Obama's come-to-Allah speech

In another effort to reach out to the Muslim world, President Obama landed in Cairo, Egypt to give a speech at Cairo University. I applaud this effort as nobody can deny the tension between Islam and the West, especially after the 9/11 attacks and the Madrid and London terrorist bombings. However, I think he's preaching to the choir and although the speech is well delivered and well received, I'm sure the Islamist terrorists remain bent on destroying the West and Israel.

Seriously, the Muslims in the audience have absolutely no influence on the terrorists. How do you get a terrorist to listen to you? Certainly not through a well written speech. You get a terrorist's attention by hunting one down, lock him up, and maybe with the help of an "enhanced interrogation technique."

The New York Post makes an interesting point:

But if world peace is attained by complimenting those on the other side into submission, he made some serious progress.

Obama really buttered them up in Cairo.

He thanked them for everything from algebra to the pen, though he curiously failed to mention that they often throw people in prison for using it.

Exactly. Even though President Obama offers such praise of the Muslim world:

...share common principles -- principles of justice and progress; tolerance and the dignity of all human beings.

How come the news coming from the Muslim world are often those of gender discrimination, honor killings, and suppression of free speech? If the religion of Islam indeed share those common principles, then clearly many Muslim governments are not putting those into practice. And it is profoundly unfortunate that the West sees this dark side of Islam, but then where are the Muslim critics of his or her own unjust leaders and governments? Rarely do we hear a Muslim criticize those who pervert his or her religion.

And about Israel:

America's strong bonds with Israel are well known. This bond is unbreakable. It is based upon cultural and historical ties, and the recognition that the aspiration for a Jewish homeland is rooted in a tragic history that cannot be denied.

Around the world, the Jewish people were persecuted for centuries, and anti-Semitism in Europe culminated in an unprecedented Holocaust. Tomorrow, I will visit Buchenwald, which was part of a network of camps where Jews were enslaved, tortured, shot and gassed to death by the Third Reich. Six million Jews were killed -- more than the entire Jewish population of Israel today. Denying that fact is baseless, it is ignorant, and it is hateful. Threatening Israel with destruction -- or repeating vile stereotypes about Jews -- is deeply wrong, and only serves to evoke in the minds of Israelis this most painful of memories while preventing the peace that the people of this region deserve.

I did notice that there's no "(Applause)" after this part of the speech, whereas when he talked about the plight of the Palestinians, the audience clapped. Makes you wonder, doesn't it? However, I'm glad he did talk about the Holocaust and anti-Semitism as a warning to Iranian President Ahmadinejad. Yet it's clear that some Israelis see their relation with America souring -- there's currently an anti-Obama campaign that is gathering steam.

President Obama needs to be clear to the world: Israel will always be a close friend. That region is so hostile and unstable that when Israel's enemies sniff a weakened U.S.-Israeli tie, they will definitely take advantage. We must remain at Israel's side. Always.

Overall the President gave a great speech being the talented orator that he is. But parts of the speech did sound like he was talking to the American people on domestic issues rather than to an audience in Egypt. His effort is appreciated and an improved relationship with Muslims benefits everyone.