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The Spectacle Blog
I’m grateful for Ralph Reiland bringing attention to the matter of “emo” eradication in Iraq, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t expand, slightly, on his thoughts. It’s an important matter that I’ve been paying close attention to over at the Foreign Policy Association — and been quoted about here. To be clear, young men and women in Iraq are not being killed for the type of music they listen to or for merely being “emos” — a label once reserved in the West for sensitive youth who soothed the tempo of young adulthood with melodic styles of rock, and unique dress.
In Iraq, “emos” describe a peculiar mash-up of femininity, Satan worship, affinity for Western dress — but most of all, presumptions of homosexuality. In practice, the label “emo” is a catch-all for suspected gays and lesbians (al shath), used by the conservative Interior Ministry to eradicate this grave religious and cultural taboo.
Mr. Reiland is correct “emos” are being killed…but he drastically understates the amount of violence directed toward this particular subset of Iraqi society. Over the past two months, more than 80 so-called “emos” have been beaten to death by roving bands of Shi’a militia, assigned the rank of “community police” by the bureaucratic higher-ups who want to wage culture war on social deviance.
It all started back in August of 2011, when the Interior Ministry instructed the Education Ministry to distribute memos to curb “emo” culture in schools. Concurrently, offenders were listed by name on flyers posted anonymously around predominantly Shi’a neighborhoods. Before long, bodies began to turn up.
The weapon of choice is the cinder block (known as the mawt al-blokkah) — a blunt instrument of violent identity politics. As international consternation grows, the Interior Ministry adjusted its tone, and retracted more bellicose warnings against these young people. However, they maintain a stated commitment to see “emos” are “dealt with.” Their denials of cultural crusading ring hollow, as do protestations that this crisis has been exaggerated by the media.
The worst and most virulent homophobia in Iraq is regularly witnessed in Shi’a neighborhoods. Although Iraqi gays claimed success in 2006 following the decision of Grand Ayatollah Ali al Sistani to remove a fatwah calling for the killing of all homosexuals in the “worst, most severe way possible” from his website, the tone of conduct was clearly established years ago.
The tide is high for social violence — initial efforts to root out gays have careened off into attacks against any young man with long hair or a slightly effete appearance. Despite government statements that this is a non-event, Iraqi bloggers are reporting many victims were brutally raped before they were murdered, suggesting this crescendo of murky violence boils down to a question of control.
As if we needed another instructive lesson, that power comes with targeted bloodshed in Iraq.
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More Blog Posts by Reid Smith
http://spectator.org/blog/2012/04/05/expanding-on-emo-eradication-i
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Vern Crisler| 4.5.12 @ 11:37AM
Hmmm, maybe we can learn something from the Islamic fanatics....
Jack in Wi.| 4.5.12 @ 12:12PM
Lets see: We fought the Iraq war to bring open homosexuality, abortion, and other sexual degenercy to the people there. It sure was a war for the New World Order.
C Bowen | 4.5.12 @ 7:43PM
That is a strange post, Vern. I thought you were a Cheneyite? Gays in the military, lesbian self-insemination, gay marriage all liberal Republican Cheney positions.
Yet you told me "conservatives" support the invasion of Iraq--and I of course, as a conservative, disagreed.
By the way, did you ever read that lesbian book Cheney's wife wrote, Sisters?
Dixie Pixie| 4.5.12 @ 12:00PM
Let me get this straight,
Obama makes “Gay Rights” the centerpiece of American Foreign Policy and now roving gangs of Iraqi Muslim homicidal fanatics are killing the Gays or any one that looks Gay?
To make matters worse, the Iraqi Government is supporting this terror campaign against its own people?
3 TRILLION DOLLARS and this is what the Washington Elite comes up with?
Reid Smith| 4.5.12 @ 12:03PM
Well, "gay rights" isn't "THE" centerpiece...but it's certainly "A" centerpiece. And yes, you're absolutely correct...this is what we're left with in Iraq after all that blood and treasure.
C Bowen | 4.5.12 @ 12:22PM
Mr. Smith;
The absurdity of it all is enhanced when considering the US is propping of a government in Afghanistan that protects the boy-sex slave practice; a tradition the Taliban was effectively eradicating.
Reid Smith| 4.5.12 @ 1:08PM
Social engineering masquerading as interventionism and "democracy building" is always, always, always a very bad idea.
Dixie Pixie| 4.5.12 @ 1:23PM
Thanks for the correction Mr Smith.
Quibble noted, logged and saved for future reference.
Perhaps I did misunderstand Obama's “nuance” when he implied support for “Gay Rights” would be major priority in American Foreign Policy.
At the time Obama made the announcement, I thought it was the most insane “Pander” to the LGBT lobby yet.
Given the Muslim religious edict to kill all homosexuals, such a policy was certain to enrage the Muslims worldwide.
For more information see the website below:
http://www.voanews.com/english.....36743.html
Has anyone considered the Iraqi Government has created the “Emo” eradication to demonstrate its independence from Washington and its foreign policies?
Certainly Obama would never consider it, as he believes all his policies are perfect and without flaw.
Reid Smith| 4.5.12 @ 1:32PM
I'd actually written about the LGBT issue and foreign aid back in December, if you're interested.
http://spectator.org/blog/2011.....problemati
Dixie Pixie| 4.5.12 @ 6:15PM
A well written article Mr. Smith.
You really nailed the pander issue with your last sentence.
Consider, is it a sane foreign policy to enrage a people with arms, army, secret police, rigged courts and a 1400 year experience in really stupid religious violence.
But to do so just to get the Gay vote is terato-stupidity as well as being insane.
Also on a related matter, has any one considered that the first priority of a government after a foreign military occupation is to put as much political distance between its policies and the policies of the military occupiers?
Could it be what we are seeing in the Iraqi political scene today?
Mark J. Goluskin | 4.6.12 @ 12:52PM
I think that this point needs to be made.
That the left, especially the Christian left, likes to tout that the radicalism in Islam is but a tiny number. That most are not like that. Yet can you cite any majority Islamic nation where homosexuals have ANY of the rights and or privligives that they do in the United States? NO!
This flies in the face that this is but a tiny minority. They have to make the so-called Christian radicals to be worse than these people. It is all about narrative here to the left. Demonize Christians and lift up the Islamists.
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Occam's Tool| 4.11.12 @ 12:19PM
As I have pointed out, true multicultural analysis has to take into account that our enemies are, at this time, violent scum under the influence of one of the most evil ideologies of all time, Sharia.
Nation building in Islamic countries BEFORE beating them into submission, (as it would have been for Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan before bombings and the nukes) was predictably worthless, as "Nation Building" works only AFTER our enemies are broken on the rack. (People tend to forget that our initial administration under general Lucius Clay in Germany in the immediate post war years was NOT gentle; and Japan was completely broken by the fire-bombings and the nukes.)
Sounds "genocidal,"I know, but it has been proven to work historically---in addition, after being beaten down SEVERELY and THEN being built back up, both Japan and Germany turned into stable Democracies, and were quite successful until they forgot how to breed.
Of course, no one has the balls to win wars anymore; they would rather "prance around like Kansas City Faggots" like Slim Pickens so eloquently put it in "Blazing Saddles." But a true beatdown would allow for proper alliance building.
Excellent article on cyber-terrorism, Reid.
All American American| 4.20.12 @ 9:38AM
So before the "macho" community police kill the suspected homosexual teen boys, they---wait for it---rape them???
Irony, thy name is islam.