The Nomad and the Olive Branch

I know this story is long overdue, and that I haven't been writing in a while. There are more things to life than sitting in front of a computer and rambling about whatever comes your way in the news or your daily experiences. But anyways, to the issue at hand. Last year on December the 14th, Muntazer al-Zaidi, an Iraqi reporter from the Iraqi-owned and Egyptian-based Al-Baghdadia TV (البغدادية), threw 2 "size 10" shoes (according to Dubya) at the then pResident of the U.S., George W. Bush ( 1 ). All Dubya could do was smile at Zaidi, who was then assailed by Iraqi security forces and taken into custody. Of course, that was all said and done at the time, and usually at other events involving political figures being assailed one way or another by angry protestors, the news of such things tends to die off or remain in memory as an event alone. Of course, that's for most events of this theme. Sadly, Western - and unfortunately this time around, Arab - media outlets have...

I remember seeing a particular advertisement on the BBC for the 2008 Presidential Election in the United States, claiming that it would be a vote that would affect issues the world over, "from the war in Iraq to peace in the Middle East". That's the usual caffeinated hyperbole you get from people who nag at you and knock at your door, telling you to "go out and vote!" As if voting is going to change anything? Elections don't build nations (and that's the topic of an upcoming post, I promise you that), but election results are nonetheless important. To be frank, I was quite surprised that Barack Obama was elected to the Presidency. I bet my brother and a couple of friends that McCain would win, not that I supported that old geyser in the first place. I should have considered that he was committing political suicide by giving his VP candidacy ticket to Sarah Palin, an inexperienced Alaskan governor, all-around "hockey mom", and redneck who just l...

There have been records upon records of discriminatory acts against Muslims and other visible minorities in the states, but this is just sickening. I for one have never seen discrimination on live video more than I have seen it in the movies and those re-enactions in documentaries. The video? Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting. I was going to puke, but I don't want to waste a morning breakfast on account of a few ignorant racists... Well, 13% stood up with the Muslim woman, and 6% stood with the baker. Both the Muslim and the baker were actors, so the real condemnation goes against those who discriminated. Worse still, the remaining stood silent and did absolutely nothing. In the words of one concerned viewer, it would be no wonder to find that some of them are "closeted bigots". The only bright side to this video is the humanity exhibited by those who stood up for the woman. This is interesting to note, considering that yesterday (or the day before?) was the commemoration...

A user named "dodg531" uploaded this 10-part documentary on America's war on democracy. If you're reading this, dodg531, kudos to you from myself. Notice the onus of this film and how it's illustrated in this first part: comparing the sheltered bubble that we all live in to the grim situation which many in third-world countries endure daily, and view each passing second as a struggle for survival. The desperation is largely blamed at "American domination" through right-wing dictators like Pinochet who stratified the pyramid of economic inequality and widened its base for the interests of the upper quintile. Despite this, Simon Bolivar, the known "El Libertador" of South America, is brought forth as a reminder that revolution can crush a foreign influence given the people unite. Chavez is brought up as a potential change and antagonist towards American foreign policy, which, through "aggressive media coverage", brought forth opposition...

I mean, come on: who's better at spreading democracy like it should be done than the U.S. government? And who's even better at colonial suppression than the U.K.'s? Ever since the end of World War II, the U.S. government established itself as a superpower by nuking two separate cities in Japan, killing hundreds of thousands of innocent Japanese, all under the pretext of "saving the lives of millions"? This is not to relieve blame from the Axis Powers, but to highlight the fact that two wrongs don't make a right. However, the U.S. government kept using that pretext to elect governments that serve its interests all around the world. After all, it is the U.S. government, the no. 1 hombre of freedom and democracy, that is choosing those governments, so why should we be pissed? My horrible sarcasm aside, the U.S. government has hid behind the auspices of freedom and democracy to mask its subduing post-colonialist neo-imperialist interests the world over. But I must...

Why, you ask? Well, considering that their government has been helping the states defeat the UIC in neighboring Somalia by invading the nation and making way for U.S. Navy Seals to enter and make an even bigger mess... of course, that's after they helped the corrupt transitional government, again backed by the U.S. A "diplomat" by the name of Nurudin Farah was in Somalia during the time of this unrest, and he watched the chaos unfold right before his very eyes. However, he paints a different picture that many people are used to seeing in neocon PR. According to the New York Times (thanks, Mr. Abu Khalil), Over Christmas, Ethiopia, perhaps intending to provide a gift for the festive season to its American ally, invaded Mogadishu and expelled the Islamists. With thousands of Ethiopian troops in the country — and only a few African Union troops from elsewhere — savage battles took place in Mogadishu between the transitional government army (backed by Ethiopia) and the Islam...

I couldn't help but delay my rant on the GOP "debates", but after watching a program hosted by Ahmed Mansour on Al Jazeera last night, I decided to post instead about a topic that "required" my attention during the Abu Ghraib prison scandal . I was watching Mansour interview a British anti-war activist, and as the program continued, they called a number in Jordan. They could've called me so I'd give my opinion, but apparently they weren't calling an ordinary follower of the news. They called the symbol of Abu Ghraib himself , Hajj Ali al-Qaysi , who is now an Iraqi refugee in Amman. Ali al-Qaysi went on a little spiel, denouncing the occupation of Iraq by colonialist governments who have interests that totally oppose the interests of the Iraqi people (and rightly so). But that's not what caught my ears. What really caught my ears was his mentioning that there were mercenaries present at the base that worked for American corporations. He mentione...

About a year ago, I decided that I had enough of reading opinions and propaganda outlets, so I started a blog of my own and posted on it. It wasn't until I realized that what I wrote and saw and had feedback on had more of an effect on my outlook on things than what I read that I began to obtain a clearer state of mind that saw things for what they were and not for what I wished them to be. Apparently, I'd have lived in more of a bubble if I read more than I blogged. I guess it was because blogging itself made me actively read, as opposed to passively read, all materials and pieces of information out there that existed on the net and elsewhere, and thus it helped me process this information more and more as I actually engaged in producing feedback to what I read and came across. Perspectives do change over time, and that's guaranteed, but I never expected mine to change so drastically over a course of 365 days. Allow me, then, to reflect on how my perspectives have changed ...

Great. Just what I needed during my examination period at my university: news of a shooting at another university. And not just any university, but one of the top universities in the United States of America: Virginia Polytechnic, or Virginiatech for short. Kinda reminds me of the Columbine shootings, et al., but this one turned out to have a death toll of 33 students and professors, including the shooter. I know that this story is at least two weeks old, but the story behind the shooting is one that would be told should something like this happen again, to remind us of the deviants in society. Even when taking a look at the list of the deceased does one realize that the shooter did not discriminate between anyone as he murderously raged through the school and kill those who stood in his way. Not surprisingly, however, was the notion that the media spun a hype about the massacre being motivated by "Islam" ever since police identified the words "Ismail Ax" in red i...