Obama's Speech

We all watched the speech on our Common Room's TV.

A few notes:
1. He did a great job with the Arabic pronunciations (things like using a soft "s" instead of "z" in "Muslim" do actually mean something). "Salaam aleikum" at the beginning was fantastic.
2. I liked his seven points.
3. I think he could have been a bit harsher on Israel. Wasn't expecting him to do so, but I think it would have made people very happy for him to more blatantly state that Israel needs to stop denying Palestinian rights. Also think he should have referenced the nonviolent student coop movements with Palestinian and Israeli students as an example when he encouraged nonviolence.

The students and locals I watched it with clapped very happily at the end. Overall, the speech was encouraging and I think most Muslims will respond positively. We can hem and haw about what could have been better or worse, but the visit itself, and the spirit of the speech, are going to do great things towards improving perceptions.