Where Does America Stand Today?
The controversial question concerning war and diplomacy has been answered. Ground troops have been sent; allies have been called upon for support; Afghanistan's attempts at compromise have been rejected; America is at war. America stands poised and ready to defend her losses. Who is the enemy that America will be fighting? This enemy, known generally as terrorism, lives in a different world than the American superpower. Terrorism is the child of decades of religious disputes, histories of deep national pride, and what is seen as infringement upon Islamic holy grounds. Islamic fundamentalists in the Middle East view America's presence in Saudi Arabia as blasphemous and intolerable . The preservation of face and appearance of strength are key elements in the world of the Middle East that evidence themselves in various ways. Extreme humiliation and oppression are two of the factors involved in inciting desperate people who feel shamed and weak to violent actions such as terrorism. Also, Arab nations feel that they must appear to have the superior position when taking part in foreign diplomatic negotiations. The domestic climate of an Arab nation plays a role in negotiations as well. Arab regimes must be constantly aware of their domestic situations and must be sensitive to this political climate to prevent restlessness and maintain internal stability. This world seems to be so very different than the one the United States has been living in for so long. The attacks on September 11 have brought the United States out of her own little world and into a much more complex one. Yes, America is at war, but with whom? America is at war with a much more dangerous force that does not play by conventional rules. America is in an unwelcome position; she must learn to fight a war against an enemy that she does not understand.
This essay will make an attempt to begin to understand this enemy by understanding the surrounding environment. Out of necessity, the present actions and policies of the United States must be mentioned, along with the problems that have arisen from them. However, the main focus of this essay will be to understand the Middle East, not the current United States policy toward this region of the world. So many motifs appear in these Arab nations: minority oppression, religious divisions, devout national pride, and a façade of strength. Hopefully, focusing upon these motifs will create a framework within which the current and future problems of this area may be resolved.
In large sections of the Middle East, America is seen as hypocritical because she contributes to Iraqi children dying by imposing economic sanctions while speaking of democracy and freedom. These deaths certainly do not uphold humanitarian ideals that America claims coexist with democracy and freedom. America knows that her presence in certain holy lands has been seen as a great offense to many Arabs for quite some time, but their opinions now seem to carry a bit more importance and relevance to the present situation. Why have we chosen to ignore our offensive actions for so long? The answer is simple-we didn't think that the issue was of any importance, even though the issue was central to other portions of the world. America's view of world issues has been rather narrow until the present. Until now, America has employed no consistent policy to combat terrorism. The threat has been taken seriously only on limited fronts and only when it was deemed absolutely necessary. For example, there was a crackdown on security in Turkey after a terrorist incident, but the vigilance waned with passing time when the threat no longer seemed imminent. The United States has fought terrorism vicariously by supporting other countries that contain their domestic terrorism issues; the U. S. has failed to fight the problem upfront with any real show of force. Also, the policies of the United States have dealt with issues in the midst of an atmosphere of political correctness that we see as necessary to smooth over diplomacy with our many allies and avoid offending any friend; this same diplomacy that attempts to please everyone is despised as hypocritical and superfluous by certain groups in the Middle East. Traditionally, the loss of American lives has taken precedent over involvement because America really has no personal interest in her battles. Somalia is a prime example; few Americans were concerned with the situation until their fellow countrymen were sent to the area. At that point, many Americans wished for the soldiers at risk to come home. Pulling out of dangerous is seen as logical to Americans, but this action has been seen as signs of cowardice to Middle Eastern terrorists, including Bin Laden. The viewpoints of the two worlds could not be any more different.
A long history of discord with roots in religious divisions permeates the region. Two sects of the Muslim religion formed by heir disputes in the late 7th century have persisted to this day. The majority of the Islamic religion is professed Sunni; only one totally Shiite country exists today. (The motif of the oppressed minority, which originated as a result of the disputes between the minority Shiite and majority Sunni, can be seen all throughout the Middle East.) However, the two sects of the Muslim religion share the same eventual goal- the rule of one Islamic nation. In 1979, discontent with the secular ruler in Iran led to the revolution. This revolution established religious rule, and many Arabs all over the Middle East look to this occurrence for inspiration and as an example of the eradication of secular rule. This revolution is every more incredible because it bridged the gap between the two sects of Islam. (Iran is the only Shiite country, but the Sunni Muslim brotherhood in Egypt looked to the revolution for inspiration.) Iran continues to finance and serve as the ideological center for Islamic movements throughout the area. Iran even goes so far as to support Hamas, whose followers hold to the opposing branch of Islam, in its fight for a Palestinian state.
Jihad was once viewed as an internal struggle that occurred inside each faithful Muslim, but now, jihad, holy war, is physically employed by groups such as Hamas as the means to achieve the goal of one Islamic nation. Hamas is one other group who views violence as the only way to obtain the desired end . Among this group, peace may be a desired ideal, but the peace process is mocked, and it is seen as traitorous to Islam to deal with unbelievers. It happens that bin Laden subscribes to this particular branch of thought. Empirically in the past, attempts at keeping peace by ignoring violent actions, such as the U.S. embassy bombings has empirically encouraged them to continue. After the embassy bombings, the attacks on the U.S.S. Cole and the World Trade Center occurred. The attacks became more virulent without U.S. retaliation. No retaliation is seen as a sign of victory or progress in their movement to establish an Islamic state. Violence is simply their new means to the fundamentalist goal of Islamic rule popularized by the Iranian Revolution.
The election of Hizbullah to power in Lebanon would be the first realization of the goal of Islamic rule outside of Iran. The group may be able to take control in the next election due to the increasing size of the minority group of Shiite Muslims in the country, which brings up another problem-diverse ethnic groups forced to live together. The Europeans drew the lines after the World Wars without any thought about the ethnic groups involved in the divisions. Lebanon is a prime example; five different ethnic groups exist in this tiny country. The result has been vast inequalities of political power between the two Islamic groups and the European-influenced Marinite Christian group that led to deep hatred and eventually to a civil war. The growing number of Shiite Muslims may soon speak out against those presently in power for the voice of the oppressed minority via their political support of Hizbullah.
Groups like Hizbullah are only seen as terrorist organizations from the Western point of view; this point of view reveals a deep lack of understanding of the purpose of these groups. The people enthusiastically support these groups because they represent a national pride. The Arabs' pride has been deeply wounded for reasons dating back to the severe loss to Israel in the Six Days' War. Hizbullah is the first group that has been able to save face and regain some lost dignity with its successes against Israel and its success in Lebanon. In the case of Hizbullah, the main theoretical thrust is Islamic rule over Lebanon ; terrorism is a sideline because humiliation has driven some to violence against Israel, but it is not the main focus. (Also note that Lebanon is responsible for civilian deaths during the bloody civil war in that country.) All similar groups enjoy the support of the people of the Middle East because these people feel that their Arabic culture was destroyed by Western influences , so the prevalent oppressed minority mindset leads these people to defend their remaining culture against any further Western influence.
The nationalistic tendency of these groups is accompanied by an uncustomary fervor. Suicide bombings illustrate the fact that loss of life is not an issue with certain dangerous Islamic followers, and they cannot be reckoned with in a reasonable manner. (It must be mentioned that a debate exists within Islam over the correctness of suicide bombings due to a statement of the Koran supposedly forbidding suicide. ) In the Middle East, the appearance of strength is a key factor. Any action must be followed by retaliation in order to uphold this façade; weakness only invites further attacks from ever more violent and fervent attackers. Diplomacy is fruitless in this struggle because any backing down invites more destruction; the conventional concern for loss of lives no longer applies. Weakness would only invite further destruction and death.
Throughout the Middle Eastern region, examples of violence abound. Two examples are Egyptian groups that attack their own people whom the group does not believe to be adhering to Islam correctly and Algerians that brutally massacre tens of thousands of their own people as well. Exposure to excessive violence so close to home overturns previously held beliefs. For instance, the majority of the residents living in Palestine desire peace and can no longer afford to hold onto ideologies and creeds that cause them to suffer daily. This is in contrast to the refusal to compromise based upon convictions that are the positions of some living removed from the violence of Palestine. The uniting of the two opposing sects of Islam via Iranian support for Hamas is monumental, but it is accomplished by a common hatred. It is important for the United States to note that a common cause or excessive violence can accomplish a change in supposedly unmovable convictions.
Another consideration for United States policy is the issue of stability. The U.S. policy concerning Iraq is a major point of contention with groups that hate America; this is a situation when the Unites States placed the desire for stability above removing the undesirable leader of a country. Iraq is actually a country split into three portions. Very violent disputes with Sadam are caused by religious differences in the south and ethnic differences in the north. Both groups hate the leader who represents the rich middle section that dominates the country. America had the opportunity to grant the Kurds their own state; this seems like the humane action to undertake and one in keeping with American ideals. However, the risk of placing unknown leadership into the midst of the Middle East and possibly creating the potential for the overthrow of current leadership in the area was too great of a risk to take. The Turkish government greatly influenced the U. S. decision as well because that countries leadership wished to avoid another Yugoslavia. (Turkey is composed of various ethnic groups just like the former Yugoslavia, and stability is very fragile.) The worst fear for the United States concerning the Middle East is uncertainty because this leads to a lack of economic and physical security.
The extensive description given above depicts an unknown and often misunderstood world. After the September 11th attacks, many Americans felt an indescribable anger at the Middle East for disliking our country without any understanding of the area or their experiences. The attacks came from and will continue to come from that world, so we must now attempt to understand and react accordingly if we are to hope to be successful in dealing with this tragedy.
The approach that is required is one very different from the conventional U. S. means described earlier. We must actually fight terrorism consistently ourselves on a global scale, utilizing all of the possible resources despite possibly politically incorrect implications. We must also realize that the overall goal of these Islamic groups is present in their minds. Aggressive behavior enacted by the U. S. in the status quo will put up a strong appearance and will not invite future attackers to take advantage of our country. They now must consider the costs when retaliation is imminent and forceful.
Whatever means America chooses to employ to fight terrorism and whatever the outcome, our world has been changed forever. We are now beginning to daily deal with terrorism scares; the impenetrable sense of security is gone. Terrorism and its effects are no longer elements of the Middle East only; the fight has been brought into our backyard. The most basic challenge facing the United States today is to prevent our former world of security, a world that will certainly in any event be changed by September 11th , not to be taken over by the utter confusion of the Middle Eastern world. With this basic fight in mind, where does America stand today? One answer is that the U. S. is leaving behind tradition to forcefully conquer her foe because this appears to be the only viable option. The truth of the matter is, however, that America doesn't stand anywhere; she has been thrown on the defensive against an enemy she is just beginning to understand.

The debate over war versus diplomacy has been answered. Ground troops have been sent; allies have been called upon for support; compromises have been rejected; this country is at war. America stands poised ready to defend her losses. Who is the enemy that America will be fighting? This enemy, known generally as terrorism, lives in a different world than the civilized superpower. Terrorism is the child of decades of religious disputes, minority oppression, and what is seen as infringement upon holy grounds. The Middle East and the entire Arab world view America's presence on holy lands in Saudi Arabia as blasphemous and intolerable. The world of the Middle East is one where force, not diplomacy, is the method of communication. The concerns of the Arab World are domestic in nature; an individual country's people and wishes are considered before any foreign diplomacy is attempted. This world seems to be so very different than the one the United States has been living in for so long. The attack on September 11, however, has brought the United States out of her own little world and into a much more complex one. Yes, America is at war, but with whom? America is at war with a much more dangerous force that does not play by conventional rules. America has been thrown into a world that she does not understand, and learning how to fight a war that she has never been a part of will be the challenge she will face.

The debate over war versus diplomacy has been answered. Ground troops have been sent; allies have been called upon for support; compromises have been rejected; this country is at war. America stands poised ready to defend her losses. Who is the enemy that America will be fighting? This enemy, known generally as terrorism, lives in a different world than the civilized superpower. Terrorism is the child of decades of religious disputes, minority oppression, and what is seen as infringement upon holy grounds. The Middle East and the entire Arab world view America's presence on holy lands in Saudi Arabia as blasphemous and intolerable. The world of the Middle East is one where force, not diplomacy, is the method of communication. The concerns of the Arab World are domestic in nature; an individual country's people and wishes are considered before any foreign diplomacy is attempted. This world seems to be so very different than the one the United States has been living in for so long. The attack on September 11, however, has brought the United States out of her own little world and into a much more complex one. Yes, America is at war, but with whom? America is at war with a much more dangerous force that does not play by conventional rules. America has been thrown into a world that she does not understand, and learning how to fight a war that she has never been a part of will be the challenge she will face.

References
1. Martin Kramer, September 16, 2001. http://www.tau.ac.il/jcss/tanotes/TAUnotes22.doc
2. Harakat al-Muqawamah al-Islamiyya
www.ict.org
3. Israel Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem
www.ict.org
4. Nizar Qabbani
"I Am With Terrorism"
5. Reuren Paz, May 2, 2001
http://www.wahingtoninstitute.org/watch/Peacewatch/peacewatch2001/323.html