tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6811719312494990925.post-8709510819675301462007-06-02T00:02:00.000-07:002007-06-02T00:02:00.000-07:00I've recently experienced what it's like to tell all sorts of people that I'll be spending this summer studying Arabic in Damascus. After the initial shock, I'm often asked to clarify exactly where it is -- "Syria" rings an ominous bell, but few can put a finger on it. This is typically followed by pity or a curt lecture. Most members of my family give me a daily rundown of travel warnings, real or imagined, and remind me that it's not too late to change my mind.<BR/><BR/>To get to my point: before anything can be addressed at an administrative level, I think there's a serious need to get individuals to openly evaluate the ideological impact of this war. We can't "fix" the institutional problems (government, media) unless there's an effort to investigate the causes and development of public complicity. (This is where I'll apologize for my lack of a concrete answer.)<BR/><BR/>Many of those I've spoken to -- Republicans and Democrats alike -- have had a frighteningly instinctive and literal belief in an "us" and a "them." While preparing for this trip, I've tried to stay smart and cautious without allowing myself to inherit the illogical fear that comes from this, but the volume of negativity can be infectious in itself. The consensus among friends and strangers alike is that anyone lacking military purpose is foolish, even suicidal, to go over "there." Very few people have been supportive of my academic initiative for going. Most prefer to end the conversation with an ironic declaration of my "bravery." For me, this attitude is discouraging, but I'm sharing so many of these responses because, in a far more important and permanent way, they're disastrous.<BR/><BR/>My momentary contribution, if we can call it that, has been a variation of that "practice of discoursing" explained above. I've tried to keep the conversation going in order to talk about my plans coherently and convincingly. The goal, feasibility aside, is to reach a point where this no longer must also be done defensively.M. Howellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17376169729966234983noreply@blogger.com