Middle East ~ War Is Wrong

Last night I watched a movie, documentary, called "Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?". Yes, I know that he is now dead, but this movie was much more than someone looking for him. Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock followed the "reported" trail of where Osama had been reported to be since 9/11, not talking to the political talking heads, but to people on the streets. Everyday people. Well, now that he is dead, what is the point? The point is that everyday people throughout the Muslim world have a VERY different opinion of the American people and the American Government than is reported in the media here. I'm not going to go through a blow by blow review of this movie, but I am going to tell you what I came away with.

First, by a wide margin, people in the Muslim world like the American people, but they hate the American Government. This seems to be a tad contradictory, but if you think about it, you can see how this opinion came to be. They hate the American Government for it's foreign policy. They see the US as forcing world dominance, and interfering where they do not belong. They see the US sending billions of dollars and tons of weapons to bolster governments throughout the Middle East that are both corrupt and oppressive to their own people. This is something that is really difficult to argue against.

After all, at one point, we spent billions in support if the Shaw of Iran, and he was proved to be a criminal. Then we sent billions to support Saddam when he went to war against his successor. And we all know that we then went to war against Saddam TWO times to get him out. How much did that cost? We spend billions to support Saudi Arabia and the royal family there, but everyone knows that it is one of the most oppressive governments in the world, and that there are both political and financial ties to Al Qaeda. We spent billions to support Mubarak in Egypt, and he has been proven to be a crook and oppressor. We spend billions supporting Israel. We spend billions supporting Yemen. So, I think that the feeling in the Muslim world is entirely justified. But, how can they like the American people if they hate the government?

Because they come in contact with them everyday. When America gets involved in a place, we send much more than soldiers there. Thousands of aid workers go there, many of them Americans, thousands of contractors go there, again, the majority of them are Americans. Large corporations descend upon the area because they know that there is money there that will be spent, because money is pouring in from America. So, there are thousands of businessmen there, trying to get a piece of the pie. Scholars have been going to the region for a hundred years. Religious scholars, archaeologists and anthropologists have always sought ways to go there. And tourists! Tens of thousands of tourists go there every year. And each and every one of these people meet local residents.

They meet the people in the hotels and restaurants, they meet the cab and bus drivers, they meet the local trades people, and so it goes. The residents from all walks of life and from all economic groups are exposed to Americans everyday, and they like them! I am one of the few who has had the opportunity to travel all over the world, and seeing this movie solidified my personal opinions. People are just people, the world around. They want to provide for their families, have a few basic freedoms, like the right to practice the religion of their choice and to have free speech. They want to have jobs and they want to live without others telling them how they have to do it.

What side of the foreign policy debate you are on doesn't really matter. This movie is one worth watching for everyone. After all, there is no debate if only one side is presented. Look at this and learn a little about the people who are affected, their side, and integrate those insights into your knowledge of the political side. I got this through NETFLIX, but I am sure that there are many other places where it is available. Try BLOCKBUSTER, the public library or someplace like Barnes and Nobel. Have A Great Day,

The Old Hippie