Tonite I yet again ponder the imponderable.
As the astute reader will already be aware, I have traveled in several majority-Muslim nations, including the increasingly-Islamicist Malaysia & the Islamicist-insurgency-plagued Sumatran province of Aceh, Indonesia. Frankly, I found traditonal Malay Muslims lovely & "born-again" Arab-trained Islamicist Malays repulsive.
Aceh is the mihrab of Sumatra. It is a compass pointed Meccawards both physically & socially. Thrusting into the Indian Ocean, it is Islam - and India & the Middle East's - gateway to Pacific Rim peoples. It is home to the 'strictest' - most orthopraxic, Arab-centric & literalist - Muslim peoples of this region, and rebel groups have fought national armed forces for self-rule under an Islamicist model.
I need to clarify what that meant when I was there. The armed forces of Indonesia are glorified thugs, politically active and independent as in certain more familiar Central & South American dictatorships. The support of the military is crucial to the Indonesian president & each lower-level official as well: cross the military & you end up out of power and probably also dead.
When I was in Aceh, the military held up our bus. That is, they had set up a roadblock, forcibly removed the driver at gunpoint, forced we passengers out (almost entirely women and children with a handful of very elderly men), and put them under armed guard. They separated me as the only foreigner & held me under extremely unfriendly conditions: four men were holding assault rifles on me. They tore apart our luggage and stole whatever they pleased. They demanded money, and everyone coughed it up. From me they demanded American dollars; I gave them a hundred, which was enough for me to have purchased the entire bus' fare for the 14-hour journey through the wilderness.
In comparison, Acehnese Muslims, even Islamicists, were polite & gave no trouble.
I don't support Islamicist movements. I don't support any theocratic governments or movements. It is important, however, to recognise when a pot is calling a kettle black.
Today, the BBC posted a news report: Saudis in Show of Force for Hajj: Saudis Say They are Prepared to Deal with Threats. This details the elaborate & intimidating military precautions being taken to ensure peace at this year's hajj.
A huge security operation is being mounted in Saudi Arabia as millions of Muslims arrive for the hajj pilgrimage. Thousands of troops, including anti-terror units, staged a show of force in the holy city of Mecca, where the event gets under way on Friday. [...]
About two million people, most from abroad, are expected to attend this year's hajj. [...]
About 5000 troops, including snipers, bomb squads and border guards, marched on the plain of Arafat - one of the pilgrimage sites - as helicopters flew overhead. Security is a top priority for the Saudis, who have been fighting Islamic militants in the desert kingdom in recent months. Authorities are also concerned about possible anti-American riots during the hajj, the first since the US-led war on Iraq, which was deeply unpopular with many Muslims.
There is so much bothersome about this article.
First, this article misses the forest for the trees. Saudi Arabia is a Wahhabist fundamentalist kingdom. Its enemies are legion because it offends everyone - the democratic-minded, feminists, non-Arab Muslims, non-Wahhabi; in fact, the only people who seem to tolerate those pigfuckers are those who have been sold on the notion of the essential purity of the (recently coined) Arab Wahhabist movement.
Second, 5000 black ski-masked troops clearly prepared for preemptive and anti-personnel actions is not an ideal way to ensure peace. The hajj is a time of peace, human equality & forgiveness. It is a time for celebration & joy. Adding goons with guns to 'ensure peace' is an oxymoron. It's a sardonic statement on the part of the Saudis that they have chosen this highly combatative stance towards the pilgrims, who are required to dress in plain white robes and engage in various mild ascetic practices. That weapons or violence should be employed here by any Muslims is direly troublesome to me.
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