General Chat

Hear hear, Sue. I have only been to one really poor place, and that was Kerala in India. They are very racist and very sexist - and Kerala is a Communist state very proud that most get a basic education of a few years length.

Families manage on 400 rupees (less that a fiver) per day and it seems frowned on to earn more than that - because it takes work away from somebody who needs the work. It is day work, no pension or health care. Old or ill, you simply die. Yet they seem a lot happier than we do.

What really gets me is these clerics in Iraq (and elsewhere) are leaders. People look up to them. Not like the Archbishop of Canterbury - most would not even know his name, and would think he was a science teacher at the local school if they had to identify him.

But these are real leaders of opinion. And they use Friday prayers (their day of rest) to spout this bile and incite their flock to murder.

I know some will say "not our problem, plenty of our own problems, it is only the Shi'ites and Sunnis bashing pieces out of each other. The Micks and the Billies used to do same in Ulster not that long ago and they are friends now. Martin shakes hands with the Queen of England, and the IRA took her uncle out"

But it is horrible. And you feel so helpless. No wonder Hague is starting to look his age.

I have been watching developments over the past few days. Discussed it with a very knowledgeable friend last night and it's a desperate situation in Iraq yet again.

I don't want to say much more TBH. The photos that are published speak volumes re the suffering if anyone cares to look for them.

Sadly many people don't! It's only our problem when we want it to be or it suits our government's political agenda or we follow in another's footsteps.

We shouldn't moan about the minor inconveniences in our lives until we have an understanding of true suffering.

I just see these sort of stories every week now. Quite often in UK. Clerics (people trained for years, educated really well) declare fatwas.

Us older ones remember the ridiculous events that followed Salman Rushdi's book. Probably 30 years ago. It was when I worked in Walsall and there were public meetings almost every day on the Bridge calling for Rushdi to be murdered for writing a book. Later it was fatwas for somebody else drawing cartoons. Where will it all end?

Everyone tells me that Islam is a more peaceful religion that Christianity and it certainly emerged in 4th -8th century as a softer version of Judiaism and Christianity. I agree the Q'ran, whilst great similarities to Bible and Talmud, is gentler and much more loving and peaceful.

What on earth has happened to Islam to attract these headlines so often? That anyone with an Islamic surname is treated with same suspicion today as those with German surnames 100 years ago.

What a wonderful world

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/10-best-peace-songs.html?page=3

Iraq's most senior Shia cleric has issued a call to arms after Sunni-led insurgents seized more towns.

The call by a representative of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani came during Friday prayers, as the militants widened their grip in the north and east, and threatened to march south.

The UN says hundreds have been killed - with militants carrying out summary executions of civilians in Mosul.