Of Orcas and Regimes - Playing Nice In The Middle East

You've no doubt seen the tragic reports of Tilikum, the orca, and the heartbreaking death of his trainer, Dawn Brancheau. While it is a horrific tragedy, it is not even remotely shocking. This was the third time Tilikum had been involved in the death of a person. It was the second time in two months that a trainer had been killed by an orca. Neither is it the first time a wild animal has killed or maimed someone who supposedly knew how to interact with them. Timothy Treadwell, author of "Among Grizzlies: Living With Wild Bears in Alaska," was killed, along with his girlfriend, by a bear. Steve Irwin, "The Crocodile Hunter," was killed by a stingray. Roy Horn, of Siegfried and Horn was attacked by a tiger he had worked with for almost seven years. Why? Referring to the orca attack Dr. Naomi Rose, a marine mammal biologist, of The Humane Society sums it up thus:

"Simply put, these are wild animals. Taming them is only an illusion; their natural behaviors will always pose a threat to the people foolish enough to interact with them."

Simply put, wild animals are wild animals. Also simply put: the Middle East is the Middle East. The Obama Administration tried playing nice in the Middle East. They tried Western diplomacy. Critics of the Obama Administration's diplomacy have characterized the current state of negotiations as weak, stalled, and failed. Analysts of the Obama Administration's negotiations in the Middle East have labeled their strategies as odd, illogical, and just plain bizarre. Obama's own explanation for the lack of progress for peace in the Middle East? "This is just really hard." Yeah, it's hard, it's been hard since Cain and Abel and it's not going to get easier. Particularly if the Obama Administration continues to approach the Middle East as if they will respond as a Western country. They won't; they're the Middle East.

The latest case in point? Syria. Attempts by Secretary of State Clinton to convince Syria to back away from Iran have resulted in Iranian President Ahmadinejad and Syrian President Assad reaffirming and strengthening their unity. Why did the Syrian strategy backfire? Because the Middle East is the Middle East. They are the ultimate dysfunctional family. They may fight amongst themselves, but try to divide them and it will only serve to unify them. As Assad stated:

''We hope others will not [try to] give us lessons when it comes to our [own] region and history...We can decide how things will proceed, and we know our own interests... [though] we do thank them for their advice.''

Assad went on to mock Clinton saying:

"We must have understood Clinton wrong because of bad translation or our limited understanding, so we signed the agreement."

One more time: the Middle East is the Middle East. Expecting the Middle East not to act like the Middle East is as naive as expecting an orca not to act like an orca or a bear not to act like a bear. Now, more than ever, the Obama Administration needs to wake up to that fact. With increasing reports of a nuclear Iran, naiveté is a luxury the world can't afford. As Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Friday in a speech in Washington:

"Iran is not just a challenge for Israel. I believe it is a challenge for the whole world. I can hardly think of a stable world order with a nuclear Iran."

Today, to a crowd of 2,200 spectators SeaWorld resumed their orca performances. Let's pray that the Obama Administration shows more wisdom.

Of Orcas and Regimes - Playing Nice In The Middle East