(no subject)
Yesterday I went to the barber shop for a trim. I sat in the chair and was greeted by a Middle Eastern man in his 40s. As he began clipping away he asked me where I was from. I told him Alaska and was surprised when he not only knew that Alaska was part of the United States but also how it was purchased from the Russians in the late 1860's.
He said he had always wanted to travel to Alaska but was afraid because he is a Shi'i Muslim from Iraq.
He went on to explain that he had immigrated to Australia just four months ago and as he sharpened his straight razor, he told me prior to his immigration that he had not left his home for six months. "Nowhere is safe in Baghdad since the Americans came. Many of my friends and relatives have been killed just buying groceries. I was a professor of History back home but now I feel lucky that I cut hair and can walk the streets and feel safe"
As he put the razor to my neck he reflected on ideas that many of us already know; how the insurgency is a direct consequence of the allied occupation, that rebuilding Iraq is now an impossible task because most of the academics, doctors, scientists and progressive thinkers have fled the country. "What’s left are the poor uneducated citizens and the Americans and they're killing each other everyday. For what?"
He gently ran the razor up my neck as he quietly stated, “George Bush has destroyed our country and has created a hatred for Americans across the globe.” I timidly asked him what life was like under the rule of Saddam Hussein.
“At least under Saddam there were rules and we all knew where we stood. The situation now is so horrible and the Americans have no hope of rebuilding what they have destroyed.”
The lump in my throat dropped away as he brushed my shoulders and removed the cape. I hastily paid the man his $14 and remarked that I would be back next month to talk politics with him again. Next time I’ll be shaving before I go.
He said he had always wanted to travel to Alaska but was afraid because he is a Shi'i Muslim from Iraq.
He went on to explain that he had immigrated to Australia just four months ago and as he sharpened his straight razor, he told me prior to his immigration that he had not left his home for six months. "Nowhere is safe in Baghdad since the Americans came. Many of my friends and relatives have been killed just buying groceries. I was a professor of History back home but now I feel lucky that I cut hair and can walk the streets and feel safe"
As he put the razor to my neck he reflected on ideas that many of us already know; how the insurgency is a direct consequence of the allied occupation, that rebuilding Iraq is now an impossible task because most of the academics, doctors, scientists and progressive thinkers have fled the country. "What’s left are the poor uneducated citizens and the Americans and they're killing each other everyday. For what?"
He gently ran the razor up my neck as he quietly stated, “George Bush has destroyed our country and has created a hatred for Americans across the globe.” I timidly asked him what life was like under the rule of Saddam Hussein.
“At least under Saddam there were rules and we all knew where we stood. The situation now is so horrible and the Americans have no hope of rebuilding what they have destroyed.”
The lump in my throat dropped away as he brushed my shoulders and removed the cape. I hastily paid the man his $14 and remarked that I would be back next month to talk politics with him again. Next time I’ll be shaving before I go.