By Hussein Shobokshi“It was the best of times and it was the worst of times” – that eternal opening sentence from the great work of Charles Dickens' “A tale of Two Cities” seemed to mirror my outlook on life in the 80's during my time of studies in the US. Things were going haywire politically in the Middle East with the Iranian revolution taking an ugly turn when a long and bloody war against Iraq was started. Israel in its continuous neglect of international laws behaved again like a lawless bully and invaded Lebanon causing endless number of deaths and massive tragedies. These were only two scenes that concerned me, but on a more personal note I was fully and deeply immersed in my “American experience,” majoring in Political Science. I had to learn about the constitution, the bill of rights, the founding fathers and the Supreme Court amongst other subjects. It was a mesmerizing world and I was fascinated by the due process, the checks and balances, the noble concept of freedom and the pursuit of happiness that were all part of the political promise of America. It was an eye opener for me without a doubt. My fascination did not stop there; it continued with my great intrigue of the American media. Programs such as 60 Minutes, 20/20, Night Line, Today and Good Morning America were supreme case studies of journalism excellence. I saw in awe the concept of freedom of speech in its pure form and was inspired and taken. Speeches and quotations by Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin and Abraham Lincoln were a fixed part of my lexicon. Walter Cronkite, Mike Wallace, Ed Bradley, Tom Brokaw, Peter Jennings, Dan Rather, George Will and Ted Koppel were great heroes of mine. But a lot of that beautiful image was shattered. I was heartbroken when America elected someone like George W. Bush... TWICE! Americans accepted their administration to be hijacked by a pure modern day political mafia i.e. the neocons. Political bullies such as Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle, Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Douglas Feith and Elliott Abrams took America in a very sad direction. They deliberately derailed the foreign policy of the US to appease Israel in such an unprecedented manner that it was a dangerous and costly adventure. With them in-charge of the political scene the mood was right for bigotry to take over the air waves. Thus the rise of Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter, Bill O'Reilly of Fox News and the Washington Times. I had to clear my eyes and rub them well to reassure myself that I was following American media, the same media that swept me off my feet a few years back. In a recent conversation with a friend of mine from the US, I told him enough with your politicians and media folks; they turn my stomach. Keep sending us more like Steve Jobs; they're your stars today and your best secret to conquer the world. __
