She makes statements about "most of the Arab world" without ever setting foot anywhere in the Arab world. Sure, she saw some Muslims in Philly, and had one as her best friend, and from this she draws general conclusions about Arabs and Muslims? Well, I LIVED in the Arab world as a member of an Arab Muslim family and Arab society, now I am part of the Arab-American community. I travel regularly in the Arab and Muslim world where I spend most of my time hanging out with the people who live there. I have a large family in Pakistan with whom I have spent very intimate time. I know for a fact that you can no more make these kinds of stereotypical generalization about the Arab and Muslim worlds than you can about the United States.

Just as in the United States, how women are treated varies enormously in the Muslim world, and depends on many different factors. There are plenty of Muslim men who are absolutely lovely and respectful to women in every way, and there are plenty of non-Muslim, non-Arab men who are horribly abusive to women. And sometimes the awful abusive ones and the lovely, respectful ones occur in the same family (I know a few sets of brothers like that), so as everywhere else one of the factors is individual temperament. In Arab-Muslim society just as in non-Muslim, non-Arab society, most men are somewhere in between the two extremes.

As for not allowing women to have educations, how does Anna explain the fact that women at times outnumber men in colleges and universities in some Arab/Muslim countries? How does she explain that college and university campuses all over the Arab and Muslim worlds are filled with women as well as men? And how does she explain the fact that until recently women in Arab and Muslim countries made up a higher percentage of the physicians there than they did in the United States (the U.S. finally caught up about 10-15 years ago)? And how does she explain the fact that even to this day in most of the Arab/Muslim world women are more accepted in fields such as engineering, architecture, and dentistry than they have traditionally been in the U.S. (e.g. the chief architect in Iran was a woman, and as far as I know she still holds that position)? Does Anna know how many Arab and Muslim countries have, in the last few decades, instituted programs to improve women's literacy?

And how does she explain that Pakistan, a country with a deeply religious Muslim population, has had a female PM, and might have one today had she not been murdered (for political, not gender reasons)? And to the best of my knowledge no one ever made snide comments about her menstrual cycles - at least not publicly.

Yes, women are horrifically treated in some parts of Afghanistan (interestingly, Bush's "in your face, this is how it's gonna be" approach has only made life worse for Afghan women overall, so I'm not sure how Obama's using that tactic is likely to help them). The status of women in Sa`udi Arabia is completely unacceptable, and makes a lot of Arabs feel ashamed. There is a lot of room for improvement in most of the Gulf, too, though it is not as bad there as in Sa`udia. And there are small segments of Muslim society in many if not most countries where the status and treatment of women is cause for great concern, just as there are such segments in every society. But none of that excuses the kind of broad-brush generalization Anna has indulged in. Nor does it justify giving a very public finger-wagging lecture to the entire Muslim world.

As for the headscarf thing, give me a break! Nearly all the women and girls I know who cover their heads do so completely willingly, and they often cover against the wishes of their fathers, brothers, and husbands. I also know a lot of families in which some of the women choose to cover and others do not. For example, the mother and one or more of her daughters will cover, the others will not, or the mother does (or doesn't) while her daughters do not (or do). So, who is forcing anyone?

These days in the Arab world the headscarf is as much a fashion statement as anything else, as Anna might have noticed had she ever been there and seen it for herself. Oh, and the customs for head covering, including the style, and when or even whether it is expected, vary enormously from one region to another. And contrary to the common stereotype held by Americans, women who cover are not oppressed and meek. In fact, some of the most lively, active, friendly, assertive - and yes, feminist - women I have ever known have been covered women.

And for the record, I do not cover, and never have except when entering a mosque. Oh - and when in Pakistan I dress in Pakistani clothes, which are beautiful, wonderfully comfortable, and include a long matching shawl, called a dupata which is used to cover the head, but is usually worn draped around the shoulders. And I refuse to pass judgment on my sisters who do cover.

And finally, anyone familiar with human nature should intuitively understand that Obama publicly "calling Muslims on their treatment of women" would not only do nothing to help the women who really do need help, it would have the exact opposite effect.

But nice words can backfire if one gets the sense nice things are being said simply to enable an injustice or assuage righteous anger.

Remember.  Bush was the first U.S. president to acknowledge the Palestinian right to their own state.  But his actions did not follow that rhetoric.  

When Obama gives people hope he is setting expectations for action.