'Blasphemous' balls anger Afghans

[babsbunny]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6964564.stm

By Alastair Leithead
BBC News, Kabul



The footballs angered residents in Khost
A demonstration has been held in south- east Afghanistan accusing US troops of insulting Islam after they distributed footballs bearing the name of Allah.

The balls showed the Saudi Arabian flag which features the Koranic declaration of faith.

The US military said the idea had been to give something for Afghan children to enjoy and they did not realise it would cause offence.

[saltpoint]

1. I think this is the third post on this subject today and unfortunately I bet

the people in charge of our war effort still haven't reconsidered their insensitivity toward the Afghan people, and I bet the administration hasn't sensed that they aren't the people who should be in charge.

[msongs]

2. Islam cannot be insulted any more than a tree can be insulted. it is not a human being nt

[saltpoint]

3. Interesting. But I don't understand it. If I drive through central Alabama

in the late 1960s with a bumpersticker reading "George Wallace Sucks" I'm going to have a tense encounter or two at the filling stations.

Democracy is or is not insulted by my insensitivity to local political disposition but the guy at the gas station might not care for a Yankee with that sticker on his car.

[frogcycle]

4. but then George Wallace was a human beig

so your argument has no bearing on the point made

[saltpoint]

7. In the late 60s a case could be made that he was more of a monster.

But I take your point.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

9. I get your point, I think

the followers of Islam will be insulted, which is the point, just as the guy at the gas station may be insulted.

I would add, though, that the phrase in question is the First Pillar of Islam, the Profession of Faith (Shahada), and is central to Islam. It would be tantamount to your bumper sticker saying, "George Wallace Should Die a Dishonorable Death"--a step beyond mere disrespect.

[saltpoint]

11. There it is. Our soldiers -- or their commanders -- whoever it is -- are

insensitive to the local Afghan culture in most repsects generally and as to faith especially.

A CIA operative described the average U.S. recruit for the "war on terror" in Afghanistan and Iraq as being no more savvy than "your average hillbilly yahoo." That's pretty sharp-tongued language, but it has a kernel of revelation in it: why are we sending insensitive folks to bring "peace" to a people?

We ain't from around there. And it shows.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

5. Muslims can be

and this was the point of the article--that putting the Profession of Faith on a football to be kicked is showing great disrespect.

[tibbiit]

6. are the balls also made from pigskin?

Do afghani's know traditional footballs are made out of pigskin?
lol
wouldnt surprise me heh,
tib

[saltpoint]

8. Wouldn't surprise me. In fact, why not let's give them balls made from

pig balls? As long as we're showing our total insensitivity to their culture, might as well go whole-hog.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

10. No

in another thread on this subject, a person cited an article that claimed no pigskin have been used in American footballs for some time.

And kindly realize that by "footballs" they mean what Americans call "soccer balls".

[frogcycle]

12. the decision to put ANY slogan or symbol is naive and stupid

probably one of those 20-something idiots trying to pander to "the locals"

If they wanted to give them soccer balls (good idea) they should have just done that. Sticking any sort of label on them, regardless of what it is, is an effort at advertising, at mind control. I assume they thought it would endear them to the "savages". Probably in the Carribbean they'd have put a picture of a voodoo priest with chicken bones. Stupid, patronizing idiots.

[valerief]

13. No one could have predicted they would cause offense. That

would require a godlike knowledge of their culture and political spin machine.

Duh, they could have given the kids air guitars and a crowd would be frenzied and offended. It's just like church machine does with gay marriage.