New rules already
As the Taliban swallows Afghanistan…
In many districts captured by the Taliban, new rules have already been imposed, including restrictions on women’s movement. Women are not allowed to leave the house unless in the company of a male guardian and fully covered in the traditional burqa.
Why? You know why. Because men are people, and women are nothing but gaping holes. Men make the rules, women wear bales of cloth to hide their obscene gaping holes. Men can’t avoid raping women, so women have to be walking shrouds on the rare occasions they’re allowed to go outside. Men matter, and women are garbage. Men need children, and women are the only way to get children, so women must be bullied and punished and extinguished so that the children won’t be contaminated by them.
Most terrifying, however, is the practice of forced marriages of young girls and widows to Taliban fighters. “We are very worried about the forced marriages by the Taliban. If they come for us like this, then we will end our lives. It will be the only option for us,” says Tahira.
The Taliban hates women because God hates women.
And God hates women because the men that created God hate women.
Quite so.
These rules are not enough for the US to do anything about the Saudis. They are our Friends, after all. So,we won’t see much action from the State Department to protect women in Afghanistan.
I am not sure what we could do to “protect women” who are trapped in a society that demeans them for cultural and religious reasons. Some countries have cultures that we may find distasteful. Do we invade them all (see: Saudi Arabia) After all, the vaunted Northern Alliance allies were almost as bad. We spent a trillion dollars and twenty years. Should we have spent more? killed more Afghanis? Directly colonized them and ruled them at the cost of how many American and Afghani lives?
As with climate change, I fear not all problems can be “solved”. By this logic, the Nordic countries should mount and an invasion of the American South (and/or Chicago and Boston) to FORCE more racial justice.
This sexism is vile. But when I read about the “more terrifying forced marriages” I had to find out the source. Because forced marriages (and burkhas) were standard under the NATO-backed government as well. (That was the one that wrote the law saying a wife had a right to withhold sex from her husband, but he then had the right to withhold food from her.)
It’s just “The Guardian” joining other pro-permanent war media outlets like “The Washington Post” trying to fight in the last ditch to get their countries to stay in Afghanistan.
Brian, I didn’t say we could do anything.
Me, when you read what about ‘the “more terrifying forced marriages”’? I didn’t say anything about more terrifying forced marriages.
Me is referring to the line, “Most terrifying… are the forced marriages… to Taliban fighters,” in the quoted text–suggesting, I think, that this more a case of “same shit, different day”.
To which I would respond, most of the ones during the NATO-backed government were probably more akin to the classic ‘arranged marriages’ (which, of course, are horrific enough, but which in theory sometimes include the family actually looking out for the girl’s best interests, though not so much as to ask her what she thinks those interests are), but these are more like the kidnappings and systemic rapes carried out by groups like Boka Haram. So these are, yes, probably worse in most instances.
There is probably only one thing we can do, unfortunately, in the West: Develop a list of nations where such practices are common Ethiopia would be on the list, as well as pretty much any state under formal Sharia law), and grant de facto asylum qualification to any woman fleeing those countries.
Oh yes – I missed it because I lazily used ctrl f to search. Apologies, Me.
My apologies for screwing up and writing “More” instead of “most.”
But for the record; It was the NATO-backed government that (perhaps trolling) said they’d still stone women to death but would use smaller stones. And I just read today how when NATO forces would burn the poppy crops of Afghan [married, male] farmers, thereby destroying their income for the year, one recourse was to sell a daughter.
There. I’m done. I honestly didn’t expect a reply to a post that already had 2 or 3 that came after it.
It is said that the best government for women in the last century was probably the Soviet supported one. Another foreign policy crime we can thank the saintly Peanut Farmer for. (Not saying that government would have lasted very long either, but…)