"core warrior values"

A great article by Gary Younge in the Guardian, titled, "If wanton murder is essential to the US campaign in Iraq, it's time to leave".

[A squad of US marines in Iraq] claim they then saw a back door open and, believing they were in "hot pursuit" of a gunman, broke into a second house and prepped another room, killing eight civilians, including two women and five children aged from three to 14. The imperialist "wears a mask", wrote George Orwell, "and his face grows to fit it".

Bear in mind that this is the marines' account, according to their lawyers - in other words, the account they feel puts them in the best possible light. Let's assume they were telling the truth. Given everything we know about the treatment of Iraqi prisoners by the US, what military-aged Iraqi male in his right mind would not run from a battalion of American soldiers after a bomb has gone off?

Making American Imams

A very interesting read from the New York Times regarding Sheikh Hamza Yusuf's and Imam Zaid Shakir's initiatives in the U.S.:

[...] "This is the wealthiest Muslim community on earth," Mr. Shakir told the crowd, quickly adding that "the wealth here has been earned" — unlike, he said, in the oil-rich Middle East. As the audience laughed at Mr. Shakir's flattery, he chided them for buying Lexuses — with heated leather seats they would never need in Houston — and Jaguars, and made them laugh again by pronouncing it "Jaguoooaah," like a stuffy Anglophile.

And then he issued a challenge: "Where are the Muslim Doctors Without Borders? Spend six months here, six months in the Congo. Form it!"

[...] Mr. Yusuf told the audience in Houston to beware of "fanatics" who pluck Islamic scripture out of context and say, "We're going to tell you what God says on every single issue.

"That's not Islam," Mr. Yusuf said. "That's psychopathy."

i've been tagged

Sooo, Zak has tagged me with the "six weirdest things" about myself. That should be easy :D Let's see....

1) This is kindof stupid... If i'm watching a movie (or anything on tv), i cry whenever there's a part that shows some kid crying. Doesn't matter where i'm watching the movie (even if there's a gazillion people around me), or what's happening to the kid, or who the kid is, i'll still cry [bawl my eyes out] if i see ANY kid crying. It's guaranteed.

2) It doesn't matter how hot it is outside, it can be 40+ C, but if i'm lying down to sleep, i ONLY feel comfortable with a sheet or a quilt covering me... even if that means sweltering while i'm sleeping. i know it makes no sense.

3) On average, i take about fifteen minutes to write a three-line e-mail. i go through every word repeatedly.

4) i don't like buying footwear. i have one pair of summer sandals that i wear everyday, rain or shine, and one pair of winter shoes that i wear during the winter. That's I-T. i have been told numerous times that this is not normal behaviour for females.

5) i hate 'dressing up' (like for fancy occasions/weddings etc). i absolutely HATE dressing up formally. Again, this is apparently not normal behaviour for females - generally speaking.

6) i hate standing close to anyone. It makes me uncomfortable.

i think that's it... i hope i did alright, Zak?

Zarqawi

"Removing Zarqawi is a major blow to al Qaeda. It's not going to end the war, it's certainly not going to end the violence, but it's going to help a lot" ~ President Bush, REUTERS, "Bush says Zarqawi death won't end war but will help", 09 June 2006

During Saddam Hussein's time in Iraq, there was an EXTREMELY limited presence of al Qaeda in Iraq IF there was any to begin with. Hussein's secular Baathist regime did not exactly see eye-to-eye with the more extremist elements that make up al Qaeda. Pre-US invasion, there was little if any presence of al Qaeda forces in Iraq. Post-Saddam Hussein and post-US invasion, al Qaeda elements have successfully carved a very firm foothold for themselves in Iraq. Now, Bush talks about Zarqawi's death as being a "major blow to al Qaeda". Who is he fooling? If he hadn't ordered the invasion in the first place, there would have been no al Qaeda in Iraq to begin with. So far, all the US has managed to 'accomplish' has been to fight demons that the US itself created in the first place. And then they pat themselves on the back for doing that! Good God... Orwellian times.

How stupid can a president get. How stupid must a populace be? For heaven's sake, do the majority of Americans not comprehend where their president is leading them to?