Quickie on al-Sadr

[salinen]

Why TF does every news outlet (even NPR) refer to him as the "radical" cleric? What is so radical about defending your country from thieves?

[pocket]

1. well, it is sort of radical

to gun down store owners for selling legal alcohol.

[Mika]

2. Is Sharia law moderate?

Sadr supports full Sharia law for Iraq.

This is the religious pandora's box Bush has torn wide open in Iraq.

[MaryH]

4. jOHN bURNS ON LEHRER LAST NITE

and he said that most of the people in Najaf have no use for alSadr.

But it is a different case in Sadr City (where the poor live) - they really support him.

[LittleApple81]

3. Compared to Al Sistani he is radical. And I don't really like any

kind of man who controls the destiny of women the way some Moslems do, even those that are not as "radical" as al-Sadr. They remind me of the fundies in this country, who apparently would not like anything better than having all of us women in burkas and popping babies as fast as we can. BUT OF COURSE, we must say that he is radical to justify killing him and his followers with impunity.

[Union Thug]

5. You nailed it with your last sentence.

>BUT OF COURSE, we must say that he is radical to justify killing him and his followers with impunity.

That is absoultely dead on. The enemy must be vilified and dehumanized to justify all the dead bodies...

[salinen]

7. And I wonder if

what they say about him is the truth. And the truth is being brought to us by Fox, CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS.

[TexasSissy]

6. He is, and was even before the IW, considered a radical by

Iraqis. He is against other groups in Iraq that don't believe the way he does. He is part of the religious extreme.

That's my understanding. The Kurds, and other groups in Iraq, would not like to see Sadr participate in Iraqi government in any way.

It is not the U.S., but Iraq, that pinned him as being a fringe, radical element. And it pre-dates the war.

[salinen]

8. Thanks TS

Radical perhaps fits.

[TexasSissy]

11. You're welcome. The sad part, of course, is that the IW has given

him a stage for his views, and he has apparently picked up followers. His father was an esteemed religious leader, but he, the son, was always regarded as a fringe element.

But NOW....here he is giving speeches on international television, negotiating with the top leaders of the U.S. and the new Iraq government. It's his dream come true, I'm sure. (thank you, George Bush)

[fa210]

9. Well, he's a radical

if you don't want your wife to wear a Burkha. Thx to dubya, of course. Before the invasion, the women in Iraq had the same rights as men..

[theboss]

10. Um, do you know anything about him?!?!

Look, when Muslim cleric who believe in Shira law call you a radical, you are a freaking radical.

If Sadr gets hiw way, Iraq will resemble Iran, which is not good for anyone (especially if you are a woman).