<nettime> comment on "War on women"

[Coyote5@aol.com (by way of geert@xs4all.nl)]

	[orig to manderfu@worldcom.ch, moneynations@access.ch]

Dear folks,
I really do appreciate Your action and agree fully with Your embarrasment
about whatīs happening in Afghanistan.
But there are some points that make me hesitate to support Your appeal. I
think the criticism of what is happening in Afghanistan and of the Taliban
madness has not to ask whether it is right or not to critizise at all and
whether it is alright for Americans or nationals of other countries to judge
other peoplesī interior affairs. What is happening in Afghanistan in the first
place with women but also with male dissidents, former officials and e.g. men
that refuse to grow a beart as the religious rules demand, is atrocious and
has to provoke the protest of every person with what could be called human
orientation (as the German author Ralph Giodano put it). 
But our criticism as nationals of the Western industrialized countries should
aim further. We have to ask who armed the Taliban, who put them into the
position to establish their dictatorship and that ridiculous pretended to be
the righteous Islamic rule. It has been the West, especially the United States
that provided the anti-Soviet forces and militia during the beginning 80ies
with all the weapons, technology and power to win that war after the
withdrawal of the Gorbatshewian Soviets. They felt sure to be able to contain
any socalled Fundamental-Islamists, whom they needed to calm down their anti-
Soviet hysteria.(Insofar the sentence containing "...even if...in a part of
the world that Americans do not understand" is out of discussion: America
rules the world and made things happen this way in that region [even if it is
so that they did not and donīt do yet understand]). I hope there is noone who
puts my remark down as nostalgic Communist bullshit, thatīs not my point.
To make clear some responsibility for what is going on in Afghanistan, it is
revealing to take a closer look on what came to light through Clintonīs amok-
bombing to jump over the Lewinsky-affair. The demonised Ossama Ibn Ladin was
discovered to be a former CIA-trainee who was involved into the anti-Soviet
war in Afghanistan. But after the threat of Soviet-times disappeared Ossama
grew to be an anti-West fighter for what they think to be the onla right
Muslim way. And he is a professional with a CIA-Certificate, so to say. And
where was he thought to be hiding throughout the atrocious airraids Clinton
ordered after the Ambassy-bombings in Africa? We know because of the aims
American missiles destroyed: He was supposed to be in Afghanistan....
What I wanted to say is that the Human Rights situation in Afghanistan is the
harvest  of the grown up seed of Western politics in this region. 
I agree that this remarks do not alter the situation of the victims in
Afghanistan and do not reduce the need of action against the Taliban terror.
But I would suggest a more appropriate appeal that names all responsibilities
and that isnīt afraid to claim right and competence of any feeling person to
protest against any atrocities that occur in the world (and that in most cases
have some connection to the Western politics of weapontrade, socalled
development-programmes, power policies, commercial interest and the growing
readiness to sacrifice lifes and rights of people for so called national
interests of the rich countries [look at immigration control and the armament
of the borders that divide the North from the South, the West from the rest of
the world and the privileged - as we [especially the white] Westerners are -
from the poor]).
I hope You donīt mind my remarks so far. I would like to initiate some
discussion upon this problem of protest, maybe someone could answer my
objections.
All the best and greetings from Berlin
Fritz Burschel, coyote5@aol.com 
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