Posted on 04/19/2002 9:20:34 PM PDT by Pokey78
The essay of Machievelli to which this article alludes (for the sake of the politically literate) identifies the reality that, in the domain of politics, the "love" of men is fickle and self-interested, a matter of convenience. Therefore, even if we were to send in our troops to Israel and set up gas chambers and march the entire Jewish population of Israel in to their deaths, the Arab street would only love us momentarily; they would perceive that the sacrifice of the Jews was nothing more than a feeble attempt to placate their ressentiment, their insatiable lust for destruction, and we would be back to square one, just like Neville Chamberlain before us.
Egypt made "peace" with Israel because Israel did exactly what my post advocated--kicked Arab ass. "..because it was right" wasn't part of the equation--it was the only way they could get the Sinai back. Jordan did so because they knew (and know) that Israel CAN "kick their ass" anytime they so desire.
My exposure to Arabs from many different nations happened long before the US was conceived as "the Great Satan", from Arab students who came to the US to attend American universities. The university I attended offered a major summer program in "English as a second language" and drew MANY foreign students (not just Arabs) who then fanned out from there to attend colleges and universities all over the US. I worked at the U. during those summers as a student residence-hall supervisor while also taking courses, and had close contact with all these folks. The Arabs were uniformly the biggest bunch of lying sneaks I have ever had the misfortune to be exposed to. And these were students from the very top strata of the "Arab intelligentsia". Is reality prejudice?? I don't think so.
What is YOUR first-hand experience with the "wonderful" Arabs, Feeny??
Until they turned to Islam and went to live in the dark ages. They may or may not have been ahead once ---but they've allowed themselves to become a bunch of backward inbreds.
You have a new date of membership, but perhaps you're just an " oldie " , who's been banned. Keep up the childish personal insults, and you'll be so again.
None of this; however , has anything at all to do with the thread's topic and your shilling for terrorists, misuse of the English language, or abject lack of understansing about what it will take to defeat enemies. So, unless you are capable of better debate, spare us all your sophestry. Oh, and by the by, you left out forces air heat, an almost modern flush lav, and an unheard of religious tolerance, as Roman accomplishments and introductions to barbaric soceties.
Anyone , who has read Ovid ( and I have ... in the original Latin and several English translations, dear ) knows that they used toothbrushes ; of a sort. Real, MODERN toothbrushes ; however, weren't around until Victorian England. Since this isn't a game of Trivial Pusuit, dear, all of these silly Ripley Believe It or Nots , are irrelivant, juvenile, purile , inane, and banal.
Were you at the Pro-Pali rally, in D.C. today ? If not, why not ? That's a more seminal query and addendum to this thread. : - )
BTW, you aren't impressing anyone around here, with your posts. They are neither pertinent, nor on topic. As a matter offact, thus far, you appear to be only an excellent waster of bandwidth ; someone incredibly devoid of a capacity to stay focused and enamoured of your own voice. : - ) Sooooooooooo , find a mirror, and do talk to yourself. Maybe you should write yourself E-mails. At least then , someone will appreciate what you have written. LOL
Once upon a time, practically every great city in the world outside of China, India, Kyoto, and Constantinople was Muslim. Once upon a time the Muslim world was civilized. But since 1600, when the Muslim world decided to turn its back on science and learning and modernity it has become as decadent and corrupted as a family too rich too long. Now it is incapable of producing anything higher than the car bomb. It exports only oil and terrorism, producing nothing requiring brainpower. It is natural that a civiliation that utterly lacking in creativity, that incapable of assuming any responsibility for its actions would respond only with spite and envy at a world that passes it by. Israel is technologically superior because it has a creative, intelligent, forward looking, brave and innovative people. The Arab world can only buy machines that they haven't the competence to use or maintain much less build for themselves because they are lazy, by turns boastful and cringing, fundamentally incompetent, childish, venal, and crippled by a bloated grandiosity. Societies have personalities and some personalities are just plain better than others.
It has nothing to do with technology per se. It is a matter of culture. Let us take an example. An infantry unit is advancing and the officer out front is killed. Arab soldiers accustomed to despotism, accustomed to a society where only a fool would choose to bring attention or responsibility on himself or act without permission, would simply huddle leaderless. In an Israeli unit, someone will step forward and say "Come on, follow me" and the attack will be pressed forward. People who are the products of a culture of freedom feel safe to step forward and take chances.
Commodity wealth seems to have the cultural effects of easy money. It rots the national character and there is such a thing as national character. It corrupted Spanish society, it corrupted Argentine society, it corrupts Nigerian society, it corrupts Arab society. It fosters a national character of grossly entitled trust fund brats, of swaggering sheikhs/hidalgos, of get rich quick thieves and scammers, of a cultural disinclination to effort and hard work and rising on the basis of what you can do instead of who you know. It fosters conceit, grandiosity, entitlement, and mental and physical laziness. There is no sign of Arab society developing any capacity of actually making or producing things. There is every sign that like Argentina once the wartime boom profits ran out and there was nothing left for the Peronists to redistribute the country simply sank out of the developed world because its people refused to grow up, that the Arab world will simply sink into fundamentalism and rage and poverty and delusions of grandiosity.
There are those in the Arab world who see the signs and would like to turn it around. There were those who tried to save 17th century Spain and 20th century Argentina and the Ottoman Empire. But they could not prevail in the face of cultural inertia and so it will be with Islam.
The fact of the matter is - these countries, and the world, would be better off without Islam. Islam in almost every case has meant dictatorship, oppressive regimes, and a horrific persecution of other religions.
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