Tariq Alhomayed
09/30/2009
Alhomayed notes that Israelis took an extreme view of Iranian intentions, contrary to many Western countries. Iran also took an extremist position. President Ahmadinejad has tied nuclear development to Iran’s survival. If it wants Iran to give up nuclear development, the West may have to offer Iranian regional hegemony, a condition Arabs would not accept.
Tariq Alhomayed is the Editor-in-Chief of Asharq Al-Awsat.
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European states became secular many centuries ago, opening the way to scientific inquiry and progress, writes Strenger. Israel was supposed to have been a secular state, but David Ben Gurion made a disastrous bargain with the orthodox establishment, opening the way to unique religious strife between Jews in Israel. Religious Jews should lead the way in pressing for secularization.
Harvard professor Michael Sandel makes a practice of attempting to bring moral clarity to the choices inherent in a democratic society. His most recent efforts involve the definition of populist justice, which Sandel claims are utilitarianism (the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people) and individual freedom (whatever is decided between consenting adults is just). The professor critiques both of these definitions and has come to the conclusion that we are bound by more than individual choice in our decisions about right and wrong. A “communitarian” approach that recognizes moral convictions born of deep attachments may be the most just and moral way to govern society.
The United Nations needs to appoint an envoy to oversee the runoff elections in Afghanistan because fraud could stain this vote as well, Galbraith says. The biggest obstacle to fair elections is the Independent Election Commission, which administers them. Afghan President Karzai appointed its members, and six of the seven commissioners voted in favor of procedures to benefit his campaign. The UN must stop pretending this is not a pro-Karzai institution and appoint an envoy to supervise the elections impartially. Even if Karzai wins the second round, the fraud from the first election will taint his victory. Dr. Abdullah, Karzai’s opponent, proposed constitutional changes for power-sharing, and the United Nations should encourage Afghans to consider them to emerge from the crisis of legitimacy.
Far from being an aberrant choice, Obama was the ideal one, “Scandinavianally” speaking. Most of the prize winners draw from the obscure ranks of those who believe all conflict stems from avoidable misunderstanding and that the world’s evils spring from everything but the hearts of men, where love abides. Stephens concludes that what Obama’s award portends for the kind of peace and security bequeathed to us by the exertions of such non-Nobelists as Truman, Eisenhower, Thatcher, and Reagan is another question.
The dollar’s sharp drop over the past few weeks has led to considerable anxiety about the status of the US as the dominant force in the global economy. Closely related to this fear is worry about the rise of China, which is the largest creditor to a heavily indebted US government. Noting that debt can become a real liability for a superpower, Karabell recalls what happened to postwar Britain. Having supported the British for decades and become its banker and manufacturer during two wars, the US fully supplanted the British Empire at the end of World War II. By 2030–if not sooner–China is likely to surpass the US in the size of its economy. Trajectories can change, but the recent implosion of the American financial system has only accelerated China’s rise. To assume we will always be the dominant nation on the world stage is a recipe for becoming Britain.
Six months of Obama’s mandate have gone by and the beginning of his ever so mentioned “change” is starting to come to life. Apart from the expressive warm feelings between Obama and Hugo Chavez- the photograph which depicts Obama’s hand outstretched firmly to hold Chavez’s, a strong statement of the fact that Venezuela no longer poses a threat to the U.S- there are basically three main events which give us the magnitude of this change. 
The Venezuelan model shows signs of economic exhaustion and lack of functionality. The repression intesifies. 
Preventing the struggles of national minorities goes beyond physical intervention, it should involve a new type of political action and thought which achieves a balance between ethnic groups. Hu Jintao should worry, not much more time is left to fix what has been broken. 
