Gulf Media on Missed Iran War, Kissing Potentates, and Dreams of War Riches
Some Gulf media are literally in mourning mode because the chances of a new war have receded. Maybe it is just the excitement they miss. I admit it can get pretty boring along the shores of the Gulf- the only excitement during the past two decades was provided by old Saddam Hussein but he is quite dead now. The mullahs in Iran occasionally try to create some excitement in the region, but they are not that exciting, they are too cautious and do not start wars at the drop of a hat...or turban. I was born and grew up on the shores of the Gulf, and I spent some quality time as a captive viewer, watching a lot of potentates, all with dyed goatees and moustaches, kissing each others' cheeks (no pun intended here) on state television, to the sound of elevator music- it can be maddening. Asharq Alawsat is a Saudi daily published in London (with an edition in Riyadh). Its chief editor has penned a column (Dec 5) in which he expresses his frustrations, dismay, and general ire at the publication of the US National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on Iran, and the fact that an attack on Iran is not imminent now. He thought the administration should have kept the report confidential for now, perhaps until after the start of the new war, when no weapons are found again- and I though it was Congress that initially requested the estimate.
Anyway, he talks a lot about a cup half-full and a cup half-empty, way above my head although in mathemetics how a curve looks depends on the angle one looks at it from- a maxima can be a minima if the curve is inverted and vice versa, but then you'll have to juggle the axes and their respective variables. Now I sound as confusing as he does. Maybe this is his actual position, or may be he is pandering to his boss the owner-Prince. This is one daily that did not welcome the diminishing winds of war.
Alhayat is also a Saudi daily published in London (and Riyadh). One of its columnists from New York has penned in today's edition (Dec 7) a piece encapsulating the same frustrations and anger that the country, Les Etats Unis, does not seem eager to start a new war in the Middle East. She may be pandering to her boss, the other owner-prince. There are a lot of owner-princes.
The column has the Stalinesque title "Reflections and Implications of the Decisions by the American Establishment to Coexist with Iran", and goes a few steps further, talking darkly of an American-Iranian-Israeli tri-partite deal to shortchange the Arabs and control their destiny. She steps deeper into 'it' when she notes that this somehow reflects the historical close ties between the Persians and Jews, and how the two peoples have never fought each other (come to think of it, this does sound suspicious, does it not, that they haven't fought since before the days of Esther and Daniel ?).
Dr. Mohammed el-Baradei, head of the IAEA also gets some of her wrath, as she compares him, unwittingly and indirectly, to the boy who cried wolf.
She hints in al-Hayat that it is all part of an American-Zionist-Persian-Shi'a (Shi'ite) plot to divide the Arab region into spheres of influence, leaving the numerous royals of Arabia out in the cold- well, actually warm in their mansions and pleasure palaces around the world. She concludes that there is a strategic partnership between these three parties (Israel is thrown in for good measure, perhaps as a reflex) with the goal of cutting the Arabs down to size and keeping them in check (I honestly didn't know that our leaders were so suppressed, so wretched of the earth, bursting with bottled up creativity waiting to explode). So, we will be deprived of our right to land on the moon, or perhaps discover a cure for HIV or Hoof 'n Mouth disease, or to re-invent the wheel.....big deal.
This is how the elite, the aspiring but hopefully unsuccessful opinion-makers, think and analyze. Imagine how the rest of us peons look at events.
To some Gulf 'elites', that aborted war was such a done deal that they argued in the press only about the timing and the form it would take. I bet there were many bets on the side as well, you know like those done before an NFL game, or during a close game like the last Ravens-Patriots game. Also I bet there were many plans by potentates, dreams of making new fortunes, subcontracting to big HAL (NYSE), supplying US troops with things like expensive vintage bottled water and five-star toilet paper. Perhaps there'll be more wars in the future.
BTW: I still don't know what that Israeli bombing raid(s) on Syria a few weeks ago was about. It makes no sense that Syria was working on a nuclear weapon instead of Iran. Of course both countries would love to have nukes- it is like those ED pills or size enhancement products we get spammed about: most people don't need them but....what if.
Cheers
MHG
m.h.ghuloum@gmail.com
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