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Iraq followup

9 comments on Iraq followup

Iraq followup
: When I posted Zeyad’s observations last night, I said that I thought “coup” was overblown and Zeyad acknowledges same:

Sorry for the depressing note. It seems like everything is back under control, at least from what I can see in my neighbourhood. There is an eerie silence outside, only dogs barking. Until about an hour ago, it sounded like a battlefield, and we had flashbacks of last April. I don’t know what happened, but there were large plumes of smoke from the direction of Adhamiya and Kadhimiya…

9 responses to “Iraq followup”

  1. Reid Avatar
    Reid

    Zeyad was clearly distraught and his earlier words should be evaluated in that light.
    For some better news about what is going on in most of Iraq, see this article.

  2. Reid Avatar
    Reid

    Important fact to keep in mind, from the article cited above:
    ‘Baghdad has more than 5 million inhabitants. If these people were in an uprising against the United States, which you might think is happening, we would be overwhelmed in hours.’
    We have the backing of the majority of the people of Iraq. Do not let the media persuade you otherwise.

  3. O'McSomething Avatar
    O’McSomething

    So what are we supposed to say?
    [andrea mccardle] The sun’ll come out tomorrow–betch’ur bottom dollar that tomorrow… [/andrea mccardle]
    Shorter Jarvis —
    ‘Opps! Yesterday my-blog-child-who-knows-the-real-deal-cuz-he’s-there-so-we-believe-him-guy Zeyad said a coup d’etat was hap’nin’ but it’s O-kee-doke now. My bad. Check in tomorrow. Insty was fooled too.’
    Hello?
    CALLING KOFI — COME IN, KOFI!

  4. Richard Bennett Avatar
    Richard Bennett

    Zeyad should at least update his blog with this insight instead of relying on others to convey the message that he was shrieking a bit the other day.

  5. Jeff Jarvis Avatar
    Jeff Jarvis

    Richard: He did. That’s what I quote.
    There are blogging purists of one school who’d argue that he shouldn’t delete or change the original but should, instead, amend it, which is what he did in this case. I don’t always agree with that as a rule of the new blogging orthodoxy, but, in this case, I do think it’s the right thing to do, for it preserves the impression of the time and then adds, responsbily, the update.
    More on another post in a few minutes.

  6. O' Avatar
    O’

    CNN
    The source said al-Sadr’s followers controlled the governor’s office, police stations and the Imam Ali mosque, one of Shia Muslim’s holiest shrines.
    Iraqi police were negotiating to regain their stations, the source said.

  7. button Avatar
    button

    They’ve had an anomie problem all along.
    Anarchy refers to the government. Anomie refers more to the Social Contract.
    But it can get confusing. I don’t blame Zeyad at close range for freaking out. How many of us would stay cool and take clinical notes, hmmm?
    When a community or society has normative standards that have deteriorated so much, they call it social entropy meaning degraded.
    Like what happened in Fallujah which was pretty degraded.
    It does seem fairly common that when people are isolated in a dictatorship this kind of entropy happens– the dictatorship infantilizes the population (‘Escape from Freedom’) which involves their sense of responsibility and moral agency.
    I’ve heard other tales before Iraq about stuff like this. So perhaps we shouldn’t be so surprised.

  8. Richard Bennett Avatar
    Richard Bennett

    Jeff –
    Thanks for pointing out that he amended his earlier post, I’d missed the update because I was looking for a new entry. Something this big should have warranted one in my estimation, but styles vary.

  9. Reid Avatar
    Reid

    Don’t panic, anyone. Amir Taheri explains what is going on and has advice that I think is good (thanks to Insty):
    ‘Like all who use violence in pursuit of political aims, Sadr knows he would fare badly in any free election. This is why, shut out of the process, he will do all he can to disrupt elections. The best way to counter Sadr and other anti-democratic figures and groups in Iraq is to speed up the electoral process and bring forward the date at which Iraqis will be able to choose their rulers for the first time. ‘