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Eyes Wide Shut

No wonder Karl Rove expelled Deputy Secretary of State Paul Wolfowitz to the World Bank. Al Qaeda is on the march yet again, and this time they might be on to something. Even before Bush became President, most American foreign policy experts argued that lack of political freedom and poverty caused much of the political unrest in the Middle East. Thing is, some Arab nations have tried hard to moderate themselves, even without direct elections. Qatar founded Al-Jazeera; the UAE has boldly welcomed foreign investment, tourism, and even selling alcohol to nonbelievers. Through it all, increasing personal freedom has been a win-win situation.

But all that changed on Saturday. A longtime employee of the Qatar state petroleum company drove his bomb-ladden car into a theatre frequented by Western expatriates.

It is a real test of leadership. Does the Qatari government resist increasing personal freedoms or move ahead with its plan for elections? Probably not. But Doha, Qatar’s capital is a tantalizing target. Guest workers outnumber native Qataris. The US Central Command has it’s headquarters there. And it’s the hometown of Al-Jazeera. Dubai, with its huge resorts, and rapidly expanding airport would also suffer tremendously at the hands of terrorists.

Which is why the lack of comment by both the US Government and independent analysts is unnerving. Can the US afford to close its eyes one more time? Don’t bet it on it.
posted by Thomas at 10:15 PM 0 comments