Well we've really done it now. I stepped out this morning into the rain, pulled the journal from its new protective baggy and my heart sank: the Dubai Port World deal really is dead.
I'm proud to be an American, really I am, but this pretty much repulses me. We just observed Martin Luther King, Jr Day - maybe 'observed' is too strong and 'celebrated' is more like it - and now we're saying that Arabic people are less worthy than British people. For a country that apparently believes in equality and has struggled with racism incredibly recently this is a huge step backwards. In my mind a judgment of this magnitude falls somewhere between our tolerance of slavery and our handling of the Native Americans we terrorized out of the west.
As I've stated before, you don't fight terror by singling out terrorists, you fight terrorism by making it irrelevant. Blocking this deal effectively paints all Middle Eastern Muslim nations as terrorists, creating a death spiral away from the ultimate goal. The goal is Dubai, a bright spot in the world, a place where government and business have combined to create something really good and a city state that commands respect. I think that is what the nations where terrorists live actually need: the respect of the world, which leads to the self respect to stand up and say no. Dubai has done that and we have smacked them in the face in an outpouring of ignorance, fear, and unfounded hatred. Ugly America has raised its voice and I'm embarrassed for what we've said.

posted at 9:12 AM - comments