The Middle east -- was a couple of other things

From: Dehede011@aol.com
Date: Thu Apr 17 2003 - 06:57:51 MDT

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    In a message dated 4/17/2003 6:18:15 AM Central Standard Time,
    amara@amara.com quotes: "Brian, today with the Internet we have almost all
    the media of the world available to us. If we don't speak other languages it
    means little as English versions are readily available."

    and then replies, "You're joking, aren't you?"

    Amara,
           I was not knowingly joking. Perhaps I was exaggerating but the fact
    remains there are a sufficient number of foreign language newspapers
    available in English on the Internet that a person need not remain childishly
    uninformed.
           For example, one does not have to construct extensive theories
    explaining why America is hated in the Arab world when the Arab press is
    available in English. A person can readily learn:
    1. That the press rabble rouses against us massively. An Arab man in the
    street has no chance at all of forming an objective opinion of us.
    2. That by freeing Iraq and removing the sanctions we are going to cost the
    surrounding countries a trillion dollars, by their estimate, over the next
    few years.

           BTW, we do have one means of communication to the Arab masses and it
    is working.
           I walked into my favorite Pakistani grocery store and was greeted by
    the proprietor a sharp young entrepreneur. He was watching a video while
    waiting for a customer.
           I commented that the movie looked like something out of Hollywood when
    I was a teenager. His eyes flashed and he gave me a big grin. He explained
    that the movie was a takeoff from Hollywood and said, "America is popular all
    over the world, it is the best." As he said this he was nodding at the
    screen.
           I asked why? He explained that the contents of the movie, the song,
    the dance, the styles and the conduct all represented America and that the
    middle eastern young adults all wanted America because that was freedom. In
    that piece of frivoulous entertainment they saw an entire social contract and
    they wanted it for themselves.
           It appears that where our diplomats and newsmedia cannot effectively
    represent us our movie industry does.
    Ron h.

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