Arab mentality

Arab proverb: "kiss the ring again and again, until you can cut off the hand."

The Arabs and Muslims in general have no concept of democracy, no idea of a "loyal opposition" and no tolerance for toleration.  In their culture, which is one of honor killings and martydom, an enemy is always an enemy, there is no compromise.  One of the reasons for this is that absolutism is an act of faith in Islam.  Islam meaning "submission," must triumph, it is Allah's will, and people who refuse to become Muslims (infidels) because they are ignorant and stupid, must be shown the right way or be killed, it's that simple.  In Muslim thought the world is divided into two regions,  Dar al-Islam, the region of Islam (or peace) and Dar al-Harb, the region of war.  Ironically just the exact opposite is the case, the region of Islam is contorted by war and the rest of the world is relatively peaceful, how do they explain that to themselves.  It does indicate something terribly wrong with the basis of Islam.

That is why after 100 years of the war against Jewish sovereignty, the Arab/Muslims cannot stop the war of attrition against Israel.  That is why we have another cycle of missiles being fired from Gaza against our cities.  All Israelis are legitimate targets as far as Hamas is concerned.  It has nothing to do with "settlements" or "occupation," as most naieve westerners think, but is all due to the right of existence of a non-Muslim entity in their midst.  One might argue that Egypt and Jordan have signed peace treaties with Israel, after being totally defeated in wars in 1967 and 1973, wars that they initiated when they had every advantage on their side (surprise and the numbers).  But, even today, 35 years after the peace treaty with Egypt was signed, many people in Egypt still regard themselves as actually at war with Israel. 

This mentality is the reason why all major Arab countries are in some kind of war, from Morocco to Iraq, the whole Arab world is engulfed in turmoil and violence.  In particular: Libya, since the overthrow of Qaddafi, the various power centers cannot compromise; Iraq, the historical Shia:Sunni schism is now the major cause of conflict, with thousands being massacred; Syria, the civil war has destroyed the country, leaving three distinct areas, that controlled by the pro-Shia Assad regime, by the Sunni Islamists and by the democratic opposition, so far ca. 160,000 people have been killed with ca. 7 million refugees; Egypt, the al-Sisi regime has declared war on the Muslim Brotherhood, displaced Pres. Morsi and put hundreds to death, and are fighting a war against the jihadists in Sinai.  Such a widespread and ubiquitous resort to war and violence cannot be just by chance, it is the Arab mentality, the Arab culture.  The war in Gaza between Hamas and Israel is in fact a minor skirmish in the unfortunate proclivity of the Arabs for violent confrontation instead of peaceful compromise.

But, let's admit that Europe was also once engulfed in war for centuries, based on religious differences (Catholic vs. Protestant) and tribal nationalism (Germany vs. France, etc.) .  The ultimate hope is that if Europe can be pacified after so many hundreds of years of bloodshed, maybe the Arab world can be too.  But, I wouldn't bet on it, so Israel must keep its powder dry and its finger on the trigger, so to speak.  It's the only way to survive in this neighborhood.