Why Do They Hate Us? A Candid Look at the Middle East (Part 1)

Being a fairly atypical sort of middle eastern man, both in appearance and in mindset, I often get asked the question by American acquaintances:

"Why do they hate us?"

It's a complex question. One that politicians have artfully avoided and, in a great sense, created.

The simple truth is that the people of the Middle East do not (or perhaps did not?) hate the West. While the validity of that statement is precarious today, what is certainly true is that the Middle East does not hate the American way of life, does not hate the Western ideals of democracy, liberty and freedom.

There are some among the people I know, who would take issue with my labeling of democracy, liberty, and freedom as 'Western' ideals. But coming from the life that I have, and having seen and experienced life as it truly is in the heart of the East, I can say with confidence that at least in today's world, such things are indeed banners held up under the Western flags.

But returning to the topic at hand, this is not a simple matter to approach, not in the least.

It is true that there are significant grievances that the Arab/Muslim world have against the West. It is perhaps unfortunate that these often valid grievances have been marginalized by the leadership of Western nations. There is this atmosphere of infallibility, this overriding belief in American innocence, rampant among the populace.

Most Americans I know feel the need to ask the question. "Why do they hate us?"

It is often accompanied by a sense of incredulity. And that's the real tragedy here, that most of the people responsible for putting into power the perpetrators of great humanitarian crimes... really haven't got the faintest clue as to what's gone on here.

The following shall attempt to be an unbiased historical account of the events that have led to this great clash of cultures. It is, and I say this with regret, coincidentally, an indictment against the Foreign Policies of the United States and previously, the British Empire. Citations and sources shall be provided to anyone that would like to check back and debate the facts presented here.

The following shall attempt to answer the all pervasive question:

"Why do they hate us?"

To begin with, it is true, speaking as one that has spent the entirety of one's life amid the Middle Eastern people, that there is this tangible undercurrent of anger and violence that ripples through arab and generally (but to a lesser extent) muslim society in the East. Particularly among the poorer, less privileged cross sections of society, one feels very clearly an aura of compressed tensions.

Like the ticking of a bomb about to go.

Witness Iraq. It is a primary example of, not only George W. Bush's (and by extension, America's) foreign policy failures, but of the cancerous schism that exists within the Muslim world itself. Never have a people been so divided, so torn by hate, as the people of and in Iraq.

Witness also Palestine, where Hammas and Fateh factions still battle amongst each other, covertly or overtly, for supremacy, for power, but more, because of this overriding sense of distrust and hate directed towards the other side.

Muslim society has not always been this way. To understand the problems of East/West divide, it is essential to understand the state of Muslim society today, and very importantly, how it got to be in the state that it is presently in.

[To be continued]