BKJ1216 Posted April 10, 2003 Posted April 10, 2003 I watched it. I didn't understand why they were beating it with thier shoes either. So I spent most of the time saying things like "You might need something harder than a shoe". White Belt- Shudokan Karate
Patrick Posted April 10, 2003 Posted April 10, 2003 Well, in their culture someone turning the sole of their shoes on you is a huge insult. That is how I understand it, anyway. Patrick O'Keefe - KarateForums.com AdministratorHave a suggestion or a bit of feedback relating to KarateForums.com? Please contact me!KarateForums.com Articles - KarateForums.com Awards - Member of the Month - User Guidelines
SaiFightsMS Posted April 11, 2003 Author Posted April 11, 2003 That is just one of the examples the other side of the way the common Iraqi does not understand the intent of the USA. The other side is we understand far too little of their culture and their values and view of the world.
SaiFightsMS Posted April 11, 2003 Author Posted April 11, 2003 Not to us, but to them it may very well be.
monkeygirl Posted April 11, 2003 Posted April 11, 2003 I think the symbolism of banging their shoes on the statue is pretty great...Saddam used to walk all over the Iraqi people, and now they've toppled him and are returning the favor. As far as showing someone the sole of your shoe: generally only dirt would see the bottom of your shoe (unless you're like us martial artists who kick all the time ), so to show someone the bottom of your shoe would be to liken them to dirt? But that's just pure speculation on my part. 1st dan & Asst. Instructor TKD 2000-2003No matter the tune...if you can rock it, rock it hard.
theswarm Posted April 12, 2003 Posted April 12, 2003 there were 200 people doing that, out of a popullation of 5 million Iraqis living in baghdad I don't think it's necessarily representative of the feeling there. I prefer to read news sources which don't have to answer to a government like the English Reuters (who conveniently got hit by a tank shot) the AFP, and Al jazeera sure they won't all give me as much truth as I want, but they'll give me way more than CNN, NBC etc will ever give me.
omnifinite Posted April 12, 2003 Posted April 12, 2003 Yeah I've been wondering how the news tells it outside of America. The event with the statue was an uplifting, meaningful moment... but at the same time when I saw it it left this aftertaste of media-manufactured-ness... like they were saying, "Look! This is an important symbolic moment! This is your cue to be emotionally moved!" I'm not sure how else to explain it. Maybe I'm a cynic, but I guess I just got the feeling that it was being capitalized on more because they finally got a good video clip to use in some "America Remembers" special a few years down the line over any other reason. Maybe I was just watching the wrong channel. *shrug* I just woke up... I'm not wording things well . Does anyone have a story somewhere of an Iraqi take on the event? Maybe even someone who was there already? Iraq may not have any real form of media at the moment considering, but I would think there would be something out there. 1st Dan HapkidoColored belts in Kempo and Jujitsu
ninjanurse Posted April 12, 2003 Posted April 12, 2003 I was moved by the coverage of the event. I felt great pride in knowing that we had a hand in liberating the Iraqi's. As a veteran I can understand the actions of the soldier in placing the Stars and Stripes on the statue-even if only for a few moments. They earned it! Many of their friends died on their way to Baghdad. I also found it quite moving to see many Iraqi's carrying American Flags and waiving them to the cameras. "A Black Belt is only the beginning."Heidi-A student of the artsTae Kwon Do,Shotokan,Ju Jitsu,Modern Arnishttp://the100info.tumblr.com/
ElGatoMagico Posted April 18, 2003 Posted April 18, 2003 I agree that it's an extremely important event for the people of Iraq, but I'd say that the effect in this country isn't so great (not as in bad.) A few days ago, it was realeased that in the last 5 years, 3.2 million people have died as a result of the war in the Congo. Currently, Rwandan forces are massacring Tutsi tribes in the north, and pillaging any villages they come across, yet this receives almost no news. In the last week, an estimated 950 civilians died in the Congo. If this war is a liberation mission (which it should not be, not unless we plan on doing the same for other countries) then we'd be helping the Congo as well. It looks more likely now that there are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq (I only consider nuclear weapons to be weapons of mass destruction, because if chemical weapons are weapons of mass destruction, then so is carpet bombing and fire bombing,) which would be an acceptable reason, if they had irrefutable proof before an attack was to take place, which they obviously did not. To sum up my post, kudos to the people of Iraq, but with everything going on in the world, Iraq isn't the biggest evil.
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