We are ALL Angry

In a well structured response to the newspaper The Independent (a broadsheet with an ailing circulation i prefer to think of as the Daily Mail for liberals) Michael Ehioze-Ediae at 18DoughtyStreet summarises what we've all said at one time or other.

You are not the only ones grieving.

1 Increase in Terrorism
2 Africans are Angry
3 The British are Angry
4 The Americans are angry
5 We are all angry

1 Increase in Terrorism

The Independent’s leading story has laid the blame for the rise of terrorism at the feet of America. It argues that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have radicalised a new generation of young Muslims who are angry about the treatment meted out to their fellow Muslims. Further, the paper claims that its view is backed up by evidence provided by the United States National Intelligence estimate. One should ask, even if these claims are true, do they justify the slaughter of innocent women and children? Why is it that the rest of the world is expected to ‘understand’ the anger of these radicalised Muslims? Are they the only ones who are angry?

2 Africans are Angry

Black Africans are angry that Condoleezza Rice was described as a black monkey by Palestinian newspapers because she supports Bush’s policies. They are angry that black people are being killed in Sudan by an Islamist government. They are angry that black people were killed when Tanzania and Kenya were bombed by Al-Qaeda. They are angry that black people are taken as slaves by Muslim Arabs. They are angry that when the Trade Towers collapsed, killing black people, there was rejoicing by Muslims on the streets of Gaza.

3 The British are Angry

The British people are angry that they have offered hospitality to Muslims fleeing persecution in their home countries only for clerics to call for the destruction of Britain in return. The British people are angry that British Muslims whose parents were welcomed to this country decided to blow up the underground trains killing over 50 people. The British people are also angry that during the cartoon protests, Muslims carried banners warning Britain to expect another terrorist attack.

4 The Americans are angry

The Americans are angry that despite intervening at the cost of their lives to prevent genocide in Kosovo, Muslims cheer when America is called the great Satan. The Americans are angry that despite the huge amounts of financial aid they provide to Pakistan and Egypt, the populations of those countries hate America. The Americans are angry that despite the fact that they provided security to the Arab countries when Saddam Hussein threatened to attack them, people danced in the streets during 9/11.

5 We are all angry

Well, Independent, as you can see, there are a lot of people angry on the planet. Therefore instead of appeasing fundamentalist anger, it would be perhaps more advisable to explain to these people that they should join the peacful political processes in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine. Other groups have done the same and thus they have no excuse for murdering innocent people in the name of ‘grievance’. After all, they do not have a monopoly on ‘grievance’.