"The images [of looting] you are seeing on television, you are seeing over and over and over, and it’s the same picture of some person walking out of some building with a vase. And you see it twenty times. And you think, 'My goodness, were there that many vases? Is it possible that there were that many vases in the whole country?' "

—Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, April 11

"A handful of ancient objects stolen from Iraq’s national museum were returned today. AU.S. soldier at the museum said local residents handed over bags containing twenty vases and other antiquities. Thousands of objects disappeared [from Baghdad museums] last week."

—"The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," April 18

It is hard to imagine a more precarious — or more promising — time in the Middle East. Will Iraq become a secular democracy or a new theocracy? Will the change in the Palestinian leadership usher in needed reform and a chance for statehood and peace with Israel, or will the revolving door of violence and enmity continue to spin? The region hangs in the balance. The direction in which it tips will depend on the choices made now by the Arab world, Israel and the United States. All have responsibilities they must assume.

It is becoming clear that the Arab world needs to take the initiative in making its political and economic systems more democratic. The frustrations Arabs feel today — prompted by the slow pace of democratic reform, stagnant economies and political instability: all threaten the region's future. The moment has come for the Arab world to engage in a homegrown, evolutionary and orderly process of democratization — one that will respect Arab culture while at the same time giving citizens the power to be part of the political process.

There are encouraging noises coming from the Arab establishment in the Middle East. Amongst them is this Times op-ed by the Foreign Minister of Jordan calling on Arab countries to get their acts together and get democratizing.

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