The Strong Horse
 | |
| Author | Lee Smith |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Publication date | 2010 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 320 |
The Strong Horse: Power, Politics, and the Clash of Arab Civilizations is a 2010 book by journalist Lee Smith. The title is a reference to Osama bin Laden’s 2001 remark that, “When people see a strong horse and a weak horse, by nature, they will like the strong horse”, an oft-cited analogy that compares al-Qaeda to a strong, and therefore, likable, racehorse.[1]
According to the Christian Science Monitor, Smith's central contention is that the 9/11 attack on America is best understood as an extension of an inter-Arab fight on a new battleground of lower Manhattan. “Bin Ladenism is not drawn from the extremist fringe but represents the political and social norm [of the Arabic-speaking Middle East]”. Smith explains this using what he terms the “strong horse” principle according to which “violence is central to the politics, society, and culture”. The strong horse is the person, tribe, country, or nation that can impose its will, the "strong horse", wins.[2]
According to Daniel Pipes, founder and director of the Middle East Forum, Smith "acknowledges that the strong-horse principle may strike Westerners as ineffably crude, but he correctly insists on its being a cold reality that outsiders must recognize, take into account, and respond to".[1]