Flowers from helicopters
Thousands of men gathered across Kabul on Friday to watch flowers being scattered from helicopters to mark the fourth anniversary of the Taliban’s return to power – a celebration that women were barred from attending.
Naturally. Men are people, so they get to attend; women are things that make people, and of course things are not invited to parties.
Three of the six “flower shower” locations were already off-limits to women, who have been prohibited from entering parks and recreational areas since November 2022.
For obvious reasons. If women were allowed to enter parks and recreational areas they would always be flopping down and spreading their legs, and then their husbands might find themselves raising other men’s children.
Rights groups, foreign governments and the UN have condemned the Taliban for their treatment of women and girls, who remain barred from many jobs, education beyond sixth grade and most public spaces.
How else are the men supposed to guarantee the women are not fucking other men?
Earlier in the day, the Taliban leader had said God would severely punish Afghans who were ungrateful for Islamic rule in the country, according to a statement.
Oh yes? Then why hasn’t God already done it? Why wait? Why is it “would” punish instead of “has already” punished?
This year’s anniversary celebrations are more muted than last year’s, when the Taliban staged a military parade at a US airbase, drawing anger from Donald Trump about the abandoned American hardware on display.
Of course. Abandoned American hardware, terrible thing; abandoned Afghan women, yawwwn.
Mountainous country favours defenders, while flat open plains favour conqueror types like Genghis Khan, who built the biggest empire the world has ever known across the Eurasian steppes, but stopped at the gates of Vienna. He could not handle mountainous country.
The Taliban of Afghanistan have defeated both the Russians and the Americans. But in order to win with their pre-Mediaeval social order intact, they have also had to turn their backs to modernity, and stay united while doing so. Thus, no modern treatments when they get sick, no modern technology, TV, internet etc, to let them know what is happening beyond Afghanistan. I would expect some to rebel against the confines of their self-inflicted Islamic dark age, but none apparently do. It is as if every Afghan man wears a thick black bag over his head, and forces his wife to do likewise.
The hand that rocks the cradle may rule parts of the wider world, but not Afghanistan.
If “God” will do it, then there’s no need for mortal men to do it, yet these men never trust God enough to actually do it himself. Maybe their “faith” is lacking. They are betraying that they know “God” is a lie.