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CommentAuthorThe Dunwich Horror
- CommentTimeSep 13th 2009
Post your news articles and a link to where you found them.
Iraqi men spending 6+ hours a day searching gay chatrooms
Sitting on the floor, wearing traditional Islamic clothes and holding an old notebook, Abu Hamizi, 22, spends at least six hours a day searching internet chatrooms linked to gay websites. He is not looking for new friends, but for victims."It is the easiest way to find those people who are destroying Islam and who want to dirty the reputation we took centuries to build up," he said. When he finds them, Hamizi arranges for them to be attacked and sometimes killed.
Hamizi, a computer science graduate, is at the cutting edge of a new wave of violence against gay men in Iraq. Made up of hardline extremists, Hamizi's group and others like it are believed to be responsible for the deaths of more than 130 gay Iraqi men since the beginning of the year alone.
The deputy leader of the group, which is based in Baghdad, explained its campaign using a stream of homophobic invective. "Animals deserve more pity than the dirty people who practise such sexual depraved acts," he told the Observer. "We make sure they know why they are being held and give them the chance to ask God's forgiveness before they are killed."
The violence against Iraqi gays is a key test of the government's ability to protect vulnerable minority groups after the Americans have gone.
Dr Toby Dodge, of London University's Queen Mary College, believes that the violence may be a consequence of the success of the government of Nouri al-Maliki. "Militia groups whose raison d'être was security in their communities are seeing that function now fulfilled by the police. So their focus has shifted to the moral and cultural sphere, reverting to classic Islamist tactics of policing moral boundaries," Dodge said.
Homosexuality was not criminalised under Saddam Hussein – indeed Iraq in the 1960s and 1970s was known for its relatively liberated gay scene. Violence against gays started in the aftermath of the invasion in 2003. Since 2004, according to Ali Hali, chairman of the Iraqi LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) group, a London-based human-rights group, a total of 680 have died in Iraq, with at least 70 of those in the past five months. The group believes the figures may be higher, as most cases involving married men are not reported. Seven victims were women. According to Hali, Iraq has become "the worst place for homosexuals on Earth".
The killings are brutal, with victims ritually tortured. Azhar al-Saeed's son was one. "He didn't follow what Islamic doctrine tells but he was a good son," she said. "Three days after his kidnapping, I found a note on my door with blood spread over it and a message saying it was my son's purified blood and telling me where to find his body."
She went with police to find her son's remains. "We found his body with signs of torture, his anus filled with glue and without his genitals," she said. "I will carry this image with me until my dying day."
Police officers interviewed by the Observer said the killings were not aimed at gays but were isolated remnants of the sectarian violence that racked the country between 2005 and 2006. Hamizi's group, however, boasts that two people a day are chosen to be "investigated" in Baghdad. The group claims that local tribes are involved in homophobic attacks, choosing members to hunt down the victims. In some areas, a list of names is posted at restaurants and food shops.
The roommate of Haydar, 26, was kidnapped and killed three months ago in Baghdad. After Haydar contacted the last person his friend had been chatting with on the net, he found a letter on his front door alerting him "about the dangers of behaving against Islamic rules". Haydar plans to flee to Amman, the Jordanian capital. "I have… to run away before I suffer the same fate," he said.
According to Human Rights Watch, the Shia militia known as the Mahdi army may be among the militants implicated in the violence, particularly in the northern part of Baghdad known as Sadr City. There are reports that Mahdi army militias are harassing young men simply for wearing "western fashions".
A Ministry of Interior spokesperson, Abdul-Karim Khalaf, denied allegations of police collaboration. "The Iraqi police exists to protect all Iraqis, whatever their sexual persuasion," he said.
Hashim, another victim of violence by extremists, was attacked on Abu Nawas Street. Famous for its restaurants and bars, the street has become a symbol of the relative progress made in Baghdad. But it was where Hashim was set on by four men, had a finger cut off and was badly beaten. His assailants left a note warning that he had one month to marry and have "a traditional life" or die.
"Since that day I have not left my home. I'm too scared and don't have money to run away," Hashim said.
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CommentAuthorThe Cheshire Cat
- CommentTimeSep 13th 2009
Hashim should rent his anus to homeless people on the street for money. Then he could run away. -
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CommentAuthorThe Dunwich Horror
- CommentTimeSep 17th 2009 edited
SWORD
A Johns Hopkins University student armed with a samurai sword killed a man who broke into the garage of his off-campus residence early Tuesday, a Baltimore police spokesman said.According to preliminary reports, a resident of the 300 block of E. University Parkway called police about a suspicious person, department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said. An off-duty officer responded about 1:20 a.m. to the area with university security, according to Guglielmi. They heard shouts and screams from a neighboring house and found the suspected burglar suffering from a nearly severed hand and lacerations to his upper body, he said.
The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene.
The student told police that he heard a commotion in the house and went downstairs armed with a samurai sword, Guglielmi said. He saw the side door to the garage had been pried open and found a man inside, who lunged at the student.
Detectives were still interviewing the student and his three roommates Tuesday morning, Guglielmi said. Burglars had already stolen two laptops and a Sony PlayStation from the student's home Monday, according to Guglielmi.
Dennis O'Shea, a spokesman for Johns Hopkins, said all four residents of the house are undergraduate students at the university.
The suspected burglar, whose name was not released pending notification of next of kin, had prior convictions for breaking and entering and had just been released Saturday from a Baltimore County facility, Guglielmi said.
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- CommentAuthorBryce (Tuxedo)
- CommentTimeSep 18th 2009
homeless people don't have money, kitty bitch.
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Haven't you seen the Wire? This sort of shit goes on all the time in Baltimore.
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CommentAuthorThe Dunwich Horror
- CommentTimeOct 14th 2009 edited
Last week, attorneys for special ed student Marshawn Pitts released the security video, which shows Pitts being beaten by Christopher Lloyd, a police officer in Dolton, Illinois, who was working security at [Academy for Learning High School]. Pitts’ attorneys say Lloyd administered the beating because Pitts hadn’t tucked in his shirt, as required by the school’s dress code.
When the video first emerged last week, the Dolton police department refused to release Lloyd’s name. With good reason. Lloyd is in jail in Indiana. He was arrested last month for raping an Indiana woman at knife point. He had also threatened the woman weeks earlier, but apparently wasn’t arrested or disciplined for it.
But it gets worse. Lloyd was also fired last year from another suburban Chicago police department . . . for killing his ex-wife’s husband in front of their children. The town of Robbins fired Lloyd after the February 2008 shooting, but Chicago police bought Lloyd’s claim that the shooting was self-defense, so he was never charged. That enabled Lloyd to find work at the Dalton police department 11 months later.
According to a lawsuit filed by Lloyd’s ex-wife, autopsy reports contradict the police investigation. The autopsy shows that Lloyd shot the man 24 times. When contacted by the Chicago Tribune, a spokesman from Chicago PD said details of the department’s investigation of the shooting “could not immediately be found.”
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Inside France's secret war
For 40 years, the French government has been fighting a secret war in Africa, hidden not only from its people, but from the world. It has led the French to slaughter democrats, install dictator after dictator – and to fund and fuel the most vicious genocide since the Nazis. Today, this war is so violent that thousands are fleeing across the border from the Central African Republic into Darfur – seeking sanctuary in the world's most notorious killing fields.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/inside-frances-secret-war-396062.html -
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CommentAuthorThe Cheshire Cat
- CommentTimeOct 14th 2009
thats nothing, you should try the conspiracies they're unveiling in Prisonbreak. -
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Extraordinary scene shows chimps grieving
October 29, 2009 09:00am
chimps show genuine grief
RAW GRIEF: Chimpanzees line up to watch as Dorothy, who died of heart failure, is wheeled away. Picture: Monica Szczupider
UNITED in what appears to be deep and profound grief, more than a dozen chimpanzees stand in silence as the body of one of their own is wheeled past.
This extraordinary scene took place at the Sanaga-Yong Chimpanzee Rescue Centre in Cameroon, west Africa, when a chimp named Dorothy, who was in her late 40s, died of heart failure.
Her death seemed to have left her fellow chimpanzees stricken by sorrow.
Gallery: Chimpanzees show grief, human emotions
As they wrapped their arms around each other in a gesture of solidarity, Dorothy's keeper gently settled her into the wheelbarrow which carried her to her final resting place - but not before a final affectionate stroke of her forehead.
Villagers serve as "care-givers" to the chimps, all orphans whose mothers were killed in the illegal bush-meat trade.
Until recently, describing scenes such as this in terms of human emotions such as "grief" would have been dismissed by scientists as naive anthropomorphising.
But a growing body of evidence has suggested that "higher" emotions - such as grieving for a loved one and even a deep understanding of what death is - may not just be the preserve of our species.
Chimpanzees - as revealed in November's National Geographic magazine - and closely related bonobos maintain hugely complex social networks, largely held together by sex and grooming. They have often been observed apparently grieving for lost family and tribe members by entering a period of quiet mourning, showing subdued emotions and behaviour.
And such complex emotions are not the preserve of primates or even mammals.
University of Colorado ethologist Dr Marc Bekoff this month reported evidence that magpies not only appeared to grieve but they carry out something akin to a funeral ritual.
In one instance, four magpies took it in turns to approach another's corpse. Two flew off and returned with a piece of grass, which they laid down by the corpse. The birds then stood vigil.
But the most famous non-human death rituals are those of elephants which will often spend days guarding a dead body, gently prodding the remains with their trunks and giving the impression of being lost in grief. -
jesus fuck this is a crazyworld we live in
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CommentAuthorThe Cheshire Cat
- CommentTimeNov 5th 2009
yeah.. beings caring about each other? crazy shit -
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why is that chimpanzee on the left pushing the cart?
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Caz made me laugh just now, fact
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Copypasta'd from The Cheshire Cat:yeah.. beings caring about each other? crazy shit
ya because showing empathy towards members of your species is exactly the same as holding funeral ceremonies and understanding the consequences of death -
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CommentAuthorThe Cheshire Cat
- CommentTimeNov 5th 2009
I wasn't going that way, wasn't being serious. Btw I heard elephants actually have their own "graveyards" where they go to die. Also I saw some videos of elephants drawing some pretty elaborate pics. Elephants are awesome. -
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As they wrapped their arms around each other in a gesture of solidarity, Dorothy's keeper gently settled her into the wheelbarrow which carried her to her final resting place - but not before a final affectionate stroke of her forehead.
When I die this is exactly how I want to go.
It shall go in my will.
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Copypasta'd from The Cheshire Cat: Btw I heard elephants actually have their own "graveyards" where they go to die.
We all learned that when we watched Lion King when we were like 8. -
ya those elephant paintings are really cool. they can take elements of each figure theyre taught to draw and combine them together creatively :O
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CommentAuthorTheMightyPeon
- CommentTimeNov 6th 2009 edited
when i die, i want my tombstone to read "Break yo self Riverside motheruckers, i got these cheeseburgers".
that France thing is fucked up. but i have a feeling all the old great powers (and new great powers) have dark secrets like that. the world is a fucked up place. -
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BEIRUT – An unassuming college math student has become an unlikely hero to many in Iran for daring to criticize the country's most powerful man to his face.
Mahmoud Vahidnia has received an outpouring of support from government opponents for the challenge — unprecedented in a country where insulting supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is a crime punishable by prison.
Perhaps most surprising, the young math whiz has so far suffered no repercussions from the confrontation at a question-and-answer session between Khamenei and students at Tehran's Sharif Technical University.
In fact, Iran's clerical leadership appears to be touting the incident as a sign of its tolerance — so much so that some Iranians at first believed the 20-minute exchange was staged by the government, though opposition commentators are now convinced Vahidnia was the real thing.
Details of the encounter were reported on the state news agency IRNA and in a pro-government newspaper, Keyhan, which gave its account with a headline reading, "The revolutionary leader's fatherly response to critical youth." Even Khamenei's official Web site mentioned the incident.
Still some of those in attendance at the Oct. 28 forum say Khamenei appeared taken aback by the questioning and left the meeting early, according to commentary posted on pro-reform Web sites.
The session began with a speech in which Khamenei told the students the "biggest crime" was to question the results of the June 12 presidential election that returned hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power. Khamenei himself declared Ahmadinejad the victor despite opposition claims of widespread fraud.
After the speech, Vahidnia raised his hand, then for 20 minutes he criticized the Iranian leader over the fierce crackdown on postelection protests, in which the opposition says 69 people were killed and thousands were arrested.
In brief excerpts broadcast on state TV, the thin, bespectacled Vahidnia was shown standing behind a podium, gesturing at times for emphasis.
"I don't know why in this country it's not allowed to make any kind of criticism of you," said the student, wearing a long-sleeved blue polo shirt and appearing calm.
"In the past three to five years that I have been reading newspapers, I have seen no criticism of you, not even by the Assembly of Experts, whose duty is to criticize and supervise the performance of the leader," he said, referring to the clerical body that chooses the country's supreme leader.
Khamenei countered, "We welcome criticism. We never said not to criticize us. ... There's plenty of criticism that I receive," according to accounts in state media and on opposition Web sites.
The boldness of Vahidnia's comments underlines how Iran's postelection turmoil has undermined the once rock-solid taboo against challenging the supreme leader. During demonstrations, young protesters have frequently chanted "Death to the dictator" — referring to Khamenei — and even "Khamenei is a murderer." Several high-ranking pro-opposition clerics have also been openly critical.
The supreme leader stands at the top of the hierarchy of Iran's clerical rulers, and his word is supposed to be final on political issues. Scores of Iranian writers, bloggers and academics have been jailed for writing what authorities have deemed as insults to Khamenei.
But so far Vahidnia has been spared. The president of Sharif University even defended the student, saying he spoke within the law.
The incident has propelled the soft-spoken man in his early 20s to national prominence and inspired widespread support on the Web.
The night of the encounter, fellow students gathered, shouting, "God is great" and "death to the dictator" in support of their colleague, according to video footage posted on pro-reform Web sites.
"Vahidnia showed a new atmosphere which is the true characteristic of the Iranian people," Ataollah Mohajerani, a former pro-reform Cabinet minister, wrote on his Web site. "If from now on in gatherings in the presence of the supreme leader one finds the courage to get up and speak in defense of justice and right, the climate of tyranny will suffocate."
Speaking to The Associated Press, Mohajerani dismissed the idea that Vahidnia could have been planted by authorities, but said the state was using the incident to try to paint itself in a better light.
"Khamenei wants to show that the leader is totally prepared to face criticism," Mohajerani said in a telephone interview from London.
During the face-to-face exchange, Vahidnia also raised allegations of abuse of imprisoned opposition protesters.
"You, who have the role of a father, when you deal with your opponents in such a manner, your subordinates will likely behave similarly, as we have seen in the prisons," he told Khamenei, referring to the reports of torture and rape.
He also criticized state-run Iranian television and radio for their depiction of the protests as the work of troublemakers and pawns of Iran's foreign enemies. "Do you think radio and television have portrayed the recent events accurately or broadcast a caricature-type image of them?" he asked.
The supreme leader countered that he had his own criticisms of state media, including their failure to give enough coverage to the government's "positive achievements."
"Don't assume that because I appoint the head of state television, they bring all their programs to me for approval," the Iranian leader said, adding that state broadcasts of the situation in the country were "incomplete."
Vahidnia, a gold medalist at the country's National Math Olympics two years ago, told the pro-opposition Alef Web site that officials at first barred him from speaking, but Khamenei apparently allowed him to go ahead. He said he was interrupted several times by the event's moderator who insisted they were out of time. Vahidnia could not be reached for further comment.
The evening of the encounter, state television aired excerpts of Khamenei's speech but did not show Vahidnia or mention the exchange. Days later, however, it ran a report denying rumors he had been arrested and showed an image of him at the gathering.
In Italy, at least two parliament members have issued calls for their government to offer Vahidnia asylum if necessary.
Lawmaker Benedetto Della Vedova called the student a symbol of the "demands for change and modernity" in Iran. Another parliament deputy, Angelo Bonelli, praised Vahidnia's "courage" and urged political leaders to stand by his "fight for rights and democracy."
Vahidnia's comments were so brazen and unprecedented that many Iranians thought it was staged by the government.
"I thought it was a hoax, to show us that we have freedom here," said one young Iranian woman who has participated in the opposition demonstrations. She asked not to be identified for fear of getting into trouble with authorities.
"But now that it looks like it was real, I think it's a huge deal," she said. "Never before has anyone had the courage to do such a thing."