Let the Sin begin Amen. BAGHDAD, Iraq (April 28) - When the Atlas Cinema last showed ``Blue Chill,'' people screamed: ``Yes! Yes!'' every time the actors began kissing, only to see the scratched reel jump to the next scene. On Monday, they sat in awed silence as naked couples writhed on screen. ``The movie is much more beautiful now, because there's sex,'' said a beaming Mohammed Taher, 18. Since Saturday, when the theater reopened with a freshly uncensored version of the low-budget American flick, he has seen ``Blue Chill'' three times. Baghdad has gone through a revolution in the past three weeks, casting off decades of censorship and state control with shock and awe. Banned books, satellite dishes and video CDs are now sold on the street - as are alcohol and women. Nobody knows how long the permissiveness will last. Iraq's American governors brought together Iraqi political leaders Monday to discuss a new government, and many Baghdadis believe that once it's in place, some of their freedoms will disappear. Conservatives are counting on it. Horrified by the changes, some Iraqis blame America for what they call a cultural degradation. If it continues for long, they promise to rise up in a holy war against the U.S. forces occupying their country. ``Everything against Islam, everything we hate, has been imported by the Americans like a disease,'' said Abbas Hamid, a 60-year-old merchant. ``We'll fight them. We're tired now, but we'll rest up and use our guns to drive the Americans out.'' For now, Hamid appears to be in the minority as Iraqis excitedly discover worlds of vice - and virtue too - long forbidden by the repressive regime of Saddam Hussein: Teenagers gape at Christina Aguilera's navel via brand-new satellite dishes illegal under Saddam. Young lovers smooch in roadside cars, hidden behind tinted windows that were banned by Saddam because they prevented police from spying on motorists. Prostitutes walk the streets in some neighborhoods, beckoning passing motorists. Bookworms excitedly leaf through political histories that could have gotten them tortured in years gone by. Shiite Muslim religious leaders watch grainy VCD images of ceremonies from neighboring Syria, banned for years out of fear that clerics might challenge Saddam for Iraqis' loyalties. ``Before, everything was forbidden except the air,'' said retiree Mohammed Jabbar. ``Now, we don't have electricity, we don't have water, but we are free.'' Sahad Hashim, manager of the Atlas Cinema, couldn't be more delighted. Because of the lawlessness, he closes at 3 p.m. instead of 11 p.m. But he's still selling 800 of his 50-cent tickets a day - double his prewar box office. ``People are hungry for this,'' he said. ``If I stayed open later, I could sell even more.'' Under Saddam, Hashim cut sexy scenes from his movies to conform with Information Ministry orders. When the Americans took over, he simply spliced them back in. Ushers with flashlights yelled from orchestra to balcony, searching for seats for the standing-room-only 11 a.m. showing. On the screen, a bare-chested man pawed at a woman wearing only fishnet stockings and a feather boa. Not all the patrons were happy, however. ``I don't like it. It's forbidden under Islam,'' said Mohammed Mishan, a 26-year-old Iraqi army lieutenant. ``Then what are you doing here?'' a man called as the crowd erupted in laughter. Mishan flushed and stalked off. A wide selection of titles was available at the VCD market at Tahrir Square. Before the war, the Information Ministry issued a list of prohibited movies, and most others were heavily censored. Sellers offered uncut versions of old standards and some newer ones as well: One best-seller was ``Three Kings,'' the George Clooney satire about American soldiers in the 1991 Gulf War who loot a stash of Saddam's gold. Some merchants hawked more serious videos. ``The crimes of Saddam!'' one yelled. ``Executions!'' another called. Their offerings were grainy images taken by hand-held cameras of atrocities during the Gulf War and the ensuing rebellions in northern and southern Iraq. Asked what would have happened if he sold those CDs under Saddam, vendor Majid Jabbar drew his finger across his throat and smiled. At the al-Mutanabi Street book market, Karim Hanash sold ``The Diaries of Seki Kheiri,'' which chronicles the life of a leader of the Iraqi Communist Party. In 2001, he was imprisoned for selling the book. ``I feel much better, but I hope the coalition forces won't repeat the same tragedy and arrest people for selling books,'' said religious bookseller Jamal Shaker Mohammed, who said he was tortured for three months for selling a banned religious text. Also for sale on street corners were cases of Amstel beer and bottles of Jack Daniel's whiskey. In recent years, alcohol was forbidden from public places in Iraq. ``Now I am free to do anything I want,'' said Firaz Sabi, a former tire repairman selling looted bottles of Dewar's scotch by the roadside. ``Maybe I'll be free to leave Iraq.''
reformation....bring the reformation. it has to be internal...but this whole theocracy thing is so 16th century!
Because the stuff is forbidden in Islam, and now they are just saying to hell with rules... truly sad.
From what I've been able to find on the net it's an Italian movie made in '89 or '90. It also went by the name of Spogliando Valeria.
What's the over/under for how long before a Hollywood studio makes a movie about a repressive Iraqi father and his (coincidentally hot/built) daughter who is intrigued by Americanization, and ultimately finds herself, gains her freedom and breaks away from her father's overbearing religious dictates by dressing revealingly. The mother will try to find the middle ground, and probably show that her inner sympathy is for the daughter whose freedom she sort of envies...Probably come to a happy ending when the father realizes that, while she may be now showing off her ( coincidentally hot/built ) body, she is still a good person on the inside, as opposed to his hypocritical friend/brother/boss who is all Islamic fundamentalist on the outside, but secretly cheats on his wife/steals from blind children, etc. The girl might even get together with an American soldier or a Westernized Iraqi bloke...wanna lay odds?
Isn't this why there are large segments of the male population in Afghanistan who have sex with young boys? http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,126-174256,00.html
Last time I checked, there were people of many religious beliefs in Iraq, and now you are just saying to hell with them ... truly sad.
Did I? There aren't that many other faiths in Iraq... Islam, christianity, Judaism, and some that are too insignificant too count. Islam is the major, and the members in Iraq going to these shows are basically throwing out their beliefs.
Don't worry, CndDrr, This is part of bringing our way of life to the Iraqi people. It's simple. In our culture, many, many people are very religious. However, it is convenient to throw all of this morality business out the window when it comes to, say, going to a titty bar, watching some p*rn, avoiding real communication with people making less money than they do, or voting for people who talk about religion but pursue policies that are all about money. Why should the Iraqi people not enjoy the same convenience? Hey, listen, cheer up! Would a trip to McDonald's help? They love to make you smile, and so do I! Mmmmmmmmm! I think she's smiling! ... psssst. dude, I am with you here. it's subtle, I know, but I am actually a big-time critic of our hegemonic culture! Sneaky, ain't I? ... Okay, pass the freedom fries already, pig.
There is a big difference between McDonalds and a titty bar. I'll admit most people just temporerly give up faith when at these things, but Islam is not a religion but a culture.
Who are we to interpret the Koran for them? Let a heathen interpolate the Bible for you: I mean this is not a command IMHO but there would be nothing wrong for a Christian who does this to get his salvation if they believe the bible: And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or fathers or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life. Jesus - Matthew 19:29 Heck, most people will go straight to hell, why worry about it? Enter ye in at the straight gate: for wide is the gate, and broad the way, that leaded to destruction, and many there be that go thereat: Because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Mathew 7:13-14
Freedom that you grant yourself tends to be a bit more enlightening than freedoms granted by religion. It is a good thing that many Iraqis are doing what they want, rather than what some 60 year old overzealous religious conservative wants them to do.
It has nothing to do with immorality or vice or watching their culture get destroyed. It has to do with the simple fact that people just aren't that uptight. No one enjoys living their life under such strict rules and regulations. People are people and most people are like people you see everyday in America. Also CndDrr...is it also truly sad when people violate what the Bible says?
Bingo! Other than the emergent nature of this situation in Iraq, this is no different than life in America. What many of you here (how many threads about porno and titty bars et al) seem to immerse yourself in is anti-thetical to the cultural and spiritual lilfestyle of many, many Americans. That old shopkeeper is just Jerry Falwell and that soldier is Don Wildmon. In this instance some want to elevate the stature of these Iraqi critics by reinforcing their point while their American counterparts are ridiculed here.
