Tomorrow, we, here in the US will celebrate our nationally recognized Independence Day. Amid the cookouts, fireworks, basking in the sun and laughing with friends and relatives, be sure to take a few moments and think about how GOOD you have it.
Seriously.
With all the recent strife here, the arguments about race and flags and who should be allowed to marry who and who should be allowed to have health care….we often lose sight of the fact that our ability to sit and bitch at one another is one of the great things about this nation. Yeah, she ain’t perfect….but shes a damn sight better than ANY of the alternatives.
Check this except from a recent article in “Der Spiegel”, entitled “Reports of Everyday Life Under the Islamic State” (“Augenzeugen Uber den Alltag im Islamischen Staat“):
A document was found on a Twitter account that apparently regulates pressing questions on the treatment of female Yazidi sex slaves. The document was compiled by the Fatwa department of the Islamic State, the office that investigates controversial religious questions and declares enemies to be outlaws. It was published last fall by the IS’s publishing house, the Al-Himma Library.
The document consists of 27 questions and answers that address the proper religious treatment of sex slaves.
Question four reads: Is it permitted to have sex with a female prisoner who is an infidel? The answer reads: It is permissable to have sex with this type of prisoner.
Question five: Are you permitted to have sex with her as soon as you own her? Answer: It is permitted if she is still a virgin. If this is not the case, her uterus must be cleaned first.
Question eight: If two men buy a prisoner together, can they both have sex with her? Answer: No. Only the man who completely owns the prisoner may have sex with her. One of the men must transfer his ownership share to the other.
Question 10: What happens if the prisoner’s owner dies? Answer: She is distributed with the rest of his property.
Question 13: Is it permitted to have sex with a slave before she enters puberty? Answer: It is permitted if she is capable of doing so. If not, she may be used without intercourse.
A document was written to govern how sex slaves should be treated. A set of rules for the proper handling of a female you own for sex. A human fucking being that you fucking own….who might not yet have entered puberty.
ISIS or IS or Da’ish or whatever it wants to be called is very real in the lives of many. And although a lot of those of us here in the West may speak of them with fear, the truth is, that for us, IS is about as much of a threat as the gigantic Sta-Puff Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters. (ergo: none at all)
So celebrate your freedoms tomorrow. Hug your kids. Love your spouses. Hold your family close, smile and be proud that we live in a nation so free, so forward thinking, that we actually consider arguing about who the next door neighbor is allowed to have in his bed and whether or not they should allowed to marry AS A REAL LIVE FUCKING IMPORTANT PROBLEM.
Because, elsewhere in the world, there are a whole lot of people who wish they had it as good as you.