The U.S. To the Rescue
Shiite death squads in Iraq are carrying out a campaign that targets gay men for murder. This so-called “sexual cleansing” is happening under the nose of the U.S. military--but American authorities in the Green Zone have refused to do anything about it.
The highly organized campaign of beatings, kidnappings and murders of Iraqi gays follows a death-to-gays fatwa issued last October by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the 77-year-old Iranian who is supreme spiritual leader of all Shia Muslims in Iraq. The fatwa, available on Sistani’s official Web site, puts it this way, “The people involved [in homosexuality] should be killed in the worst, most severe way of killing.” [...]
Tahseen, a 31-year-old photography lab technician and underground gay activist, told me by telephone from Baghdad that, “Just last week, four gay people we know of were found dead. I am afraid to leave my room and go out in the street because I will be killed.” He said that men who seem obviously gay “cannot walk in the street. My best friend was recently killed for being gay.” [...]
“We desperately need protection!” Tahseen pleaded. “But, when we go to the Americans, they laugh at us and don’t do anything.”
According to Hili, “These assaults and murders have been reported by underground gay activists in Baghdad to the Green Zone, but the Americans don’t want to upset the religious authorities, and so they do nothing and treat gay Iraqis with contempt or as an object of humor.” (source)
It makes one proud to be an American doesn’t it? It’s just like the time that our troops liberated the Nazi death camps. The Jews were freed, and the homosexuals left were further persecuted by us.
Your actions define you. This is what we are as a nation. We are there in Iraq. If someone is killed for being gay, and we know about it and do nothing but laugh and add further ridicule, we might as well just pull the trigger ourselves.
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Reflecting on what Buck said about the Religious Right doing the same thing in the U.S. if they thought they could get away with it....
I think you are right in that assumption Buck. The only two things stopping them is 1) The Constitution of the United States, and 2) Their own sense of morality which does not include murder (supposedly).
The Constitution is a moving target. As we are about to see next week, those who want to put their own brand of morality into the Constitution (Bill Frist, et. al.) will have their chance with the Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA). People say it has "zero chance of passing" and is more symbolic than anything else, although our beloved President has once again made a public appearance in favor of it -- all of this to rally their conservative base -- it's all they have left after all with the war in Iraq going to hell.
Also, morality is a moving target. It wouldn't take much for these religious zealots to change from "murder is wrong because the Bible says so", to "murder against queers is justified because of what the Bible says". It's easy to justify murder based on the Bible. It's happening every single day in this world.
So when I said...
"Your actions define you. This is what we are as a nation. We are there in Iraq. If someone is killed for being gay, and we know about it and do nothing but laugh and add further ridicule, we might as well just pull the trigger ourselves.", I literally meant that. We are letting this happen in Iraq. Rice knows about it because I know that a report was submitted to her on this. She chose not to respond to the allegations what so ever (shocking, isn't it?). So, at some level, that is an "ok" practice for the U.S. military.
How much would it take for that to happen in domestic society here? I don't think it would take much. It's not like we have much moral guidance coming from our "leaders".
LOL Fritz...
I don't know my friend, but I have deleted their comments. I'm tired of them, since they add no value. :)
Bill,
How ever do you attract these freaky, incoherent trolls?
Let's face it. If the Religious Right thought they could possibly get away with it here - they'd be doing the same thing.