The story we tell ourselves about the First Thanksgiving goes as follows: It was a cold, brutal winter and the first Pilgrims were unprepared to survive it. Rather than watch them starve, the Native American communities nearby - much more accustomed to the local weather - arrived with excess food to share with the Pilgrims so that they could survive the winter. For this, the Pilgrims gave thanks by inviting the natives to break bread with them.
I hope everyone has a happy and safe Thanksgiving filled with football and food, but while we all sit on the couch tomorrow eating so much that we struggle to move afterwards, I hope we remember the origins of this holiday, and how many people all around the world find themselves in situations similar to that of our forefathers. The world has plenty of people facing the plight of the Pilgrims. Here's to hoping we find the generous spirit of the Native Americans who helped them survive.
As always, happy Wednesday and happy reading!
This Day in History
1986 - The Iran-Contra Scandal is revealed three weeks after a Lebanese magazine first broke the story. You may recall that last week's TDIH was 11/18/87 when Congress delivered its final report on the scandal. Again, our history with the Middle East is long and complex, but it is important to remember incidents like these, not for the purposes of mud-slinging, but to recall that our actions towards the people of the Middle East are generally rooted firmly in what we perceive to be our best interests with little regard for the interests of the people living in that region. I continue to maintain that our best interests are intrinsically linked to the best interests of others, particularly in such a hyper-connected world (remember ISIS recruits via Twitter; isolationism is a dead idea).
A Shameless Plug Revisited
Last week I gave a shameless plug for something I wrote that had yet to be published. Well this week it is live, and so I'm using it as my first link. I titled it "The Perils of Inaction," and it is pertinent to the current conversation re: the Middle East (from the Strategy Bridge on Medium).
Thee basic premise is that eschewing leadership because we lack the political will is not a viable strategy for addressing the world's problems. This does not mean that the US needs to or must be involved in every global scenario, but despite an uneven track record the world expects and needs American leadership, and when we fail to deliver, someone else will fill the void. I won't pretend to have predicted ISIS, but I can prove in writing that I've been saying for years that if someone didn't have a plan for Syria post-revolution that whoever did come to power would likely be a group that hampered rather than advanced the causes of liberty, freedom, and tolerance. If only I had known exactly how right I was....
Glimpsing the Enemy from Within
That group, of course, is ISIS, whom I have begun calling Daesh, which I understand is a more derogatory term for the group. Even in the minds of many of those forced to live under their rule, Daesh does not constitute a legitimate governing body. Certainly not a nation state, and our terminology ought to reflect who we are talking about.
Just how bad is Daesh? It's probably hard to know since very few people are able to visit, let alone return. While Daesh advertises some of their barbarism to the world, much of it, including their horrible treatment of women, is still largely behind closed doors (from the NYTimes). These three women were lucky enough to escape a life of sexual slavery, but this is the role of women in the world view of Daesh: women whipped because their head-to-toe clothing was a bit too tight. This article reconfirmed my view that we need to rid the world of Daesh, but it simultaneously highlights why we need to be helping our fellow human beings escape from this oppression.
Too Many Cooks, Only One Cauldron
The more the merrier, right? Unless the event in question is a civil/regional/proxy/shadow war with myriad traditional and non-state actors. So when Russia showed up to the four year party in Syria a few months back we all knew things would be just peachy.
Until Turkey shot down a Russian jet on Tuesday. Oops. That's kinda, sorta a big deal, and Czar Putin is angry (from Slate). What happens now is anyone's guess, but tensions are high among the various competing interest groups in the cauldron. Since Turkey is a member of NATO, the United States is militarily obligated to come to her assistance if hostilities break out. Fun times.
The City of Light
In memory of the terrorist attacks in Beirut and Paris, here is an old photo album of Paris that I have been holding onto for a while (from Medium). The City of Light has endured much, and yet through all of it still pushed Western thinking forward. I know both Paris and Beirut will come back even better. Also, I find old pictures to be interesting and often insightful. To Beirut and Paris.
Besties!
If these two can get along, can't we all? I see no good reason why we can't follow the lead of Frank (left) and Moses (right) and just find a way to resolve our differences. These two are proof that different SPECIES can be friends, so different types of people can certainly make it work, right?
Maybe I'm being idealistic, particularly because Frank and Moses are random animals I found on the internet. They don't belong to any humans I know, and their names likely aren't Frank and Moses, BUT they look good in those costumes, and they're spreading the right message this holiday season, so thanks, fellas!
Why the Random Animals?
You ask, but you already know the answer. I'm out of dogs! :(
Please do me a big favor and submit your pups via the feedback form! While you're at it, it can't hurt to send a friend the opt-in form! That way we'll have a growing pool of readers from whom to pull dogs :)
