You're wrong about OBL. You're right about US military presence in SA triggering 9/11. You're wrong about them not hating our "life style" and freedoms - it's very threatening to them and their culture.ASUMountaineer wrote:I'm sorry, I don't buy that argument that they hate our freedom. Again, why are they not attacking Australia, or other "Christian, Capitalist nations?" I honestly think Osama could care less about Islam, that's just a vehicle for his main objective.AZGrizFan wrote:
We represent the ultimate in hedonism to them. Period. Capitalism is BAD.
The fundamental problem there is religious fundamentalism not so much American thirst for oil. Oil comes into play in that it ironically acts as an emulsifier that binds royal families and mullahs. Mullahs keep quiet about oil revenue and let these families essentially run the government and keep most of the cash, conversly royal families promise to base said government on islamic law thus making the mullahs happy and powerful themselves. This alliance ensures a populace that is stupid and poor. It is also failing. The middle east was once the pinnacle of civilization and produced some of the greatest minds who ever lived. They are now in the dark ages, even with all that oil wealth. They hate american culture but fear it more because it threatens the above alliance. People living on goat piss and bullet casings now can see prosperity via technology. They see what is possible and they are getting screwed. They see Israel prosper right across the fence. With massive overpopulation in that region of the world, this is a powderkeg.
How do they do it? How do they keep hundreds of millions of people from revolting? Simple answer - Palestine. As long as they can direct their anger at something outside, whether it be american hedonism, christianity, judaism - this is all encapsulated in the Palestinian issue - they are safe from revolution. Peace in Palestine would ironically destablinze the entire middle east. And that's why you rarely see arab nations actively involved in the peace process, and unfortunatley they are the only ones who can make it happen.



