--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Arab rulers are basically unpopular…" description: "\"The Arab rulers are basically unpopular. They are supported by the United States against the wishes of their people. In all of this rather heady mixtur..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f57/edward-said-6412_america_the-arab-rulers-are-basically-unpopular_550879.jpg" --- # The Arab rulers are basically unpopular. They are… ![“The Arab rulers are basically unpopular. They are supported by the United States against the wishes of their people. In all of this rather heady mixture of violence and policies that are remarkably unpopular right down to the last iota, it's not hard for demagogues, especially people who claim to…” quote by Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f57/edward-said-6412_america_the-arab-rulers-are-basically-unpopular_550879.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f57/edward-said-6412_america_the-arab-rulers-are-basically-unpopular_550879.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f57/edward-said-6412_america_the-arab-rulers-are-basically-unpopular_550879.jpg) > “The Arab rulers are basically unpopular. They are supported by the United States against the wishes of their people. In all of this rather heady mixture of violence and policies that are remarkably unpopular right down to the last iota, it's not hard for demagogues, especially people who claim to speak in the name of religion, in this case Islam, to raise a crusade against the United States and say that we must somehow bring America down.” [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that Arab leaders lack popular support and are backed by the US, which fuels extremist narratives that portray America as an enemy. **In simple terms:** Arab leaders are unpopular, US support fuels anti‑American rhetoric. Key Takeaway Recognize how foreign backing can delegitimize regimes. Themes politics foreign policy religion media public opinion Mood critical analytical Type political academic When to use this quote - policy analysis - academic discussion - media critique Key Concepts legitimacy propaganda crusade rhetoric Questions to Reflect On - How does external support affect a regime’s legitimacy? - What role does religious rhetoric play in political conflicts? A Different Perspective Extremist narratives may also stem from internal grievances, not just foreign support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Crusades](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crusades/) [Islam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/islam/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Rulers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rulers/) [United states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states/) [Violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violence/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) ## Related quotes > [I am an international leader, the dean of the Arab rulers, the king of kings of Africa and the imam of Muslims, and my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muammar-al-gaddafi/i-am-an-international-leader-the-dean-of-the-arab-rulers-the-king-of/) [Muammar al-Gaddafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muammar-al-gaddafi/) > [All the words that George Bush used in public during the early stages of the crisis - "wanted, dead or alive," "a crusade," etc.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/all-the-words-that-george-bush-used-in-public-during-the-early-stages/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [I was incredibly unpopular in high school but also extremely notorious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grimes/i-was-incredibly-unpopular-in-high-school-but-also-extremely-notorious/) [Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grimes/) > [I didn't mind being unpopular at school, because everyone else was a heathen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-didn-t-mind-being-unpopular-at-school-because-everyone-else-was-a/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [A society in which people feel they have a legitimate right to stop someone expressing their views on campus simply because they are unfashionable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-gyimah/a-society-in-which-people-feel-they-have-a-legitimate-right-to-stop/) [Sam Gyimah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-gyimah/) > [“I don't usually read popular books. Because I know how powerful promotion can be. Most of the time, the great books are hidden from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/i-don-t-usually-read-popular-books-because-i-know-how-powerful/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [I make unpopular versions of popular things. I make a horror film and it's not a horror film. None of my genre movies function…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-harron/i-make-unpopular-versions-of-popular-things-i-make-a-horror-film-and/) [Mary Harron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-harron/) > [Without question the most unpopular medium of musical sound in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-beecham/without-question-the-most-unpopular-medium-of-musical-sound-in-the/) [Thomas Beecham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-beecham/) > [I figured it is always better to be unpopular by your own choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-upton/i-figured-it-is-always-better-to-be-unpopular-by-your-own-choice/) [Tom Upton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-upton/) > [Trump in particular was such an unpopular candidate, because he's so anti communities of color, and we're a minority majority state, are you kidding?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-lujan-grisham/trump-in-particular-was-such-an-unpopular-candidate-because-he-s-so/) [Michelle Lujan Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-lujan-grisham/) > [The more unpopular politicians are, the better people think it is to have a monarchy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-bradford/the-more-unpopular-politicians-are-the-better-people-think-it-is-to/) [Sarah Bradford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-bradford/) > [I am not concerned about getting reelected. I can make the unpopular but necessary decision. Your focus from day one is on your legacy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benigno-aquino-iii/i-am-not-concerned-about-getting-reelected-i-can-make-the-unpopular/) [Benigno Aquino III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benigno-aquino-iii/) > [I think that people who stand up for what they believe in, no matter how unpopular, should be celebrated, not cast aside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-lancaster/i-think-that-people-who-stand-up-for-what-they-believe-in-no-matter/) [Craig Lancaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-lancaster/) > [Well I think that what we're seeing now is that the people feel like they, the people in Congress don't have their consent to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ingraham/well-i-think-that-what-we-re-seeing-now-is-that-the-people-feel-like/) [Laura Ingraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ingraham/) > [People who are not prepared to do unpopular things and defy the clamor of the multitude are not fit to be ministers in time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/people-who-are-not-prepared-to-do-unpopular-things-and-defy-the/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) ## More by Edward Said > [Beginning is not only a kind of action. It is also a frame of mind, a kind of work, an attitude, a consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/beginning-is-not-only-a-kind-of-action-it-is-also-a-frame-of-mind-a/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [It's very hard, for example, to justify the thirty-four-year occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. It's very hard to justify 140 Israeli settlements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/it-s-very-hard-for-example-to-justify-the-thirty-four-year-occupation/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [ \[9/11\] was bloody-minded destruction for no other reason than to do it. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/9-11-was-bloody-minded-destruction-for-no-other-reason-than-to-do-it/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [Look at situations as contingent, not as inevitable, look at them as the result of a series of historical choices made by men and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/look-at-situations-as-contingent-not-as-inevitable-look-at-them-as/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [I was one of the first people in the Palestinian world, in the late 1970s, to say that there is no military option, either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/i-was-one-of-the-first-people-in-the-palestinian-world-in-the-late/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [Take a young man from Gaza living in the most horrendous conditions - most of it imposed by Israel - who straps dynamite around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/take-a-young-man-from-gaza-living-in-the-most-horrendous-conditions/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [ \[One task of intellectuals is\] to break down the stereotypes and reductive categories that are . . . limiting to human thought and communication. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/one-task-of-intellectuals-is-to-break-down-the-stereotypes-and/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [I have never known what is Arabic or English, or which one was really mine beyond any doubt. What I do know, however, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/i-have-never-known-what-is-arabic-or-english-or-which-one-was-really/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [Every single empire in its official discourse has said that it is not like all the others, that its circumstances are special, that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/every-single-empire-in-its-official-discourse-has-said-that-it-is-not/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [ The just response to this terrible event \[9/11\] should be to go immediately to the world community, the United Nations. The rule of international… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/the-just-response-to-this-terrible-event-9-11-should-be-to-go/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [Since when does a militarily occupied people have the responsibility for a peace movement?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/since-when-does-a-militarily-occupied-people-have-the-responsibility/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [Refuse to allow yourself to become a vegetable that simply absorbs information, pre-packaged, pre-ideologized , because no message.. is anything but an ideological package…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/refuse-to-allow-yourself-to-become-a-vegetable-that-simply-absorbs/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [No cause, no God, no abstract idea can justify the mass slaughter of innocents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/no-cause-no-god-no-abstract-idea-can-justify-the-mass-slaughter-of/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [What we must eliminate are systems of representation that carry with them the authority which has become repressive because it doesn't permit or make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/what-we-must-eliminate-are-systems-of-representation-that-carry-with/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [Part of the main plan of imperialism... is that we will give you your history, we will write it for you, we will re-order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/part-of-the-main-plan-of-imperialism-is-that-we-will-give-you-your/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) [Explore all 97 Edward Said quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. 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