I certainly would be the first to say that I know very little about the Arab Culture. Actually I have never segmented the population of the world when trying to understand people although I do understand that we all have cultural nuances and traits that might actually help me to understand others.

I apparently see the world from a perspective that does not seem to be shared by a lot of others or nations. I see the world population as one community. I have been ashamed for years to have to declare myself a part of this global civilization when assessing the flagrant disrespect we hold as a species for the environment that feeds us and keeps us.

The big problem today relating to the War in Iraq rests with our GLOBAL DEPENDENCY ON OIL. I remember only a couple decades ago, when my son was still crawling around on the floor, having what was labeled at the time an impending Oil Crisis.

Solar energy companies sprung up across America and Canada like crazy. That’s when we developed the Eurea Formaldehyde fiasco with the Canadian Government offering financial incentives for Canadians to fill their walls of their homes with this "great new invention" that would insulate their homes "to save fuel" amidst that crisis.

I recall scenes of massive, around-the-block, line-ups at California gas stations which led to a major downsizing in cars. Inventions like flow-dampers, gas optimizers, energy recapture devices, etc. were daily announcements, solar energy prototypes were rolled out, wind energy alternatives were announced. I actually ran an energy conservation company for a brief while and became rather informed about theories on exponential consumption of non-renewable energy sources that suggested "a very serious depletion problem that may lead North America to devastation if serious measures were not implemented".

Then, somehow about five or six years later it appears that we socially fell asleep on all these pressing matters. The popular media apparently dropped it like a hot potato. Energy conservation became a fad and like all fads, it passed. Not only did the fad pass, the social pendulum swung (at is usually does) totally the other way with the introduction of gas guzzling SUV’s.

The North American fixation with their cars and some unique kind of arrogance has built an Arab financial dynasty that appears to fuel military aggression, suppression of human rights and freedoms, brutal dictatorships able to finance their terrorist aspirations and arm themselves to the teeth . . . all on money that they receive from a natural resource that sits below the desolate moral and physical landscape of these barbaric Arab Countries.

North America (although Canada does not stand with it’s American brothers officially I avoid pointing fingers only at America) had the opportunity to do something about this twenty years ago and could have done so to the distinct benefit of our planet. Apparently, the environment is not worth the investment that war ultimately demands. When I see the massive caches of weapons being destroyed in Iraq each day (10,000,000 landmines in Iraq’s countryside "because they are cheap" - what’s cheap?).

I understand a couple hundred tanks have been destroyed (imagine the hard cost) and has anyone noticed the massive inventories of American armaments, machines, weapons, support vehicles, etc.? How is it that money has no limit for war but when it comes to saving our environment money is simply not available? Why is oil more valuable and justified to fight over when our air, water and food is polluted?

Certainly I see this type of "big world thinking" not fitting into the day-to-day thinking that actually drives the world. It is incredible to me how disjointed the world community is. The unique human ability to conceptualize, plan and implement armed conflict that kills people and pollutes the earth is something that I don’t hear talked about. I don’t profess any enlightened perspective in this area other that a very conscious awareness that we have very serious issues that do not get addressed possibly because of our global pre-occupation with lesser things.

I don’t profess any awareness of the Arab Culture and I certainly do not intend to offend anyone. My ignorance however might lend an element of non-bias that may prove beneficial. I confess my entire awareness of these nations, or states or whatever these independent bodies are.

I know that Osama bin Laden comes from this area of the world. I have sent a request to CNN to give us some understanding of and identify who these countries are (they have the resources - I don’t work for a news agency and I believe people would like to know). Possibly some of the redundancy of programming could be replaced with meaningful information like this.

I know that the UN fully and unanimously agreed that Saddam Hussein is a very ruthless leader of what is proving itself to be a Terrorist Regime (I guess you have a regime when you control a nation of people but are not elected).

I know that Palestinians motivate their young men who murder people through suicide bombing by granting medals and spiritual rewards. Would ANY God sanction murder? I am listening to the Iraq Regime praise suicide bombers and I just learned that 4,000 Arab suicide bombers are arriving in Iraq.

I know that every day we watch the Iraq spokespeople and the Arab media present intentionally distorted perspectives on what is physically going on and I see other Arab nations proliferating the misrepresentations to their masses to inflame them against the coalition countries while America and Britain expose their spokespeople and Leaders to daily grilling by the Free Press who appear to approach their position from an abrasive or at minimum a negative intellectual approach.

I know that there is a combined effort from the Arab media to portray developments ("report the news") in a biased if not flagrantly false way under the false assertion of being a credible Press just like Saddam Hussein showing the world that he wins elections in Iraq. False beyond offensive, issues like this give the impression that the Arab Culture holds a disdain for truth.

This weekend I was sickened with the redundancy of the pursuit of the intellectual position assumed by the Press based on selective statements made by a couple Generals in the field and a couple retired Generals that suggested that the Battle Plan being employed was flawed.

Every morning at around 6:00 a.m. I watch the Iraqi Foreign Minister proliferate as flagrant a misrepresentation of material fact as imaginable. I’ve watched the Foreign Minister speak of "slashing the throats of the coalition" which most civilized nations of the world would agree is unacceptable.

Saddam Houssein has dodged the bullet of social opinion supported principally by Peace Protestors attacks on President Bush and the American Administration. Apparently the masses are sufficiently easily hoodwinked with a radical outcry from a minority to turn their backs on the best interests of the American nation providing that it is tagged to a sound intellectual issue that is virtually impossible to oppose.

With all due respect to the Arab people in the world who hold sacred human values, international law, civil rights and the overall human condition comparable to those expressed throughout the Free world, there is the appearance that Arab Culture depends heavily on the misrepresentation of fact and distortion of truth ("lying").

This is a freedom that is not enjoyed in our Western Civilization. Have you noticed the serious flogging our military faces each morning and afternoon and the flexibility of questioning granted to the Press to interrogate every development as well as any speculation that might be introduced. We’ve seen this with recent issues of the "front troops not being adequately supplied" and a potential "flaw in the battle plan" both have which have been absolutely disputed by the American Administration. Interesting to note that troop deployment requisition would have settled this but the media preferred a public grilling of American Leaders under the negative choice of supposition that suggested that "the battle plan was in fact flawed"!

This war might very well boil down to the power of public opinion. It was public opinion that stood in the way of the earlier President Bush during Desert Storm and ultimately allowed Saddam Hussein another twelve years to rebuild the comprehensive infrastructure that he has build in Iraq since that time.

Have you noticed that he has in fact built a defense structure that shows that he clearly understood that ultimately America would come after him. The ingraining of the Fedayeen into the very fibre of society in small towns and cities throughout Iraq shows that he is guilty of possessing weapons of mass death.

To close for today I guess I’ll fall back onto the question that called forth this article today. The answer is, based on what I see, on Arab television and on American television (which really is what I am limited to but which appears to be about 100% more than what Arab People throughout the Arab world are seeing) I have serious reservations.

I would welcome the assistance of Arab and/or Muslim input on these issues. I GUARANTEE to publish anything sent in, even if I don’t agree with it. My writings appearing on this web site are simply my efforts to find for myself meaningful answers to very, very serious questions. If you have questions you want asked please send them in.

Unlike most media, simplycondos.com is an unbiased independent venue where people are free to express their views and concerns. My articles simply serve as a starting point for dialogue. I welcome your thoughts.