The UAE--Friend or Foe?

With all the talk in the media and blogosphere about the UAE, and the (apparently aborted) port deal, it's high time that we heard from a blogger that's actually living in the UAE--Avenging Apostate at PI.

'AA' lives in Dubai and is uniquely positioned to be able to report on the actual 'man-on-the-street' mood there. What are the people in the UAE saying about their relations with the US, or with non Moslems in general? Is the UAE a truly reliable ally in the officially-named "war on terror"? President Bush swears up and down on how steadfast and trustworthy the UAE is, and how much the UAE cooperates with the US. Is this cooperation anything more than window dressing?

Here's the money quote:

(The UAE is)...a multicultural society where hatred of non-Moslems is obvious, where the non Moslems start saying ‘prophet Mohammed’ even though they don’t believe he is a prophet, makes me think that there’s something fishy. No one here has ever talked against the Iranian nuclear program; they don’t condemn terrorists—civilians and the government alike. By not condemning it, they condone, in silent whispers, the heinous acts of Islamic barbarism.

Read it all at Pedestrian Infidel.