I have not been following the broohaha about US ports being owned and operated by a company from the United Arab Emmerites very closely.
But I will make this observation. It strikes me as racial profiling. Just because a company is Arab in nationality, should we assume that it will shelter terrorists or even commit terrorist attacks against us? Some of the people screaming and hollering about this are the very ones who will cry about racial profiling if an Arab person is stopped and searched at the airport.
It's not like the ports have been US O&O; a British company has been running them for years.
And something else - aren't there a lot of politicians who cry about our imagine in the world and about how the Iraq war has runied it by setting us up against Arabs? Aren't many of these politicians the ones objecting to this deal? But I've got to ask - what better to improve our image in the Arab world than to develop lasting and meaningful economic relationships with Arab companies?
My gut is that there are a lot of politicians putting a chance at political posturing over principle on this one. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.
3 comments:
I think your analysis of this situation is very astute. For information on the opposition to racial profiling, check out this blog piece:
http://www.progressiveu.org/085807-the-philosophy-of-racial-profiling-and-why-it-is-flawed
I have a racial profiling class this Saturday at the new department for which I will be policing. Maybe I can say more after that . . .
=)
Hey I'm in total agreement with you on this one Robb. I think its dispicable that people in this nation find it appauling that we out source this job to a company that could in the long run save us money.
This is not an issue of National security. I'm sure that under the current circumstances that some terrist could infiltrate the British company or even and U.S. company. And just because a few radicals don't like us doesn't mean that we can't or shouldn't use this company.
The outrage that these senators are have against this proposal is dispicable.
But I am happy that its getting a lot of press. Because it can show that we think that Arab world is a intricate part of our world and gladly accept them as partners.
This is a good situation for the U.S. government.
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