Shifting
Sands Syndrome.

The Shape of Hope
Changes Swiftly.

The Second Letter

By Jack G. Vines
DATELINE:
Tuesday, March 25, 2003.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Hello once again to all you folks. In twenty-four hours so much can change in the Middle East. It is almost to the level of psychological torture!

My mind drifts back to when I arrived in the United Arab Emirates in the summer of 2001. My team leader referred to the sporadic, but relentless change as the Shifting Sands Syndrome. He said that the sand dune is always taking shape and never remains the same. After being here for two years, I feel that the dune is constantly changing shape... second by second!

Recall that yesterday I talked about my friend the Doctor from Iraq. I met him for lunch in the afternoon. It was a joy to see him and to visit with some other Iraqi exiles. We dined on nice Indian curries and drank extremely sweet tea with mint for several hours afterwards.

The Weekend Trip Is Squashed.

These men were very nervous. They are praying to the almighty Allah that the war will be a short one. Two of them even mentioned taking a road trip this weekend via Kuwait into Iraq. But, I think that the possibility of the war taking a lot longer has squashed their weekend plans. I do have an invite to the Hilton for a Victory Party with them and their families once the smoke clears.

Other western men at work get really angry with me when I mention other perspectives on the war. But, I always remember that each man has a different investment, a different perspective on this war. For my dear Iraqi friends, the war represents their only hope for going home. As I was leaving the restaurant, the Iraqi doctor stopped in a store near my home and bought two large photograph frames. When I inquired as to what they were for, he said: "In one I will place a picture of Bush and in the other I will place a picture of Rumsfeld."

His quiet gesture really sent a surge in my patriotic-meter! I love America, but I am usually not so moved by these things. I guess I now have a different investment in this war also. I have feelings that are coming out because of all the anti-western sentiment in the region. And I have feelings because I love my dear friends.

Yes, I'm from the USA!

My sense of national identity really came out last night when I decided to go see a movie. Instead of my usual professional clothing, I wore worn-out blue jeans, a t-shirt and some old sneakers. Hell, why try to hide the fact that I am from the USA! My face, hair, skin — and most of all, my voice — give that away.

At work today things are much calmer. The men at work also seem to be on edge. Keep in mind that we are civilian instructors from Western countries working in an Arab language school. At times I question my sanity.

I do sense that people here are bored with it — and you thought Americans had short attention spans! Yet, the students really enjoyed the fact that one American Marine in Kuwait threw a few grenades into his colleagues' tents. They also enjoy all the stuff from the Arab news stations such as Al-Jazeera. I know that CNN and BBC don't do a perfect job, but the stations over here will report anything without any facts whatsoever. The notion that "if it is on TV, it must be true" reigns supreme here. I almost get a kick out of some of the reports. One hour the reporting is very pro-western, and then in the next hour it seems like all of the British and Americans soldiers have met their maker. I try to avoid the news.

The news here is presented without substance. In-depth coverage is scarce. For instance, a report in Pakistan stated that the Pakistan Day ceremonies had been canceled because of public sentiment. That was it and nothing more. The English-speaking radio channel has even 'forgotten' to report the news on an hourly basis as it did without fail before the war. I avoid the newspapers here as they tend to be very nice, glossy, and sanitized versions of what is going on.

How Strong the Negative Energy?

What more? Will the negative energy burst into the streets here? I seriously doubt that any public reaction will occur from the local residents. By local, I mean the Emiratis. However, some reactions may spill over from the multitude of workers imported from other countries. I guess I should cross my fingers. Oops. That's a word loaded with Christian symbolism.

I heard on the news that Bahrain had some protests, as did Jordan and other nearby countries. My folks also wrote me an E-mail and expressed disgust with the protests in the USA. For me, protest at home is beautiful. It is American. You can protest, and then go home with your life. You have the freedom to do it.

Believe it or not, Americans do have freedoms — even during the September 12th Era.

In contrast, the people who hit the streets of Sanaa (Yemen), Cairo (Egypt), Amman (Jordan), and other urban centers in this region didn't have the luxury of safe protest. More than a few of them did not go home yesterday. They lost their lives on the streets of protest.

I suppose that is all for now. It's safe today in the United Arab Emirates. I expect the safe haven for Westerners to last throughout the war. But who knows? The Shifting Sands Syndrome runs deep in the region.

EDITOR'S NOTE:
Mr. Vines is an instructor for the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces. He has worked in Abu Dhabi since July 2001. Not yet thirty, he has also taught in Japan. We would tell you more about him, but it just wouldn't be prudent.

You can communicate with Mr. Vines by E-mail
through the webmaster at threadspinner@corndancer.com

*This is the logical next step
toward the NEW World Order.

Step Four: *Your exclamations tossed like missiles o'er the level shore!

Shifting Sands Syndrome.

The Shape of Hope Changes Swiftly.