By Meraj Abedin
Rising American casualties in occupied Iraq dominate the daily news. Extensive coverage of American combat deaths monopolize headlines, causing a PR nightmare for the White House and providing political capital for the American opposition.Missing from the picture is the fate of the common Iraqi. Little is said of the thousands of Iraqis killed and maimed… Continue reading Iraq’s unknown and unseen dead
By Meraj Abedin
So selfless, those Americans. Not content with keeping the thrills of post-war Iraq to themselves, they are willing to let nations of all creeds, colours and languages get in on the action. I guess Iraq ain’t no fun if the homies can’t get none. Like an eight-year-old after a two-litre bottle of Jolt cola, America… Continue reading America’s attacks
By Meraj Abedin
The four horsemen of the apocalypse are back. For years, fans have been waiting to hear the monster guitars riffs, finger shredding solos, smashing drums and the grand larger-than-life sound that is Metallica again. After listening to their latest album, St. Anger, it seems most mainstream Metallica fans will have to keep waiting. St. Anger… Continue reading St. Anger
By Meraj Abedin
It was a wonderful day as the sun smiled upon Calgary last Sunday. I stood outside MacEwan Hall enjoying the sun with a Palestinian friend of mine in the most unlikely of places; smack in the middle of hundreds of pro-war protestors. Proudly waving their red, white and blue, demonstrators came to show their support… Continue reading Yeehaw for war!
By Meraj Abedin
“Hell no, we won’t go!” Millions of protesters from every walk of life took to the streets of cities worldwide marching in a co-ordinated day of demonstrations expressing outrage at the U.S. government and the war in Iraq-a war that hasn’t begun yet.While George W. Bush has been incapable of uniting nations to march on… Continue reading Worldwide protests express outrage at U.S. government
By Meraj Abedin
“I don’t know even if he’s dead, alive, tortured, punished, anything.” These are the terrified words of Monia Arar, whose husband, Maher Arar, has been languishing in a Syrian prison since late September. Maher Arar is a Canadian citizen who left his native land of Syria 16 years ago. On Sept. 26 Mr. Arar was… Continue reading Canadian complacency aids Syria
By Meraj Abedin
It seems the war fairy has granted George Bush his heart’s deepest desires to open a can of whup-ass on Saddam. For a while it appeared that the world was staunchly opposing American aggression on Iraq. But now that the U.S. has aggressively lobbied and persuaded’ (i.e. bribed, threatened) nations into supporting war, the tide… Continue reading A war to end oil wars
By Meraj Abedin
Ariel Sharon has proved once again his sadistic lust for death and enmity towards peace. Last Thursday, the Israeli leader authorized an air strike killing the military chief of the militant Hamas. The attack resulted in the slaughter of more than 15 civilians, nine of whom were children. After receiving worldwide condemnation, Sharon began to… Continue reading A deliberate and brutal attack
By Meraj Abedin
“Poverty is the worst form of violence."– Mahatma GandhiNo, he wasn’t talking about terrorism. He was talking about poverty. Such are the clear words of one the greatest men of our times. As the G-8 summit in Kananaskis steadily approaches, we need to step back from the vagaries and incoherent details of the globalization debate… Continue reading Poverty is a constant threat
Editor, the Gauntlet,Re: "Sharon’s worst enemy is peace," March 14, 2002,It is unfortunate that Israel and its Prime Minister Ariel Sharon are so erroneously percieved by the western world. Meraj Abedin’s recent article is a prime example of misunderstandings about Israel, its policies and actions. This slanted view of events in the Middle East has… Continue reading Re: “Sharon’s worst enemy is peace,” March 14, 2002,