“ …don’t make a pass at any Moslem women or there will be trouble. Anyway, it won’t get you anywhere. Prostitutes do not walk the streets but live in special quarters of the cities.
June 12, 2007
“ If you happen to have a mascot dog, be particularly careful to keep him away from mosques.
“ Don’t under any circumstances call an Iraqi a ‘dog,’ a ‘devil,’ a ‘native’ or a ‘heathen.’ These terms are all deadly insults to him.
“ Some of the Iraqis think that the lens of a camera is an ‘evil eye,’ and you will make enemies by taking close-up snapshots and possibly wind up with a knife in your back. General views and street scenes will cause no trouble—except mosques. Don’t try to photograph mosques.
“ It is a good idea in any foreign country to avoid any religious or political discussions. This is even truer in Iraq than most countries, because it happens that here the Moslems themselves are divided into two factions somewhat like our division into Catholic and Protestant denominations—so don’t put in your two cents worth when Iraqis argue about religion.
“ You can usually tell a mosque by its high tower. Keep away from mosques. … If you try to enter one, you will be thrown out, probably with a severe beating. … If you have blundered too near a mosque, get away in a hurry before trouble starts.
“ Differences? Of course! Differences? Sure, there are differences. Differences of costume. Differences of food. Differences of manner and custom and religious beliefs. Different attitudes toward women. Differences galore. But what of it? You aren’t going to Iraq to change the Iraqis.
“ …the Iraqi is one of the most cheerful and friendly people in the world. Few people you have seen get so much fun out of work and everyday living. If you are willing to go just a little out of your way to understand him, everything will be o.k.
“ That tall man in the flowing robe you are going to see soon, with the whiskers and the long hair, is a first-class fighting man, highly skilled in guerilla warfare. Few fighters in any country, in fact, excell him in that kind of situation. If he is your friend, he can be a staunch and valuable ally. If he should happen to be your enemy—look out!
“ Iraq is hot! … Probably you will feel Iraq first—and that means heat. Blazing heat. And dust.
“ …you as a human being will get the most out of an experience few Americans have been lucky enough to have. Years from now you’ll be telling your children and maybe your grandchildren stories beginning, ‘Now when I was in Baghdad—’
“ American success or failure in Iraq may well depend on whether the Iraqis (as the people are called) like American soldiers or not. It may not be quite that simple. But then again it could.
From A Short Guide to Iraq, a World War II publication of the U.S. War Department, preparing soldiers to help British forces defend Iraq against the Nazis
2 years ago
• 0 notes
June 6, 2007
“ My boob is still my boob.
Eva Mendes, upon being asked if it’s easier to do a nude scene if she thinks it’s her character who’s actually naked
2 years ago
• 1 note
June 5, 2007
“ [George] Harrison wanted to hire an aircraft carrier and play in various exotic locales. They could paint a different corporate sponsor’s name on the side every day and call it the Sponsor Ship. But then everybody would sober up.
