Lawrence of Arabia

I'm really glad I was able to do my final wiki on T.E. Lawrence. I had some background on him from past courses (Yes, I watched the whole movie. Man was it long!) But I find him to be a very interesting person. His life in marked in mystique. How impressive is it that a British man could transplant himself in the Middle East and be accepted as if he were a native? He seemed to have a great respect for Arab culture, unlike a great deal of Westerners at the time, who thought the Arabs were "backwards" in many ways. I would be interested to hear what Lawrence would have to say today (if he were alive) about our situation in the Middle East. If he were an advisor to Tony Blair in 2003, I would bet that he could have persuaded the brits to stay our of the mess, and without the support of the Brits, it is possible the US would never have gone to war. Lawrence seemed to have a clear view of Arab culture which impresses me immensely.