The Broken Politics of the Middle East
From Yemen to Iraq and from Libya to Syria, the Middle East is drenched in chaos and violence. The bright promises of the Arab Spring uprisings have disappeared into a dark winter. Egypt, where a popular revolt overthrew Mubarak, is once again under the thumb of a military dictator with, are you sitting down, support from Washington. In pursuit of what is called moderation and stability the U.S. has backed a string of tyrants in the region. Democratic institutions were never encouraged beyond the rhetoric of press releases. The fundamental basis of the relationship between the U.S. and most Arab countries? Obey orders and keep the oil flowing. Corruption, autocratic rule, unemployment, poverty and extreme inequality are the norm in most of the Middle East. In this landscape, the appeal of messianic groups like ISIS strikes a chord.
Speaker
Nader Hashemi
Nader Hashemi is the Director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Denver. He is the author of Islam, Secularism & Liberal Democracy and co-editor of The People Reloaded. He is a contributor to David Barsamian’s Retargeting Iran book.
Gary Tomlin –
Read this and weep. An insightful and I believe accurate explanation of the dynamics driving middle east policy.
Carol –
This programme was incredible, wanted to send a line about that, thank you so much.