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I think the situation in Iraq will eventually be resolved by Iraqis, but the presence of Americans will delay any serious attempts at a solution. The exit of American troops might cause a temporary rise in violence but it would not be sustained, because withdrawal would remove the strongest and most immediate argument for armed opposition.
I never thought I would be saying this but -- with the way the Arab world has gone -- a stable, serious and relatively open monarchy would be more favorable than the supposedly open rule and equal opportunity to rule that a republic is supposed to provide.
The world press, which has widely reported South Africa’s invitation to the Palestinian prime minister and the objections by the South African Jewish community, has failed to publish in full what the South African minister himself said in defending the decision. I am reprinting it below.
For a long time, most people around the world had two contradictory views about the U.S. They liked America’s people, their values, their simplicity and their openness. People love to send their children to study in America because of its liberal arts colleges and universities and the general willingness of Americans to accept people of other cultures (because they themselves come from different backgrounds).
All of the discussion on immigration (including this question) focuses too much on issues like amnesty and high walls. We need to change the debate to include the need for rich countries to invest in poorer countries, so that people will find jobs at home and will not have to risk life and limb in order to get to the first world countries.
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