WASHINGTON — Perhaps the United States government should do more listening than bombing. A new book by University of Michigan professor Juan Cole, suggests just that. Driven by a deep anxiety about Islam, Americans have not come to really understand Muslim concerns. Taking into account the perspectives of those most affected by the policies could help in making them more sensible.

With “Engaging the Muslim World,” Professor Cole hopes to help the new administration understand how to fix America’s public relations crisis among Muslim public opinion.

He brought his book to Washington as part of a tour to promote the recently released title. He spoke about it to a capacity room in the Middle East Institute in Washington, DC on Wednesday.

Professor Cole became a leading commenter on Middle East issues with the rise of his popular blog, “Informed Comment.” The political diary attracts a wide array of readers and offers insight into current affairs in the region. Professor Cole lived in different parts of the region for ten years, working in Beirut during the civil war, witnessing bread riots in Egypt, and living in Amman.

The week before, he appeared on Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report” to discuss the book. Stephen Colbert, who satirically plays a right-wing talk show host, asked Cole at one point in the program, “Is it our fault?” in response to Cole’s point about how low public opinion towards the country’s policies is. Cole answered, “Yes, it is.”

Juan Cole

In his talk at the Middle East Institute, he began by focusing on an interesting inconsistency. Although the U.S. has good relations with most Arab and Muslim states, it is “not well-loved by Muslims around the world.”
By the same token, Islamophobia is rampant. Cole cited alarming polls indicating that many Americans would not want to have a Muslim living next door.

The American invasion and occupation of Iraq was detrimental to the nation’s standing in the region. Muslims consider it “absolutely unacceptable.”

He pointed out that the way it was fought inspired even more insurgent movements. Many fighters in Iraq referenced Abu Ghraib as their reason for fighting.

He also pointed out the human costs of America’s attack on Iraq. “You can’t bomb a slum like Sadr City responsibly,” he argued. Despite this, the Pentagon had staff whose jobs were to design the least destructive way to hit a target in a building. Such tactics fueled further resentment.

Cole took issue with the journalists during the lead up to the war and since. “We are not well-served by our corporate media,” he said. “American media sanitized the war.” He discusses this more extensively in the book.

Under the Obama administration, Cole expects an American withdrawal, with a nominal military presence left behind, by 2012. This, he expects, will really help the United States develop a “basis for going forward.”

Cole thinks there is a reason to believe forward motion can be accomplished in U.S.-Muslim relations. In his experience, few in the Muslim world “seem to want to keep a grudge.” People are looking forward to reconciliation so they can progress, he implied. On “The Colbert Report,” he said the people of the region want development, not military, aid for instance.

Professor Cole’s blogging and public writings may have prevented him from being hired by Yale University in 2006. Though he was a strong candidate for a position, a loud public campaign by many against his criticism of the United States and Israel’s policies put pressure on the hiring process. Whether or not it denied him the job, Cole had no regrets. He wrote in the “Chronicle of Higher Education,” “The role of the public intellectual is my career. And it is a hell of a career. I recommend it.”

The Middle East Institute is a “conduit of information between Middle Eastern nations and American policymakers, organizations and the public.” The Washington-based organization was founded in 1946, and reaches out to policymakers, academics and others through programming and publications, including “The Middle East Journal.”

Read more on the Web at www.mideasti.org and Juan Cole’s blog, www.juancole.com.