'It’s the Middle East, Stupid'

AmirAshkan Pishroo
by AmirAshkan Pishroo
17-Sep-2008
 

Many Western scholars paint a gloomy picture of the present situation in the Middle East. Take Michael B. Oren, for example, who claims, “the possibility that a border scrap between Israelis and Palestinians could ignite a regional conflagration should not be too surprising,” wrote in an article entitled “It’s the Middle East, Stupid,” published in The Washington Post.

Furthermore, he argues that “the candidates [of the United States] must be pressed about how they would handle a chain reaction in which events in Gaza suddenly engulf the entire region.

In fact, far from being the root cause of instability and war in the Middle East, one could argue that the Arab-Israeli conflict is rather peripheral, and that the region’s deeper and much more intractable problems lie elsewhere.

The greater Middle East, consists of 22 states, sixteen of them Arab, plus Iran, Israel, Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, which most of them have failed to emerge as nation-states in classical European terms; all are remnants of various empires. And none of the states in the region enjoys fully defined or internationally recognized borders, let alone legitimacy.

Given the magnitude of the crisis in the wider Middle East, the Palestinian-Israeli crisis should be seen for what it is: a potato issue.

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AmirAshkan Pishroo

Dear Mehdi Mazloom

by AmirAshkan Pishroo on Wed Sep 24, 2008 02:56 PM PDT

Dear Mehdi,

For some unknown reason, I missed your comment. I totally agree with you concerning the importance of Israel and its unprecedented achievement.

Thanks for the comment.


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Mehdi Mazloom

Small Poteto

by Mehdi Mazloom on Fri Sep 19, 2008 08:53 AM PDT

AmirAshkan Pishroo

Given the magnitude of the crisis in the wider Middle East, the
Palestinian-Israeli crisis should be seen for what it is: a potato
issue.

Unless one sees the real numbers, you would never get the real picture how small is the potatoes, and how great the disparity between those "potato" are.

Please read these two tables. They speak loud and clear.



STATE            
SIZE (sq. km)           .PERCENTAGE

Bahrain.................................................665...............0.01%

Egypt...........................................1,001,450...............8.42%

Iran..............................................1,648,000.............13.85%

Iraq.................................................437,072...............3.67%.

Jordan...............................................92,300...............0.78%

Kuwait..............................................17,820...............0.15%

Lebanon...........................................10,400...............0.09%

Libya...........................................1,759,540..............14.79%

Oman..............................................212,460...............1.79%

Qatar.................................................11,437................0.10%.

Turkey............................................780,580.................6.56%

Saudi
Arabia...............................1,960,582...............16.48%

Somalia.........................................637,657..................5.36%

Sudan..........................................2,505,810................21.06%

Syria..............................................185,180..................1.56%

UAE................................................83,600...................0.70%

WB & Gaza
(Palestine)....................6,220...................0.05%

Yemen...........................................527,970...................4.44%

Subtotal:.................................11,878,078.................99.83%

Israel.............................................20,770.....................0.17%

TOTAL...................................11,898,848.................100.00%



GDP per CAPITA (2007 est).

MUSLIM STATES:

  1. Bangladesh---$1,400

  2. Egypt:---------$5,400

  3. Jordan:--------$4,700

  4. Mauritania......$1,800

  5. Nigeria:-------$2,200

  6. Pakistan:------$2,600

  7. Somalia:--------$600

  8. Syria:---------$4,300

  9. Sudan:--- ----$2,500

  10. Yemen--------$2,400

TOTAL:-------$27,900

ISRAEL------$28,800


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AmirAshkan Pishroo

"thank you that was great"

by AmirAshkan Pishroo on Wed Sep 17, 2008 03:12 PM PDT

Truly, thank you, Irandoxt, that was a great comment. And don't worry about that philosophical thing, since anytime I have tried to come up with something philosophical, I have simply turned myself into a foolosopher.


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IRANdokht

Dear Amir Ashkan

by IRANdokht on Wed Sep 17, 2008 02:55 PM PDT

I always read your blogs, and I am sure a lot of others do too. Sometimes when you read an interesting article, if you agree with the idea and everything the author has included, you're left with nothing to add nor to dispute, so you keep quiet... It'll be annoying to see 20 comments that says: "thank you that was great" wouldn't you?

Personally if it's about Philosophical issues, I keep quiet, since that subject is way above my head to even attempt to write a coherent comment.

Thank you :0)

IRANdokht


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AmirAshkan Pishroo

Thank you Irandoxt

by AmirAshkan Pishroo on Wed Sep 17, 2008 02:21 PM PDT

Thanks Irandoxt for your comment without which my post would be lost or ignored. Anyone who spends time to write a post (or blog as it called in this site) trying to come up with an answer to the question what is possible and important always has to worry that his or her text will be ignored. This worrisome is coupled with the fear that even if one's text is noticed, nobody will find anything distinctive in them.

This is what Harold Bloom the most influential literary critic in the world today calls "the anxiety of influence," finding oneself to be only a copy or a replica to which I have no trouble to confess being one.

By potato issue I meant trivial or insignificant issue.

Thank you Irandoxt, once again.


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IRANdokht

Dear Mr Pishroo

by IRANdokht on Wed Sep 17, 2008 09:05 AM PDT

I agree with you, although I am not sure what you mean by the "potato issue". There is one thing I would add to what you correctly described about the M.E. nations: These countries are also kept in this situation on purpose because due to their natural resources, they have enough $$ to purchase the arms and keep the world's more technologically advanced economies running.

These people's differences are insignificant and blown out of proportion, but the fire will never go out as long as they have money to spend on killing each other.

IRANdokht



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