Does time and place make people visibly different from one another in attitude and behavior? A blind humanist would whisper a soft no; a scientist would boom a deafening yes; a sociologist — a mix of the two — would simply sigh. Columnists (not journalists mind you) will be all three in one as they pontificate. I read one such columnist in the local press who went on about how similar Americans and Saudis are and ended up saying we part company later since we are not similar.
I for one would not want us to be similar since that would make the world a very dull place. We would be like millions of worker ants serving an ant queen. That is a broad-brush statement to cover the whole issue. Now to the nitty gritty.
The Americans are different from us and here are some examples. They resent their dependence on our oil because they are used to finding and inventing things while catering for themselves and helping themselves in this life. They are vocal about this resentment. Therefore, there are no hidden issues. At the same time, they work hard and invest heavily to find other means. We, on the other hand, watch their movies, eat their junk food, drive their cars, fly in their planes, and use their currency. All the while, we are inventing nothing and investing in the void. Yet, we see ourselves as morally superior.
If someone around here finds it in him or herself to stand up to corrupt authority at school or the office, he is labeled a “troublemaker.” The end of the road to such a person is all too obvious. In America, such a person would have a bright career ahead. Even Ralph Nader found a niche to snuggle into. The reason for this is that Americans, before becoming Americans, had a proactive Robin Hood and William Tell in their history. We only have passive martyrs.
The concept of dignity in America is individual. Ours is collective. What I mean is that an American sees himself as an independent unit within a whole. We see ourselves as dependant units that make a whole. Our dignity is that of our leader, not ours individually. How else could you explain the presence of so many who are actually willing to die for a man like Moqtada Sadr? Historically, Shiite theologians and imams were known for superlative eloquence and impressive scholarship, neither of which this man seems to have. He can hardly string three words in one simple sentence.
Both Arabs and Americans are judgmental in nature. Where we differ is in the consequences. We sit back and cry foul, they jump to their feet and go investigate. This simple difference means that they have the chance to see differently and perhaps change their judgment, while we are stuck in ours for a thousand years. Che Guevara, though not a Bin Laden or a North American, gave up his bourgeois life and went into the jungle. He was honest enough to flaunt his little bourgeois vice of cigar smoking in public. The Cave man is not that honest. I wonder what little vice (apart from seeing people blown to smithereens) keeps that man going.
For those who think me too accommodating of the Americans, here’s something where we come together like two odd thumbs. Their men of the cloth (those with puffed hair and polished nails) and ours, hark back to biblical times while shamelessly enjoying the rewards of this modern world.
