Arrogance and humility

On this hugely political day, I've been debating whether to post or not. I'd be lying if I said I had no interest in politics, especially in the Middle East. As some know, this is actually much of the reason I'm here. I want to see for myself what life is like in this region we know only through the lens of the mass media. At the same time, I want to focus more on the culture than on the day-to-day political bickering. However, I feel I must make some comments.

I'm listening to a program called Mosaic: World News from the Middle East. This is a podcast put out by Link TV which collects and translates news broadcasts from local and state news programs in the Mid East, including Israel. I highly recommend it. This particular issue is mainly concerned with the results of the American elections, which at the time it was posted had not been decided. If I was surprised by the novel enthusiasm for politics I've seen in the states the last year or so, I'm even more pleasantly surprised with the enthusiasm I've found abroad. I knew our elections would draw attention around the world, and I expected it to be hopeful, but the intensity of the hope, the readiness of the world to open up to America again with a change of leadership has given me new faith in a better day.

In Iran, according to this newscast, they are remembering the day of the storming of the US Embassy 29 years ago, which they call the "day of countering arrogance." Muslims make a practice of humility; it is a tenant of their faith and a way of life. Americans have often had a tendency to see ourselves as better than the rest of the world because of our technological and industrial advances. As a "superpower" we see it as our duty to share the gift of democracy with the rest of the world, even when it may be an unwanted gift. While well intended, this very idea shows our arrogance, our lack of respect for the people we are trying to help. On multiple occasions we have forced democracy on the world while acting as an empire; such as the recent debacle in which we crossed Syrian airspace uninvited. We make the rules, so we have no need to follow them.

President-elect Barack Obama has revived something long dormant in America, a sense of people, a sense of humility, and the desire to have a better world. That better world starts with being informed. I started out on this journey to learn about the peoples of the Middle East. I find, more than anything, I'm learning much about myself and my people. I've never used that phrase before... my people. Much like Michelle Obama, I've never been very proud of my country until recently. I hope she goes down in history, favorably, for that quote, for it is true of so many of us and I respect her for having said it out loud when the rest of us only whispered it to each other over coffee.

So get up, check out the news, see the world around you as it is. Read between the lines, learn a bit of history about the world, who we are, how we've developed as a world. I dare you to name 10 heads of state, 25 countries. Can you pick out Iraq or Burma on a map or describe to me the difference between a Muslim and a Jew? Is there a difference at heart? Think for yourselves, dare to hope, and perhaps there will be better days for us all.