If you’re like me, you have an unsophisticated view of politics, especially in places like Syria and Lebanon where you may never set foot. You really need to have a good sense of the historical context as well as the current political environment in the region to even have an idea about what’s going on and why. And even if you do have the in-depth knowledge, it’s still difficult to take sides in what is clearly an escalation of conflict by both parties. This is truly an age without clear answers, but we can try to expand our understanding. Here a few good resources for learning about the politics of the region.
- SyriaComment:SyriaComment is a deep blog focused on analysis of the domestic and international politics of Syria. Updated daily by Joshua Landis of the University of Oklahoma.
- The Free Congress Commentary by William S. Lind at Defense and the National Interest: William Lind is an analyst on the subject of 4th Generation Warfare,the GWOT, and America’s role in Mideast politics. Bonus points for citations from historical actors ranging from Napoleon to the Greeks. Keep your encyclopedia handy.
- Wikipedia’s coverage of the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict. The Wikipedia community really shines during historical moments like this when they manage to pump out a fairly comprehensive guide to a situation such as the one in Lebanon. It is a true testament to the potential of citizen / community journalism. Review the discussion page to see the internal attempts to maintain NPOV (neutral point of view). One thing you can say about the Wikipedians is that they almost uniformly possess a strong desire to preserve the quality of the project.