The red, white and blue

The scholarly and diplomatic calls for a dialogue of cultures and civilizations seem self-evidently desirable, but to what extent are they culturally likely?  The nationalistic impulse, fueled by popular culture and news media, acts as a counter-weight.  One of the most illustrative examples of this in popular music was produced by country artist Toby Keith, “Courtesy of the red, white, and blue.”  In this version, accompanied by selected images by a Youtube poster, we are invited to patriotism, but in the latter half guided in our response as to what to do with that patriotism.  Compare, however, with Allan Jackson’s “Where were you?”  Jackson chooses a more inward-looking perspective.

The political science perspective

Our guest Thursday is one of the leading scholars in political communication, Robert Entman (Geo. Washington Univ.). His book, Projections of Power, picks up some of our class themes.  In his work on the power of presidents to frame public policy, in a more recent journal article he:

explores the frame challenge mounted by two journalists, Seymour Hersh and Thomas Friedman, who attempted to shift the focus from Afghanistan to Saudi Arabia…9/11 revealed yet again that media patrol the boundaries of culture and keep discord within conventional bounds. 

questions to explore

SV:  What were the similarities and differences of the government’s justification, as well as the public’s initial reaction, to World War II, Vietnam, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq?

CM:  Concerning airport security, have appropriate measures been taken between 9/11 and the attempted terrorist attack by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, after billions of dollars have been spent on new screening technology to ensure safety on commercial airliners?

LL:  My research question to examine is how to make airport security more convenient yet ethical. In other words, is it possible for the Transportation Security Administration to lessen the airport security wait time without racial profiling?

KW:  I posed the question as to what really caused the twin towers to collapse. Is it possible that the United Sates government knew about the attacks before hand, but simply allowed them, using this tragic moment in American History to manipulate the foreign policy they way they wanted.

KK: Is Pakistan the U.S.’s ally or enemy?

SR:  How has Islamophobia affected Muslims post 9/11, specifically regarding their First Amendment rights? What is Islamophobia, and what can we do to solve it?

BB: Did the views of Evangelicals towards Muslims change or stay the same from before 9/11 to after 9/11, and how did those views affect both religions?

KC:  I will be exploring how 9/11 affected different businesses and industries financially and economically in the

U.S. What businesses or industries prospered or were hurt due to the attacks?

RG:  “How did the War in Iraq affect public opinion of United States in the Middle East?”

AC: How has 9/11 affected people’s opinion about the religion of Islam?

EC: Are we memorializing 9/11 respectfully, appropriately, and effectively?

KS:  How has the American government tried to stop terrorist financs and how effective have these methods been?

NI: In what ways (culturally, psychologically, religiously) has the 9/11 attacks and the ensuing wars in the middle East affected the lives of Muslims living in New York City and the rest of the United States?

RL: How have the government’s alterations to laws and policies regarding the defense of our nation and the prevention of future terrorist attacks affected the rights of American citizens?

Ending the War on Terror

Bergen’s book was published before the death of Osama Bin Laden, but based on the author’s analysis was it best that Bin Laden was assassinated or would it have been preferable to have put him on trial? Have we achieved victory in the “war on terror”? Why or why not?

the continuing threat

Where would you assess the greatest threat from Al-Qaeda today, based on Bergen’s analysis: from home-grown U.S. terrorists, from Pakistan, and from Iraq-based Al-Qaeda (AQI)? Make a brief case as to why.

reasons for Iraq

We’ve considered evidence for the claim that Iraq was an unjustified war. In the recent scholarly book treatment of intelligence failures in the government, Paul Pillar concludes that, although it’s not supposed to be, the CIA was strongly politicized in the intelligence process. The administration received the intelligence the way it desired it, an excuse not a justification for war. From an historical perspective, the troubling conclusion is that we may not know the real reasons behind the scenes, as considered in a recent book review in the New York Times Sunday book section:

This brings us back to the troubling remarks Pillar makes early in this rich, useful and important book. First is the fact that the administration never formally debated “whether the war was a good idea.” The implication is clear: a small group of officials made the decision on their own, without leaving any record. “It was never on any meeting’s agenda,” Pillar notes. What, then, was the purpose of the war? What did President Bush and his advisers hope to achieve? Who did they think would benefit? I would say that I am about as interested in this question as anyone, but any answer I offered would be only a guess. Bush and his friends have never really been clear about their reasons, and the magnitude of their failure suggests they will carry the secret to their graves.

Of course, we have the Woodward-captured statements of what they “said” were the reasons, but whether those really were the reasons points out the weaknesses of the journalistic perspective.

Iraq, Al Qaeda and beyond

We are not getting into the crucial issue of Iraq, and the complex set of forces that its invasion by the U.S. set in motion.  Pick one of the questions below to comment on (tied to your reading):

How well justified was the administration’s decision to invade Iraq?

What impact if any did the Iraq war have on Al Qaeda?

What threat does Al Qaeda continue to pose today?

9-11 in the news

There is no shortage of 9-11 related topics in the news, as reported in the comments below:

Leaders and their objectives: Bush vs. Bin Laden

In “The longest war,” Peter Bergen first lays the groundwork of historical and religious context leading up to 9-11.  Whether or not America “caused” 9-11, as Tony Bennett asserted, there were definite factors leading up to it.  The next step is to understand how effective was the leadership, strategically and morally, of the U.S. and Al-Qaeda post 9-11.  The US had an opportunity to capture Bin Laden in the Tora Bora region of Afghanistan. What were the factors contributing to that failure? What were Bin Laden’s strategic goals, and how successful was he in accomplishing them? Consider the controversy over the US use of torture and prisoner “rendition.” How effective were these steps in accomplishing our objectives?

Latest on “Confidence Men”

Ron Suskind’s new book continues to get a response, including on the political website Politico and an interview with Jon Stewart, Sept. 20.