the.world.is.flat-第110章

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America's　face…　and　they　were　quietly　applauding　the　men　who　did　it。　They　were　happy　
to　see　someone　humiliating　the　people　and　the　country　that　they　felt　was　humiliating　
them　and　supporting　what　they　saw　as　injustice　in　their　world…whether　it　is　America's　
backing　of　Arab　kings　and　dictators　who　export　oil　to　it　or　America's　backing　of　Israel　
whether　it　does　the　right　things　or　the　wrong　things。　
Most　American　blacks；　I　am　sure；　had　little　doubt　that　O。　J。　Simpson　murdered　his　
ex…wife；　but　they　applauded　his　acquittal　as　a　stick　in　the　eye　of　the　Los　Angeles　
Police　Department　and　a　justice　system　that　they　saw　as　consistently　humiliating　and　
unfair　to　them。　Humiliation　does　that　to　people。　Bin　Laden　is　to　the　Arab　masses　what　

O。J。　was　to　many　American　blacks…the　stick　they　poke　in　the　eye　of　an　〃unfair〃　America　
and　their　own　leaders。　I　once　interviewed　Dyab　Abou　Jahjah；　often　called　the　Malcolm　
X　of　Belgium's　alienated　Moroccan　youth。　I　asked　him　what　he　and　his　friends　thought　
when　they　saw　the　World　Trade　Center　being　smashed。　He　said；　〃I　think　if　we　are　honest　
with　ourselves；　most　of　the　Muslims　all　over　the　world　felt　that。　。　。　America　got　
hit　in　the　face　and　that　cannot　be　bad。　I　don't　want　to　make　an　intellectual　answer　
for　that。　I'll　give　it　very　simply。　America　was　kicking　our　butts　for　fifty　years。　
And　really　badly。　Supporting　the　bullies　in　the　region；　whether　it　is　Israel　or　our　
own　regimes；　＇America＇　is　giving　us　not　only　a　bleeding　nose；　but　breaking　a　lot　of　
our　necks。〃　
Just　as　America's　economic　depression　in　the　1920s　and　1930s　made　many　normal；　
intelligent；　thinking　Americans　passive　or　active　supporters　of　communism；　so　the　
humiliating　economic；　military；　and　emotional　depression　of　the　Arab…Muslim　world　
has　made　too　many　normal；　intelligent；　and　thinking　Arabs　and　Muslims　passive　
supporters　of　bin　Ladenism。　
Former　Kuwaiti　minister　of　information　Dr。　Sa'd　Bin　Tefla；　a　journalist；　wrote　an　
essay　in　the　London　Arabic　daily　Al…Sharq　Al…Awsat　on　the　third　anniversary　of　
September　11　titled　〃We　Are　All　Bin　Laden；〃　which　went　right　to　this　point。　He　asked　
why　it　is　that　Muslim　scholars　and　clerics　eagerly　supported　fatwas　condemning　Salman　
Rushdie　to　death　for　writing　an　allegedly　blasphemous　novel；　The　Satanic　Verses；　that　
wove　in　themes　about　the　Prophet　Muhammad；　but　to　this　day　no　Muslim　cleric　has　issued　
a　fatwa　condemning　Osama　bin　Laden　for　murdering　three　thousand　innocent　civilians。　
After　the　fatwa　was　declared　against　Salman　Rushdie；　Muslims　staged　protests　against　
the　book　at　British　embassies　all　over　the　Islamic　world　and　burned　Salman　Rushdie　
dolls　alongwith　copies　of　his　book。　Nine　people　were　killedin　ananti…Rushdie　protest　
in　Pakistan。　


〃Religious　legal　rulings　were　disseminated　one　after　another　banning　Salman　Rushdie's　
book　and　calling　for　him　to　be　killed；〃　Bin　Tefla　wrote。　〃Iran　earmarked　a　reward　
of　　1　million　for　whoever　would　implement　Imam　Khomeini's　fatwa　and　kill　Salman　
Rushdie。〃　And　bin　Laden？　Nothing…no　condemnation。　〃Despite　the　fact　that　bin　Laden　
murdered　thousands　of　innocents　in　the　name　of　our　religion　and　despite　the　damage　
that　he　has　caused　to　Muslims　everywhere；　and　especially　to　innocent　Muslims　in　the　
West；　whose　life　is　much　better　than　the　life　of　Muslims　in　Islamic　lands；　to　this　
date　not　a　single　fatwa　has　been　issued　calling　for　the　killing　of　bin　Laden；　on　the　
pretext　that　bin　Laden　still　proclaims　'there　is　no　God　other　than　Allah；'〃　Tefla　
wrote。　Worse；　he　added；　Arab　and　Muslim　satellite　television　channels　have　〃competed　
amongst　themselves　in　broadcasting　＇bin　Laden's＇　sermons　and　fatwas；　instead　of　
preventing　their　dissemination　as　they　did　in　the　case　of　Rushdie's　book　。　。　。　With　
our　equivocal　stance　on　bin　Laden；　we　from　the　very　start　left　the　world　with　the　
impression　that　we　are　all　bin　Laden。〃　

Germany　was　humiliated　after　World　War　I；　but　it　had　the　modern　economic　foundations　
to　produce　a　state　response　to　that　humiliation　…in　the　form　of　the　Third　Reich。　
The　Arab　world；　by　contrast；　could　not　produce　a　state　response　to　its　humiliation。　
Instead；　it　has　rattled　the　world　stage　in　the　last　fifty　years　with　two　
larger…than…life　figures；　rather　than　states；　noted　political　theorist　Yaron　Ezrahi：　
One　was　the　Saudi　oil　minister　Ahmed　Zaki　Yamani；　and　the　other　was　Osama　bin　Laden。　
Each　achieved　global　notoriety；　each　briefly　held　the　world　in　his　palm…one　by　using　
oil　as　a　weapon　and　the　other　by　using　the　most　unconventional　suicide　violence　
imaginable。　Each　gave　a　temporary　〃high〃　to　the　Arab…Muslim　world；　a　feeling　that　
it　was　exercising　power　on　the　world　stage。　But　bin　Laden　and　Yamani　were　only　the　
illusions　of　power；　noted　Ezrahi：　The　Saudi　oil　weapon　is　economic　power　without　
productivity；　and　bin　Laden's　terrorism　weapon　is　military　force　without　a　real　army；　
state；　economy；　and　engine　of　innovation　to　support　it。　
What　makes　Yamanism　and　bin　Ladenism　so　unfortunate　as　strategies　for　Arab　influence　
in　the　world　is　that　they　ignore　the　examples　within　Arab　culture　and　
civilization…when　it　was　at　its　height…of　discipline；　hard　work；　knowledge；　
achievement；　scientific　inquiry；　and　pluralism。　As　Nayan　Chanda；　the　editor　of　
YaleGlobal　Online；　pointed　out　to　me；　it　was　the　Arab…Muslim　world　that　gave　birth　
to　algebra　and　algorithms；　terms　both　derived　from　Arabic　words。　In　other　words；　noted　
Chanda；　〃The　entire　modern　information　revolution；　which　is　built　to　a　large　degree　
on　algorithms；　can　trace　its　roots　all　the　way　back　to　Arab…Muslim　civilization　and　
the　great　learning　centers　of　Baghdad　and　Alexandria；〃　which　first　introduced　these　
concepts；　then　transferred　them　to　Europe　through　Muslim　Spain。　The　Arab…Muslim　
peoples　have　an　incredibly　rich　cultural　tradition　and　civilization；　with　long　
periods　of　success　and　innovation　to　draw　on　for　inspiration　and　example　for　their　
young　people。　They　have　all　the　resources　necessary　for　modernization　in　their　own　
cultural　terms；　if　they　want　to　summon　them。　
Unfortunately；　there　is　huge　resistance　to　such　modernization　from　the　authoritarian　
and　religiously　obscurantist　forces　within　the　Arab…Muslim　world。　That　is　why　this　


part　of　the　world　will　be　liberated；　and　
406　
feel　truly　empowered；　only　if　it　goes　through　its　own　war　of　ideas　…and　the　moderates　
there　win。　We　had　a　civil　war　in　America　some　150　years　ago　over　ideas…the　ideas　of　
tolerance；　pluralism；　human　dignity；　and　equality。　The　best　thing　outsiders　can　do　
for　the　Arab…Muslim　world　today　is　try　to　collaborate　with　its　progressive　forces　
in　every　way　possible…　from　trying　to　solve　the　Arab…Israeli　conflict；　to　stabilizing　
Iraq；　to　signing　free…trade　agreements　with　as　many　Arab　countries　as　possible…so　
as　to　foster　a　similar　war　of　ideas　within　their　civilization。　There　is　no　other　way。　
Otherwise　this　part　of　the　world　has　the　potential　to　be　a　huge　un…flattening　force。　
We　have　to　wish　the　good　people　there　well。　But　the　battle　will　be　one　for　them　to　
fight　and　to　win。　No　one　can　do　it　for　them。　
No　one　has　expressed　what　is　needed　better　than　Abdel　Rahman　al…Rashed；　the　general　
manager　of　the　London…based　al…Arabiya　news　channel。　One　of　the　best…known　and　most　
respected　Arab　journalists　working　today；　he　wrote　the　following；　in　Al…Sharq　
Al…Awsat　（September　6；　2004）；　after　a　series　of　violent　incidents　involving　Muslim　
extremist　groups　from　Chechnya　to　Saudi　Arabia　to　Iraq：　〃Self…cure　starts　with　
self…realization　and　confession。　We　should　then　run　after　our　terrorist　sons；　in　the　
full　knowledge　that　they　are　the　sour　grapes　of　a　deformed　culture　。　。　。　The　mosque　
used　to　be　a　haven；　and　the　voice　of　religion　used　to　be　that　of　peace　and　
reconciliation。　Religious　sermons　were　warm　behests　for　a　moral　order　and　an　ethical　
life。　Then　came　the　neo…Muslims。　An　innocent　and　benevolent　religion；　whose　verses　
prohibit　the　felling　of　trees　in　the　absence　of　urgent　necessity；　that　calls　murder　
the　most　heinous　of　crimes；　that　says　explicitly　that　if　you　kill　one　person　you　have　
killed　humanity　as　a　whole；　has　been　turned　into　a　global　message　of　hate　and　a　
universal