Around 150 Afghan schoolgirls poisoned in anti-education attack.

[Thanatos]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...83G0PZ20120417

Since the 2001 toppling of the Taliban, which banned education for women and girls, females have returned to schools, especially in Kabul.

But periodic attacks still occur against girls, teachers and their school buildings, usually in the more conservative south and east of the country, from where the Taliban insurgency draws most support.

"We are 100 percent sure that the water they drunk inside their classes was poisoned. This is either the work of those who are against girls' education or irresponsible armed individuals," said Jan Mohammad Nabizada, a spokesman for education department in northern Takhar province.

Some of the 150 girls, who suffered from headaches and vomiting, were in critical condition, while others were able to go home after treatment in hospital, the officials said.

They said they knew the water had been poisoned because a larger tank used to fill the affected water jugs was not contaminated.

"This is not a natural illness. It's an intentional act to poison schoolgirls," said Haffizullah Safi, head of Takhar's public health department.

None of the officials blamed any particular group for the attack, fearing retribution from anyone named.

The Afghan government said last year that the Taliban, which has been trying to adopt a more moderate face to advance exploratory peace talks, had dropped its opposition to female education.

But the insurgency has never stated that explicitly and in the past acid has been thrown in the faces of women and girls by hardline Islamists while walking to school.

Education for women was outlawed by the Taliban government from 1996-2001 as un-Islamic.

This is a terrible tragedy, especially since this only serves to continue the rampant poverty and violence in the region. Thoughts?

[muller227]

If it were up to me I would offer Political asylum to any Afghan girl or woman who asked for it with minimum questions asked. Other than that I'm just going to keep quiet.

[mrmouth]

The Taliban has been poisoning and cementing-up wells as long as they have existed. I saw the latter in person. This is one of those things that makes you wonder when you look at an Afghan populace that by the numbers, supports the govt and NATO, but simply has not made the 180 degree shift that we saw in Iraq. There isn't the same tribal structure/cohesiveness in rural areas, but I'm still left scratching my head. The quality of life for even rural Afghans is night/day better.

[Visna]

The Taliban has been poisoning and cementing-up wells as long as they have existed. I saw the latter in person. This is one of those things that makes you wonder when you look at an Afghan populace that by the numbers, supports the govt and NATO, but simply has not made the 180 degree shift that we saw in Iraq. There isn't the same tribal structure/cohesiveness in rural areas, but I'm still left scratching my head. The quality of life for even rural Afghans is night/day better.

The reason you're left scratching your head, Barnaby, is that there are no reliable numbers. The statistics pretty much every single report on progress (or lack thereof) is based upon is so full of holes that it's basically worthless.

But the Taliban have been waging a systematic war against not only the local population, but against Afghan history and culture for years. That they run around and get all rowdy about schoolgirls having the audacity of wanting to learn to read is just another act in a loooong chain.

[Kjertesvein]

This just makes me sick to my stomack.

Anyhow, my money is on you girls, that is, until 2014...

~Wille

[Blaze86420]

I don't think you'll find any other place in the world with the same kind of attitude, these people are brought up and indoctrinated to really hate women. These guys need a term stronger than misogynist to describe them. the Taliban.

[tarvu]

I don't think you'll find any other place in the world with the same kind of attitude, these people are brought up and indoctrinated to really hate women. These guys need a term stronger than misogynist to describe them. the Taliban.

It isn't just the Taliban. The hatred of women in many parts of Afghanistan extends far enough that young boys are often the preferred object of romantic and sexual idealism (including in a lot of pretty notable poetry from the area). Something the Taliban actually had to crack down on pretty hard, and is now on the comeback. You could make a case that this is just homosexuality, but I think given the situation it is actually in most cases just misogyny at work.

But you are right when you can't even objectify women as sexual objects because you hate them so much, that is an entirely new level of misogynist.

[Phier]

I don't think you'll find any other place in the world with the same kind of attitude, these people are brought up and indoctrinated to really hate women. These guys need a term stronger than misogynist to describe them. the Taliban.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3130234.stm

And literacy rates of women in the Arab world, according to the latest report of UNDP, are around 55%.

When we asked parents why they did not allow their girls to school, they would say "because it's wrong, it's irreligious, it's improper - they should stay at home to prepare for their real life, their married life".

And.....

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/10/wo...pagewanted=all

So yea I think there are other places in the world like this.

[Blaze86420]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3130234.stm




And.....

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/10/wo...pagewanted=all

So yea I think there are other places in the world like this.

Yeah thanks Phier, I experienced public education in the middle east first hand, you don't need to demonstrate anything to me. However, that's nowhere near as close to how women are treated under the Taliban and still are today.

[Denny Crane!]

Yeah thanks Phier, I experienced public education in the middle east first hand, you don't need to demonstrate anything to me. However, that's nowhere near as close to how women are treated under the Taliban and still are today.

It isn't the same but it isn't a million miles off and certainly down the same path. Honestly the entire muslim world needs a god damn suffragette movement and they need it badly and immediately. This to me is simply what happens and what would happen if the moderate elements were supressed in Islamic countries and to a certain extent it has happened just not quite as badly.

I've said it before I'll say it again, if you want to consider yourself Muslim this is a fight you should be taking up both on a supranational level and on an individual personal level with those around you otherwise frankly I'd struggle to associate myself with the ideals of Islam without feeling coloured by association when calling myself a muslim and knowing it is synonymous with this behaviour.

[Col. Tartleton]

Yeah thanks Phier, I experienced public education in the middle east first hand, you don't need to demonstrate anything to me. However, that's nowhere near as close to how women are treated under the Taliban and still are today.

That's why we have to get these people off the streets. They're child murderers and child rapists and everything that is bad. They aren't monsters. They're stupid people doing stupid, cruel, terrible things and it's up to us to put them in jail or kill them in the attempt (I hate the expression "or die in the attempt". We want them to die, not us, they're the bad guys.)

And we should note that people get attacked with acid in the Indian caste system. I would imagine elsewhere, but I know for a fact it happens in India. This isn't a Christian vs Muslim or even a Secular vs Muslim issue. It's a "I don't think murdering kids is a reasonable response to them learning to read" vs "Reading is the Great Satan! Alalalaalalalala!"

Especially in a culture like Islam which was once so accomplished and modern. I mean if you read translated bits of medieval literature and scholarship from the middle east you're like "Wow, this sounds, I don't know, modern, or at least 18th or 19th century." I mean medieval Baghdad had a "Library of Congress" so big it had a copy of every known book in the world, and the Mongolians turned the rivers Euphrates with it's ink.

If the middle east wants to survive it has to change, because they're destroying themselves. If ww4 will be fought with sticks and stones, the Taliban, Hezbollah, and Hamas are going to be a super power.

I mean my only real beef with Islam the religion is that I don't think there are any true religions and I'd like to see a morality of reason being adopted in it's place. But I don't really care if people want to submit to a God I don't believe in. If someone wants to pray five times a day that's fine as long as they aren't praying for my death. I'd like to take a few minutes now and again to reflect and emote. I don't see a problem giving people some short breaks during the work or school day coinciding with Islamic prayer or something like that. We all benefit from a bit of time to unwind. I think the Sabbath off is a good idea as long as no one gets stoned for not keeping it holy. If someone doesn't want to drink beer I respect that as long as they respect that I don't want to not drink. I'm not trying to convince Mormons (the uniquely American religion every freedom loving American finds weird on account of the fact America is in the real world and all that religion stuff can only happen in the distant past in other countries or something) that coffee is good for them, though it probably is. But I can still think their sacred underwear and entire religion in general is a bit hokey.

[Sir Winston Churchill]

ing monsters...

[The Mouth]

People talk sometimes of a bestial cruelty, but that's a great injustice and insult to the beasts; a beast can never be so cruel as a man, so artistically cruel. The tiger only tears and gnaws, that's all he can do. He would never think of nailing people by the ears, even if he were able to do it.

I always did like this quote and I think it somewhat applies here...

[Col. Tartleton]

There needs to be a total war against all enemies of humanity foreign and domestic. We can't coexist with these people. They won't stop attacking everything that is decent and worth living for. If we don't they win. It's that simple. We need more guns in this fight or we'll look back and wonder why we let it happen.

It's not because they're Muslims. It's because they're evil.

[SLN445]

There needs to be a total war against all enemies of humanity foreign and domestic. We can't coexist with these people. They won't stop attacking everything that is decent and worth living for. If we don't they win. It's that simple. We need more guns in this fight or we'll look back and wonder why we let it happen.

It's not because they're Muslims. It's because they're evil.

The more like this happens, the more im agreeing with what you say.

[Phier]

There needs to be a total war against all enemies of humanity foreign and domestic. We can't coexist with these people. They won't stop attacking everything that is decent and worth living for. If we don't they win. It's that simple. We need more guns in this fight or we'll look back and wonder why we let it happen.

It's not because they're Muslims. It's because they're evil.

So what do you think is the final solution?

[Col. Tartleton]

So what do you think is the final solution?

That good people have to be willing to get in between these Afghan school girls and the sorts of guys (and gals) who put poison in their drinking water and then when we see them putting poison in the water we arrest them. Me? I'm a selfish coward, but I'm aware of that and trying to work on it.

Either with handcuffs, or a 5.56x45mm Nato round. Ideally the former, but realistically the latter since these guys tend to go down fighting on account of the fact they're crazy.



And this isn't about America vs everyone else. It's vs people who think that other people are worth saving vs people who think other people are worth killing.

[Rolling Thunder]

So what do you think is the final solution?

[AqD]

So what do you think is the final solution?

Destroy all the evil people who don't live up to our standards.

They must die for the human world to evolve.

[nce_wht_guy]

There needs to be a total war against all enemies of humanity foreign and domestic. We can't coexist with these people. They won't stop attacking everything that is decent and worth living for. If we don't they win. It's that simple. We need more guns in this fight or we'll look back and wonder why we let it happen.

It's not because they're Muslims. It's because they're evil.

Yeah. You have fun with that.....