Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Obama on Al Jaziera

Some of my conservative friends are pissed off that Obama decided to hold his first televised interview on Al Jaziera Network being buddy-buddy with the Muslims. Personally, I think that this was a bold, yet smart, move by our new President. His decision to speak with the Islamic world in a manner that hasn't been done before may end up being effective in opening up new lines of communications and easing tensions between us and the Middle East. Rather than mentioning the key phrase "spreading democracy" his messaage was much more on the lines of "let's try something new: learn to understand and respect us; we'll learn to understand and respect you." He sent the message that his administration does not want to perceive itself as tyrranical in the eyes of those living in the Middle East, but rather one that would try to establish some kind of diplomatic bond. I wonder if his olive branch waving will work. don't get me wrong - it's not going to stop radical Islamists from blowing up our buildings and killing our people, but it may help quash the spreading of Anti-American sentiment and propoganda in the Middle East.

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