Obama's Puzzling Approach to the Muslim World :: Middle East Forum

Obama's Puzzling Approach to the Muslim World :: Middle East Forum:

"Thus he of all American leaders should know that the sort of idealistic, 'feel-good' talk of mutual respect (i.e., appeasement), such as he often gives, while moving to his constituency, will have little effect on the people of the Islamic world — except, perhaps, to breed more contempt for the American 'paper tiger,' Osama bin Laden's appellation for the U.S. during Clinton's era. So why does Obama do it? Indeed, why does he do so more than other Western leaders (whose naivety is somewhat justified in that they do not have the insights afforded by his background)?
This reminds one of Islamist tactics. Al-Qaeda, for instance, which is well acquainted with both the Western and Islamic worldviews, has made it a point to speak a 'language' that Westerners understand (mutual respect, justice, tolerance, etc.) and another that Muslims understand (jihad, honor, conquest) — both diametrically opposed. The purpose, of course, is to buy the Islamic world time to grow stronger and receive concessions, while lulling the West into thinking that all conflict will end with just a bit more respect and appeasement for Muslims — concepts alien to the Islamic worldview, where respect and appeasement are articulated solely through an Islamic paradigm, i.e., non-Muslims (infidels) get neither.
Obama achieves the same end by doing the opposite: he speaks to Muslims in a language which only Westerners appreciate but which the majority of Muslims scoff at. In both cases — whether the fine platitudes come from Osama or Obama — only Americans are being deceived into thinking peace is a matter of 'winning hearts and minds.'
Prior to the election, many hailed Obama's Muslim roots, his 'otherness"