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Saturday, October 16, 2004 - 8:16pmSanction this postReply
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Wow, Irfan.  Excellent commentary.  You have really made me rethink things... and not from any kind of "American allies are evil" position, either. 

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Monday, October 18, 2004 - 6:28amSanction this postReply
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"Incidentally, you may have read one of the many human interest stories written about Yasser Hamdi, or the noble Iraqi 'insurgents', or discriminated-against Muslim Americans, all designed to elicit your sympathy for their plight. But when was the last time you read a human interest story exploring the motivations of an anti-Islamist Pakistani commando, or the families of such commandos that have lost loved ones fighting Al Qaida in the line of duty? You haven't. And don't worry: you won't. Such people are allies of the United States, hence non-human, hence not the subject of human interest stories." - Irfan


Yes, how true. I've noticed that with regard to Iraq. The media continues to focus on the Baathist holdouts and foreign Jihadists, all called insurgents, as if these are the Iraqi people. I talk to moderate and extreme Leftists in other internet groups and they continue to talk about the "insurgents who are fighting for their country against the occupiers". When I finally mentioned that 100,000 Iraqis are bravely fighting against these “insurgents,” who number in the few thousands or less, they brush that aside saying the insurgents are the authentic indigenous expression of “the people” of Iraq.

However, as much as the media tries to suppress any hope, it still comes out. A MSNBC article mentioned how Iraqis in Falujah have killed 5 foreign Jihadists. Yes, some are still Baathist holdouts. Still the article mentioned their anger at the fundamentalist regime jihadists try to impose and the alienation of fellow Iraqis who are being killed by the jihadists.

Finally, on ABC news, Stephanopolous ended his show with video from Iraq. ABC news did an experiment by giving 100 video recorders to Iraqis and told them to shoot their own documentary about what Iraqis are thinking. The video showed that most were overjoyed and very hopeful. Some talked about how they were living in a jail under Saddam but could now breathe free. Others talked about wanting an American type society. However, there was one Iraqi cab driver who said things were better under Saddam. How do I know there was only 1 out of the 100? Because his interview was the only one they inserted twice! They ended the montage with his comments about wanting Americans to leave – just to end the program on a critical note and leave the viewer with that statement as a conclusion.

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Monday, October 18, 2004 - 7:16amSanction this postReply
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(Edited by Irfan Khawaja on 10/19, 4:00pm)


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