163 - Pick Pockets, Zionist Plots, Saddam Hussein, & Ashraf (Tunis, Tunisia)
"The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking."
— Albert Einstein
[A strange thing has happened since my Tunisia visit—the world has lost its shit. Even before Covid upended our world, the Arab Spring upended the Middle East. I missed the “festivities” by about a month. Some would say I dodged a bullet, but I can’t help feeling like I missed the boat. How often do you have the chance to watch history unfold from the front row? It’s interesting for me to go back and read about my experiences. Yes, I could almost taste repression in the air, but if you told me the powder keg was about to ignite, I’d have been incredulous in the extreme. Yet, there it was, boiling just beneath the surface. Keep this in mind when reading my Tunisia posts.]
WHEN IN ROME, I MEAN TUNIS, the Bardo Museum is a must-see for a fascinating stroll through a few thousand years of Tunisian history. You’ll find artwork excavated from many of Tunisia's ancient sites. The crème de la crème is one of the world’s largest collections of Roman mosaics. The craftsmanship embodied by these pieces is astonishing. You shan’t be disappointed. The museum attained unwanted notoriety in 2015 when it fell victim to a terrorist attack. Twenty-one people were killed (mostly European tourists), while another fifty were injured.
My ancient cultural exploration put me in a pleasant mood, a mood smothered once I’d boarded a Tunis trolley car. A sardine can has nothing on the local tram system. People pack themselves inside like they’re trying to win a contest. My first attempt failed when it became a physical impossibility. You’d think, given the circumstances, I’d taken pains to secure my wallet (and by wallet, I mean a black paper binding clip). Nuh-uh. Somewhere in the scrum, a thieving assface purloined my minimalist wallet, which held my ATM card, credit card, driver's license, and more money than I should have been carrying. By the time I recognized my vulnerability, it was too late… poof!
I couldn’t be sure where it happened, on the platform or the trolley. I remember right after snapping the photo below, a woman on the tram started pounding the glass from inside. I thought she objected to being photographed, but she may have been warning me of impending theft.
I was forced to curb expenditures while awaiting shiny new credit and ATM cards. (I had a backup ATM card with limited funds for just such a contingency.) The monetary hit and inconvenience were of minor consequence. It was the psychological hit that took its toll, temporarily turning me into a paranoid shit knuckle. Every man, woman, and child was a suspect. An old woman eating couscous at a restaurant? Probably a scoundrel. Little kids playing soccer in the street? A gang of thieves. The young waitress serving me coffee? Tunisian mafia. And then there was the OCD, constantly feeling my pockets and putting my head on a swivel like the exorcist girl on amphetamines… frowny face.
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It was time to mix shit up. Why confine myself to meeting strangers on the street, when I had the internet at my disposal? Ashraf contacted me via my Couchsurfing.com account to say hello. We decided to meet. As I waited in front of the Théâtre Municipal de Tunis on Habib Bourgiba Street, I had two deliciously random encounters. While enjoying Tunis' youth engaging in a break-dancing sideshow, a young gentleman approached and inquired if I was awaiting a theater performance. I answered in the negative and told him I was waiting for a friend. He wanted to know exactly when my friend would be arriving. I said he was on his way. A strange conversation about Facebook ensued whereby my new friend wanted to know if in my “Profile” section I’m interested in meeting men, women, or both. Riiiight. I believe this was a not-so-covert way of asking me what team(s) I play for. Could this area be a sub rosa cruising range? Dunno. After I replied my profile indicates “women,” he seemed disappointed and departed.
Another gentleman standing to my left then asked if I liked the dancing, to which I responded in the affirmative. He mentioned something about having a marketing job and then submitted his resume for approval… to me. Not sure what I was supposed to do with that. Ashraf showed up just in time to save me from having to give a critique or an interview. Unemployment was (is) a huge problem in Tunisia.
Ashraf was a 21-year-old Tunisian bloke who loved meeting foreigners and practicing English. He even liked spending time with Americans. (No accounting for taste, I suppose). He taught Arabic to folks from around the globe and enjoyed introducing visitors to his country.
Our café discussions broached a variety of topics, not the least of which was the events of 9/11 and the Arab world's perception of the United States. I should’ve avoided these types of conversations with fresh acquaintances, but curiosity overwhelmed me. (Remember what happened to that kitty cat?) Still, he seemed amenable to the storyline, so I pressed forward.
His perspective fascinated me. Many Arabs don’t believe 9/11 was perpetrated by Muslims and doubt the involvement of Osama bin Laden. Who was involved and why? Well, there seems to be some consensus about a conspiracy involving the American Jewish community who, according to many, are pulling the strings on American foreign policy. Ashraf's belief in this theory was bolstered somewhat by an American friend who confirmed Jews exert enormous influence, like in Hollywood, for example. Let us not forget all the Jews who didn’t show up for work in downtown Manhattan on 9/11. Clearly, they were all in it. In on what? In on the American government conspiracy to wage war on Iraq, Afghanistan, and Islam. Ashraf even asked if it’s not true bin Laden and George Bush were good friends. Uh-huh. And our motivation for war, especially in Iraq? Oil. America wanted oil and invading Iraq was the way to get it.
I made no attempt to defend America's actions. My only goal was to persuade him to consider the likelihood of these conclusions. How would America waging a war on Islam serve the Jewish cause? What’s the end game, that we wipe out Muslims and any trace of Islam off the face of the earth? George W. Bush and his band of misguided hawks were out of touch with reality, but I can’t buy into the idea they were the essence of evil, though I’m open to persuasion. Might as well blame them for Pearl Harbor, the Kennedy assassination, and the faked moon landing while we're at it.
And what of the explosion that brought down the towers? As a result of superheating the building's steel infrastructure, what happened is not outlandish from a physics perspective. I did highlight the connection between the powerful bin Laden family in Saudi Arabia and the first Bush president but pointed out the family is enormous and doesn’t, by itself, indicate that George W. and Binny (Osama) were golfing partners. And as far as oil goes, it’s quite feasible it was a factor, but it’s difficult to fathom it as a primary motive for the invasion, though not outside the realm of possibility.
My bottom line was this: The idea America (as in certain deep state elements) conspired with Jews to destroy the World Trade Center, thereby justifying an invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan, is a bit far-fetched even for the “Evil Empire.” But, as I always say, who the hell am I, really?
I should point out that although about ninety-eight percent of Tunisia’s population is Sunni Muslim, the government and its people are tolerant of other religions. The island of Jerba on the southern coast is one of the world’s oldest sites of Jewish settlement and a place of pilgrimage for Jews everywhere. Ashraf, for his part, professed no ill will towards Jews in general and told me he had Jewish friends.
Ashraf also brought up the execution of Saddam Hussein, which, as you might expect, is viewed as a direct result of US decision-making. (In essence, it was the proximate cause). In other words, America executed Saddam. And not only that, it chose to do so on one of Sunni Islam's most sacred holidays, Eid ul-Adha. Although those in the upper echelon of the US military were unlikely to have shed tears over Saddam's death, the Shiite population in Iraq hated Mr. Hussein with the fiery passion of a cosmic hypernova. In fact, Saddam was convicted by an Iraqi Special Tribunal for the murder of 140 Iraqi Shiites in the town of Dujail in 1982. Saddam didn’t take too kindly to an alleged assassination attempt by Shiite assailants. Was America complicit? Sure. Did the US hand him over knowing full well what would happen? Absolutely, but the Shiite-led government was looking for revenge and had no qualms about scheduling the execution on an important Sunni holy day as an added “Fuck You” to the Sunni minority who ruled Iraq for so long. There was a lot of sympathy for Saddam in the Sunni Muslim world, and his death was/is believed to have been carried out by the USA.
These conversations provided a glimpse of how the US is perceived abroad, especially in the Arab world. Ashraf was cordial and cautious about offending me. He asked several times if I was upset by what he said. I assured him I was not and said I was thankful we could speak frankly. I also said that my goal wasn’t to convince him of anything, only to encourage him to consider alternative points of view.