"ن": When Muslims partake in white supremacy
Someone informed me recently about an online campaign raising awareness of the plight of persecuted Christians in Iraq.
The symbol of solidarity for that was the Arabic letter n, or "ن".
On Sunday I was listening to the news and there was someone from the church on saying that the UK government has been far too quiet for far too long on the plight of Christians in Iraq.
I haven't liked what the campaign represented for the first moment. I understand that for western individuals this may seem worthy and they may focus on the non-muslim minorities. I think it is misguided for Muslims to join any such campaign
What this campaign and others do is devalue Muslim blood.
# Will the real islamic state please stand up #
May I have your attention please...
May I have your attention please...
will the real Islamic state stand up.
I repeat, will the real Islamic State please stand up.
We're gonna have a problem here,
Because ISIS ain't it.
I am not speaking up here just for its oppression of Christians. I am not going to put the "noon" as a symbol of solidarity.
Nor for the plight of the Yezidis on Shinjar mountain (to protect whom Obama came running and bombed ISIS... mostly in a different location around Irbil to protect its CIA base there... Do not trust what America tells you. )
Because each of those campaigns and bandwagons belittles Muslim blood.
Caliph Al Baghdadi and the Islamic Caliphate
A topic to keep up to date with going ons...
First step is Tikrit.
Before ISIS Rebranded as IS, they captured large parts of Iraq including the city of Tikrit on June 11.
Currently the Iraqi government is in the process of trying to recapture the city.
Initial reports from Baghdad were that the city had been retaken, but they seem to have been premature.
The biggest victims will be the residents of TIkrit - ISIS has shown no qualms carrying out massacres, and since Tikrit has a large sunni majority. the forces of Al Maliki will not show much compassion to the residents - their aim is to show control on the ground, not to minimise civillian casualties so worse comes to worse they wont be against levelling the city.
US war veterans tossing medals back at Nato was a heroic act
Monday 21 May 2012
Nato summit leaders should have been forced to watch the moving protest of the former troops chucking their medals away
"No amount of medals, ribbons, or flags can cover the amount of human suffering caused by this war."
"I have only one word, and it is shame."
"This is for the people of Iraq and Afghanistan."
"Mostly, I'm sorry. I'm sorry to all of you. I am sorry…"
In the shadow of the Nato summit, under the watchful eyes of a phalanx of full-black-clad riot police, dozens of former servicemen and women in uniform, veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, threw away their medals, with apologies. It was one of the most moving experiences many of us had witnessed in our lives. It is hard to describe in words. I couldn't get the lump out of my throat. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a woman next to me crying. Their words, their voices, crackling under the emotion of their courageous act, breaking under the weight of the pain, the trauma, their anger, sadness, and hope – theirs was a heroic and beautiful act, a moving ceremony. It was a privilege to be there with these women and men who served in our wars.
Operation Iraqi Freedom medal. Tossed. Global War on Terror medal. Thrown. National Defense medal. Pitched. Marine Corps Good Conduct medal. Flung. Navy and Marine Corps medal. Chucked.
Most of the reporting of the demonstrations that met the summit will focus on the minor violence, on the few clashes between protesters and police, on the blood, on everything that happened after the peaceful march was over. In our sad world of spectacle, the pushing and shoving will be all that gets our attention. It is a pity.
Because what was truly remarkable today was the American servicewomen and men tossing their medals back at Nato. In a mixture of sadness, shame, anger, and pride, of trauma, sorrow, and pain, some looking back at their time in Iraq and Afghanistan, some healing from PTSD, others chanting Occupy slogans, these men and women showed a type of courage that the Nato leaders should have been forced to watch. Tragically, our leaders were busy posing for photo ops. They should have been forced to listen to these courageous men and women, to their veterans. It is their loss, ultimately.
Many of these men and women urged us to do something to set straight the havoc that we have wreaked in these various occupations. Some mentioned a memorial for the tens of thousands of civilians killed in Afghanistan or more than 100,000 civilians killed in Iraq. Others offered their apologies. Still others shared their pain, their torments, their nightmares. All of them spoke truth. Perhaps that was their greatest gift of peace.
If only the Nato leaders had listened.
These courageous women and men, these veterans brought to a close a remarkably peaceful anti-Nato march with more than 10,000 protesters – supported by so many more who chanted with them along the route.
"I am returning my medal today because I want to live by my conscience, rather than be a prisoner of it."
"I apologise to the Iraqi and Afghani people for destroying your countries."
"I don't want these anymore."
America is not leaving Iraq with its dignity intact.
America is officially ended its "war operations" in Iraq with a flag ceremony.
They make it look so dignified, as if a lot of what they did there can be whitewashed and ignored.
Unforetunately we cant do anything about what has happened but we can remember.
Hotter Than a Pile of Curry has reminded me about Fallujah and what happened there.
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This video is the first that I have seen that points out that that filmed execution in the mosque was not the first one - it was only the first after the cameraman had managed to turn on his camera - he had shot 4 others before the camera was turned on and this was not a live battle - these people were injured that had been left there by Americans in the mosque the day earlier, and now one went in and executed them all.
The comments on that video are also disgusting.
Back to the title - America is not leaving America with its dignity intact. That is if it is leaving at all.
Look twice.
There was an arab leader facing insurrection from the people.
The people had suffered long enough - they were rising up and wanted change.
The leader, being a typical repressive arab leader used his armed forces to break the people's back. He used the armed forces and the air force to break the rebellion.
The world looked on in horror, and since the "free world" was already not a fan of the regime, it decided to take action. Afterall, something had to be done for the sake of the people.
Sanctions and no fly zones were the name of the game.
Now a question for you all: Am I talking about Libya in 2011, or Iraq in 1991?
[TV] John Pilger: The War You Don't See
John Pilger investigates the media's role in war. He traces the history of 'embedded' and independent reporting from the carnage of WWI to the current wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
This was first broadcast on Tuesday 14 December 2010. Did anyone watch it? what do you make of it all?
Watch on itvPlayer, available until around 13 January 2011.
Dispatches: Iraq's Secret War Files
This was broadcast last night and if you missed it, you have 29 days to watch it here.
[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMxEuXb6dw4]
Quite damning - involving torture, murder, mass murder and all round cowardice by the coalition forces and Iraqi Police and Iraqi Army.
Support our troops? Not when they do this!
The MoD is furious that wikileaks has released many documents about the Iraq War.
They are furious as incidents like this one where a British soldier murdered an 8 year old girl as she played in the street have a very slight chance of becoming public knowledge:
...Lawyer Phil Shiner said the murder happened while soldiers were handing out sweets to children.
He said: "The tank stopped at the end of the street, she's there in her yellow dress, a rifleman pops up and blows her away."...
So, to those that say "you should support our troops", I ask, do they support murder?