A nation without a future? [Archives:2005/841/Opinion]
If the Arab World could just learn from experience, the first lesson it should really take to heart is that as a nation, it is a useless paradigm of how nations should come together and consolidate all their resources and wherewithal to serve the interests of the constituencies that make up this pathetic lot of chattels that do not seem to belong to those very constituencies. We have been seeing this once great nation become the playgrounds for a few vested interests, some foreign and some local, but the overwhelming majority of the peoples of the region seem to be aloof and distant from all that occurs in their midst. On the contrary, instead of seeing progress towards being answerable to the wishes and aspirations of the peoples that are most of all helpless and ruled by their own apathy, we are seeing the people becoming helpless pawns that have the least control over their destinies.
Undoubtedly, there are many historical and political foundations that led to this pitiful state for a nation with resources that literally can rejuvenate this nation to become the most influential political and economic grouping in the world. Without prejudice to this, however, it is worth mentioning that we have derived a lot of control over the historical course we can take, with all the struggles that a lot of the Arab peoples paid dearly to arrive to. However, it seems obvious that the struggles were turned into an amalgamation of evil interests that robbed the Arab peoples of their spirit, intellectual capacity and their will to strive for a prosperous and meaningful life. No, this robbery that did not come from a colonialist power or an international establishment that is seeking to engulf us (although there is no denying that these evils of international dimensions do exist in various forms). This is the work of our own apathy and the evil that drives these monstrous establishments that have crept into our societies, which have entrenched their evil will to kill, horde and dehumanize the overwhelming populations of the Arab World to a subservient status, for which there is no avenue to unleash the yearning to be free. It is a hard paradox that the Arabs, who are well known for their adherence to freedom and respect for the humanity of all mankind are now the farthest away from all they believe in and cherished for centuries.
If that was not enough, the greatest gift to humanity, Islam, which the Arabs have been blessed to bear the torch and banner of, has suddenly become what it actually came to dispel and eliminate from the world. New renditions have been disseminated that have rendered its original purity and innocence into an ugly scenario of suicide bombings and gory bloody streets with an aura of destruction and senseless ideology that is more destructive to the social fabric than anything mankind has seen, for the simple reason that no one can decipher where it begins and where and when will end? This is certainly not the will of Allah, but a test of our own faith and our intelligence, in being able to discern what is right from wrong and what is positive and negative even in our convictions. It is a horrible scenario, where ambition or even hope has no avenues to unleash the broad spans of intellect that the Al-Mighty has not neglected to put in us, but has been numbed by the very forces of man's evil creativity, when allowed to operate freely and without accountability.
Yes, it is time for a change in this region, but the changes we are pursuing are still a continuation of service to the very corrupt and ugly systems that preside over all our resources and control our minds. No, it is fear that dominates our climate as we see our helpless brothers in Palestine and Iraq subjected to the worst humiliation and suffering that anyone can imagine for a society. Even the fear of being admonished for thinking of any sentimental affinity for your brethren as they are slaughtered, tortured and victimized by the worst kinds of colonial machines, that have of late taken on a different color.
No, the Arabs are not moving forward to a new era of hope, because hope is not a nationalistic sentiment anymore according to the systems of oppression that have prevailed in our midst, driven by our very own kind, whose only hope rests in amassing the greatest wealth possible without any care or sense of fealty to the real owners of the resources they are plundering. Oh sure, there is lip service to religion here and there, but when those religious dictates expressly state that “thou shall not kill!; thou shall not plunder; thou shall not oppress; etc.”, these dictates loose meaning among our faithful guardians of the faith! What a dilemma indeed?
So, what is in store for the future? It is a very difficult question to answer, because one is unable to put the question to our Arab leaders, most of whom have decided to adjoin their future with serving the interests they believe will continue to allow them to plunder and oppress as they like, while shoving the interests of their constituencies aside. These ugly machines that exist in our midst are from our very own kith and kin, who went to the same schools and played in the same playgrounds we did, but who now consider the whole Arab nation as their playgrounds to plunder and deface as they like, as long as their own personal coffers continue to be flooded with all the proceeds of our resources, without interruption.
How much plunder can they churn up? That is the amazing dilemma that astounds the simple Arab mind, which was once content with a few dates and some camel's milk, while relishing in all the moral and social equities that have been nurtured in this mind by the endless stream of prophets and philosophers that have evolved our social and dogmatic inclinations over the ages.
What we need to do is really look at ourselves as we should not as others see us, because, otherwise, that will put us into the trap of loosing our own self esteem. Look what is happening to so many of our countries as they begin to fall under the dictates of other powers just so their leaderships can carry on with blinding their own societies?
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[archive-e:841-v:13-y:2005-d:2005-05-12-p:opinion]
