The Carnival of the Liberated
Dave Schuler
Welcome to the Carnival of the Liberated, a sampler of some of the best posts of the week from Iraqi and Afghani bloggers. This week we've got thoughts on Iraqi identity, the terrorist attack in Jordan, a restaurant in Baghdad, a blogging anniversary, and much, much more.
Afghan Warrior remembers that Sunday was the second anniversary of the liberation of Kabul from the Taliban.
24 Steps to Liberty has more from the journal of his visit to the United States last spring.
Najma of A Star from Mosul touches on the issue of Iraqi identity in this post about visiting her grandparents in Baghdad. She quotes her grandfather:
“I was this and that and everyone knew who I am.. Now I'm just.. I'm just a Sunni!!.”I wonder if identity politics isn't a natural response from a minority in a democratic society and, further, I wonder how the Kurds and Shi'ia Arabs felt under Saddam?
An Average Iraqi remarks on the difference between a “freedom fighter” and a “terrorist” and notes that most of the attacks in Iraq these days are terrorist attacks.
attawie writes about her singing career.
A number of Iraqi bloggers have commented on the recent terrorist attack in Jordan. Hammorabi reminds us of the Jordanian connection to terrorism in Iraq:
Jordan is like Saudi Arabia adopts a double standard option about terrorism. They allow the terrorists to enter Iraq and their media supports them while their Mullahs produce statements considering what is happening in Iraq as Jihad against the American infidels and the crusaders. Syria even worse because it provide training and full support for the terrorists and opening itself for them to enter from anywhere and then sending them to Iraq with Syrian intelligent officers whose some of them captured in Iraq. On the other hand they fallaciously and hypocritically appeared critical of terrorism and trying to stop it.Ibn al-Rafidain points out something I've maintained all along: the choices of formerly high-ranking Ba'athists are very limited. Either they will be subject to official vengeance through the legal system or private vengeance at the hands of the families of their victims.
Miriam of Pearls of Iraq comments on the terrorist attack in Jordan and makes an observation that's never occurred to me before:
I have heard it mentioned that Muslims do not speak out against terrorist and disagree. The Islamic community has spoken out repeatedly but they are discriminated against with media coverage. I guess it is does not bring in big cash in comparison other stories.The media are state-controlled in many Middle Eastern countries and, consequently, it's hard if not impossible for us to get our message through to people there but it's also hard for people in those countries to get any attention. Miriam attributes it to commercialism. I don't think it's commercialism. And the media here certainly aren't state-controlled. What do you think?
I avoid linking to posts from ex-patriate Iraqis in the Carnival but I couldn't pass this one on the terrorist attack in Jordan from Khalid Jarrar of Tell Me a Secret (who's currently in Jordan) by. After a decent backgrounder on the attack Khalid comments:
none of the above said anything about the hundreds of civilians that have been getting killed for the last couple of weeks in the American operation in the west of Iraq, but now the whole world is condemning killing civilians here in Jordan, hmmm.Could that be because the United States doesn't target civilians, Khalid, and the folks that U. S. forces are going after there are people or are working with people who do?
Mohammed of Iraq the Model thinks that Sistani's decision to keep politicians at arms' length is a good one. BTW, yesterday was their second blogging anniversary. You might want to go over and congratulate them. For Omar, Mohammed, and Ali (who now has a blog of his own) blogging just didn't take a modem connection and a few spare minutes. It took courage.
Abu Khaleel of Iraqi Letters proclaims the American occupation of Iraq “The Shortest-lived Empire” in the history of the world. Or maybe, just maybe, Abu Khaleel, not an empire at all (as we've maintained all along).
Kurdo is back with a return post on independence, the Iraqi constitution, and terrorism.
Salam Pax is back with a remembrance of the Baghdad restaurant that was subject to a terrorist attack recently. He also notes that the hit-list of the insurgency (besides the “infidel invaders” is quite long:
Or, in effect, everybody in Iraq.
- Member of new Iraqi Army
- Member of new Iraqi Police
- Working for any media organization even Iraqi ones
- Working at an executive level at any Iraqi ministry
- Doing ANYTHING for the government even if you were the guy who makes tea
- Being part of a political party
- Being there when a bomb explodes near any of the above since you are obviously incriminated by association.
Dave Schuler posts regularly to his own weblog, The Glittering Eye. The Carnival was originally conceived by Ryan Boots.
