posted on January 26, 2004 12:10:53 PM new
Anti-U.S. tunes big hits in Iraq
FALLUJAH, Iraq — America's next big battle may be waged in the cassette and CD players of Iraqis.
Americans have flooded the nation's airwaves with harmless Western and Arab pop tunes, but many are drawn more to the catchy rhythms of crooners such as Sabah al-Jenabi.
"America has come and occupied Baghdad," he sings in one popular number. "The army and people have weapons and ammunition. Let's go fight and call out the name of God."
U.S.-led coalition authorities have barred the media from promoting any kind of violence, but there is a hot market in the bazaars of central Iraq for cassettes by singers calling for insurrection.
"The men of Fallujah are men of hard tasks," Mr. al-Jenabi sings in a dialect decipherable only to people in the Sunni Muslim heartland cities of Fallujah and Ramadi. "They paralyzed America with rocket-propelled grenades. May God protect them from [U.S.] airplanes."
Though the lyrics are contemporary, the music is based on a kind of centuries-old religious music called praising, which is influenced by an ancient form of Islamic mysticism called Sufism.
Such songs have appeal even for Iraqis who generally support the U.S. presence in their country, such as driver Ahmad Hossein, who plays Mr. al-Jenabi's songs in his car.
"I like the music and the lyrics," said Mr. Hossein, a member of the Shi'ite majority that was oppressed under dictator Saddam Hussein. "I don't know why. I don't agree with what it's saying. It just makes me feel good."
Dan Senor, a spokesman for the coalition, told reporters recently that "any sort of public expression used in an institutionalized sense that would incite violence against the coalition or Iraqis" is banned.
Yet, CD shops and cassette stalls do brisk business selling albums by Mr. al-Jenabi and other promoters of jihad, or holy war, for about 2,000 Iraqi dinars — less than $1.25 — apiece.
At Sabah Recordings, a popular cassette shop in a Fallujah alleyway, owner Maher al-Ajrari initially denied that he sold Mr. al-Jenabi's music. But after an hour of conversation, he admitted that the resistance tapes are best sellers.
Mr. Ajrari even carries multimedia "video" versions of the CDs, in which the anti-U.S. tunes are accompanied by footage of American troops killing and maiming Iraqis.
Mr. Ajrari said he has no anti-U.S. agenda. "We sell these just for business and for commercial profit."
The music succeeds by tapping into the rage of the nation's Sunni minority, who lost their privileged position because of the war and feel abused by Americans.
But even some of the Sunni praisers think it is too soon to be calling for war.
Seyed Abdullah Hassani is a Sufi praiser who sings and plays the daf, a big hand-held drum. His family has been praising for 30 generations, and he ticks off the names of his forefathers from memory.
Followers come to his book-filled office and ask him to sing a few words about Allah, a deceased relative or a newborn child in return for a small donation.
Mr. Hassani said many of those using music to promote jihad are pretenders with no real spiritual credentials.
A real jihad has to be called for by a high-level cleric, not some artist trying to make a quick profit, he said. "The act of jihad cannot be until we have permission from God and our source of emulation."
Mr. Hassani said that under Saddam, the praisers — who belong to secretive religious orders — were regarded with suspicion, often imprisoned or harassed by security forces.
"The Americans have come as liberators, and for that we should be grateful," he said.
During the early 1920s, when Iraqi clerics called for jihad against British occupiers, praisers took the lead in coming up with creative resistance songs.
Mr. Hassani told the tale of his grandfather, who began inspiring guerrilla warriors with his religiously sanctioned praises against the British.
"Within a couple of years," Mr. Hassani said, "the British fled Iraq."
posted on January 26, 2004 06:03:21 PM new
Well they have make clear that all the protections of the bill of rights do not apply to non-citizens.
If they don't apply here why would they apply there?
I guess the writers really meant to say all AMERICANS are endowed with certain inalienable rights. Furriners need not apply.
So I wouldn't expect them to want to push for free speech for rag heads and wogs dontcha know?
In fact they seem real real uncomfortable that they want to have TOO MUCH democracy. If they succeed in getting one man one vote instead of a caucus system that can be controlled -- well hell they may want the same thing here before you know it!
posted on January 27, 2004 12:38:37 AM new
"In fact they seem real real uncomfortable that they want to have TOO MUCH democracy. If they succeed in getting one man one vote instead of a caucus system that can be controlled -- well hell they may want the same thing here before you know it! "
My, yes... think of all those "democracies" we helped 'install' in South and Central America. Trouble was/is, we did see to it that our hand-picked "democratic leaders" won but then some of them went on to rather enjoy (and abuse) their power, and since we'd so heavily armed them (training whole armies, mind you) upon their "elections", we couldn't just ask them nicely to continue to cooperate. The worst ones were those who decided that their countries really ought to be TRUE democracies, afterall. We had to invade those places on the spot, depose the guy we'd made president, then find another stooge to fill his boots.
Come to think of it, we didn't mind Saddam Hussein all that much 'til he stopped playing The Game and began to take himself seriously...
posted on January 27, 2004 09:14:19 AM new
I will bet that there will be a radical Islamic theocracy in Iraq as soon as we pull out.
Iran will support the Shiites in Iraq taking over the country. The Curds will at least attempt to split off, but we won't help them because Turkey doesn't want an independent Curdish state. The northern Curds may get some measure of autonomy from the shiites majority, or they may be put upon just as Saddam did.
The minority Sunnis will get some payback from the Shiites.
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and others will attempt to pour money into the conflict to stem Iran's influence. But in the end Iran will control Iraq.
Say what you will about Saddam, but we supported him for decades and left him in power for a reason -- he is the only secular leader in the region. He kept Iran in check for us.
We now have a tiger by the tail in Iraq and ou enemies know.
The Iraq post-war operation should have been planned out. It's one thing for the US to roll over a fractured and demoralized WWII technology army, and quite another to reform a country.
We may end up with a governemnt in Iraq more against our interests than Saddam ever was.
posted on January 27, 2004 09:28:53 AM new
If Bush wins the election he will take it as a endorsement to continue his policies and I don't think you will ever see a real pull out. What I see is more nation building in the middle east until there is a group of nations that are nominally independant but the whole is something like a Pan-Arabic Protectorate that is controlled in reality if not officially by the US.
The smaller Gulf states will see what happens to even their bigger neighbors and fall right in line. Syria may go the same route as Iraq and Afganistan.
What will be interesting is if Iran has to be sunjugated or if they will decide they have to resist.
Also how much Israel flexs it's muscles if the Arab nations are obviously constrained from waging war on them. How they will act if Syria is under US control is very difficult to see.
posted on January 27, 2004 02:45:04 PM newIf Bush wins the election he will take it as a endorsement to continue his policies and I don't think you will ever see a real pull out. What I see is more nation building in the middle east until there is a group of nations that are nominally independant....
