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Originally Posted by aceventura3
For the moment I am going to assume you have a knowledge of ME history, and ask aquestion to help me put things in perspective since I am so far off base.
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All you really need is an eneyclopedia, but yes I am familiar with the history of the Middle East
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Originally Posted by aceventura3
Has there been peace during any generation in the ME since the death of Muhammad?
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Between 632 and now? Not really. The thing is, 1400 years isn't much compared to 200,000 years. It's a huge exaggeration to say that "there has never been a peaceful generation in the Middle East since humans have occupied the area." But yes, the ME hasn't been very peaceful for a while, at least not skipping a generation.....But wait a minute....Revolutionry War (1776), War of 1812 (1812), Mexican War (1846), Civil War (1861), Spanish-American War (1898), WWI (1914), WWII (1943), Korean War (1950), Vietnam War (1959-1975), Gulf War (1990), Iraqi Freedom (2003)...it doesn't seem that our fair country has enjoyed even one generation of peace!
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Originally Posted by aceventura3
Don't misunderstand the point, and I did not intend to single out the ME in terms of violence and history. There has not been peace for any generation in the US since Columbus first set foot on the "new world". Peace is not easy. I don't believe in the literal interpretation of the bible but for those who do, I think violence first started with Cane and Able and has since never has there been a pause.
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Well, I'd delete my last point since you condeeded on it before I made it, but it was just so much fun to type. Yes, human nature includes violence against our fellow man.
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Originally Posted by aceventura3
Some cultures are more forgiving than others, but I don't think ME culture is one of the more forgiving ones. don't you at least agree with that?
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I don't think it's fair to generalize like that. Some Middle Easterners are indoctrinated zealots that would willingly strap bombs to their chest because they believe that God wants them to kill. Of course, those are the exception, not the rule. I think that as long as people are treated like shit, they'll be pissed. Back to your question: the Middle East is made up of dozens of different cultures. I would not want to lump in Istael and Lebanon into the same culture (and the Jewish people have lived in the ME for a lot longer than the Muslims). I think that any culture can become barbaric if entangled in group think, and yes, a lot of the Middle East is in group think right now. Of course, we're all in group think (yes, even me!), so I don't know how much of a difference this will make if Iran decides to help Iraq.