Ports, Stupid Liberals, Growing Islamophobia, and the "East-West Divide"

Okay, so six major US ports are being sold by a British company to a company owned by the United Arab Emirates, and all of the sudden everybody's flipping out like it's the showdown of the Bush administration. Democrats and some Republicans are moving to block the transaction, while Bush is threatening to use his first veto to block such a block. Meanwhile, I'm sitting here wondering why everyone's got their panties in a bunch.

Aside from the fundamental weirdness of US ports being owned by foreign companies, I see little reason to be concerned about the UAE sale. Terrorits ties, some say. Hooey, say I. The UAE is too damn capitalist, IMO, to allow the ports to be used for terrorist purposes on their watch. It's just not profitable. The UAE, IMO, has no inherent interest in Islam or Islamism on principal alone. Rather, they may have made deals favorable to Islamist causes out of an interest for profit, but not for religio-political ideology. In the deal for the ports, I think that the UAE will see the running of healthy and profitable ports to be much more in their interest than allowing terrorist to use the ports and thus triggering World War III/the Fifth Crusade. That'd be, you know, kinda bad for business. For everyone except Halliburton, that is.

Bush said on the matter, "I want those who are questioning it to step up and explain why all of a sudden a Middle Eastern company is held to a different standard than a Great British company. I am trying to conduct foreign policy now by saying to the people of the world, `We'll treat you fairly.'" For once, I am in agreement with Bush. HELLO PEOPLE, have you learned nothing from the Jyllands-Posten Cartoon fiasco? The Islamic world is feeling persecuted - maybe that's because Western capitalists are systematically denying all but the ultra-wealthy elite of any agency they ever held - and some among them are growing violent over it. The cartoons have been as inflammatory as they are because they equate Islam with terrorism. By denying the UAE the port holdings because of supposed terrorists threats, wouldn't the US basically be saying "Muslim/Arab = TERRORIST?" Yeah, that might piss a few people off.

Overall, I think my greatest concern is the growing level of Islamophobia - indicated by the events discussed above - in North America and Europe, and what its implications might be. I am alarmed by how readily accepted the notions of inherent Islam/terrorism correlations are becoming. I am alarmed by common references to Islam as "medieval." I am alarmed by the actions of some in Dar al'Islam that support these stereotypes - unlike al'Qaeda's attacks, which were performed by small groups, these protests are largely populist. I am alarmed that in the European press, and to some degree in the American press, there is common reference to an "East-West divide." More and more are espousing views stating that there is a fundamental difference between "Western" and Islamic culture, and that the two are bound to conflict, mainly because the Muslims are so "backwards" and "medieval." Actions on both ends of this conflict are only stoking the fires on the other, and we really could be headed for a cultural war. And that really scares me.

Just as I was beginning to think we were turning the corner, just as I was beginning to think the Bush era of unilateral action and "pre-emptive" war was over, just as I was beginning to think there might again be peace in the world, all this flares up. And not it's not just right-wing idiots in the US that are the problem. It's right and left-wing idiots on both sides of the Atlantic. And Muslim idiots even further east. Christ almightly people, sometimes I think there really is no answer, no hope...