Perspectives

"My biggest worry about Obama has to do with his foreign/military policy. Judging from his statements during the campaign, he seems to accept the "American exceptionalist" frame that is largely responsible for the mess we're in abroad: That the U.S., because we are so morally pure and especially blessed by God, has the right, and duty, to intervene wherever and however it wants in order to bring the "bad guys" and other recalcitrant leaders into compliance with American desires."

"Perhaps it is unrealistic to hope that this newly minted and idealistic young American president can achieve Middle East peace by ending the 42-year-old Israeli occupation of native Palestinian lands. But I dared not tell my Egyptian friends that. Within hours of his confirmed election, however, Obama had appointed an Israeli-American as his Chief of Staff. Does that mean all our hopes of peace through justice have been dashed? Only time can tell."

"He will be under the influence of members of his administration, more experienced experts and advisers, who will shape his decisions. They are expected to be more right-wing than the Republican neoconservatives. Each interest group, who contributed to Obama’s campaign, will push its own agent into this administration to implement its own agenda that might be different than and opposite to the agenda of other interest groups. His administration will be pulled to too many different directions and the well being of the common people will be forgotten and lost."

"The key to achieving this essential and urgent change lies with increased education, public participation, and individual engagement. Only through proactive outreach can Muslims be motivated to claim their rightful place in forming the living history of contemporary liberal, democratic and multicultural Canadian society."

"It is this disconnect between the rulers and the ruled that has led to Pakistan’s precipitous fall. If Pakistan’s enemies had planned its destruction, they would not have succeeded as well as the rulers have through their ill-conceived policies."

"...even though Islam was originally founded in the Arab world. People persistently forget (or choose to ignore) that Arabs are also Semites!"

"If I may be permitted a bit of advice to our president-elect: In foreign policy the Palestinian challenge remains at the root of America’s difficulties. Barak Obama can be true to his campaign pledges by leading Israel to acknowledge a plain and urgent reality -- that Israeli citizens can attain true security only if Palestinians attain the same thing in a truly independent state within the borders that existed before June 1967."

"There is no chance for progress towards Israeli-Palestinian peace without American pressure on the Israeli government. That has been true for decades, and that remains true today."