spruiked: jakarta style

Quoting from the Koran for emphasis, President Barack Obama called for a "new beginning between the United States and Muslims" Thursday and said together, they could confront violent extremism across the globe and advance the timeless search for peace in the Middle East.

Obama's Rainbow Tour* of 'The Muslim World' is a fine illustration of how difficult his job must be. He clearly wants to end this ridiculous ideological conflict that his predecessor started. Does this make him a 'friend of Islam'? No. Obama has no choice. He must end this ideological conflict, or things are going to get worse, much worse.

The Bush Administration's Middle-East/South Asia foreign policy was an economic disaster, plunging the US into recession long before the credit crisis. The recession, which will make the world a very dangerous place. Recessions have a habit of destabilising governments, and governments do stupid things when they're under pressure.

The Afghanistan invasion and occupation failed to achieve it's goal of routing out the Taliban, which is alive and well. To top it off, Public Enemy #1, Osama Bin Laden, apparently packed up shop and moved to Pakistan. In less than a decade, the entire region has become a basket case.

Bush's 'Axis of Evil' rhetoric destroyed all hope for resolution with Iran or North Korea, and these two 'conflicts' continue to drain the coffers. In the space of two weeks, North Korea has become the US's worst nightmare: a loose cannon with nukes.

But perhaps a bigger disappointment is the lost opportunity with Iran. Bush was no match for the intelligent and charismatic President Ahmadinejad, so the Iranian leader took on the American media, who in turn shamed the American people with ignorant boorishness. If anything, the US media circus deepened the Iran-US divide by confirming that US anti-Islamic sentiment is not confined to Washington, but deep routed in the American people. Now Iran's moderate leader is on the way out, it will probably be another 30 years before the opportunity comes again.

Then there's Israel. My [G/g]od what a mess! Israel has all but crushed the Palestinian nation. When the end comes, and it will come... I'm glad I live on other side of the world. Good luck with that, Mr President.

So while its noble to talk of 'new beginnings' and 'peace', it's also just common-sense. Ironically, common-sense is exactly what the US needs right now.

* In 1947, Argentina's First Lady, Eva (Evita) embarked on a 'Rainbow Tour' of Europe. There are wonderful parallels with Obama's current trip to the Middle East. The Rainbow Tour was billed as a 'goodwill' tour, much like Obama's trip. Similarly, the Rainbow Tour was fraught with tension. Argentina had just emerged from wartime quarantine and joined the UN. Sending President Peron to meet the facist Franco was too risky, so he sent his wife.