Vage,
Congratulations on attempting a sensible, level headed and intelligent analysis, and one which avoids a xenophobic and racist lumping together of all Arabs as suicide-bombing, Western-hating nutters.
It's profoundly depressing to see intelligent people coming out with what their grandparents would have said about Germans (who were all, without exception, Jew-hating, arrogant, evil Nazi monsters intent on World domination). If we substitute the word negro or Jew where we've used Arab or Moslem, the degree of racism on this thread would be pretty stark.
There are some good, honest, honourable people in the Middle East (including ill-educated and relatively poor ones) who deserve our understanding and support.
Like these two:
[b]Wednesday, 28 August, 2002, 10:26 GMT 11:26 UK
Queen honours Afghan guards
Proud recipients: Sayed Afzal and Zahoor Shah in Kabul
Two Afghans who have guarded the British Embassy in Kabul through decades of conflict have been awarded honorary MBEs for their loyal service.
Zahoor Shah, 57, and Sayed Afzal, 59, have for much of the time been the only ones at the British outpost, dodging bombs and rockets from the onslaught of Soviet, Mujaheddin and Taleban fighters.
At a special ceremony on Tuesday, the guards, who between them have clocked up more than 70 years of service, were given medals making them honorary Members of the British Empire.
They were then invited by British ambassador Ron Nash to a traditional cup of English tea on the embassy lawn.
To the sound of a lone bagpiper in the background, Mr Nash told the two guards: "We are here to pay tribute to you. You have worked faithfully to protect our embassy.
"There has been physical danger and war around you...and you have taken care of our possessions for many years when there was no British ambassador and no British officials."
The loyal guards even refused entry to British troops who turned up in Kabul late last year after the defeat of the Taleban.
It fell to the British High Commission in neighbouring Pakistan to explain to the pair that the new arrivals should be let in.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesperson Jeff Wilson recalls meeting the pair on his visit to Kabul last November, saying they did "a fabulous job" taking care of visitors and officials.
Mr Wilson told BBC News Online that only a handful of honours are handed out each year to local employees at overseas missions for their long and dedicated service.
Mr Shah has worked at the embassy for 30 years and holds the position of head of household.
The housekeeper, whose three sons now work at the embassy, has served though dangerous times.
He recalled how one person was killed on the embassy premises and several injured when a rocket fell in the grounds during the violent civil war of the early 1990s.
Mr Shah said: "The British have been good to me. I have served them very faithfully and will continue to do so."
Mr Afzal, who works as gatekeeper, has served the Foreign Office uninterrupted for 40 years, keeping out fighters of successive conflicts.
"For 13 years the embassy was closed altogether, but I did not allow anyone to pass," he said.
"Once the Taleban asked us to let them in and asked what was there. I told them just a few old tables and chairs and they went away."
The pair were paid a salary and given money towards the upkeep of the site even during the times the embassy was closed.
Many of the treasures housed at the embassy have remained intact thanks to the guards' diligent service, including a fine gilded bone china tea set used to serve the tea at Tuesday's ceremony.
Like his colleague, Mr Afzal said he was honoured to be given a prize by Queen Elizabeth.
"I will work here until I am fired. When someone at the embassy says I must stop, then I will stop." [/i]
There was a more recent (very similar story) about the sole local employee who stayed on and safeguarded the British Embassy in Iraq, this time without pay, who carefully packed and buried the most valuable stuff, and kept the lawns tended....
The present situation in Iraq is appalling, of course, and no-one could have anything but contempt for the scum who are rioting and kidnapping Westerners. But it's hard not to conclude that poor and inconsistent policy by the Americans, exacerbated by heavy-handedness, arrogance and ignorance by US troops on the ground hasn't at least been a contributory factor in turning all sides against the occupation.