[Dean's World] Dave Price: An Absolute Must-Read

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Posted by Dave Price:
An Absolute Must-Read
http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1158768967.shtml


   In what is possibly [1]the most important, informative, and relevant
   article on the Mideast by anyone since 9/11, historian Bernard Lewis
   makes the point that the governments in the region are a relatively
   recent creation, born not of local tradition but of the two great
   Western monstrosities of the 20th Century -- and Islamism is mostly
   the result of backlash against the repression they spawned.

     In the traditional society there were established orders-the bazaar
     merchants, the scribes, the guilds, the country gentry, the
     military establishment, the religious establishment, and so on.
     [...] And no sultan, however powerful, could do much without
     maintaining some relationship with these different orders in
     society.
     ...
     The Nazis moved in, made a tremendous propaganda effort, and were
     even able to move from Syria eastwards into Iraq and for a while
     set up a pro-Nazi, fascist regime. It was in this period that
     political parties were formed that were the nucleus of what later
     became the Baath Party. [...] The adaptation from the Nazi model to
     the communist model was very simple and easy, requiring only a few
     minor adjustments, and it proceeded pretty well. That is the origin
     of the Baath Party and of the kind of governments that we have been
     confronting in the Middle East in recent years.
     ...
     What happened on 9/11 was seen by its perpetrators and sponsors as
     the culmination of the previous phase and the inauguration of the
     next phase--taking the war into the enemy camp to achieve final
     victory. The response to 9/11 came as a nasty surprise. They were
     expecting more of the same--bleating and apologies--instead of
     which they got a vigorous reaction, first in Afghanistan and then
     in Iraq.
     ...
     I think that the effort is difficult and the outcome uncertain, but
     I think the effort must be made. Either we bring them freedom, or
     they destroy us.

   The excerpts don't really do the essay justice. If you read only one
   article on the Mideast in your lifetime, make it this one.

References

   1. http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2006/09/bring_them_freedom_or_they_des.html