East Of Suez

East of Suez The Norman Transcript September 01, 2007 01:23 am — For The Transcript The people living in the belt between Morocco and east to Japan have been a puzzle for Americans from the beginning. Their languages are different; their religions are a mystery; their customs seem awkward; and their geography swings between extremes. They have brought us, as well as our British and French cousins, into financial adventures, explorations and wars. The magic appeal of the East was well put by a Bombay born Nobel prize winner, a poet and unabashed imperialist. Writing in the dialect of a lower class Londoner he reminisced, "If you've 'eard the East a-callin you won't never 'eed naught else." That appeal has been widespread. In the case of the United States it has entailed not palm trees, temple bells or girls; rather it has been money, oil and power. And now we have substituted the Euphrates for the Irriwaddy, war for romance. In less that a hundred years, and discounting several skirmishes, we have been engaged in five "eastern" wars -- World War II with Japan, the Korean War, Vietnam, the Gulf War and now Iraq. How and why we got into each of these is debatable. But under any circumstance each was a tragedy, a signal that rationality had fled. Perhaps it is true that some progress results from every war; still, there is nothing produced by it that could not be achieved more efficiently and humanely by thoughtful cooperation. And one way to achieve this accommodation is with a sincere effort to understand the culture of the "enemy." Look at that portion of the Middle East -- from Syria, Lebanon and Israel to Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan -- that is in such a state of turmoil. We have been contributing to that disorder, yet what the American public understands about these countries is questionable. And the imperception of some of our leaders is inexcusable. Listen to them critically with a geography book in your lap. Or ask your neighbor or the next politician you meet to answer a few questions. What is the population of Israel? Iraq? Iran? Which is the largest country? What countries border them? What languages do they speak? What is their level of industrialization? What natural resources do they have besides oil? Who are the Turkomans? The Baluch? Druz? And who are the Kurds and where do they live? Many Americans would be hard pressed to find Iraq on a map. And could our pro-war politicians find it on an unlabeled topographical map? There is plenty of intelligence and creative talent in Middle Eastern culture yet our government often deals with these countries in a condescending and domineering way. We add insult to injury by posturing concern for democracy when our principal interests are oil and protecting allies. Tribal and factional divisions as well as religious cleavages make Middle East unity and order exceedingly difficult if not impossible. The self-centered innocence that has characterized American intrusion into their affairs is an embarrassment to those who study cultural history and geography. Some of the policy makers in Washington including those who authorized the invasion of Iraq -- and some of them are now agitating for extending the war to Iran -- make decisions in what frequently seems to be a moral and intellectual vacuum. A few decision makers appear to be well informed although they sometimes let their fears and ambitions override critical judgment. Regrettably, six figure salaries, status and presidential favor can be more persuasive than reality. Basic to thoughtful judgment is knowledge of Middle Eastern religions, geography, history, family customs, social psychology, languages and literature. One must know these things to know the people. Deficiencies on this score largely explain why our war pronouncements are more emotionally motivated than reflectively initiated and guided. One of the curious and tragic qualities of the present Washington camarilla -- "the in group," the dominant clique -- is their disinclination to call on the talents of the informed mind rather than the political mind. The nearby university is rich in intellectual proficiency. There are students in anthropology, government and geography better qualified to make international decisions than many who legislate from the inner councils.

And think of the enriched perception if we add their teachers! The countries just east of Suez -- Israel, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan -- are in an unstable relationship. And their neighbors -- Saudi Arabia with its uncertain future, and Iraq where we have promoted so much disorder, confront an unpredictable future. One of the tragedies of this era is so many American policymakers confuse their values with eternal verities. This leads to misunderstanding and failure to see that the ethnic, political and religious differences among the Middle Eastern people are not only difficult to resolve among themselves but they are equally or more difficult to reconcile with those of the United States. The American ideology -the "American Way of Life" -- with its verbal worship of "democratic idealism" and its unacknowledged worship of materialism satisfies most Americans, but is alien to the Islamic-Arabic turn of mind. What many Muslims find attractive about the U.S. is the ready availability of consumer goods, not our social-religiouspolitical theory and customs. There is a twofold difficulty here. First, to understand the high standard of living in America one must see that it is predicated on waste. Yankee capitalism is remarkably productive but it has been so and continues to be so at a high and self-destructive price. Failure to see this is one cause of our present difficulties. Second, few Americans see and even fewer Muslims do so, but with the breakdown of immigration controls, urban congestion, increasing population and diminishing resources the American standard of living will go down. When, how fast and to what degree is conjectural. One evolving consequence of this -- and it will be accelerated and exacerbated as China's industrial power grows and as Middle Eastern nuclear technology expands -- is that American influence east of Suez now revealing so many flaws will further diminish. Kipling's Tommy wanted to be shipped "somewhere east of Suez ... where there aren't no Ten Commandments an' a man can raise a thirst...." We can understand that young soldier's tastes but they contribute little to the peace of the world. Abiding peace will come not only east of Suez but across the globe when people outgrow their fantasies and when they mature enough to let other people and other nations alone. Peace will come when religions become pathways to justice rather than excuses for war. And peace will come when education is devoted to realistically civilizing our young barbarians who are so rich in moral and creative potential. And peace will come when humankind understands who trifling is its role in the solar system, and how inconsequential in the cosmos. Then humans may learn truly to appreciate their brief sojourn on earth while living with a sense of kindness toward everyone. The alternative is continuation of our senseless aggressions and the tragedies they entail. Lloyd Williams is a retired educator. His column is published monthly in The Transcript. Copyright © 1999-2008 cnhi, inc.