Parts of Musivore's post I like
Also Arabs/Muslims everywhere else have/had an opportunity to make their lands prosperous and rich like Israel but instead handed it ove to mullahs who dedicate much of their time focusing on blasphemy laws to kill apostates,gays,impure women, minorities, etc etc. and fighting with other sects of Islam. ignoring the sciences and destroying any progressive movements/people who try to lift their countries out of the hole they put themselves in. That's their own damn fault.
Sakura, it's not that your observations are incorrect or anything, but they are too generalised/simple.
Driving through Baghdad in 2004, (14 years of being exiled), my dad starts crying, swearing at Saddam and saying things like "where are the buildings gone? What happened to the street lights? Why is there so much garbage everywhere? Curse Saddam!". There was a lot of hurt in his voice and it was because of what dictatorship and war had done to his country.
Also, he commented on the messy waiting line saying that war had ruined people's manners and patience.
I personally hate Muslim scholars/mullahs/bastards who have the power to help/guide society yet they're money scabbing hate mongers, making stupid fatwas and shit. Then there's CIA's funding of extremism whenever they need a favour in the region, then they leave the remains for the locals to figure out.
It's easier for people living in comfort to ignore these details and just assume, say, all Iranis love their Mullahs.
Anyway, even though I agree with your conclusion, I think it's unfair to blame the general population as if they just hand it over. Iraq's Shia uprising happened because of American encouragement and the south went ahead, but America pulled out and left them at the mercy of Saddam. Those people who's lives were ruined ended up being supporters of Muqtada AlSadr (Jaysh AlMahdi- which was very active while I was there 2004-2010) and other thieves and formed their own anti-Baathi and anti-USA (surprise?) army.
Jaysh AlMahdi are pretty much another AlQaeda to the locals, thugs with guns, but it was a result of betrayal and oppression. They occupy the mosques to gain support and they use people's emotions and loss to manipulate (remember what Saddam did to us? Let's go on a murder rampage in a Baathi town! etc)
Btw, I talk about Iraq/Shia all the time because that's my background, I don't know much about other places, but yeah I'm a crap explainer, hope it made sense
.
Topic: Something I never knew about the Dome of the Rock?