Violence begets more violence, Mr. Obama

[unhappycamper]

http://www.arabnews.com/news/513676

Violence begets more violence, Mr. Obama
Harun Yahya
Published — Thursday 23 January 2014

~snip~

Understandably though, taking the reins of the sole superpower plunged into a frightening morass of lies and deceit was an uphill task. Americans had grown weary of wars in the Middle East. Apart from the loss of innocent lives in this part of the world, Americans saw their own children fighting and getting killed in a far-flung region unknown to them. In addition to the caskets flying back home, thousands of war veterans returned with serious psychological disorders only to add to the woes of an average American.

In Obama, they saw a leader who could simply say no to wars and pull his troops from the region without further delay. Perhaps that was one of the reasons that helped Obama propel to the top spot.

However, by the time Obama took over, the Middle East had already turned into a maze of conflicting interests wherein it is easy to enter but very difficult to find one’s way out. Political observers knew that with huge investments like oil and weapons agreements, establishment of military bases throughout the region and the ruinous state of Iraq and Afghanistan would not make US pullout easy. Yet the Obama administration pulled out US troops from Iraq. The consequence of the withdrawal, however, is another debate and this writer does not wish to digress. It would not be an exaggeration to claim that so-called Arab Spring not only aggravated the situation in the region but also added to the problems of the US. Despite being the sole superpower and enjoying considerable leverage in the region, the US apparently chose to stay away from the quagmire and did not intervene directly and only time will tell, whether this approach is correct or not.

Countries like Egypt, Syria, Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen and Pakistan have been turned into cauldrons of chaos. The Middle East has never been polarized to the current extent. Militant groups from the Bush era are forging alliances and emerging as stronger militias ready to deface the region.

[lostincalifornia]

1. "The Middle East has never been polarized to the current extent"???? Really?

[BeyondGeography]

2. The writer has a dry wit

However, by the time Obama took over, the Middle East had already turned into a maze of conflicting interests wherein it is easy to enter but very difficult to find one’s way out.