The Arabs and Obama. I read this piece on Obama. Let me say this. I believe that what Ali Abunimah did in his article revealing the pro-Palestinian past of Obama was a great service to us all. It is important that we don't suffer from illusions of naivite or worse regarding US aspirants for higher office. I remember a dinner I attended with Arab students at SAIS back in 1992. One Kuwaiti student told us that we should refrain from criticizing Fouad Ajami. He said that Ajami has a very shrewd plan: that he was plotting to rise in the US hierarchy, and then...At that point I interjected: "...Liberate Palestine? Tell us." The point is that sometimes we want to disbelieve our own eyes. Yes, the Clinton campaign will use all this information about the past of Obama to discredit him. And when they do that, I will relish it. I of course dislike both campaigns and view them as equally cynical, and equally opportunistic, and equally hostile to Palestinian and Arab causes. It would be harmful to take sides in those battles between candidates X or Y. Obama used Arabs in the past, and now is using them again, but in reverse. For that, he only deserves our scorn. And whatever information we have about his past support for Palestine, should be brought forth. The notion that we can help Obama now because he may help us in the future runs against everything we know about US contemporary history, and the abuse of the Palestinian question by US presidential candidates and presidents alike.