What I Would Really Want You to Do

To tell you the truth, I named this blog "watanan" because I am worried about my identity. Many Arabs living in America or any other western nation probably share my worry that stems from the chance of a war between my homes. At this point in history, the West has Arabs and Muslims under the microscope; they are seen as the enemy. This vision is created and perpetuated daily by a complex process of misinformation to which the immigrant Arab and Muslim communities in the West have been effectively silent.

If you were paying attention to the news, the drums of war have begun. The US has increased the number of its troops in Iraq and shipped new weapons to Israel. British and American troops have moved from hot spots in Iraq and are probably at the Iranian and Syrian borders. Israel has developed a new brigade to attack Syria and Iran and is investing heavily in improving the safety of its shelters. Britain, Canada, and Australia have been recruiting aggressively into their militaries. Even Saudi Arabia has recently received new fighter jets from France. The US had secured French and now German support against Iran. Can you hear the drums now.

So, what should you do? Should you just stay tuned, as the war comes to a theater near you, or maybe to your bedroom TV! Or should you "do something." I recommend the later, because watching TV can probably increased your weight! The least you can do is to EDUCATE the people around you about the misinformation directed at them, ask them to stop watching TV, and MOTIVATE them to say "no to war, no to any war".

This brings me back to my little blog. I would like you to send me answers about few questions: how can you become a citizen of the west with roots in the east? How will you cope with a large scale war against Arab or Muslim nations? And what should Arabs and Muslims living in west do to bring peace and prevent war? Please, ask your friends that might have an opinion to participate. I would like your participation to be in a paragraph form and to include answers to all of my questions. I will post all your opinions on my blog to have a living archive of our voices.

Lastly, I believe that there are better fields that we should send our men and women to than the fields of battle.