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When the fresh face eloquent Barrack
Obama burst on the US political scene with a promise to change
America with totally new humanitarian thinking and policies in
2008, not only America hailed him, the world at large told him,
"Come and change my world too." So infectious was his promise in a
world sick of violence and counter violence, some of it in the
name of religion, some in the name of democracy, some in the name
of the values of the third world, some in the name of the values
of the first world, that he not only won the US presidency, he was
prematurely awarded the Nobel Peace prize merely on his promise of
positive change.
Thus as he faced the very difficult problem of how to bring peace
in Afghanistan, a country torn in war and violence for decades,
many people in his own Democratic party, let alone others
counseled him to spurn the generals' demands of increasing troop
strength in Afghanistan and giving another demonstration of shock
& awe to demonstrate that, "you do not mess with America" .
They counseled him to freeze the
troop level where it is, find ways to gradually bring
reconciliation with those who are fighting US in Afghanistan. Use
the current troops to train the Afghans to take care of their
problems by reconciliation. Save the lives of American youth and
many thousand Afghans. Save the huge amount of funds that
escalating the war will swallow and use it to diffuse the awful
financial crisis in US. They counseled that many who are fighting
US in Afghanistan really do not hate US. They have been rubbed on
the wrong side for too long by the western cowboys who have tried
to change their very way of life, their culture, their centuries
old ethos.
There was much hope that this bright and inspiring young American
President will buck the pressure of the military-industrial- Wall
Street complex and live up to his promise. Many were already
championing him as a Mahatma.
Three years ago he gave a promising speech in Cairo addressing the
global Muslim community that he will work to bring justice to
their genuine grievances. Just six months ago he said that the
real borders of Israel are those that existed prior to the 1967
middle east war.
But in the last few months, facing
re-election this year, President Obama has continued to backtrack
on many of his promises to the liberals, peace nicks and the
Muslims. In US itself many liberals who supported him in 2008 are
aghast at his complete volt face.
In an startling change of mind he is
lending his full authority to continuing war in Afghanistan,
putting undue pressure on Pakistan and also initiating the opening
of a new aggressive front in Iran. He is not only helping the
European nations in boycotting the purchase of oil from Iran, he
is also putting pressure on the third world countries, Asian and
South American countries, and Muslim countries to boycott the
purchase of oil from Iran and to stop doing trade with Iran. Even
though there is not a shred of evidence that Iran is building the
nuclear bomb the Obama Administration is supporting the
right-winger Israeli war machine in full throated publicity that
Iran is on the verge of acquiring a nuclear bomb.
Indeed his foreign policy towards
Muslim countries is dovetailing so much with that of right-winger
Republicans in US, Tories in UK and Conservatives in France, that
it is difficult to tell where Obama's policies end and where
right-wingers' policies begin.
The vision that comes across is that
Mahatma Obama wearing the Noble Peace Prize medal around his neck
picked up the gun and shot the dove. Today many including a large
number of citizens in US are inconsolable; they can not understand
why our Mahatma- icon let us down like this, joined the fat-cat
club and wed the ugly billionaire. To hell with the promise of
feel good, audacity of hope and changing the world. It is Yankee
gunboat business as usual.
The writer is a
Washington based activist.
He can be
reached on: kaleemkawaja@gmail.com
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