From: Adam <""4thwormcastfromthemolehill\"{at}the field.near
the bridge">

Tony Williams wrote:
> Phil Payne wrote:
>>>> Yet another childish GOP distraction from the only issue
of the day -
>> the
>>>> USA's disaster in Iraq.
>>
>>> The mess in the middle east is insignificant compared to the mess we're
>>> making of the climate.
>>
>> That's not the issue of the day but the issue of the decade.
>
> On the other hand the middle east's been a mess for millennia, not just
> since the oil reserves out there became useful to the west. We have a
> prefect opportunity to stay well out of it and concentrate on making
> sure we don't need their oil. Callous, maybe, but we seem to have done
> more harm than good in Iraq by getting involved - even if it was for
> noble humanitarian reasons as some still insist.
>

??? The world has been a mess for millennia. The Middle East less so
than many places (e.g. Europe, Africa, the Americas) in part because it has
simply passed from one empire to the next. e.g. it ended up being part of
the British Empire via the Ottoman empire via the marmalukes via the
mongols etc.

Compare that the the fun & games in the Americas with the coming of the
white man or in Europe with ....the coming of the white man.....ok simply
fighting amongst themselves/having very violent revolutions/creating world
wars/engaging in massive genocide etc in the same period.

What has been going on in the middle east is similar to what happens in
long term subjugated parts of empires. Look at the Balkans as another
example, or large chunks of Africa. Takes a people a while to re-adjust
their society away from appealing to a far off master to deal with their
problems & to avoid the "big/strong man" which is also a
result of this ("i.e. a replacement for a
"governor-general") etc.


Adam

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