Posted on 03/14/2006 2:00:29 PM PST by Conservative Coulter Fan
There is much hand-wringing over the collapse of the Dubai port deal.
There is much gnashing of teeth in Washington.
There is much finger-pointing going on – much blame being spread.
President Bush says he's troubled by the political storm that reversed the deal: "I'm concerned about a broader message this issue could send to our friends and allies around the world, particularly in the Middle East."
Then, of course, it stands to reason he should have thought this process through a little better. The political storm is of his own making. It was predictable – if only he didn't have a tin political ear, he should have realized the American people might not take this lying down. If only he had a realistic and pragmatic understanding of the kinds of people he is crawling into bed with in the Middle East, he might have made the right decision in the first place.
Then there was U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow, who said the United States is still "open for business." He continued: "I don't view this as anything but an isolated incident. We don't want to be isolationist. We don't want to turn our backs on the rest of the world." Here's a guy who doesn't get it. Here's a guy who is in denial. Here's a guy who chaired the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which approved the plan. Before accepting his Cabinet post, Snow was chairman of CSX Railroad. Shortly after Snow joined the Bush White House, CSX sold their international ports contracts to Dubai Ports World for over $1 billion. So when he says the United States is still open for business, this is evidently what he means.
I also don't care about what Pierce Bush, the president's nephew, or his father Neil Bush, the president's brother, have to say in their defense of the deal. Their company, Ignite Learning, has major investors in the United Arab Emirates. In fact, the Bush family and Cabinet is up to their eyeballs in conflicts of interest that should have disqualified their consideration of this front company for the oil sheikhs as a potential operator for U.S. ports.
I also don't care whether other Arab companies ever invest in the United States again. In fact, I hope they don't – at least until they join humanity by recognizing fundamental human rights at home. So, please, don't tell me how this is going to be bad for business here in the United States. I don't want the oil sheikhs to have any more influence on U.S. policy-making than they already have.
And I'm not losing any sleep over the fact that the UAE has "coincidentally" postponed trade talks with the United States. The oil sheikhs need to remember that they need us more than we need them. Maybe Americans need to remember that, too.
President Bush likes to portray the so-called "moderate" Arab countries as "good guys" in the war on terrorism. If he really believes that, he is incredibly naive.
Al-Qaida's war with the West would never have begun without their subsidies of hate and fear and terror. And those subsidies continue today.
Whenever I speak out bluntly like this about the reality of Middle East politics, someone always writes in accusing me of "hating" Arabs.
That is so funny.
I speak the truth because, as an American of Arabic ancestry, I have a deep fondness and love for Arabs. I want them to be free – just like I want all people to have a chance at freedom. But the sad truth is they will never be free as long as the oil sheikhs protect themselves by stirring up hate and resentment against "infidels" everywhere – as long as they continue to provide the people with scapegoats who are to blame for all their problems.
I never pull any punches in my writings. I tell people exactly what I believe – and why I believe it. In the case of the Middle East, my views are shaped by my experience on the ground as a correspondent as well as my worldview as an Arab-American Christian.
The United States cannot afford to be seduced by the money and the power of the oil sheikhs. They are not part of the solution in the Middle East. They are part of the problem.
He despises George W. Bush.
Exactly.
If I had any doubts before, the word "Farah" under author made my POSITIVE the deal was a good one.
I'm with you, GOPJ, CCF, and Joe Farah!
More power to them, and anyone else who wants to do so.
We have to stop living off borrowed $$$ anyway. The sooner the better.
Check out Rep. Duncan Hunter. He's writing a bill to unwind this (strategic assets) over a period of 5 years, I think.
Bingo. Since when is it the job of the President of the whole UNITED STATES OF FRIGGIN AMERICA to personally review every business transaction that touches on management of a relative handful port terminals out of several thousand in this country?
This deal had not business being bothered by the government, which only did so in a fit of pre-election demagogic pandering brought on by the fact that some people, both hippies and conservatives, couldn't deal with Ay-Rabs doing business here.
Of course, it's fine if murdering Chinese communists manage port terminals. That's different. ><
Wanting to do something about Iran is one thing, being able to do it is quite another.
Or haven't you noticed that we are STILL stuck in Iraq after 4 years?
Our military is sort of busy right now...
Good grief... you really need to take a chill pill. I never threw out the racist cannard. As far as insulting irrelevancies, you have thrown your share around her and have put out very little facts - mostly knee jerk reactions and schumer talking points.
WOW! Great completion of analogy!!!
Such a sad song! The tears roll down K Street into the gutter.
Feel free to elaborate beyond the all-too-typical smear, you who ally yourself with Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton(smear back atcha). How is my assertion that it is more of a security risk to have a foreign corporation managing American ports than having the ports managed by an American company "kneejerking," exactly? Is that untrue somehow? You believe it equally likely that a foreign corporation owned by a foreign government managing American ports would have as its primary allegiance American interests?
And I append to my prior post an obviously missed irrelevancy: listing poll numbers or saying who is on the poster's side as settling the argument. It does not matter who agrees with you or me--if it were true that hideously unpopular allies associated with a particular side of an argument may invalidate that side, then affirmative action would stand forever since the Klan and Stormfront are against it. If it were true that poll numbers settled the truth of the matter, the second Clinton administration would be eviscerating the First Amendment even as we type. As I noted in a prior post to a similar smear, that there are Rat clowns supporting a particular position doesn't mean it's the wrong position--that's Democrat 'debating' and 'logic.' And I know the sensible people pushing the port deal on grounds of principle are in agreement with me on your silly Democrat smear tactics, too. After all, you, CAIR, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter are arguing their case, so they have clowns pushing THEIR side of the argument, too.
"Lets hope the American entity taking over for DPW isn't infiltrated like the airplane school that Atta attended was."
I'd say the odds of that happening are at least somewhat less than those of DPWorld being infiltrated. Just as the information DPWorld managers WOULD have gotten about those ports in the process of managing them getting out to Islamic extremists is less. And less chance of Islamist infiltration is better.
This is NOT true with the UAE !
I'm watching General Pace on CSPAN right now and he just answered this question:
We've used UAE ports more then any other ports in the world and they've given more support fighting terrorism since 9/11/01 then any other country.
They are only 30 miles from Iran and have the only deep water port in the middle east where our large ships can dock for repairs etc..
They gave the US 100 million dollars cash right after Katrina ! To say they need us more then we need them is another ignorant armchair general spouting crap once again !
As President Eisenhower said: "Beware the Government military complex"
I know of his bill attached to the spending bill concerning the DPW/O&P sale, I'll keep an ear and eye out for this one. Thanks for the heads up.
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