I dropped politics in my last year of studies for a BA in Law and Politics at London University, afraid that the stench of politics would taint me forever. I had become sick and disillusioned at the way in which the stronger countries manipulate the world as though the earth was some giant chessboard and all the countries pawns to be moved around at will, legitimate governments toppled to suit the current thinking. I relished instead, in my legal studies, a field governed by set rules and not the whim of political leaders. In my naivete, I thought that was that.
Little did I imagine that politics and political maneuverings are not so easily dismissed and indeed could affect my life at any given moment and without warning. The recent events in the United States are a prime example. Americans may have had their lives put on hold as a direct effect of the tragedy, but it is no less true for us here in the Arab world. That Tuesday afternoon we all remained transfixed by the events unfolding before our eyes — glued to the television well into the early hours of the morning. Only one word described the events — a Hollywood blockbuster movie. We all prayed that this was indeed some kind of joke. Our hopes were soon dashed.
For the last two weeks, the newspapers and TV channels have been full of nothing else. All have found 10,000 different ways to express the exact thing: The acts were a tragedy. The terrorists are without country or religion. Nothing will ever be the same again. All countries must condemn the act or risk the wrath of the most powerful country on earth.
At social gatherings it was futile to talk of anything else. Relatives and friends became political analysts espousing their theories, some more voraciously than others, confident that their version was the correct one.
E-mails were traded, full of conspiracy theories (it was the CIA, no the Mossad, no the economists in the United States, or perhaps the Japanese Red Army). Pictures made their rounds of cyberspace, showing the devil rising from the smoldering World Trade Center towers. Others had fun sending attachments containing viruses.
Criminals, as they are wont to, looted the abandoned malls in and around the WTC area — while their cyber counterparts robbed many of their donations, by posing as charitable organizations. People rushed to donate blood, others started a petition on line (www.petitiononline.com) to protest war.
Crises can bring out the best but also the worst in people. Still, that is the world — there are the good and there are the bad.
All the conspiracies, the war mongering, the hate, the anger, the grief, the bigotry of some, the bravery of many was equally reflected in all countries, bar none. The world is inextricably linked in a web that brings all humanity together to feel for one another. Indeed, the loss of human life was not restricted to US nationals — but stretched up to 60 different countries, with their mix of cultures, languages and religions.
After the dust has cleared, the fingers have been pointed, the diplomatic talks started, the economic sanctions considered, the financial aid to terrorists halted, we are still no wiser as to who did it and why? What have they gained by their actions except the anger of all nations?
Indeed, it is the theory of many that we may never learn, for that is the nature of politics. Maybe in 50 years’ time when the veil of secrecy is lifted (by which time many may say: “What World Trade Center?”), we may get a glimpse of the truth. By then, most of us will be too old to care anyway.
Will our lives ever return to normal? Mayor Rudy Guilliani of New York advised everyone to get on with their lives, because to do otherwise would be to give in to terrorism. But for many of us who had wished to see the world through rose colored lenses, to leave the dirty business of politics to the politicians and be left to live our lives as best we can, have been cruelly shown that it is not possible. We became even more disillusioned with the world, and while some would argue that it is not such a terrible thing, I personally disagree. In a world that is so obviously unfair, where no one plays by the rules of humanity and each country is out for its own gain — I would have preferred to keep my dreams that the world could be a better place, no matter how corny that may sound.