Obama's Islamic homage wins praise

Wearing masks to conceal their identities, Palestinian militants from the Popular Resistance Committee watched Obama's televised speech at a training base in Gaza City. (AP Photo/Ashraf Amra)

I resist politics, but it would be irresponsible to go through today without even mentioning Obama's much-awaited speech in Cairo earlier today.

It has been praised and criticized any which way possible, as any other important political speech. But I like the following story because it's optimistic. And after the eight loooong years after W and the consequences we're now facing thanks to his words and actions, I have little patience for negativity.

Here's what one AP story out of Dubai reported about the speech.

The tone of respect was set from the opening lines of President Barack Obama's address to the Muslim world, AP reported Thursday.

"Assalamu Aleikum"--Arabic for "peace be upon you"--he said, triggering applause from the crowd at Cairo University and bringing nods of approval in places like a coffee shop in the West Bank town of Ramallah, where some began calling him "Abu Hussein"--using his Muslim middle name--as a sign of honor, according to the report.

Obama's ambitious speech, which sought to define a new relationship between Washington and the Islamic world, also represented an opportunity to shape his own image in the eyes of Muslims, AP reported. He quoted from the Quran, paid homage to the cultural and intellectual achievements of Muslims, and noted his middle name and his father's ties to the faith.

"As the Holy Quran tells us, 'Be conscious of God and speak always the truth'," he said. "That is what I will try to do today, to speak the truth as best I can."

Whether political stagecraft or sincerity, his gestures resonated strongly among many Muslims who often complain their traditions and culture are devalued in the West and have become overshadowed by Islamic radicals, AP reported.

"He came across as sincere and credible," said Sheik Muhammad al-Nujaimi, a member of a committee in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, that tries to moderate the radical views of jailed militants. He said he plans to give a copy of Obama's address to the inmates with a message: "Muslims should offer help to the new American administration and reciprocate its overtures."

Obama also sprinkled his address with Arabic words that are well-known to all Muslims: "hijab" for the Islamic coverings for women, "zakat" for alms giving, which is one of the Five Pillars of Islam.

Even these few references carry powerful significance in the Arab world, where the language is cherished as an important ethnic bond, revered for its connection to the Prophet Muhammad, and filled with elaborate greetings and finely crafted formalities that display respect.

Obama's closing line--"And may God's peace be upon you"--rings with authenticity and cultural sensitivity to Arabic ears. (Photo: President Obama/Reuters)

There were obvious comparisons to Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, whose use of language, such as calling for a "crusade" against terrorists after the Sept. 11 attacks, a term that brought to mind the Christian Crusades against Islam in the Holy Land, helped stir anti-American anger (to put it lightly, if you ask me) in the Muslim world, AP reported.

Obama "was fair on basics, soft on tone," said Labib Kamhawi, a political analyst in Amman, Jordan. "He avoided using provocative terms of the previous administration like 'war on terrorism.'"

Even some extremist Web sites, which have carried statements from al-Qaida and other groups in the past, added some rare hints of praise amid the scorn for Obama.

One posting on a chat room noted admiration for U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton "wearing a head scarf ... and she and Obama taking off their shoes" during a visit to a Cairo mosque. The contributor also praised Obama's quotation of verses from the Quran, "while many of our leaders don't memorize these verses."

In response, another writer said Obama "is manipulating the emotions of the people the same as a lute player does. ... He is undoubtedly a wise enemy compared with George Bush, the enemy known for his stupidity."

In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, a 27-year-old computer engineer, Yasmine Bennami, said of the president's address: "It's the first time ever that I see an American president quoting verses from the Quran."

In Saudi Arabia, home of Islam's holiest sites, Rabah al-Mutawa said Obama, by quoting from the Quran, "touched people." "I challenge any Arab leader to go to the U.S. or the West and quote the Bible like Obama quoted the Quran," she said at her home in Riyadh.

When Obama opened with his Arabic greeting, Mahmoud Ramahi smiled.

"This is good," said Ramahi, a lawmaker with the anti-Israel militant group Hamas in the West Bank. "This is the first good signal. We'll start counting."

I'm no political pundit by any conceivable means, but if you ask me Obama rocks. He rocks because he's graceful and wise with words. He rocks because he makes an effort to show respect for other countries and cultures. He rocks because he brings issues down to a level of sensibility from up where reason no longer matters. And though the eight years with W were, in my opinion, the most disastrous in this country's recent history, perhaps had it not been for his monumental mistakes, we wouldn't have Obama today. Extreme change requires extreme measures, if you ask me.

If you ask Rush Limbaugh, the Right's self-proclaimed champion, the speech was "outrageous, absurd, and embarrassing." Now, who could've seen that coming?

Rush has problem: he has a extremely narrow, one-track mind capable of perceiving, processing and conceiving ideas and events from a single point of view--his. And that's exactly the opposite of what Obama does when he makes an effort to understand and address issues from various points of view.

Sources: The Associated Press, CNN, Reuters, Me
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