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December 23, 2011

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The Spirit of Revolution

December 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

17-year-old Andrew Barrows invokes the spirit of the Founding Fathers to question America’s current direction.

I want to start with some quotes from past presidents of the United States Of America, as well as important activists who discussed freedom and oppression.

Those who deny freedom to others, deserve it not for themselves. - Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

The will of the people is the only legitimate foundation of any government, and to protect its free expression should be our first object. - Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)

True individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made. - Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945)

Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.

Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968)

The law will never make men free, it is men that have to make the law free. - Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter. - George Washington (1732-1799)

In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility — I welcome it. - John F. Kennedy (1917-1963)

I think to myself, all these people — historical leaders who will be talked about for as long as American history exists, had such wonderful views on freedom, and great ideas about how the country should be run. In fact, they are so wonderful we still talk about them hundreds of years later.

Now I think to myself, all these people — historical leaders who will be talked about for as long as American history exists, had such wonderful views on freedom, and great ideas about how the country should be run. In fact, they are so wonderful we still talk about them hundreds of years later.

I think about the American Revolution, and how many people have fought and died to make America, and what the American Revolution was all about. I constantly ponder the thought of, “I really wonder how past presidents would react to the way America is now.” I can imagine Abraham Lincoln or George Washington being brought back to life to experience modern America for just a day. But I can’t begin to imagine his facial expression when I would tell him:

Yeah, since all of your wonderful truth speaking, caring about the people, and doing what is right and fair to give people extraordinary documents dedicated to freedom…America has really gone down hill…and I mean…really down hill.

Being a president today actually means who’s the best liar on the stage. It is like a highschool talent show. Each person goes on stage and tries to convince the audience to like them, and whoever lies the most wins. They are just puppets who can’t really do anything. Congressional approval is 8% and WE the people don’t actually get a say in what happens. The mega rich call the shots and huge companies actually control what the government does while the middle class and poor get robbed blind.

After I would study his confusion…I would continue…

The Patriot Act

(After explaining what a phone and the Internet is). Gives the government the power to read my emails, my text messages, track my phone, follow me, tap my phone calls, install a tracking device under my car to know my exact location. In short…violate my privacy completely.

Then I would discuss the SOPA/PROTECT IP ACT.

A bill that has been introduced in the Senate and the House and is moving quickly through Congress. It gives the government and corporations the ability to censor the Net, in the name of protecting “creativity”. The law would let the government or corporations censor entire sites — they just have to convince a judge that the site is “dedicated to copyright infringement.”

Next of course, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

The bill grants power to the military to arrest U.S. citizens on American soil and detain them in military prisons forever without offering them the right to legal counsel or even a trial. This isn’t a totally new thing: “dirty bomb” plotter Jose Padilla spent three-and-a-half years as an “enemy combatant” until he was finally charged. But Padilla’s detention was unusual and sparked a huge outcry; the new provisions would standardize his treatment and enable us all to become Jose Padillas.

Than I would probably make him watch this video on YouTube: “A Time-Lapse Map of Every Nuclear Explosion Since 1945″ by Isao Hashimoto

 

 

Than I would explain having a gun, missing fingers, or 7 days of food at your house = YOU ARE A TERRORIST

You know, at this point he would probably be on his knees with a huge headache.

I’m sure eventually he would say something like “Why are the people allowing this to happen? And what happened to people fighting for what is right?”

Than I would explain the Anonymous Internet group and the Occupy movement and protests. I think he would be pretty happy and would get up off his knees.

BUT than I would show him videos of what is happening when people are trying to protest and spread truth. I would start probably with this video:

or this video:

 

It’s really hard to choose which video of police attacking innocent protesters expressing their Constitutional rights I would show because, honestly, YouTube is filled with them. So I would probably just let him browse around for a while.

Now at this point I would imagine he would pretty much scream or yell that everything that past Americans had fought for to create has been literally bashed by the people who are supposed to enforce it, and has been turned around and used against the people instead of protecting them.

Than I would get Paul Revere out of my time machine/life regeneration thing and Paul Revere would jump on his horse and ride through the city streets of Boston yelling “The British aren’t coming; they are already here!

“Would our Founding Fathers be disgraced at what America has become? Is everything they fought for now becoming useless?

Would they call for a revolution?

 

Source: https://www.activistpost.com/2011/12/spirit-of-revolution.html#more

Filed Under: America, Censorship, Civil Liberties, Corporations, Corruption, Crime, Culture, Dissenters, Financial Crisis, Imperialism, Military, Military Industrial Complex, Money, New World Order, Nuclear, Occupy, Politicians, Protests, Radiation, Revolution, Rights, Science, Social Unrest, Surveillance, Technology, War Tagged With:

Giving Birth Is A Battle For Survival In Afghanistan

December 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

HERAT, Afghanistan (Reuters) - She was 15 years old, heavily pregnant and had travelled eight days on the back of a donkey to reach hospital.

Suffering from seizures and high blood pressure, she died soon after at the Herat Maternity Hospital in western Afghanistan, one of the thousands of women who die in the country each year from causes linked to pregnancy and birth.

“She came at a late stage and we couldn’t help her,” said Somayeh, a midwife at the hospital and herself just 21. “She was already in a coma.”

Politicians, economists and activists from around the world met in Bonn this month to thrash out their vision for battered and impoverished Afghanistan. In addition to the insurgency and violence, it remains the most dangerous place in the world for a woman to have a baby, the latest World Health Organization data shows.

The figures are distressing, but still a marked improvement on the situation 10 years ago. The latest available WHO data, from 2008, shows the number of women who died giving birth had dipped to 1,400 per 100,000 live births from 1,800 in 2000.

The Ministry of Public Health says it has made maternal health a priority, supporting training schemes that have lifted the number of qualified midwives in the country to 3,000 from just 400, and expanding emergency delivery services.

“We have demonstrated that these strategies can work in Afghanistan. They can bring a change in the lives of women and families,” acting public health minister Suraya Dalil says. “The challenge is to sustain those achievements.”

Charities such as World Vision — which trained Somayeh — and Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) also have in-depth programs to help new mothers across Afghanistan.

But they worry that the planned drawdown of Western troops and funds — all foreign combat soldiers will be gone by the end of 2014, and a large chunk of aid budgets is expected to go with them — could jeopardise the modest gains of the last decade.

Without foreign cash to bolster scarce government funds, midwife training will almost certainly drop off, while aid groups may leave if they cannot operate in safety. MSF closed its Afghan operations in 2004 after five team members were killed, although the group has since returned.

“The greatest risk at present is through aid levels dropping off precipitously,” says Sarah Pickworth, a public health specialist who has worked extensively in Afghanistan.

“Without sufficient funding, there is likely to be a significantly slower pace of change. This risks losing the momentum of the tremendous gains made.”

SECURITY DEADLINE

Faced with an appalling death toll among pregnant women and new mothers, communities in rural areas — which have some of the highest mortality rates — have mobilised to help women.

Herat’s Institute of Health Sciences (IHS) has trained 256 midwives in the past seven years through schemes largely supported by charities such as World Vision. Many of its students have been deliberately selected from remote villages.

But if Herat is hit by violence, the families are likely to take their daughters out of school and take them home to safety.

A deterioration in the security situation would likely hit pregnant women as well as midwife training.

Transporting women in labour from rural areas to clinics is already a tough proposition in a country where few can afford cars and roads are scarce and badly maintained. It will become still harder if gunmen have freer rein to target travellers.

The re-emergence in political life of groups like the Taliban, which banned education and the free movement of women, could also have a devastating effect on death rates.

Under their influence, a generation of potential female midwives and doctors has already been lost, midwife trainers say. This is particularly devastating in a country where male doctors treating women is still largely taboo.

PLUGGING THE GAP

But as big a problem for Afghanistan is money. The Afghan government is facing a $7 billion hole in its budget after 2014, which it will need to pay for security and other services. It is relying on foreign help to plug that gap.

The grinding poverty in which many women live means hygiene and nutrition are often poor. A recent survey showed only around half of Afghans have access to clean drinking water, and only a fifth use approved toilet and sanitation facilities.

The IHS’ deputy director, Dr Ehrary, says money is a major stumbling block to completing the five further rounds of midwife training he calculates are needed to provide a base number of healthcare professionals in the region.

“Training is not difficult, but finding funds is difficult,” he says. The institute is struggling to train this year’s government-recommended quota of midwives to the right standard.

“We told the ministry we could not run the class this year because we have only three teachers and we cannot meet their standards,” he added. “They have now been funded. We found another donor, (German humanitarian group) Cap Anamur.”

If meetings like the Bonn conference fail to deliver a plan for action on poverty and some kind of roadmap to stability, the fragile gains in maternal healthcare could easily slip away.

In rural Herat, villagers say they are determined to stop that happening. After decades of upheaval and war, they are tired of death and violence and want a safer future.

“Everybody hopes there will be no more war in Afghanistan,” says one senior shura, or village council, member from rural Herat. “The first thing we want is safety, the second is to improve people’s health. We need doctors — we need midwives.”

 

Source: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/giving-birth-battle-survival-afghanistan-101333359.html

Filed Under: Afghanistan, Culture, Economy, Health, Medical Industry, Poverty, Sexism, Women Tagged With: , , ,

Getting Burned in Pakistan: Report Finds Acid and Burn Attacks Against Women on the Rise

December 12, 2011 By 1 Comment

In Pakistan, like in many other South Asian countries, honor is a virtue that is not only valued but demanded from society, especially from women. Women who “dishonour” their families face severe consequences at the hands of a strongly patriarchal society who continues to see women secondary to men.

A new report from the AGHS Legal Cell has found that violence against women in the form of burning and acid attacks is on the rise in the country. Women who are seen as dishonoring their families are often the targets of these attacks.

Walking in public with a man who is unrelated to you could elicit an attack for it is often presumed that the woman is committing adultery. Fleeing an arranged marriage or a relationship where a woman is unhappy or being abused is another common reason for the attacks.

According to the report, from April to June of this year more than 220 women reported being burned, 40 of whom died as a result of their injuries which can be extensive. When acid is thrown in a person’s face, skin tissue melts on contact exposing the bone below the flesh that may also dissolve from the acid. If acid reaches the eyes, they are permanently damaged often leaving survivors with the use of only one or no eyes.

What’s worse? According to the report women are not being given appropriate medical care and few seek legal action after being attacked. Many cases are also not even reported to police so the actual numbers of victims are far worse than we think.

“Violence against women in Pakistan is endemic,” Nisha Varia, deputy director of women’s rights division at Human Rights Watch told The Media Line.” “We try to apply pressure so that the government recognizes these crimes, prosecutes the perpetrators and provides services to the victims.”

Acid and burn attacks are also not only isolated in Pakistan. It is also common practice in Bangladesh, India, and other South Asian countries. In Bangladesh, the Acid Survivors Foundation has been working for nearly ten years to eliminate acid violence in the country where there is currently an acid attack every two days. A similar organization also exists in Pakistan.

Violence against women exists everywhere. We know this. I also know that I can no longer sit idly as governments around the world fail to protect these victims.

Source: https://www.care2.com/causes/getting-burned-in-pakistan-report-finds-acid-and-burn-attacks-against-women-is-on-the-rise.html#ixzz1gJRZ9ghY

Filed Under: Campaigning, Civil Liberties, Corruption, Crime, Culture, Extremism, Hate, Law, Lobbying, Pakistan, Politics, Rights, Sexism, Torture, Tyranny, Violence, Women Tagged With: ,

Afghan Daughters and their Mother Disfigured in Acid Attack

December 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

It really blows my mind when I think of the countless ways mankind has found to inflict violence against women around the world.

Acid attacks are one of such violent forms of assault that is most common in countries like Cambodia, Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. A

The perpetrators were after the family’s oldest daughter because her father had denied one of the men’s requests for her hand in marriage. The girl’s father said he rejected the man’s offer of marriage at the time because his daughter was too young. Forced marriage of young Afghan girls is not uncommon today which makes the father’s protection notable.

Rejected, the man and his brothers, who are suspected of being members of a local militia, broke into the house to attack the girls and their mother in revenge. The men involved in the attack have since been brought to the capital by the Interior Ministry for investigation and potential prosecution.

“The attackers defamed Afghanistan in the eyes of the world,” said the ministry’s spokesman, Sediq Sediqui. “It was the harshest violence they could ever carry out.”

He said that the Afghan police were warning “those who commit such brutal acts that they will be brought to justice at any cost.”

The Elimination of Violence Against Women law, which was passed last year, specifically prohibits chemical attacks against women. Such offenses carry a punishment of at least 10 years of imprisonment and at most life in prison.

Given the law and the ministry’s quick arrest, one would hope that the men will be adequately punished, but history has proved differently. Since Afghanistan enacted the law banning violence against women there have been 2,299 complaints of gender-motivated abuse registered with the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission from March 2010 to March 2011 only 7% of those crimes have been prosecuted.

This is very unsettling. Acid attacks are a violent and inhumane form of violence against women that should be prohibited and punished under the law strictly. We have such laws for a reason; let’s make sure they are enforced so less women have to suffer.

Source: https://www.care2.com/causes/afghan-daughters-and-their-mother-disfigured-in-acid-attack.html#ixzz1gJQ6uN2l

 

Filed Under: Afghanistan, Culture, Hate, Law, Politics, Religion, Rights, Sexism, Torture, Tyranny, Violence, Warning, Women

Ancient Land India

December 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment

This is a program done in London to reveal the spiritual gifts India has got for thr rest of the world. Special speakers are Sis. Jayanthi, European and Middle East region Brahma Kumaris co-ordinator and Mr. Rajmohan Gandhi.

 

Filed Under: Culture, Religion, Spirituality, Symbolism Tagged With: ,

DEMAND Obama To Veto Indefinite Military Detention of AMERICAN CITIZENS

December 1, 2011 By 3 Comments

If You Don’t Want A “POLICE STATE” then take Action and Sign!

An unimaginable violation of due process: The Senate just voted to allow the military to detain American citizens indefinitely — without even charging them with a crime — if they are said to be suspected of terrorism.

As Senator Dianne Feinstein put it, “Congress is essentially authorizing the indefinite imprisonment of American citizens, without charge,” said Sen. Dianne Feinstein.”

Thankfully, President Obama has threatened to veto the bill, noting that:

Applying this military custody requirement to individuals inside the United States, as some Members of Congress have suggested is their intention, would raise serious and unsettled legal questions and would be inconsistent with the fundamental American principle that our military does not patrol our streets.

Obama only has a few days to make up his mind: Will you urge him to make good on his veto threat? Just fill out the form at right.

PETITION TO PRESIDENT OBAMA: We urge you to stand by your threat to veto the new National Defense Authorization Act as passed by Congress. Allowing indefinite military detention of American citizens — without even being charged — is an unfathomable violation of due process.

Please sign on at right to urge Obama to veto the legislation — doing so will generate an email to the White House.

https://act.demandprogress.org/sign/ndaa

Filed Under: America, Corruption, Culture, Law, Prison, Terrorism Tagged With: ,

Tibetan Nun Burns Herself To Death In China

November 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Nun is 11th ethnic Tibetan this year to have taken own life in region known as centre of defiance against strict Chinese control

A Tibetan nun has burned herself to death in south-west China, Xinhua news agency said, the 11th ethnic Tibetan this year known to have set themselves on fire in a region that has become the centre of defiance against strict Chinese control.

Qiu Xiang, 35, set herself on fire at a road crossing in Dawu county of Ganzi, called Kandze by Tibetans, in Sichuan province, the state news agency said.The nun was from the county’s Tongfoshan village, Xinhua said.

The report said it was unclear why she killed herself and the local government had launched an investigation.

Last week, a Tibetan Buddhist monk doused himself in fuel and set himself ablaze in Ganzi.

Most people in Ganzi and neighbouring Aba, the site of eight self-immolations, are ethnic Tibetan herders and farmers, and many see themselves as members of a wider Tibetan region encompassing the official Tibetan Autonomous Region and other areas across the highlands of China’s west.

China has ruled Tibet with an iron fist since Communist troops marched in in 1950. Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, fled nine years later after a failed uprising against Chinese rule.

The Dalai Lama, whom China condemns as a supporter of violent separatism, led hundreds of monks, nuns and lay Tibetans in prayer in his adopted homeland in India in late October to mourn those who have burned themselves to death.The Dalai Lama denies advocating violence and insists he wants only real autonomy for his homeland.

But the Chinese foreign ministry has said the Dalai Lama should take the blame for the burnings, and repeated Beijing’s line that Tibetans are free to practise their Buddhist faith.

Source: https://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/03/tibetan-nun-burns-death-china

Filed Under: Censorship, China, Crime, Culture, Dictatorship, Dissenters, Fatalities, Genocide, Imperialism, Martial Law, Occupy, Politics, Propaganda, Protests, Religion, Rights, Social Unrest, Spirituality, Surveillance, Tibet, Torture, Violence Tagged With: ,

Ten Things You May Notice About America When Traveling Abroad

November 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” — Mark Twain

It is often reported that around 80% of American citizens do not have a passport. Therefore, the great majority of Americans have never traveled outside of the country. Consequently, these citizens have a limited scope of understanding when it comes to life outside of and, perhaps even inside of America.

Many Americans believe the United States to be the greatest country on Earth, the center of the Universe. A place that all other nations seek to emulate. Indeed, it is the only global super power with many endearing qualities. However, as one travels to other nations and experiences foreign cultures, many preconceived notions about America seem to dissipate, while others may be enhanced.

Before we get into the things you may notice about America when traveling extensively abroad, it’s important to point out that everyone’s perception may vary.

People view their world with different political or religious lenses, and different levels of patriotism.

But, by being as objective as possible, you may be surprised how many preconceived notions of America are shattered when you are exposed to different perspectives.

Here are 10 things you may realize about America and the world when traveling abroad:

1. Only Americans live to work: Although many cultures possess a strong work ethic, America seems to be the only place where the overwhelming majority of the population “live to work” and not simply “work to live.” In many developing countries, for example, you’ll notice that the average person seems to have far more free time than the average American. Or, perhaps, they simply enjoy their free time more than Americans caught in the rat race.

2. Remarkably few countries are engaged in foreign wars: America is widely considered to be a military aggressor by most countries. Most nations appear content to optimize life and commerce within the confines of their borders and see no benefit to meddling in other nations’ affairs. Even the nations that respect America’s role as a human rights watchdog, view their militarism as a bigger threat than a force for good.

3. Emphasis on family and neighbors: Americans have become somewhat detached from their neighbors and, in some cases, from their own families. Again, most noticeably in developing countries, it is not uncommon to see middle-class families with three generations living under the same roof. Love and respect for the elderly and children seems far greater in foreign lands than in America.

4. Commerce is much more localized: Even though you can find a McDonald’s in nearly any major city around the world, day-to-day commerce is clearly more localized in most foreign nations. Yes, large stores and malls can also be found everywhere, but there’s a noticeable plethora of small shops, food stands, independent taxis, and other micro-vendors in nearly every country except the United States.

5. English is the universal tourism language: Americans have a great advantage when traveling the world: English is the universal tourism language. From Latin America to Asia, English is spoken at nearly all hotels or any attraction or service needed for you to function. You’ll find that Europeans, Russians, and even Chinese tourists will speak at least some English in order to function abroad.

6. America does not have exclusivity on freedom: Americans are taught that they live in the Land of the Free, yet most populations enjoy even greater freedom in their day-to-day lives. You will not see oppressive security at airports or train stations in the majority of the world. You will not see tax collectors or health department officials cracking down on small food stands as they do in the United States. Most lemonade stands don’t risk being raided anywhere but in America.

7. America is unreasonably expensive: Although most Americans notice the rising costs of everything from housing, to food and health care, they may assume that they still possess the highest standard of living in the world. In general, Americans do enjoy a high level of comfort compared to the global population. However, even lower-income Americans will experience a significantly higher standard of living in almost any other nation in the world.

8. Service with a smile: The American dollar is still respected and desired by tourist destinations, which typically results in grateful service providers. But when you spend an extended period of time abroad, you begin to realize that foreigners take great pride in providing service with a smile; something that seems to be in decline in America. Americans generally seem more disgruntled with their jobs than foreign counterparts. However, notably, there seems to be more immediate recourse if things go wrong with your service in the United States.

9. Public transportation inferiority: One of the main things you’ll realize about America when traveling abroad is their woeful inferior public transportation. Granted, Americans love their cars and the freedom that they bring, along with comparably excellent road system. However, since other nations were slower to acquire the individual wealth for private vehicles, they were forced to develop an excellent variety of public transportation including trains, buses, taxis, rickshaws etc. Now, most of these countries have also developed excellent road systems in addition to world-class airports and train stations. America actually has a long way to go.

10. Everyone wants the same thing as you: No matter what Americans may think about people in other cultures, they all seem to overwhelmingly want the same thing: a peaceful, more fruitful, and better future in which to raise their children. Additionally, they all require and demand the basic freedom to live in basic privacy and security.

 

Source: https://www.activistpost.com/2011/11/10-things-you-may-notice-about-america.html

Filed Under: America, Culture, Travel

US Military Legacy Rubs Off On Iraqi Youth

November 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment

BAGHDAD (AP) — After more than eight years in Iraq, the departing American military’s legacy includes a fledgling democracy, bitter memories of war, and for the nation’s youth, rap music, tattoos and slang.

In other words, as the Dec. 31 deadline for completing their withdrawal approaches, U.S. troops are leaving behind the good, the bad and what “Lil Czar” Mohammed calls the “punky.”

Sporting baggy soldiers’ camouflage pants, high-top sneakers and a back-turned “N.Y.” baseball cap, the chubby 22-year-old was showing off his break-dancing moves on a sunny afternoon in a Baghdad park. A $ sign was shaved into his closely cropped hair.

“While others might stop being rappers after the Americans leave, I will go on (rapping) till I reach N.Y.,” said Mohammed, who teaches part-time at a primary school.

His forearm bore a tattoo of dice above the words “GANG STAR.” That was the tattooist’s mistake, he said; it was supposed to say “gangsta.”

Eight million Iraqis — a quarter of the population — have been born since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003, and nearly half the country is under 19, according to Brett McGurk, a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York and, until recently, senior adviser to the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

So after years of watching U.S. soldiers on patrol, it’s inevitable that hip-hop styles, tough-guy mannerisms and slangy English patter would catch on with young Iraqis.

Calling themselves “punky,” or “hustlers,” many are donning hoodie sweat shirts, listening to 50 Cent or Eminem and watching “Twilight” vampire movies. They eat hamburgers and pizza and do death-defying Rollerblade runs through speeding traffic. Teens spike their hair or shave it Marine-style. The “Iraq Rap” page on Facebook has 1,480 fans.

To many of their fellow Iraqis, the habits appear weird, if not downright offensive. But to the youths, it is a vital part of their pursuit of the American dream as they imagine it to be.

“Lil Czar” Mohammed, a Shiite Muslim, says he was introduced to American culture by a Christian friend, Laith, who subsequently had to flee the anti-Christian violence that broke out in Baghdad. “I had nothing to help my friend, he left,” he said. “But when I get the money and become a rich boss, I will tell my friend Laith to come back.”

Meanwhile, he said, he is trying to record a rap song in Arabic and English. “It is about our situation. About no jobs for us.”

“I love the American soldiers,” said Mohammed Adnan, 15, who pastes imitation tattoos on his arm. Adnan lives in the Sadr City, the Baghdad base of followers of anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who has threatened violence against U.S. troops if they stay beyond 2011.

But, surprisingly, Adnan says the U.S. gangsta look is accepted in his neighborhood.

“All young men in Sadr City wear the same clothes when we hang around,” he said. “Nobody minds. And we’re invited to weddings or celebrations where we perform break-dancing.”

It all adds up to a taste of the wide world for a society which lived for decades under Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship that deprived them of satellite TV, cell phones and the Internet, and then through invasion, terrorism and sectarian killing.

Not all Iraqis welcome the culture the Americans brought. Dr. Fawzia A. al-Attia, a sociologist at Baghdad University, says one result is that young Iraqis now reject school uniforms, engage in forbidden love affairs and otherwise rebel against their elders.

“There was no strategy to contain this sudden openness,” she said. “Teenagers, especially in poor areas where parents are of humble origin and humble education, started to adopt the negative aspects of the American society because they think that by imitating the Americans, they obtain a higher status in society.

“These young Iraqi people need to be instructed,” she said. “They need to know about the positive aspects of the American society to imitate.”

Like many Iraqis, high school student Maytham Karim wants to learn English. But the English he hears most often from his peers — and mostly those who listen to American music — is laden with profanity.

“The F- and the ‘mother’ words are used a lot, which is a very negative thing,” Karim said.

As U.S. forces began closing their bases Iraqis rummaged through their garbage for discarded uniforms, caps and boots to sell to youngsters who pay top dollar to dress like soldiers. Baghdad’s tattoo business is also booming. Hassan Hakim’s tattoo parlor in affluent Karradah neighborhood is covered with glossy pictures of half-naked men and women showing off their ink, regardless of Islam’s strictures on baring the skin.

The storefront caused a stir when it opened last summer, but complaints soon died down and the business is thriving.

“Iraqi youth are eager in a very unusual way to get tattoo on their bodies, probably because of the American presence here,” said Hakim, 32, who is attending graduate school at Baghdad’s Fine Arts Academy. “Four years ago, people were concealing their tattoos when in public, but now they use their designs to show off. It is the vogue now.”

Most of Hakim’s customers are Iraqi security guards imitating their American counterparts. They demand tattoos of coffins, skulls, snakes, dragons, bar codes, Gothic letters and crosses. Female customers prefer flowers and butterflies on their shoulders. Also, many young women now dare to wear tight tops and hip-hugging jeans with their hijabs, or head coverings. Some also sport miniature dogs.

Showbiz and military chic aside, young Iraqis agree that the American troops opened their minds to the outside world. The wait for a place in an English classes, for example, can last months.

“I found that all Iraqis want to learn English,” said Nawras Mohammed, and using the Internet or watching satellite TV is fine. But users need to be selective, the 24-year-old college graduate said.

“The positive and the negative aspects of the American presence,” she said, “depend on us.”

Source:

https://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/Article_2011-11-23-ML-Hip-Hop-Iraq/id-p4a0057099d87440292fe754ab2ed5b13

Filed Under: Consumer, Culture, Iraq, Symbolism, War, Youth