People’s reasons for secularism, against veiled or blatant State Religion
“Religion is a private issue unrelated to political issues and government,” writes Afghan social activist and politician Malalai Joya. She is speaking mainly about Afghanistan and Islam but her thoughts have relevance for many countries, governments and religions of the east and west.
“Too often extremists invoke [religion] to justify crimes against the people. … Politicians invoke [religion] rather than focusing on policies they will implement.
“People have [religion] in their hearts and minds. They don’t need those who are a shame to [their religion] to impose their rules on them in the name of [religion]. They don’t need religion in their government and they do not need anyone — certainly not politicians — to guide them in their faith.
“Instead of this dangerous conflation of religion and politics …what we [need is] a secular government, one that [will] remain distinct from religion, which is a matter of personal faith.” Contrary to claims of fundamentalists, “secularism is not to be feared.” Secularism means simply “a separation of religion from politics;” and so defined, secularism “safeguards and guarantees the rights of citizens to freedom of religion and belief.”
Another reason against State Religion —
Governors’ ole time religion persists at war
Rich natural resources, oil and waterways, mercenary and military industries, foreign interference and exploitation RELIGION
REGION USA: AFGHANISTAN, IRAQ and beyond
“The U.S. fiasco in Iraq and Afghanistan has exposed the limits of the superpower’s military capacity to win wars — let alone hearts and minds — in faraway lands. … Western wars in Eastern lands have spread chaos and exposed its [the superpower’s] weaknesses. Yet in addition to hundreds of military bases in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. military continues to deploy its forces in more than 100,000 structures, in over 700 bases, in more than 100 countries around the world.” Al Jazeera was reporting in an episode of its “Empire” program that began last Wednesday.
In an estimated 400 bases, there are now more than 140,000 foreign troops in Afghanistan (from 100,000 Americans to three Austrians).
The U.S. State Department decision to hire and deploy a private army of some 7,000 additional mercenaries in Iraq — added to an estimated 200,000 private contractors already deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan — further militarizes its diplomatic presence in the region.
Unaccountable private contractors are carrying out other cover operations, complicating U.S. missions and rules of engagement.
Although the covert operations are defended as less costly in terms of ‘collateral damage’ or human losses, their use comes in addition to — not instead of — military operations. “‘Terrorismologists’” call this, “using the ‘scalpel’ in addition to — not instead of — the ‘hammer.’”
As of September 2010, 50,000 U.S. soldiers in more than 100 military bases will remain in Iraq.
Afghanistan last week
Twenty-one “fighters” died and four NATO soldiers suffered wounds in the pre-dawn hours of Saturday. Also on Saturday the “NATO-led International Security Assistance Force said its forces had mistakenly killed two private security contractors after one of its patrols came under fire from fighters in Wardak province, west of the capital, Kabul.” http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2010/08/201082832726175137.html
Iraq last week
Eight members of the government-backed Awakening Council (Sahwa) militia died Thursday in eastern Iraq. The attack on the U.S.-organized Sunni force came after a spate of bombings and shootings, mostly targeting security forces, left at least 50 Iraqis dead on Wednesday. Wednesday attacks also left at least 15 dead and 58 wounded in the north of Baghdad, and at least ten people dead in southern Iraq’s Wasit province. http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/08/201082682343489618.html
Nigeria last week
Twelve and more people died in separate incidents in recent weeks in this country’s north ahead of expected January presidential, legislative and state elections. http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20100828/twl-nigeria-politics-violence-4bdc673.html
Pakistan since the monsoons
Fifteen thousand and more people have died. An estimated 72,000 children have been affected by severe malnutrition in the flood-affected areas and are at high risk of death.
Seventeen million and more people have been significantly affected by the floods and about 1.2 million homes have been destroyed or badly damaged.
More than 175,000 people have fled Pakistan’s southern city of Thatta, leaving it virtually empty, as flood waters threatened to submerge the city's outskirts. http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2010/08/201082873211738615.html
Somalia last week
Eleven civilians died in Friday night clashes in south Mogadishu when “Islamist insurgents continued whittling away areas controlled by government forces.” http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20100828/twl-somalia-unrest-4bdc673.html
Yemen last week
Thirty-three (est.) people died in clashes between alleged “Al-Qaeda militants and the army in Loder, in northern Abyan.” http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20100829/twl-yemen-unrest-qaeda-4bdc673.html
How many (est.) in two-theater
U.S.-led
WAR DEAD?
Casualty sites reporting
August 29, 2010 (accurate totals unknown)
• Anti-war dot com Casualties in Iraq since March 19, 2003
[U.S. war dead since the Obama inauguration January 20, 2009: 188]
Wounded 31,911-100,000
U.S. veterans with brain injuries 320,000
Suicides [estimated] 18 a day
Latest update on this site August 24
• Iraq Body Count figures
97,461 – 106,348
• ICasualties IRAQ: 4,416 U.S., 4,734 Coalition
AFGHANISTAN: 1,256 U.S., 2,040 Coalition
More sources
A Woman among Warlords: The Extraordinary Story of an Afghan Who Dared to Raise Her Voice by Malalai Joya and Derrick O'Keefe, pages 97-98
Excerpted from PDF excerpt from A Woman Among Warlords: The Extraordinary Story of an Afghan Who Dared to Raise Her Voice by Malalai Joya and Derrick O'Keefe published by Scribner 2009, ZNet: The Spirit of Resistance Lives, A Woman Among Warlords: The Extraordinary Story of an Afghan Who Dared to Raise Her Voice, By Malalai Joya and Derrick O'Keefe Saturday, December 5, 2009, www.zcommunications.org/a-woman-among-warlords-the-extraordinary-story-of-an-afghan-who-dared-to-raise-her-voice-by-malalai-joya.pdf
“In Afghanistan, democratic-minded people have been struggling for human and women’s rights for decades. Our history proves that these values cannot be imposed by foreign troops. … No nation can donate liberation to another nation. These values must be fought for and won by the people themselves. They can only grow and flourish when they are planted by the people in their own soil and watered by their own blood and tears.” [Malalai Joya]
Al Jazera’s Empire program “U.S. wars: People vs. Generals” (Marwan Bishara in Imperium on August 25, 2010, episode runs Wednesday-Sunday, August 25-29) http://blogs.aljazeera.net/imperium/2010/08/25/us-wars-people-vs-generals
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