People are turning their backs on a dream that let them down; that was my initial impression after talking to a few friends about their feelings. The “American Dream” of course was not only in America; it had its adherents here as well. America meant freedom, education, technology, fun and a haven of better chances for lots of us. The times have brought changes to those dreams and their accompanying feelings. Perhaps we ought to stop and analyze why the American dream has now become so unattractive.

It all began with Sept. 11 followed by the scrutiny of Muslims and Arabs, fuelled by media campaigns here and there. And now after the Iraq war, it seems the worst time to mention a passion for anything American. Not that it reflects hatred. I think there are layers of feelings that accumulated after the stormy events of the last few months. People felt disappointed, misunderstood and always under suspicion as far as America is concerned. The natural reaction would have been to face up to the problem and talk it out. Dialogue would have been a better solution, but we preferred to retreat and boycott, to close our doors on our resentment and disappointment. Whenever I have had a chance to travel abroad or meet a foreigner, I was always faced with questions and misunderstandings. I do not rule out prejudices — but there are many places in which we are unknown or seem to come from a fairy-tale land.

The absurdity of some of the questions made me smile sometimes, but it did always ring bells. It is our responsibility to open the doors and talk to people. We have to be more approachable. Saudis have too often avoided and shunned people from the outside world. We were always polite but, at the same time, aloof. In today’s world of complex relations and interests, that behavior definitely won’t work. Communication with other countries is vital — not official communication but normal people telling other normal people who we are and explaining the differences. We hear constantly suspicious voices which warn us against becoming a part of Western culture and the fear has become paranoia to many of us. We are always on edge with people from other cultures and religions. But if we love our culture, then we should be out there explaining it, exchanging ideas and talking out prejudices. We might not become friends with everyone but we can at least do our part in defending ourselves and clearing away our own misconceptions about the world.

During the war on Iraq, the American ambassador in Riyadh invited some Saudi intellectuals to exchange ideas on the war but his invitation was declined. That kind of action doesn’t help us here; yes, we had our reservations about war in Iraq. But why didn’t we talk about them and exchange opinions? We have a duty to reach out and talk more to people instead of shunning them.

So boycotting America, Britain and the whole Western world is not going to help us in the least. If we are talking economic pressure, fine. But then, how effective can boycotting fast food chains be? After all, we depend to a very great extent on Western technology, cars and machines. Doesn’t that suggest that we ought to build our economy first so that we won’t have to resort to such weak ideas as a half-hearted boycott?