More on Patai and Arab Mentality

Just read his chapter on the tendency of Arabs to fight among themselves. He says they will divide into opposing factions based on mythical ancestors if they don't have anything better to divide them, and the closer they are, the greater the rivalry and hatred. They will also unite against an outside enemy. They are driven by their pre-Islamic heritage of tribalism and Bedouin ethics to seek revenge, and to regain honor through violence against their enemies. They are given to vicious verbal denunciations and insults, which even have a poetic form in their literature. They all seem to have an innate desire to be known as warriors, even when they are no more than thugs. He notes that the rivalry between Sunni and Shi'ia is stronger in many cases than between Muslim and Christian.

From all this, it seems that to maintain civil order a government in an Arab country is pretty much required to take repressive measures. Democracy there will be not much more advanced than it was here during the Whiskey Rebellion. It seems to me also that a court system in a country like this would be more adapted to the culture if it took the role of a mediator most of the time and resorted to arbitration only in major criminal cases, and when mediation is undesirable or impractical.

In the present situation, I think that we must come down hard on Sadr's group, even if we have to kill them, to make the point that violence and armed militias will not be tolerated. Once the handover of power takes place, we need to maintain a presence and continue to root out terrorists, Ba'athist reactionaries and infiltrators from Iran, Syria and elsewhere. We should try to assume the role of mediator between the major ethnic, religious, tribal and political groups and tribes, backed up by a firm hand, whenever violence breaks out. We have to distinguish between the principles necessary to establish democracy, however, and those which are merely our own cultural attitudes. Arabs don't seem to place much value on human life, except when they mourn hysterically. One death calls for another and honor must be satisfied. Therefore, we shouldn't hesitate to apply swift justice but also offer mediation as an alternative to revenge and blood feuds.

Of course, none of this may work and we'll just have to leave them to their own devices with a clear warning that we will protect our own interests if they return to supporting terror and re-arming with WMD.