Words fail me.The white camel was slaughtered on advice from the village elders some time after two middle school students hanged themselves. Three more teenagers were recently prevented from committing suicide at the last moment, and dozens more sought help of the imams of the local mosque.
The total death toll from suicides in 2011 in the town stood at 14, most of them adolescent boys. The surviving boys said they saw a vision of an old man clad in white who told them life is pointless and showed them a rope around his neck, imam Abdurrafi Rakhmatullayev said. “That was the Devil in human guise,” Rakhmatullayev said.
Via Nothing to do with Arbroath.
Have you read/listened to the Freakonomics piece about suicide? Article here, transcript here. The contagiousness of suicide is fascinating.
ReplyDeletePoor camel, I hope it's the symbolic gesture they need...
Thanks for the article. A very good piece.
DeleteIt seems odd that we share a world with people who believe a blood sacrifice of a living creature will solve problems.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure they thing that many things that go on in the Western first world are beyond odd too.
DeleteI'm sure they probably don't have problems with stuff like this:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57425927-504083/patricia-krentcil-new-jersey-mother-accused-of-putting-her-6-year-old-girl-in-tanning-bed/
That story smells like a hoax to me. But, we'll see. --A.
DeleteWell then "Anonymous" just pick any other bizarre Western behavior /excess you like.
DeleteUmmmm....but it probably did. If people are acting irrationally, an irrational act can certainly change their thinking. I'd be happy to have a barbeque if I thought it would stop a teen suicide epidemic.
ReplyDeleteUmm, but do you think a BBQ would in fact stop a suicide epidemic? If so, based on what? --A.
DeleteSpeaking of irrational behaviour, this piece of news reminded me of some weird stuff that was happening a while ago in Tanzania and some Zanzibar islands. But unlike the old man with the rope, this guy's stance on life was all about fun and instant gratification:
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popobawa
But why would a decent person think it "would" or "could" help? Based on what, exactly? Desperate rationalization is what is used by bassackwards imams who think the killing should just continue--but not of humans. It is an utter waste of yet another earthling, for no good *reason* whatsoever. It is staggeringly cruel for stupidity's sake. Why not dance for rain, that "could" help too. No, what would interrupt the suicide epidemic would be *to address the actual problems*, in front of the children, thereby giving them some *actual* hope. Oh wait, that would require the elder men to give up their strangle hold on the wimmins, huh. Kryste, a dead camel who had the misfortune of being white? WTHF..... --A.
ReplyDeleteHmmm... you appear to be irrationally believing that your ranting on blog site can do anything about this except make you appear to feel superior.
DeleteIf we knew a few things about you, more than likely there would be something you could be ripped apart about.
I lol'd
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