Originally posted by doctorduh
These people aren't going to the Sporting Goods store, picking out some color-coordinated fabrics and sewing their own uniforms. They're pretty
poor and all the legal Army and Navy stores are closed. So having poor clothes makes them look even more authentic than running around in fatigues or
Ali-Babba robes.
Do you know how expensive a pair of Adidas wind pants are? $40 retail in the United States. True, Adidas clothing are made in the far east, but to
purchase them
in the middle east costs at least 2 to 3 months of average citizens' pay. American sneakers cost twice as much. As a
counterpoint, however, I know that Adidas clothing is made in sweatshops in India or Nepal..(?) I own the same pair of pants, and I'd grab them to
tell ya, but my S/O thinks I'm crazy enough, and is currently asleep.
From what I know of Iraq, there are virtually no thrift shops or Wal-Marts. In lower and middle class families, clothing is passed down from family
members, and traditional clothing is usually hand-made either by female family members or by purchasing it at the outdoor market, at a much cheaper
rate than American logo'd clothing. I studied the Westernization of third-world countries, and in one of the books I read children and adults love
English-logo'd shirts, but only a small fraction knew what the words said.
I had noticed the Western clothing on several of their beheading videos. I wondered why so-called freedom fighters would be wearing bold American
brands. It is because FILMED beheadings are their assignments. Almost every human being photographed, filmed, or portraited wants to look their
sunday-best. It is a middle-class show of wealth, and this shows us how well-funded they are.
They know their films will be seen my millions, and the clothing, video quality, and sound quality of the films have been slowly escalating with time.
I don't think they figured the videos would reach us, as their culture has been suppressed from information for decades. They intended the United
States Government to see it, and only them, but
ta dah, with sites like those removed above, we all get the opportunity to see the worst of the
worst of war...a civilian casualty from the United States.
To those posting that our soldiers are doing terrible things to the Iraqi civilians (which we sometimes do), remember that the Abu Gharib incidents
received more mainstream coverage than the beheadings. All photographs were picked apart and shown to the general populace. Thankfully, this video
wasn't. It's true proof that our media is censored, and it's videos such as this that show us why censorship can be a good thing. I never in my
life thought I'd say it, but it's true.
Dot.
Edited for editing.
[edit on 21-9-2004 by dotgov101]
