Arab countries “have seen nothing from America except its soldiers.”

[splat@14]

http://www.theweekmagazine.com/article.aspx?id=1371
The Message Behind the Dubai Fiasco
Dubai fears Americans have an unfavorable, single view of all Arabs.
3/17/2006

America’s leaders must think that all Arabs are alike, said the UAE’s Al-Khaleej in an editorial. With its misplaced opposition to a Dubai company’s takeover of U.S. port operations, the U.S. Congress proved that it can’t distinguish between the cosmopolitan businessmen of Dubai and a bunch of Bedouin nomads from the Arabian desert. Such shallow thinking comes from limited horizons. Most members of Congress “do not even hold a passport.” They never travel abroad and are “not aware of world developments.” Maybe the “brave” and courteous decision by Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, to back out of the ports deal will persuade them that some Arabs are, in fact, America’s friends.

Why should Arabs even try anymore? asked Saudi Arabia’s Arab News in an editorial. Dubai is “the most pro-Western, pro-American” country in the Arab world. If Americans don’t trust Dubai, then “clearly they do not trust any Arab.” The attitude is “blatantly racist.” After all, British nationals, before they sold their company to Dubai, were perfectly welcome to run U.S. ports. So we shouldn’t kid ourselves that the U.S. will ever consider any of us a responsible partner. Arabs are only tolerated to the extent that we “fight terrorism, keep the oil flowing, buy American goods and services, and generally jump to Washington’s beck and call.”

Even pro-American Arabs are sorely disappointed, said Tariq Alhomayed in the pan-Arab Al Sharq al-Awsat. Washington talks a good game of free trade and open markets. But the Arab countries “have seen nothing from America except its soldiers.” Instead of American universities, companies, or factories, “we get military bases.” Do the Americans have any idea what kind of message such treatment sends? U.S. actions give fodder to our most irrational radicals, the ones who believe that the U.S. hates Islam. Even now, radical clerics are citing the scuttling of the Dubai ports deal as more evidence of U.S. duplicity. This sorry episode has already become another “victory for terrorism.”

Don’t write off all of North America, said Leanne Ritchie in the Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Daily News. Canadian ports were also affected by the British-Dubai deal, but the “embarrassing caterwauling” was limited to “south of the border.” We don’t do “racial stereotyping.” One of the container terminals at Vancouver, our biggest port, is already operated by the Dubai company, and nobody here has complained. In fact, we’ll welcome any Arab investment that the Americans care to turn down. “Their loss is Canada’s gain.”

[Avalux]

1. Activist journalism at work -

This website is a RW rag - interesting none of the articles list authors. They even have an article wondering if the New York Times is a spy for Al Qaeda. :eyes:

Anyway; easy to see the spin going on here.

[Violet_Crumble]

3. What's the spin?

Can you point it out to me, coz on reading the article I pretty much agreed with what the author had to say, and this last bit gave me a bit of a chuckle:

"Don’t write off all of North America, said Leanne Ritchie in the Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Daily News. Canadian ports were also affected by the British-Dubai deal, but the “embarrassing caterwauling” was limited to “south of the border.” We don’t do “racial stereotyping."

Violet...

[Avalux]

5. The spin - that the US doesn't do business with ME countries.

We do plenty of business with them - GE has a base of operations in Dubai; we've got other corps there and in Saudi Arabia and other places. This article is using the failed UAE port deal as a way to say "shame on you" to those who were against it; it's the race card talking point used by the RW. Buscho WANTS to sell the ports and a lot of other pieces of our country.

[splat@14]

6. I dunno. I didn't like the UAE deal at all based on their recent history.

Hell, just the fact that Bush wanted it made me suspicious. I feel the larger issue with the ports isn't so much who runs them as much as how much security is there....which is none (or very little). Arab owned airlines fly into US cities, their ships enter our ports, their containers are all over our interstate highway system, if they wanted to do something they could easily without this port deal.

I don't like the deal but I can see their side of it....Bush's ham-handed handling of it aside.

Thx Sparo!
Splat

[Tom Joad]

2. Some have only seen the soldiers we sponsor, and the tanks, and the

bulldozers that demolish their homes and crops in Palestine.

[DuaneBidoux]

4. (and porn)

[splat@14]

7. We give them porn? I guess not everything comes (no pun) from China!

[BlooInBloo]

8. on that note...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4446981554735098778&q=internet+porn

[DuaneBidoux]

10. In $ porn is among our highest export $ earners

[Shipwack]

9. “the most pro-Western, pro-American”?

I dunno, I would have put Bahrain ahead of them... we have a major Naval base there (I just came from there). The people are very friendly to Americans in general. I'd have chalked the comment to national pride if it hadn't come from a Saudi Paper...

Dubai and Bahrain have this "cross-town" rivalry going. Bahrain typically loses in comparison; even though they are a larger country, Dubai has much, much more money.