Thursday, May 27, 2004
Jogging in the twilight zone
Haider Hamoudi, an Iraqi-American USAID contractor living in Baghdad, has a very interesting OP-ED piece in today's Asia Times called Joggin in the twilight zone. I highly recommend reading the entire piece.
One thing really jumped out at me as I read the story. It's something that Hamoudi mentions offhand as he's describing the scenery he sees as he's jogging inside the Green Zone in Baghdad. Here he's talking about the Rasheed Hotel which is inside the Green Zone - that part of Baghdad which houses the CPA and which is under exceptionally high security.
Now... I'm wondering why pirated DVDs are being openly sold inside the one area of Iraq which is totally and completely under U.S. control and which one has to have a pass or badge to even enter? Here in the States we've got record companies suing kids for downloading copyrighted music files from the internet. We've been riding China for years now to crack down on pirated music and movies. And we're allowing pirated DVDs to be openly sold in the Green Zone? Is this how we demonstrate our respect for law and order?
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One thing really jumped out at me as I read the story. It's something that Hamoudi mentions offhand as he's describing the scenery he sees as he's jogging inside the Green Zone in Baghdad. Here he's talking about the Rasheed Hotel which is inside the Green Zone - that part of Baghdad which houses the CPA and which is under exceptionally high security.
The Rasheed's most famous ornament, a mosaic of the first president Bush - George H W - in the central lobby, was removed by the US forces soon after their arrival. The hotel is now the domain of the occupation forces and is not open to the public. It is also the target of frequent mortar attacks, as it lies dangerously near the entrance to the Green Zone. My badge gets me inside, and at times I do venture in for a cigar or the pirated digital video discs (DVDs) sold in the lobby, but for the most part I avoid the place. It is too stark a reminder of the most negative aspects of the occupation. I have nothing against all the US soldiers being compelled to fight this war, and my greatest sympathies extend to them, but I still don't feel comfortable watching armed and jackbooted 20-year-olds from the backwoods of the United States tracking dirt around Baghdad's finest hotel.
Now... I'm wondering why pirated DVDs are being openly sold inside the one area of Iraq which is totally and completely under U.S. control and which one has to have a pass or badge to even enter? Here in the States we've got record companies suing kids for downloading copyrighted music files from the internet. We've been riding China for years now to crack down on pirated music and movies. And we're allowing pirated DVDs to be openly sold in the Green Zone? Is this how we demonstrate our respect for law and order?
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