And liberals are from URANUS.
This liberal is most definitely from URANUS!
Posted on 06/24/2004 9:02:59 AM PDT by xsysmgr
It came to me in an e-mail, sent originally by someone I don't know, and passed along by a friend. It was one of those e-mails that you hesitate about downloading. Do you really want to read 84,662 bytes written by a stranger, sent by a stranger, who thinks you might be interested in what Ben, a Marine, has to say about the differences between Americans and Iraqis?
As it turns out, I'm glad I did read what Ben Connable, an Arabic-speaking major who is with the First Marine Division, wrote. In his analysis, which he entitles "Marines Are From Mars, Iraqis Are From Venus," he thoughtfully and shrewdly delineates the differences between two tribal cultures, theirs and ours. Yes, let's admit it: Americans are a tribe, too, with our clearly defined attitudes, values, and beliefs. And though Ben notes that he is simplifying and generalizing, ("Not every American or Iraqi will find themselves in these descriptions") his goal is to "help Marines in the Al Anbar Province find patience and understanding to help an embattled people." I think Ben's words could give us at home some much-needed patience and understanding as well.
What characterizes our American tribe? According to Ben, "People, in general, are hardwired to see obstacles or problems, [and] find solutions. The American culture reinforces this natural instinct in what most other cultures consider an extreme manner. Americans focus on winning, achieving, succeeding, and producing.... And when we are presented with challenges, we are expected to overcome them with personal initiative."
Other characteristics: "We see ourselves as separate and distinct individuals, [who can chose] our own relationships...and paths in life. If we don't like our families, we simply disassociate ourselves and seek other relationships. We decide what is best for ourselves.... And if we fail, we believe it is our own fault."
We're optimistic, he says, since most of our basic survival needs are met; we can take a long-term view of our lives. We have the luxury of being able to envision and expect a good future for ourselves and our children. And we're optimistic because we live in a society ruled by law and with a government that is usually responsive to our needs. We have trouble adjusting to other people's way of life because we think our way of life is the ideal — and that everyone else should think so too.
Ben concludes that Marines, the warrior clan of our tribe, have all our typical characteristics but to an extreme: "We tend to be exceptionally aggressive, mission focused and [are] strong believers in the American ideal. " Marines could be described, as extreme Americans."
What about Iraqis? Ben writing, again, in the first person plural, but in the voice of their tribe declares:
We are a communal people, and our life revolves around our family, close and extended. The paths of our lives are less lineal than the Americans... [and] our perception of victory and success is often malleable to the circumstances. Our honor demands victory [but we can] adjust the standards to fit the situation. The Gulf War was a victory for Saddam because we prevented you from driving into Baghdad.
Despite the fact we were losing on the field, Fallujah was a victory because you did not finish the attack.... This sense of honor permeates everything we do. A man without honor gets no wife, often gets no work, and...he may be shunned or killed by his family depending on how grave the offense.
It doesn't matter how we support our families as long as we provide. In many cases, we are pushed out the door by our wives to conduct attacks against the Coalition to regain our honor and to make money. An Iraqi woman knows that a husband without honor is worthless to her and her children.
Saddam was a terrible father, but many of loved him as an abused child loves the parents who beat him. We still act like abused children, playing one side against the other.... Don't expect loyalty from us, we are survivors. When we give loyalty to a cause it is to God's cause. When we give loyalty to a people it is to our family.
When we are presented by challenges, we accept the fate prescribed by God. If we are poor, it is God's will that we are poor. If there is a task to be completed, then by the will of God it will be completed — In Sha Allah.
People group together to survive, to protect each other, to look out for each other's interest. If you kill or imprison one of us, you have taken some of our pooled resources and reduced our chance of survival.... That is why we demand blood money for death, injury and damage.... We accept God's will and you have balanced out our resources
Our inability to envision our own future is our greatest weakness. Your talk about democracy and prosperity means little to people who are simply surviving.... If you give money to one of our public officials, he'll steal as much as he can because he doesn't even know if he'll have a job next week.... There is no real shame in corruption; after all, we're looking after our families.
Owning up for poor performances or behavior would be a stupid thing to do if it reduces our chance of survival. If we can put off our mistakes on others, we'll do it not because we're lazy or incompetent but to avoid damaging our honor or possibly losing our job. Everything we do is designed to coax, cajole, trick or steer you into doing what we want you to do. This is a standard survival skill, one that you haven't mastered. Your naiveté never ceases to amaze us.
You may have noticed we have a very emotional nature. There's no imperative to control our emotions.... We can be furious at you one minute, and truly love you the next. [Yes] we are stuck in a rut and we need someone who has the capacity to see a better future to guide us onto the right path. We may take your hand — or we may bite your hand.... And if you expect too much from us, you will be disappointed.
I don't know if Major Ben Connable is an intelligence officer but I know he is a very intelligent one, able to describe — even define — the true nature of the challenge we face. I hope that he and all under his command in Al Anbar Province stay safe.
— Myrna Blyth, long-time editor of Ladies Home Journal and founding editor of More, is author of Spin Sisters: How the Women of the Media Sell Unhappiness — and Liberalism — to the Women of America. Blyth is also an NRO contributor.
Wow... this sounds like the definition of a modern-day Democrat.
Major Ben understands Asia and Asians. That is an excellent way to put it.
In his description of the Iraqis, he has described children.
Children who do not evolve or mature, whose development is arrested, become spoiled and unreasonable adults, like this.
It is a culture which was arrested.
The description also reminds me of that class of people common to welfare who do not, have never, disciplined themselves and who make NO demands upon themselves, whatsoever. These people require and also resent the kind of paternalistic government which will provide for their every want and which will place no restrictions or demands upon the recipients' continuation it his state.
We would be doing the Iraqi People, and ourselves, a favor if we crushed them ruthlessly before attempting rebuilding.
So9
And liberals are from URANUS.
The man who wrote the children's book, "The Little Prince"*, also wrote books about his time with the Arabs in the 1920's and '30's. If I was a commander and knew my unit was going to The Middle Eastern Theater, I would have company commanders, platoon leaders and platoon sergeants read two books by the same author: " Wind, Sand and Stars" and "Wisdom of the Sands". They are excellent studies on Arab culture and the Arab mentality. These two books reinforce the observations of Major Ben Connable, First Marine Division. Prior knowledge and understanding of Arab duplicity would have saved lives on both sides.
*Antoine De Saint Exupery. Pilot, philosopher. He Flew P-38's for the free French in WWII. Went MIA in 1944. Never found.
It does, doesn't it. One of the dirty little secrets about welfare that the Left refuses to understand.
Maybe that's how it will all shake out. One more welfare state.
I hope not. We support too many nations as it is.
That may be a good description for a great number of "primitive" cultures.
A great book about 1870's Arizona by the wife of a cavalry officer described the Apaches she was living with as "natures children". They had simply not yet learned the lesson's previously learned by Christian European culture.
Lewis & Clark's description of their interaction with Sioux leaders reminds me of an adolescent gang. Any one of the "leaders" was likely to do anything. There was no law, there was no sense of right and wrong. If something was acquired by thievery or violence, there was no dishonor in that.
Modern historians trash the United States with regard to how we treated the American Indians. I submit that we did the best we could with a culture that was not unlike the Intifada culture of the Palestinians. It is impossible to live with them as equals, because they will simply kill you on a whim. Their culture must be destroyed and the remnants assimilated into proper civilization. Sad, but necessary.
Modern tools of war are simply incompatible with primitive cultures. Those cultures will take those war tools and use them indiscriminately. Since the tools cannot be un-invented, the primitive culture must be.
I believe I read something about that a few years ago. I'm thinking they found his P-38 in a harbor.
My uncle was all over the ME when I was a kid. He'd come back home and say things. One was "the Arab idea of truth is whatever they can get you to believe. And that has nothing to do with the actual truth".
The Arab idea of truth is not like "ours".
My uncle also said "we would regret ever doing business with the Arabs". And, that "most Arab men are queers".
That was my uncle. A mans man.
"Despite the fact we were losing on the field, Fallujah was a victory because you did not finish the attack...."
Yes, there was some P-38 wreckage found in a harbor in the Mediterranean, just off the the city of Marseilles coast. The find is suggestive, but not definitive. There are no numbers on any part of the wreckage found to confirm that it is "St. Ex's" plane. BTW, he was the oldest fighter pilot of the war. He was 40 years old when he disappeared while flying un-armed, photo-recon, PR-38's across Europe from No. Africa and back. His writings have had a profound influence on my life. I put "St. Ex" right up there with T. Jefferson.
Charles Lindbergh was about 42 when he was flying P-38's and Corsairs in the South Pacific (born 1902). Of course, he wasn't "official" since he wasn't in the military. But he was under fire, his last P-38 flight was attacked by a japanese plane.
In typical Lindbergh fassion, after being refused permission to fly Army P-38's after the near shoot down, he went to the Marines and started flying Corsairs. He discovered they were flying bombing runs with only 500lb bombs, but he believed they could carry more. So he did test flights in the field where he gradually increased the bomb load. When they loaded the 2000 pounders, it bent the bomb rack on takeoff. So he designed a method to strengthen the rack, and began flying actual bombing runs with something like 3x-4x the original bomb weight carried by the Corsair.
Lindbergh wasn't a philosopher, but an interesting guy. Too bad FDR trashed his reputation for political purposes. The Dems have been doing that for decades.
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