Islam’s grip on the Middle East goes back to the seventh century. The region is not going to change any time soon and those in power, like Assad, are going to be ruthless in their means to retain it.
The only reason that Saddam Hussein is not in control of Iraq is because the United States and its allies invaded in 2003 and brought his brutal regime to an end. Thank you, George W. Bush, but we should have left right after accomplishing that. Americans are tired of lengthy, inconclusive wars. We have been understandably unhappy with all the conflicts since Vietnam.
Afghanistan has been invaded many times since the days of Alexander the Great and the results have always been a disaster for those who did. Next door is Pakistan which like so many nations in the Middle East has never done anything but take our military and economic aid, and betray us at every opportunity. Egypt’s new leaders are getting ready to throw us overboard.
What I propose is a simplification of a complicated problem and there are few simple answers in a world looking at economic meltdown if debt problems are not resolved. When you toss in a roiling Middle East, it just gets messier.
To begin, let’s stop going to war in the Middle East. We invaded Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003. A short, intense bombing mission temporarily drove al Qaeda from its haven and it found a new one in Pakistan, including a safe home for bin Laden. We deposed Saddam Hussein, a major troublemaker in the region, and should have come home. We have little to show for the lives sacrificed and the money spent in both ventures. Billions have been squandered in both nations.
Israel is the only legitimately Western nation in the region, a true democracy. It is America’s greatest ally there. It shares invaluable intelligence at the highest levels of our government. It is a major trading partner with the U.S. Most of the technology Americans use in communications and in our military contains Israeli developed components. All the large U.S. technology companies have research centers in Israel. It also has a very large army and is quite capable of defending itself, but an umbrella of protection should exist because it is strategically important to our own security and Europe’s.
As for the Palestinians, they are a diplomatic sideshow propped up by the United Nations, self-proclaimed permanent victims. It tells you everything you need to know about the Palestinians that they are the oldest existing “refugee” group in the world! Israel has done what any sane nation would do. It built a huge wall to keep them penned up in Gaza, controls the West Bank, and maintains a strong defense on their northern borders with Lebanon and Syria.
Unless the Israelis conclude they must attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, it’s my opinion they will acquire nuclear parity. Despite their bellicosity, the Iranian leadership prefers to use the Palestinians and other Arabs as proxy fighters. Even with nuclear parity they live in a neighborhood where everyone else has nukes; China, Russia, Pakistan, and India have nukes and, of course, Israel.. The U.S. could deliver a nuke with ease.
That said, nuclear war is so insane that even the Pakistanis and Indians backed away from using them despite having fought several conventional wars.
The last time Iran was in a war, it was with Saddam Hussein’s Iraq from 1980 to 1988 and it turned out very badly for them. They lost over a million men and it was fought to a stalemate. That memory is still very much alive in the minds of Iranians.
Islam is not one big happy family. It is sharply divided between the Sunnis, the majority, and the Shiites. It will be generations before the Muslims ever manage to live with each other in the Middle East without the prospect of these two groups killing one other with regularity.
Why do Muslims hate the West? Despite the fact that there are more than a billion Muslims in the world, they believe they are under attack. Defending Islam is their number one concern. They also believe they must impose an Islamic caliphate on the entire world
At this point in time, the U.S. has other priorities. Or should have.
Our military needs a rest and more muscle in the forms of new ships, new airplanes, and the R&D needed to fight future wars. The U.S. needs to solve its economic problems. We have a huge debt and deficit to reduce. We have millions of Americans out of work. We have others who are losing their homes. We have a failed educational system to fix, roads to repave and bridges to maintain.
We can still park our navy off the coast of the Persian Gulf. We can still maintain bases in the Middle East in places like Bahrain and Kuwait. It’s called readiness.
However, it must also be said that, within a decade’s time, by developing our own vast energy reserves, we could cut our dependency on Middle East oil and leave the Middle East to its own fate.
© Alan Caruba, 2012
Comment
Airborne! Ron
Those of that may no longer wear a uniform of America's Defense still defend....
Comment by Ronald Sorrells on May 15, 2012 at 8:36am David Williams:
the answer and that is upon the inaugration of Mitt Romney the State of Iran will "release its threat of Nuclear anniliation of our alllie (The State of Israel)" or The USA Will execute the "solution to this stalemate" !
Semper Fi,
Ron
If you want out of Afghanistan and Iraq, there is a way. Anyone remember Reagan? Anyone remember why Iran released those captives of 444 days? I do.
Right now Romney has that same "opportunity in time" that Reagan had. The election campaign time. As Reagan, you make clear that on the day you become President your entensions. You make clear that you will end the senseless fighting in these places and return the responsibility of nation building back to those responsible for nation building, our Three Branches of Government. You also make clear that our military will return to its mission statement: ...to deter war...; ... to fight and will in such a manner as "to deter war" with the least loss of national assets (personnel, equipment and funding).
You make this clear not only to our enemies; you make this clear to our elected officials and our military leaders who have turned the "Art of War" into a "Cash Cow" - it is why we now fight in the manner we do in long drawn out military exercises called wars.
You make clear that the responsibily of nation building is the responsiblity of national leaders, all leaders: Afghan leaders, Iraq leaders, Iran leaders, U.S. leaders, ect....).
You make clear that we, the United States of America will not loterate actions that jeopardise the safety, stability and sovernty of the United States and our allies. That such action will met with unwavering resistance. That the leaders of such nations will be held accountable for the actions of their people. That no longer will we sacrifice the needless loss of life, equipment and funding in long - boots on ground oversea contingency opperations. That such action will be dealt with in the most effective and efficeint manner possible. And that the responsibility of rebuilding one's own nation is the responsibility of that nation's people, not the United States or others who are forced to defend themselves.
There is much more that can and should be said but I am certain you understand that. So, I will end my speach here. I trust that you will use my thoughts appropriately and wisely.
U.S. Army Retiree
Comment by Bruce Baker on May 15, 2012 at 6:25am Finally ... someone else besides me .. GET'S IT! ... ISLAM HAS TO FIX ISLAM FROM THE INSIDE!
Muslims think we Americans are crazy because we don't follow Sharia law but then .. why are so many muslims going to western style nations for ... a better life? Sharia law and the present MUSLIM religion has been corrupted over the centuries and the results are devastating for the people under Sharia law.
Oh well ... how long will it take for Muslims to fix Islam? It took centuries to corrupt it ... AND I don't expect it change in the next 100 years... neither should you.
Comment by Ronald Sorrells on May 14, 2012 at 10:53pm Comment by Doug Nicholson on May 14, 2012 at 10:18pm The Arabs and Muslims Aren’t Happy!
They're not happy in Gaza . They're not happy in Egypt . They're not happy in Libya .
They're not happy in Morocco . They're not happy in Iran . They're not happy in Iraq .
They're not happy in Yemen . They're not happy in Afghanistan . They're not happy in Pakistan .
They're not happy in Syria . They're not happy in Lebanon . They're not happy in Bahrain.
And where are they happy?
They're happy in England . They're happy in France . They're happy in Italy . They're happy in Germany .
They're happy in Sweden . They're happy in the USA . They're happy in Norway .
They're happy in Australia . They're happy in Canada . They’re happy in Ireland .
They're happy in just about every country that is not Muslim but wish to implement Shariah Law there. And who do they blame for all this unhappiness?
Not Islam. Not their leadership. Not themselves.
THEY BLAME THE COUNTRIES
THEY ARE HAPPY IN.
Comment by Jody Raines on May 14, 2012 at 7:05pm With a son trying desperately to pass his tests for Basic Training for the National Guard Army Reserves, I pale and blanch at all thoughts of those brainwashed, First Century, backwards, sexually repressed murderers over there. He may be deployed next year and join the hamstrung troops already daily suffering and dying and unable to fully defend themselves. And he may well do so under a 'Commander in Chief' with, at best, questionable allegiances and an apparent disregard--or hatred--toward our military.
Comment by Alan Caruba on May 14, 2012 at 6:50pm @Chas Jones: You need to read my commentary again and more closely. The points you say I missed are all in there.
Comment by Chas Jones on May 14, 2012 at 5:32pm You make a few valid points here in your article and also several points either less valid or merely wrong in your conclusions. The united States didn't unilaterally invade Afghanistan. Afghanistan was under the tyranny of the Taliban which allowed Al Qaida and Bin Laden to plan, train for, and launch attacks against our nation including those of 09/11/2001.
You also omit the fact that Saddam Hussein, after having made war upon Iran [including using biological weapons], invaded Kuwait. Many still debate to this day the merit, or lack therof, of leaving Saddam in power after forcing his troops from Kuwait. Regardless of that debate, Saddam was continuously and increasingly testing the "no-fly zone," while funding islamic terrorists attacking Israel.
While I agree we should NEVER engage in "nation-building," when we oust thug dictators as we did in Afghanistan and Iraq, we should support international coalitions in such nations until honest elections may form new governments. My problem with America's approach in Afghanistan and Iraq is with the model we used to form their new governments. Had we chosen and followed the model of Attaturk in Turkey following World War 1, I believe our stays would have been greatly shortened and the new governments far more stable, lasting, and anti-terrost. Instead we followed an almost "pure democracy" model even going so far as to allow the political front groups of Islamic extremists to participate in forming the new governments. That was pure insanity run amok.
The real issue the world is facing is the failure of so-called moderate Muslims to bring the rest of Islam into modernity. Many also debate whether that is even possible. My personal view is that Islam is incompatible with liberty, freedom, and basic inalienable rights ... unless tightly controlled, with sharia law completely rejected and abandoned by Muslims. Only then would it be at least possible for a "community of nations" to coexist between Islam and the rest of the world.
I also agree that the united States should use all means available to make US energy self-sufficient. We cannot do so while enviromental extremists are allowed to stand in the way. No one is FOR dirty air or unsafe water. However, enviromental extremists [who mainly populate government bureacracies], oppose all use of "fossil fuels," and especially any taken from the earth anywhere within or near our borders.
We NEED conservative officeholders, conservative leaders, and conservative judges enacting conservative [common sense] policies.
Until we achieve that, our nation will decline and the world become ever more unstable and dangerous.
Lastly, let us be clear. IF Iran obtains nuclear capability, it will only be a question of WHEN, not IF, they unleash it upon Israel and then US.
Comment by Ronald Sorrells on May 14, 2012 at 5:18pm The Only "Rule of Law in The United States of America" is backed up by "The United States of America Constitution" (1787) ONLY !
Are There Any Other Questions ?!?!?
Semper Fi,
Ron
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