In the third iteration of his memoirs, Turki concentrates on two aspects of his life: changing from Arab into American and alienation from the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). In Turki's case, becoming an American is a funny, quite degenerate, and certainly ribald process. It makes for a moving transformation, especially when contrasted with his earlier dislike of the United States.
As for the PLO, Turki denounces its "corruption and incompetence" as well as its "tired cant and lame banalities." But don't think he only has harsh words; in Turki's hands, even turning away from the PLO has a humorous edge (indeed, his game on the Arab League's pompous ambassador in Washington is sidesplitting). Turki also condemns what he sees as the terrible traditionalness of Palestinian society and calls for nothing less than a revolution: "the liberation of Palestinian society will only come about when the Palestinians themselves recognize their neobackwardness and begin an Intifada against it."
It wasn't many years ago that every Palestinian proclaimed himself a PLO supporter. Hamas and Islamic Jihad first broke the monopoly on the fundamentalist side. Now more liberal elements are ready to tell the world just how awful the organization is, providing details detractors could hitherto only have imagined. In contrast to grudging Americans like Edward Said, Turki eagerly embraces the United States and rejects PLO brutalities; this is a major development. Indeed, his candor and thoughtfulness marks a significant breakthrough.
