Election Blues [Archives:2004/775/Opinion]

“What difference does it make, who wins the elections in the United States, I can bet you 10 to 1 that Israel will have it its way, no matter who wins.” Hamid was talking to his brother at the coffee shop, where they sat for a cup of tea before going home.
Murad wanted some hope still: “Look Brother, no American President has been as generous to Israel as George W. Bush has been. As far as I can see, even if the Americans voted for a toad to be President, the Arabs are bound to be better off. Do you know that most of the people in the Bush Administration are affiliated in one way or another with one or two Zionist organizations or institutions. Israel has even agents “embedded” in some of the most sensitive positions in the American Government. Yet, the Bush Administration has no qualms whatsoever about it.”
Hamid wasn't impressed by the pro-Zionist inclinations of the Bush Administration cited by his brother: “Do you really think that the problem for us is just who is in the White House or out of it? Come on my younger brother, when have we had the opportunity in the Arab World to start thinking about who is going to be President in the next elections of any of the Arab states? The sad part of all this is that we are worrying more about who holds the reigns in Washington, while who holds the reigns in the Middle East has taken a back seat for at least two generations in the minds of most of the citizens of most of the Arab states”
Zeid, their neighbor joined them: “Hello Brother Hamiud and Brother Murad, boy am I glad to see you guys. Are you guys going to watch the soccer game this afternoon? I am coming over to see it in your digital satellite TV. Our homemade dish antenna is shaken out of position by the rough winds yesterday and I haven't had an opportunity to set it in the right direction.”
Murad wanted to express his congeniality and hospitality: “Zeid, you are welcome to sit in our house and watch anything you like. However, I am going to just sit and read all the reading material I have gathered from the Internet about the American forthcoming Presidential Elections. Our future is at stake in those elections.”
Hamid couldn't let his brother continue: “What future are you talking about? We do not have any future to look forward to. The Arab World has never been any worse situation than it is.”
Zeid put sports aside: “You are right Hamid. We have the Americans making Iraq into a slaughterhouse, where anyone who has a craving for blood can have a field day anytime and kill anyone or anything that he finds disturbing to his eyesight, while the American public is gulled into thinking that they are carrying out a messianic mission to enrich their bloodsucking war machine institutions. We have Israel having an open theater, in which it can carry out its systematic program for the annihilation of the Christian and Moslem Arab Palestinians, just so they can achieve the mythical dreams of some monstrous demagogues like Ariel Sharon and Benjamin Netanyahu. We have an Arab World, where the Arab population is systematically stepped upon by its rulers, whose only worries in life are how to keep their thrones and how to keep their subjects subdued to the point of not even knowing what it is they really are living for. We have Arab people who on the whole have no idea what the social contract between the government and the governed should really entail and what is in it for them, if their rulers are ready to even allow them just to talk about such matters. We have Arab states that can't seem to live without some violence or civil strife disturbing the peace and stability of their constituencies. Look at the Sudan. Here is a country that can play the role as the bread basket of the Arab World. But ever since the Generals took over it has been one regional bloodbath after another. Revolution is supposed to bring progress and strength. In the Arab World, revolutions have done nothing more than actually put development and prosperity at a standstill and ensured repression and the suppression of civil liberties indefinitely. Where can you see a future in all this?”
Hamid wanted to get back to the US Elections again, while looking here and there to make sure that no one was listening in on them with concentrated attention: “Murad here thinks that Kerry will be our savior! He believes that with Bush voted out of office, the end of all the misery of the Arabs will be lifted!”
Zeid was almost ready to chuckle: “Come on Murad. How many American Presidents have we seen come and go and yet our prospects get gloomier and gloomier with each new President. You have to remember that it is not the Arab public that votes American Presidents into office. We can't even elect our classroom presidents let alone our countries' presidents. So what difference does it make to Kerry or Bush what the Arabs in the streets have to say about US foreign policy. The Americans know that the Arabs are so frozen politically that they can shape the Arab World into any mold they want. They do not even bother to ask the people's views about the state of affairs of the world. Our leaders are ready to condescend and submit to any White House Administration, even if they know that no American President can even think of running for office unless he has declared that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel forever and that Hanan 'Ashrawi ought to be hanged for her anti-Semitism and anti Christian prejudices. In all likelihood, they do not even know that Ms Ashrawi is a Gentile! In fact they do not care. They see all Arabs as being Abu Musab Al-Zirqawi, whoever he is, and all religious leaders as Osama Bin Ladens. As for the Arab leaders, their influence on American leaders was put on reverse gear with the events of 9/11, which surprisingly many Americans have suggested to be an American-Zionist enterprise. But, the most important thing is that, because we have to keep our political interests confined to following up on the elections of other nations, there can be no hope of seeing any light at the end of the tunnel.”
Hamid saw a chance for sarcasm: “With all the electrical shedding and blackouts we have, and all the news blackouts we have, we can't even hope to see any light, even if we are outside the tunnel.”
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[archive-e:775-v:13-y:2004-d:2004-09-23-p:opinion]