Yesterday was the first day that the headlines here read anything other than "The Revolution of Libya." My thoughts and prayers go out both to the victims of the Japanese Earthquake/Tsunami and the Libyan people. Japan has been subjected to a natural disaster, something that couldn't have been foreseen nor diverted, but the Libyan crises is quite a different story - all the bloodshed which is tearing the country apart is something that could have been prevented.
Unfortunately, Muamar Al-Qaddafi's obvious insanity and unstable antics have gone relatively unnoticed by the international community for the last few decades, and so the Libyan people have been left to fend for themselves as he wiped out all political opposition and strengthened his white-knuckled grip on the country and its resources. Now he has made the rash decision not to loosen that grip, no matter what, and I have no doubt he will hold on until the bitter end.
You might ask, "How is the Libyan Revolution pertinent to the IAP?" I respond by asking you how it is not pertinent. The vast majority of our studies here are based on current events. We are charged with the task of being constantly informed - reading the newspapers and online news sources, listening to the radio, and watching various news programs on TV. What is striking to me is that even though the Libyan conflict is technically international news to the Jordanians, the culture of Arab nationalism in this region makes it front page material, even though the revolution has been going on for more than three weeks.
Media coverage of this event here in the Middle East is surely a world away from your at-home 5 o'clock block. News tidbits in the states might read "Libyan Crisis Continues into Fourth Week," a simple mention that the Libyan people are still rising up against their "president." Then the anchor might move on to talk about a large traffic jam caused by a 10 car pile-up on the beltway.
Here, when I turn on the news, I see live footage of protesters running through the streets of Tripoli, scattered in every direction by automatic gunfire. I see video feed of the resistance cataloging all the weapons they've managed to wrench from the hands of the army - not just guns, but rocket propelled grenade launchers, incendiary mortars, even missiles. These are all weapons which Al-Qaddafi ordered his armed forces to use against civilians. I see an interview with a fighter jet pilot who refused to bomb civilian targets and was shot down by his own comrades. I see death, destruction, and a clear lack of decisiveness and action by the international community, which decided only last weekend to impose economic sanctions on Al-Qaddafi. As if economic sanctions would do anything to stop a man who has hired foreign mercenaries to enter his country and slaughter his own people. In the USA, you see a day count and an unavoidably inaccurate death toll.
The IAP isn't just about learning the language - that part comes easily - it's also about gaining a new perspective through objective analysis of news, culture (both traditional and popular), society, religion, philosophy and personal behavior. Local coverage of the Libyan Revolution is a perfect example of a viewpoint which is simply absent from everyday American life.
Unfortunately, Muamar Al-Qaddafi's obvious insanity and unstable antics have gone relatively unnoticed by the international community for the last few decades, and so the Libyan people have been left to fend for themselves as he wiped out all political opposition and strengthened his white-knuckled grip on the country and its resources. Now he has made the rash decision not to loosen that grip, no matter what, and I have no doubt he will hold on until the bitter end.
You might ask, "How is the Libyan Revolution pertinent to the IAP?" I respond by asking you how it is not pertinent. The vast majority of our studies here are based on current events. We are charged with the task of being constantly informed - reading the newspapers and online news sources, listening to the radio, and watching various news programs on TV. What is striking to me is that even though the Libyan conflict is technically international news to the Jordanians, the culture of Arab nationalism in this region makes it front page material, even though the revolution has been going on for more than three weeks.
Media coverage of this event here in the Middle East is surely a world away from your at-home 5 o'clock block. News tidbits in the states might read "Libyan Crisis Continues into Fourth Week," a simple mention that the Libyan people are still rising up against their "president." Then the anchor might move on to talk about a large traffic jam caused by a 10 car pile-up on the beltway.
Here, when I turn on the news, I see live footage of protesters running through the streets of Tripoli, scattered in every direction by automatic gunfire. I see video feed of the resistance cataloging all the weapons they've managed to wrench from the hands of the army - not just guns, but rocket propelled grenade launchers, incendiary mortars, even missiles. These are all weapons which Al-Qaddafi ordered his armed forces to use against civilians. I see an interview with a fighter jet pilot who refused to bomb civilian targets and was shot down by his own comrades. I see death, destruction, and a clear lack of decisiveness and action by the international community, which decided only last weekend to impose economic sanctions on Al-Qaddafi. As if economic sanctions would do anything to stop a man who has hired foreign mercenaries to enter his country and slaughter his own people. In the USA, you see a day count and an unavoidably inaccurate death toll.
The IAP isn't just about learning the language - that part comes easily - it's also about gaining a new perspective through objective analysis of news, culture (both traditional and popular), society, religion, philosophy and personal behavior. Local coverage of the Libyan Revolution is a perfect example of a viewpoint which is simply absent from everyday American life.
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