These are really four connected, but stand-alone stories. The first was by Marlene Goldberg:-
Allah Akbar,
I’m only 15, but father has betrothed me to Ahmed. He’s 40 with a gray streaked beard, reeking of cigarettes and Arak. Our family is poor. Father hasn’t been lucky in fishing since Israel limited our sea rights to 3 miles. Ahmed offered a huge dowry. It will help our family.
He’s sitting on the porch with Father, discussing the wedding plans. Ahmed, tall, obese, towers over my father, wipes the sweat from his forehead, furrows his bushy brows as he haggles with Father.
Ahmed’s explosives under my burka will give me release. But Israeli soldiers caught me…
Later, Len Nourse added this extra story:-
The Israeli soldiers after catching me handled gently but firmly before I could pull the cord. They told me what they were going to do and removed the explosives. They asked me where my parents lived and sent an agent under cover of the dark talk to them and paid them sufficient to offset the possible loss of the dowry paid by Ahmed. They brought my younger sister with them.
We now live in California with Marlene who has adopted us. Now that the wars in the Middle East have subsided has allowed us to visit our parents and them us.
Then Marlene carried the story on a little further:-
I married a Kurdistan Moslem, whom I met at UCLA. We now live in Iraq, working at the university. Lately, the Taliban, attacking neighboring areas, are threatening to conquer our province as well, and install Shariya law, obliging women to wear burkas and stay at home. My friend told me about an underground movement to fight the Islamists. We’re meeting with Bridgette, a U.S. trained sergeant, for military training. We have to learn fast. Word of the Taliban’s atrocities, raping women and killing men, have reached us on facebook.
My shiny rifle is heavy. Inshallah, I will protect my people.
Then Len wrote the following:-
“Lady Inshallah, put that rifle down. That or bigger guns will not make a difference when fighting fanatics. Rather use their ways, and start an anti-cult movement to fight brainwashing. Start with women peers at the university, and work on your husbands and then move onto those who are married into the Taliban. Your sergeant should be able to direct you in the right direction.”
“But…Moslem men don’t listen to women.”
“Excuses are not acceptable and is what the majority of the Germans said in the world wars, ‘we didn’t know’, your words now what the majority of Moslem women use.”
Allah Akbar,
I’m only 15, but father has betrothed me to Ahmed. He’s 40 with a gray streaked beard, reeking of cigarettes and Arak. Our family is poor. Father hasn’t been lucky in fishing since Israel limited our sea rights to 3 miles. Ahmed offered a huge dowry. It will help our family.
He’s sitting on the porch with Father, discussing the wedding plans. Ahmed, tall, obese, towers over my father, wipes the sweat from his forehead, furrows his bushy brows as he haggles with Father.
Ahmed’s explosives under my burka will give me release. But Israeli soldiers caught me…
Later, Len Nourse added this extra story:-
The Israeli soldiers after catching me handled gently but firmly before I could pull the cord. They told me what they were going to do and removed the explosives. They asked me where my parents lived and sent an agent under cover of the dark talk to them and paid them sufficient to offset the possible loss of the dowry paid by Ahmed. They brought my younger sister with them.
We now live in California with Marlene who has adopted us. Now that the wars in the Middle East have subsided has allowed us to visit our parents and them us.
Then Marlene carried the story on a little further:-
I married a Kurdistan Moslem, whom I met at UCLA. We now live in Iraq, working at the university. Lately, the Taliban, attacking neighboring areas, are threatening to conquer our province as well, and install Shariya law, obliging women to wear burkas and stay at home. My friend told me about an underground movement to fight the Islamists. We’re meeting with Bridgette, a U.S. trained sergeant, for military training. We have to learn fast. Word of the Taliban’s atrocities, raping women and killing men, have reached us on facebook.
My shiny rifle is heavy. Inshallah, I will protect my people.
Then Len wrote the following:-
“Lady Inshallah, put that rifle down. That or bigger guns will not make a difference when fighting fanatics. Rather use their ways, and start an anti-cult movement to fight brainwashing. Start with women peers at the university, and work on your husbands and then move onto those who are married into the Taliban. Your sergeant should be able to direct you in the right direction.”
“But…Moslem men don’t listen to women.”
“Excuses are not acceptable and is what the majority of the Germans said in the world wars, ‘we didn’t know’, your words now what the majority of Moslem women use.”
