[meteorite-list] Deteriorating Situation in Mali

From: Galactic Stone & Ironworks <meteoritemike_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2013 12:57:42 -0500
Message-ID: <CAKBPJW-x42WuUzwtVpNvWX1rpb_vVH32pr61yC79qQrxp38RuQ_at_mail.gmail.com>

Hi Everyone,

Agreed, "expel" them is not quite the right word. If the dangerous
militants are driven out, they will take shelter in neighboring
countries and cause trouble there. They could de-stabilize the entire
region. In reality, they must be made to put down their arms and use
peaceful means to advance their agendas, or they must be destroyed.
They leave the world no choice but to fight them.

It would be a different story if the people wanted these militants to
rule and to live under the harshest version of Sharia law, but many of
the people do not want that. The militants have moved in and forced
their violent rule on the local people. The remotest and most lawless
areas of the Sahara have always had some problem with militants
lurking around, but the situation has changed now. The fall of
Gaddafi regime has created a chaotic situation where heavy weapons
have flooded the black market and disaffected fighters have scattered
into neighboring areas to cause problems. I fear for our friends in
Morocco, Mali, Mauritania, and other nearby countries that have
labored long and hard to achieve peace and stability.

>From a scientific standpoint, this situation has the potential to
further disrupt the flow of meteorites from the Sahara. The
fundamentalists want to live in the dark ages without modern science
and they want to force that way of life on anyone unfortunate enough
to be under their rule. I shudder to think of what would happen if
that cancer were to spread across the Sahara!

May peace and reason prevail.

Best regards,

MikeG

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On 1/17/13, Cheikhalhoussein Toueirjenne <maurimet at yahoo.com> wrote:
> Hi Mike and list
> Amen to all prayers ,
> Mr Mike Thank you for the concern expressed and I agree with you with every
> word said , but one word caught my attention ,expel .And  I think that the
> definition of the verb to expel is :to drive out ;to force out ;to throw out
> ;to kick out ;to cast out ;to chase; and to displace .but the  displacement
> of   any space tenant   requires definitely another space !  Thinking about
> point a  is already a headache but having in mind the point b  is nightmare!
> And here we have the biggest and most complicated question: WHERE   to drive
> them out?
>  God bless all
> cheikhalhoussein
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Galactic Stone & Ironworks <meteoritemike at gmail.com>
> To: Meteorite List <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
> Sent: Thursday, 17 January 2013, 15:31
> Subject: [meteorite-list] Deteriorating Situation in Mali
>
> Hi List,
>
> Some of the events going on in the Saharan Desert bear watching by the
> meteorite world.
>
> First, fundamentalist Islamists have seized control of northern Mali
> and ancient city of Timbuktu.  I respect Islam and Muslims, but these
> fundamentalists are affiliated with Al-Qaeda and they have enforced
> Sharia law on the residents of northern Mali and Timbuktu.  Worse,
> these militants are heavily-armed with black market weapons from the
> fall of the Gaddafi regime in Libya.
>
> Why should meteorite collectors/dealers/hunters care?
>
> The fundamentalists are violent enemies of science and they have no
> tolerance for other religions or traditions.  Much of Mali and
> Timbuktu is Sufi and the Sufi traditions are considered heretical to
> many fundamentalists.  As we sit here discussing this, militants are
> destroying cultural heritage sites and wiping out anything that
> doesn't agree with their version of Sharia law.  Remember what the
> Taliban did to the Buddhas of Bamiyan?  Expect more of the same in
> Timbuktu.
>
> The violence has the potential to spread to the neighboring countries
> of Niger, Burkina Faso, Algeria, and Mauritania.  These are all
> places that are familiar to the collectors of NWA meteorites.  The
> strewnfields of Bassikounou, Gao, and many others are now too
> dangerous for outsiders.  If you have been thinking about a meteorite
> hunting expedition to Mali or Niger, you may want to seriously rethink
> that idea now.
>
> In the last year, we have witnessed one war that is destroying one of
> the most ancient landscapes on Earth - Syria.  Syria is being reduced
> to rubble, and now the famous city of Timbuktu is going to suffer the
> same fate - either from the fundamentalist militants or from the
> French military efforts to expel them.
>
> Let us all take a minute and stop what we are doing.  Regardless of
> your faith, pray for the residents of the Sahara and that this
> violence will stop.  The Saharan Desert is one of the most beautiful
> (yet desolate) places on Earth and this conflict has the potential to
> spread like a cancer to consume much of the land of desert meteorites.
>
> Best regards and happier huntings,
>
> MikeG
>
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Received on Fri 18 Jan 2013 12:57:42 PM PST