The American Crusade - Robert Fisk (PMC)

British journalist Robert Fisk speaks at a public seminar organised by the Pacific Media Centre at AUT University, New Zealand, on 9 September 2008. He talks about how many Arabs want freedom - but a different kind of freedom than imposed by the West - "they want freedom from us". Camera: Kate Morse, Joe Rixon. Sound: Naveena Baratharaj. Compilation: Kare Morse. Editor: Holly Prebble. AUT Television/Pacific Media Centre. www.pmc.aut.ac.nz

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Robert Fisk
• crusades
• peace
• conflict
• freedom
• Pacific Media Centre

[k1a1t1h1y1]

@Durendal33 that is a rediculous argument. Arabs want us out of there countries. Just think for a moment, if they were doing to us what we are doing to them. What do you think our reactions would be?

[obaa101]

exactly my thoughts. LEAVE US ALONE and go away with your armies, CIA, missionaries.

[memphis8766]

@Durendal33

When their are elections in France or Netherlands do you ever see the king of Jordan saying that if some party wins it will be the end of democracy because he doesn't want that party to win? Do you see the Egyptian army in Belgium, or the Iraqi army in southern Portugal, the Moroccan air force training in Nebraska? No, because we have freedom from arabs. Fisk isn't talking about about coexistence. He's saying the middle east is completely dominated by the west and that is a FACT

[memphis8766]

@Durendal33

You're not understanding what he means by "freedom from us". He's not saying Arabs don't want to live with us. He's saying they want the freedom to choose governments with western intervention, without western countries putting or removing whatever dictator they want from power, or supporting some candidate in an election over another because it guarantees their political agenda (though not many have elections), and getting involved in every smallest political affair

[Durendal33]

@MrGrandDragon There is only one planet on which to live and we will have to learn to tolerate each others existence no matter the color our skin.

Arabs are racist just like evryone else but it shouldn't be given in to , excused,or not be opposed wherever and whenever it occurs.

We can't give Arabs "freedom from us" because "we" exist they will have to learn to live with it just like I have to learn to live with Arabs.The alternative is to exterminate each other and wage wars ethnic cleansing

[MrGrandDragon]

@Durendal33

he meant get the hell out of their lands not exterminating them.

[Durendal33]

So Arabs have a problem with diversity?

I think Arabs have a problem with the tribe across the sand dune as well.

The world is a complicated place filled with many different kinds of people.

We can't give the Arabs freedom from us and neither can we get freedom from the Arabs.Since there is only one planet on which to live and exterminating each other would probably mean the end for both.

[Kali23Yuga]

A nice analogy with the crusades, though I think we can draw this much further than just the numbers. First of all the demographic situation back then wasn't the way it was now. For that time this was an enormous force they had in the holy land.

I would rather say that the fact the US/Western troops all over the Middle-East and not just focussed on one landstrip makes this even more interesting/worse.

[Sundrumify]

Export of culture: the U.S. is not alone in this, but it leads the way through its capitalistic leverage of pop culture. No one does this as well as American corporations. They have set the world standard for monetizing content and brands. Other countries mimic this standard and add their weight. Collectively, the culture of capitalism reaches the Arab nations, China, North Korea, Southeast Asia, and the people of these countries especially the new generations are seduced by its allure.

[Sundrumify]

I dont mean that the U.S. literally creates its enemies. The U.S. has potential adversaries in many parts of the world. Its policy of military presence as a global protector is all thats required to create enemies. Its forceful export of its political belief system is also troublesome to many countries that see American interests as a prelude to cultural colonization.

Lisa from Munich