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April 13, 2006

QotD: Middle Eastern Attitudes

Sometimes it seems like everyone in the Middle East hates everyone else in the Middle East. Arabs hate Kurds and Israelis. Turks hate Arabs and Kurds. Kurds hate Turks and fear Arabs. (Interestingly, Kurds love Israelis.) Everyone, especially Lebanese, hates Palestinians.

Not all people are haters. I've met plenty who aren't. But every culture has its baseline prejudices that individuals either opt into or out of. It's exhausting. Sometimes I just want to shake people and say: Keep your old-world ethnic squabbling out of my face, willya please? Jesus, no wonder there's so much war around here. Even so, Middle Easterners are the most friendly and charming people I've ever met.

Michael J. Totten, "Back to Iraq, part one", Michael J. Totten's Middle East Journal, 2006-04-09

Posted by Nicholas at April 13, 2006 12:02 AM
Comments
Hasn't Totten visited Europe? All evil derives from the people in the next valley as far as I can tell. Fortunately in North America we have it easier. Canadians think all itlls come from the US while in the US all ill comes from everywhere else in the world. Posted by: Alan at April 13, 2006 09:09 AM
Alan, you run the severe risk of being quoted here . . . ;-) Posted by: Nicholas at April 13, 2006 05:06 PM


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