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Author Topic: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread  (Read 20237 times)

Sheb

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #240 on: November 14, 2014, 02:53:15 pm »

Yeah, but that's because you're wrong.  :P

Nah, just kidding, it's nice to step out of the echo chamber and get a reasoned discussion with some smart person you don't agree with every once in a while.
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smjjames

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #241 on: November 18, 2014, 06:47:26 pm »

And all of a sudden, out of left field, ISIS has taken a town in Libya.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/18/world/isis-libya/index.html?hpt=hp_t2
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Mictlantecuhtli

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #242 on: November 18, 2014, 07:29:45 pm »

And all of a sudden, out of left field, ISIS has taken a town in Libya.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/18/world/isis-libya/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

Yeah, that's not going to fly with the militias.
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GreatJustice

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #243 on: November 18, 2014, 10:52:37 pm »

And all of a sudden, out of left field, ISIS has taken a town in Libya.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/18/world/isis-libya/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

"Hey Abdul, I've always wanted to be a king. Let's start a movement to make me king."

"Yeah, well, that isn't going to happen. You can't just declare yourself king."

"Well what if we just took the name of a famous group somewhere far away that could get some supporters, took over, and then I ran things 'temporarily'?"

"Come on now. What organizations could possibly fulfill that criteria?"

Several days later

"ISIS forces seize town in Libya!"
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Vilanat

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #244 on: November 19, 2014, 12:19:30 am »

And all of a sudden, out of left field, ISIS has taken a town in Libya.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/18/world/isis-libya/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

"Hey Abdul, I've always wanted to be a king. Let's start a movement to make me king."

"Yeah, well, that isn't going to happen. You can't just declare yourself king."

"Well what if we just took the name of a famous group somewhere far away that could get some supporters, took over, and then I ran things 'temporarily'?"

"Come on now. What organizations could possibly fulfill that criteria?"

Several days later

"ISIS forces seize town in Libya!"

"It has been bolstered by the return to Libya from Syria and Iraq of up to 300 Libyan jihadists who were part of ISIS' al Battar Brigade -- deployed at first in Deir Ezzor in Syria and then Mosul in Iraq."

"Derna has a long history of Islamist radicalism. Marginalized during the Gadhafi era, it contributed more foreign fighters per capita to al Qaeda in Iraq than any other town in the Middle East. It has also provided scores of fighters for ISIS in Syria."

A more likely scenario is that those are rebels who were armed and trained to overthrow Gaddafi, later went to Syria to join one of Al-qaeda branches and later joined ISIS only to return home fully trained and experienced. these are proper ISIS members, not some local militia wanting to ride the ISIS wave.
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Yannanth

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« Reply #245 on: November 20, 2014, 03:21:37 pm »

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« Last Edit: November 21, 2016, 04:20:40 pm by Yannanth »
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Sheb

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #247 on: November 20, 2014, 05:05:28 pm »

My guess is that people don't know about ISIS. That, or they're scared of the ISIS guy.
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MetalSlimeHunt

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #248 on: November 20, 2014, 11:39:53 pm »

No, this is pretty typical of people on the left who let themselves be told what to think. The popular line goes that Israel is the fascist apartheid godhead (No other details or examination of Israel is required past this point, they bomb Palestinian children for fun, ya know?) and that everything bad said about Islam or any Muslims exists purely to justify bigotry. This is how you get things like rad fems defending Saudi Arabia because they're so exotic and not first-world so everything that goes on there is just their cultural right and the true desires of Saudi women, who are liberated by not being enraptured to the West. This links into an unspoken assertion that the concept of universal liberties is a smokescreen to justify oppression, and that your rights stem only from the culture you belong to, which you are not allowed to disaffiliate with.

The right is more dangerous in America because they hold the actual political power right now, but have no doubt that blockheaded leftist ideologues are a huge threat. If you don't have a rational methodology to back up your beliefs it doesn't matter what they are, you'll start ruining everything.

This isn't new at all, either. If you look back a few decades you see things like American leftists loudly asserting that all the tales about the Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution in China are just Western imperialists lying to try and hold back their societal development. Surely it must be, after all, Chairman Mao has been re-elected for years!
« Last Edit: November 20, 2014, 11:43:20 pm by MetalSlimeHunt »
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Sheb

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #249 on: November 21, 2014, 02:53:32 am »

Could be, although I'm also wary of these kinds of video, because it's really easy to modify them to support your case (basically, don't show the people that supported Israel/attacked ISIS). Also, it really irked me than when flying the Israeli flag, his one talking point was always "Don't you think Hamas is a terrorist organization?". I mean, yes and? Just because you oppose bad guys makes everything you do instantly right?
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LordSlowpoke

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #250 on: November 21, 2014, 03:48:01 am »

yeah he pretty much made himself into a strawman
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Sinistar

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #251 on: November 21, 2014, 03:53:59 am »

I'm also wary of these kinds of video, because it's really easy to modify them to support your case

This, more or less.
Also, I wouldn't put the plain ignorance of general public regarding the ISIS out of the picture. Or maybe some people know about ISIS but either the information they have or themselves downplayed the seriousness of that issue.

But there's also the few psychological tricks he's using. Namely, the use of words. The ISIS example: a faction, movement, that "only want to have it's own country. Why do you bomb us, America?" It's easy to see how thought process can go for some onlookers from here on: "Gee, aren't those some guys in Middle East? And we are bombing them? Oh my, didn't we make enough shit already down there? Surely, they are just fighting for their freedom!"
While Israel on the other hand: "Hamas is a terrorist organization". See, both me and Sheb are in agreement here - "Just because you oppose bad guys makes everything you do instantly right? " So why doesn't people think the same about ISIS? Because Israel is seen as an advanced country, not some "muslim freedom fighters" that "America pushed around for these past 10 years"

As LSP said, yeah, self-made strawman.

I also wouldn't completely dismiss what MSH said, I just think this is not a strictly left/right issue. And that is "typical for that and that side". Generalization and stuff, yo.
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Dutchling

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #252 on: November 21, 2014, 03:56:17 am »

I can only imagine that people who don't know about ISIS also want Ebola to be legalized or something -.-'
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Sheb

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #253 on: November 21, 2014, 03:57:59 am »

Alternatively, they assume the guy with an ISIS flag is a troll, while the Israeli flag-bearer could be genuine.
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Sinistar

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Re: Middle Eastern/Central Asian Politics Megathread
« Reply #254 on: November 21, 2014, 04:11:09 am »

Also this, yeah. You could almost swear some people have that "... WTF m8" bewildered look on their faces when they look at the ISIS guy.
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