Do we still pay tribute?

At the moment, the civilized world pays an exorbitant amount of money into the hands of inept, uncivilized, backward, or vicious Muslim regimes for the oil they provide. Do we help ourselves by thinking of these transactions with the Muslim world as a strictly commercial exchange?

Lawrence Auster highlighted some Amazon reviews touching on the history of our and Europe's early 19th-century dealings with the Barbary Pirates, or, more precisely, the Muslim rulers on the N. African coast. Should we too look at what we pay to Saudi Arabia and Iran, etc., as a form of tribute such was paid to the Pirates of yore? In the old times, at least there was a quid pro quo in that the beys, sultans, and nabobs ceased their piratical operations from time to time. Now we pay and the outrages continue without let. And, now as then, we see the payment of money into the hands of manifestly backward, predatory regimes by manifestly superior peoples who use what we give them to finance terror, subversion, and subornation of our government officials.

Today, unlike our earlier leaders who eventually saw the light, we are positively flaccid in our resolve when it comes to demanding the cessation of hostile actions against us. Jefferson, who waivered when the problem first arose, looks like a mad bull compared to our present leaders. (Events in Iraq and Afghanistan have long since shown that we are quite unserious players on the Realpolitik stage.) But just you wait. One of these days we're going to get really cross about the behavior of Muslim regimes. Really cross.

In the past, convincing use of only moderate amounts of military power solved the problem of the day with predatory Muslims.

Might such stern measures work today? Or do we just have an unlimited capacity to absorb insult and abuse?

"America, Europe, and the Barbary pirates—then and now." By Lawrence Auster, View from the Right, 12/22/06.