'The jihad now is against the Shias, not the Americans'

  There's precious little authentic journalism coming out of Iraq.  You might enjoy this...

  The man claims to have been getting his arms from a U.S. officer groove ;) on...

  'The jihad now is against the Shias, not the Americans'

  There's precious little authentic journalism coming out of Iraq.  You might enjoy this...

  The man claims to have been getting his arms from a U.S. officer groove ;) on...


I enjoyed that article and it paints a picture that hasn't really been addressed in the wider press.

However, it was in The Guardian which automatically gives it no credibility.

I enjoyed that article and it paints a picture that hasn't really been addressed in the wider press.

However, it was in The Guardian which automatically gives it no credibility.
the washington times broke iran-contra. sometimes those politically slanted papers will surprise you.

the washington times broke iran-contra. sometimes those politically slanted papers will surprise you.


Fair point.

You know I just like to rip on The Guardian, with you specifically in mind.

There have always been Soldiers (and others) that would involve themselves in "Black Marketeering" for profit.  It goes on today, much like it did during the time of Caeser.

In fact, when I was in Japan 15 years ago, they broke up a ring that involved selling American products like Rice and Beer to Japanese Citizens.  And it happens even in the US, where things like night vision, body armour, weapons, and uniforms can bring in big money.

So it is no surprise that some Officers are doing the same thing in Iraq.  As long as people are willing to pay for weapons, somebody will come along to pay for them.  And the "Shi'a-Sunni" battles are also nothing new.  They have only been going on for the last 1,500 years or so, and do not appear to be ending any time soon.

There have always been Soldiers (and others) that would involve themselves in "Black Marketeering" for profit.  It goes on today, much like it did during the time of Caeser.

In fact, when I was in Japan 15 years ago, they broke up a ring that involved selling American products like Rice and Beer to Japanese Citizens.  And it happens even in the US, where things like night vision, body armour, weapons, and uniforms can bring in big money.

So it is no surprise that some Officers are doing the same thing in Iraq.  As long as people are willing to pay for weapons, somebody will come along to pay for them.  And the "Shi'a-Sunni" battles are also nothing new.  They have only been going on for the last 1,500 years or so, and do not appear to be ending any time soon.

Not between Sunni and Shia.  Islam isn't that old.

Not between Sunni and Shia.  Islam isn't that old.


Nah, you're right.

They've only been fighting since the religion was started... whenever that was.

Nah, you're right.

They've only been fighting since the religion was started... whenever that was.

Oh, I'm just quibbling.  I'd say it's more like 1300 years, but it's a good long time either way! 
Picking a defining year in Shia history, 680, the martyrdom of Hussein, it's deceptive to say Shia and Sunni have been fighting since 680 as though it was 1326 years of bloodbath.  It comes and goes in waves.  Different centuries, different cultures, different situations.

However, it was in The Guardian which automatically gives it no credibility.

So if it had been in the Sun or the Daily Mail, for example?


I found this quite hard to credit:
This man who had spent the last three years fighting the Americans was now willing to talk to them, not because he wanted to make peace but because he saw the Americans as the lesser of two evils. He was wrestling with the same dilemma as many Sunni insurgent leaders, beginning to doubt the wisdom of their alliance with al-Qaida extremists.
So what happened to "The Great Satan" that they were talking about?  I simply don't get the logic of your very worst enemy being the slight procedural difference between two strands of the same faith... but it ain't only Islam, is it?

For example:
I was working as a suicide prevention policeman one day when we got a call about a man on a building ledge threatening to jump. When I got there I said, "Why do you want to jump? You've got so much to live for! Are you a religious person, or an atheist?"

He said, "A religious person."

I said, "Great! I am too! Are you Christian, or do you have other beliefs?"

He said, "Christian."

I said, "Wonderful! Me too! Are you Catholic or Protestant?"

He said, "Protestant."

I said, "Amazing! Me too! Are you from the Church of the Holy Sprinklers or the Church of the Holy Dunkers?"

He said, "Church of the Holy Sprinklers."

I said, "Great! I am too! Are you from the Church of the Holy Sprinklers Reformed, or Church of the Holy Sprinklers Orthodox?"

He said, "Church of the Holy Sprinklers Reformed."

I said, "Wonderful, that is my church too! Are you Church of the Holy Sprinklers Reformation of 1879 or Church of the Holy Sprinklers Reformation of 1915?"

He said, "1915."

I said, "Die heretic scum." And I pushed him off the ledge.

damn sprinkler-lovin' bastards.

So if it had been in the Sun or the Daily Mail, for example?


Nah, pretty much the only news sources I actually trust are the Times, the BBC and CNN.

.. and that's at a push.

I said, "Wonderful, that is my church too! Are you Church of the Holy Sprinklers Reformation of 1879 or Church of the Holy Sprinklers Reformation of 1915?"

He said, "1915."

I said, "Die heretic scum." And I pushed him off the ledge.


Emo Phillips used to do a variation on that joke.  Same punchline.

I couldn't open the link, but I heard about this, with few details, on CNN, where it was reported that there may be a CIA connection.  The plot thickens.

Islam, if memory serves, began to spread in about 700 AD, but I don't remember the Sunni/Shia split, or the details of its cause.  Nevertheless, what is clear is that Iran is Shia while Syria and Saudi Arabia is Sunni.  Is it any surprise that all are meddling in Iraq?  And Li'l Georie has gotten us squarely in the middle.  What a bloody mess.