Losing Muslim hearts and minds
Why the White House should worry about a new poll suggesting that even allied Muslim countries believe the U.S. wants to weaken and divide the Islamic world.
EDITORIAL - The Los Angeles Times, April 25, 2007
IT HAS BEEN a long and bloody spring in Iraq and Afghanistan, but on the battlefield of ideas, the news is even less encouraging. A survey released Tuesday by WorldPublic-Opinion.org suggests that the struggle for Muslim hearts and minds may already be lost.
Overwhelming majorities of those surveyed in Egypt, Morocco, Pakistan and Indonesia say they believe that the U.S. seeks to "weaken and divide the Islamic world" and to "achieve political and military domination to control Middle East resources." Most say they think that Al Qaeda defends the dignity of Muslims by standing up to the U.S., and most share the terrorist organization's goal of evicting the U.S. military from the Mideast.
More alarming is the support among citizens of allied countries for attacking U.S. troops in Iraq. That includes 91% of those polled in Egypt, 68% in Morocco, 35% in Pakistan and 19% in Indonesia. Approval rates for attacks on U.S. troops based in Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf states were almost as high. (The polling was conducted between December and February, with support from the University of Maryland.)
These numbers should be memorized by members of Congress and President Bush as they gird this week for the latest battle over Iraq war funding and timetables for troop withdrawal. One of the administration's key rationales for deploying troops longer than the Democratic Congress wishes is to prevent Iraq from becoming an Al Qaeda beachhead. To the extent that the U.S. presence in the Middle East increases support for Al Qaeda, as the poll suggests, will prolonging the American military mission be counterproductive to the broader struggle against radical Islamic fanaticism and terror?
The pollsters found two rays of hope relevant to Washington strategists. First, large majorities of the Muslims polled strongly disapprove of attacks on U.S. civilians. Second, probably due to the carnage that he has inflicted on fellow Muslims, Osama Bin Laden's ratings are falling. In Jordan, for example, 60% expressed confidence in Bin Laden in 2005, but after the Al Qaeda suicide bombing of a Jordanian wedding party, confidence fell to 34% in 2006, according to pollster Steven Kull. Still, the latest survey finds large majorities expressing either positive or mixed feelings about Bin Laden.
Many apparently rationalize their support for Al Qaeda by concluding that it wasn't behind 9/11. Despite Bin Laden's televised boasting, fewer than one in four surveyed — and just 2% of Pakistanis — say they think that Al Qaeda masterminded the attacks. This depressing landscape suggests a steep uphill climb for the United States. Yet persuading Muslims of the merits of democratic over theocratic rule remains Washington's only viable long-term strategy to win the generational war against Islamic extremists.
The poll is interesting.
But polls are polls as well. They aren't too reliable. With that being said...
Muslims seems to approve of USA and its people, but not of the troops fighting in Iraq.
I have great concerns about USA (and the Western World) alienating itself from countries where Islam exists.
Because it helps extreme Islamology and Muslim terrorism grow.
Only by building diplomatic relations, economic ties, help the democratic tradition, will we ever fight Islam permanently.
Because Democracy is anti-Islamic. In a democracy, Islam will ultimately cease to exist.
Making enemies in Asia and Africa is a bad move. Short-term, and even more, long-term.
For anyone who is interested, read Clash of Civilizations, by Huntington.
-Hedge
