UNITED STATES AND ISLAM

The United States could be said to be in a state of equilibrium with Islam, despite the 9/11 attack on the New York Trade Centres.

The key to a world strategic balance is the Indian Ocean and its littoral zone nations. These include nations of the Middle East, Africa, India and Pakistan.

We read a report in the Papua New Guinea Post Courier 1 November 2011 that the Obama administration is seeking to expand military ties with the six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

These include Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Oman. Their Islam combines comfortably with capitalism.

While the United States has close bi-lateral ties with each, it wants to foster a new " security architecture" for the Gulf. This is for the protection of all.

The United States knows that this balance will remain as long as there is no interference with Islamic culture. Even the United Nations knows to behave itself. If advisors want to play up, they go to the soft target Pacific nations.

We saw what happened to Thailand during the Vietnam War with hundreds of thousands of American soldiers descending on Bangkok for their leave.

Young girls came in the thousands to become dancers and prostitutes and earn the American dollar. Social structure of Thailand was changed forever. Thailand is still in the grip of HIV/AIDS in  the long term aftermath of the Vietnam War.

Buddhism is not an aggressive way of life as Islam can be. Buddhist emphasis is on tolerance and kindness that will not pose any danger to foreigners.

The Positive Living message at the heading of this blogspot is based in part on Buddhist teaching.

There have been thousands of American soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. But there has been tight control by the military hierarchy of the access of American soldiers to the Moslem women.

In many ways, the women are protected by Islam or at least by the Islamic culture. American soldiers breach this control at their own risk. The cover-all dark clothing makes women totally non-sexual and unaccessible.

Other races have done this in the past to make their women unattractive to foreigners, particularly the Arab slave traders. Consider the African women with large plates in their lips and and those with rows of metal rings around their necks.

There may be violence in the Middle East but there is also strict sexual morality. Perhaps a solution in the American military is to have more women in the forces and gay and lesbian relations allowed. Then the soldiers will be happy in the service.

But this is a short-term solution. Hitler planned to issue German soldiers with blow up rubber dolls on which the Barby Doll was based. The Japanese used comfort women. But the gay and lesbian issue has the potential to explode back in the old US of A.

Middle East nations maintain relations with America to keep security against Somali pirates, maintain the oil trade routes and keep a balance against a land and sea based encroachment of China.

Better the devil you know. He has rocks symbolically thrown at him during the pilgrimage to Mecca.