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ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 25, 2015 at 10:48 pm
FUCK THOSE MOTHERFUCKERS.
Quote:Yahoo News
ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
While the world was watching the Academy Awards ceremony, the people of Mosul were watching a different show. They were horrified to see ISIS members burn the Mosul public library. Among the many thousands of books it housed, more than 8,000 rare old books and manuscripts were burned.
“ISIS militants bombed the Mosul Public Library. They used improvised explosive devices,” said Ghanim al-Ta'an, the director of the library. Notables in Mosul tried to persuade ISIS members to spare the library, but they failed.
The former assistant director of the library Qusai All Faraj said that the Mosul Public Library was established in 1921, the same year that saw the birth of the modern Iraq. Among its lost collections were manuscripts from the eighteenth century, Syriac books printed in Iraq's first printing house in the nineteenth century, books from the Ottoman era, Iraqi newspapers from the early twentieth century and some old antiques like an astrolabe and sand glass used by ancient Arabs. The library had hosted the personal libraries of more than 100 notable families from Mosul over the last century.
During the US led invasion of Iraq in 2003, the library was looted and destroyed by mobs. However, the people living nearby managed to save most of its collections and rich families bought back the stolen books and they were returned to the library, All Faraj added.
“900 years ago, the books of the Arab philosopher Averroes were collected before his eyes...and burned. One of his students started crying while witnessing the burning. Averroes told him... the ideas have wings...but I cry today over our situation,” said Rayan al-Hadidi, an activist and a blogger from Mosul. Al-Hadidi said that a state of anger and sorrow are dominating Mosul now. Even the library's website was suspended.
“What a pity! We used to go to the library in the 1970s. It was one of the greatest landmarks of Mosul. I still remember the special pieces of paper where the books’ names were listed alphabetically,” said Akil Kata who left Mosul to exile years ago.
On the same day the library was destroyed, ISIS abolished another old church in Mosul: the church of Mary the Virgin. The Mosul University Theater was burned as well, according to eyewitnesses. In al-Anbar province, Western Iraq, the ISIS campaign of burning books has managed to destroy 100,000 titles, according to local officials. Last December, ISIS burned Mosul University’s central library.
Iraq, the cradle of civilization, the birthplace of agriculture and writing and the home of the Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian and Arab civilizations had never witnessed such an assault on its rich cultural heritage since the Mongol era in the Middle Ages.
Last week, a debate in Washington and Baghdad became heated over when, how and who will liberate Mosul. A plan was announced to liberate the city in April or May by more than 20,000 US trained Iraqi soldiers. Either way, and supposing everything will go well and ISIS will be defeated easily which is never the case in reality, that means the people of Mosul will still have to wait for another two to three months.
Until then, Mosul will probably have not a single sign of its rich history left standing.
http://news.yahoo.com/isis-burns-8000-ra...00856.html
He who loves God cannot endeavour that God should love him in return - Baruch Spinoza
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 25, 2015 at 10:54 pm
Xtian thugs burned libraries, too.
Seems to be common practice among ignorant barbarians.
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 25, 2015 at 11:03 pm
I agree with your displeasure. As you understand, our Renaissance would have been impossible without Muslims. Despite the fact that ancient and perhaps original texts have been lost, their contents will live on.
Despite the significance we place on current events, 500 years from now history books may give a passing mention to 'unrest' in the region in the 20-21st century.
Still tragic.
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 25, 2015 at 11:16 pm
(February 25, 2015 at 10:54 pm)Minimalist Wrote: Xtian thugs burned libraries, too.
Seems to be common practice among ignorant barbarians. Yet ironically their champion Thomas Aquinas allegedly once said it best: "hominem unius libri timeo." ("I fear the man of a single book.")
He who loves God cannot endeavour that God should love him in return - Baruch Spinoza
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 25, 2015 at 11:17 pm
Sucks for sure, but I'd rather have this than videos of 21 people being beheaded.
Even if the open windows of science at first make us shiver after the cozy indoor warmth of traditional humanizing myths, in the end the fresh air brings vigor, and the great spaces have a splendor of their own - Bertrand Russell
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 25, 2015 at 11:25 pm
(This post was last modified: February 25, 2015 at 11:26 pm by Minimalist.)
(February 25, 2015 at 11:16 pm)Nestor Wrote: (February 25, 2015 at 10:54 pm)Minimalist Wrote: Xtian thugs burned libraries, too.
Seems to be common practice among ignorant barbarians. Yet ironically their champion Thomas Aquinas allegedly once said it best: "hominem unius libri timeo." ("I fear the man of a single book.")
Why do you think they burn them?
The church didn't even want people to read the fucking bible.
"We'll tell you what it says," was their bullshit line!
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 25, 2015 at 11:52 pm
(February 25, 2015 at 10:54 pm)Minimalist Wrote: Xtian thugs burned libraries, too.
Seems to be common practice among ignorant barbarians.
Without impugning the world beating barbarity of the spectacularly two faced cult of Jesus, I have to point out it was the followers of Muhammad who burned so many irreplaceable manuscripts from the library of Alexandria that the books fired the furnaces of the city's public baths for 6 month.
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 26, 2015 at 12:02 am
They only burned what the jesus freaks missed when Theodosius had the pagan temples - including the Serapeum - destroyed in 391, according to Socrates of Constantinople.
It is hard to imagine that under xtian rule the stock of books of anything other than jesus freak bullshit rebounded in time for the muslims to burn anything of value.
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 26, 2015 at 12:24 am
(This post was last modified: February 26, 2015 at 12:25 am by Anomalocaris.)
(February 26, 2015 at 12:02 am)Minimalist Wrote: They only burned what the jesus freaks missed when Theodosius had the pagan temples - including the Serapeum - destroyed in 391, according to Socrates of Constantinople.
It is hard to imagine that under xtian rule the stock of books of anything other than jesus freak bullshit rebounded in time for the muslims to burn anything of value.
Ah, if it was indeed several millions of copies of the bible that fueled the furnace of the baths of Alexandria, then I have to credit muhammudans not only with greater cleanliness, but good judgement and sustainable energy use as well.
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RE: ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul
February 26, 2015 at 12:37 am
(February 25, 2015 at 11:17 pm)Faith No More Wrote: Sucks for sure, but I'd rather have this than videos of 21 people being beheaded.
I'm going to take a contrarian position. I don't think any 21 random people from Mosul, or any city in the world could contribute to the cultural history lost by such a barbaric act. If I understand the story correctly, we're not talking massed produced pulp, we're talking artifacts, which humanity in its entirety suffers the loss.
I know this sounds callous, especially to the families and friends of those executed, but even if they lived a full life would they contribute to the advancement of human culture to the extent of what was lost in this act?
So am I valuing culture more than human life? Yes, to the extent that any given life contributes to the advancement of culture and ultimately the species. But then, I'm not against making glass out of ISIS held territory.
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?”
Epicurus
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