Daniel J. Pipes

16 readers online now  |  62 million page views

120,152 comments by 30,661 readers

Go to Mobile Site

overcoming inertia

Reader comment on item: The U.S. Institute of Peace Stumbles

Submitted by yonason (United States), Mar 23, 2004 at 16:14

B"H

So, what can we do? I mean, how do we change the thinking and behavior of those who set policy and those who implement it?

Bureaucratic institutions have a life of their own, and the momentum they have now is not going to be redirected swiftly or easily. From what I've seen, the Muslim activists not only know this, but have long been aggressively working behind the scenes to exert as much influence as possible at all levels.

Even if Islamic activist's efforts are minimally responsible for causing the weak-headedness you are rightly protesting, their years of hands-on experience has taught them how to manipulate it. They have also become known and, after years of seemingly civilized behavior, they are trusted. Any "outsider" who sounds the alarm against them, no matter how rationally, will be viewed with suspicion and not taken seriously.

If we are to play catch up, we've got our work cut out for us.

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".

Comment on this item

Name
Email Address (optional)
Title of Comments
Comments:

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".

See recent outstanding comments.

Join Daniel Pipes on a Fact Finding Expedition to Israel, March 2012
For full details click here

ADVERTISEMENTS

History News Network
eXTReMe Tracker
Shop BestofVegas for your next Vegas Vacation

Follow Daniel Pipes

Facebook   Twitter   RSS   Join Mailing List

All materials written by Daniel Pipes on this site © 1968-2012 Daniel Pipes. Email: daniel.pipes@gmail.com

You can help support Daniel Pipes' work by making a tax-deductible donation to the Middle East Forum. Daniel J. Pipes