Thin red line, or wrong side of the peace dividend?

A review of "The Thin Red Line" 

A realistic and disturbing film, sure. Yet, I never liked it. Why choose the Battle of Guadalcanal to criticize war in general? The Allies were the good guys during World War II. Japan was part of the Axis. End of story, right there. Or would the director have preferred a Nazi victory?

The view from Lahore

Ahmadiyya is a Muslim movement founded in British India over a century ago by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. The movement was condemned as heretical by "official" Islam, since it seemed to elevate Ahmad to a position identical to, or even superior to, the prophet Muhammad. The Ahmadis are otherwise mostly known for the idea that Jesus survived the crucifixion, travelled to India in search of the lost tribes of Israel, and is buried in Kashmir. After Ahmad's death, the movement split in two branches, usually known as Qadiani Ahmadiyya and Lahore Ahmadiyya. The Qadianis are the "radicals", while the supporters of the Lahore branch are the "moderates".

I admit that I've only read about half of this book, and just skimmed the other half. But yes, Muhammad Ali's "Split in the Ahmadiyya Movement" gives a good overview of the theological differences between the two branches. It's written from a Lahore Ahmadiyya perspective.

The author argues that Ahmad wasn't a full prophet in the same sense as Muhammad, but rather a partial prophet and a religious reformer. He attempts to prove that such partial prophets and reformers can arise even after Muhammad. Thus, Ali wants to square Ahmad's prophetic role with the orthodox Muslim notion that Muhammad was the last and most superior prophet. A large portion of the book is devoted to showing that a prophecy in the Koran attributed to Jesus about a future prophet named Ahmad is a reference to Muhammad. Apparently, the more radical Qadian branch was using this prophecy as proof that Jesus was referring to Mirza Ghulam Ahmad! The author's interpretation is, of course, the traditional one.

Since Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was accused of elevating himself above Muhammad, Ali must also attempt to prove that this was not the case, and that Ahmad's positions were in keeping with orthodox Islam. Ali accuses the Qadianis of regarding all other Muslims as unbelievers, while his own position is that they are not. Yet, Ali still refers to Ahmad as "The Promised Messiah and Mahdi", although I suppose he gives these terms a more moderate interpretation than the standard ones. In orthodox Islam, claiming to be the Mahdi is tantamount to a Christian claiming to be the Second Coming! Of course, the attempts by the Lahoris to harmonize the message of Ahmadiyya with that of orthodox Sunni Islam has largely fallen on deaf ears. Both Ahmadiyya branches have been officially declared non-Muslims in Pakistan.

The book is well-written and relatively easy to read. Anyone interested in the Ahmadiyya split probably has to go through it, so I give it four stars.

Speaking with authority

“The British Government and Jihad” isn't a particularly recent text. Quite the contrary. It was written in 1900 by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the founder of the Ahmadiyya movement within Islam. Yet, it has an almost eerie feeling of contemporaneity with our own time.

Ahmad was based in the area today called Pakistan. He sharply rebukes local Muslim scholars for their support of jihad against the British and the Christians. Most of the jihadists seem to be based in the frontier region between Pakistan and Afghanistan, the very same area where the Taliban are active today. Ahmad's opposition to jihad was met with fatwas instructing believers to murder him or abduct members of his household. Ahmad explicitly supports the British colonial administration, stating that it's better than the previous rule of the Sikhs, who apparently persecuted Muslims. However, he also criticizes Christian missionaries for fanning the flames of discord in the frontier regions. Indeed, Ahmad believes that the notion of jihad was almost unknown in the area before Christian tracts attacking jihad became widely available. Compare this with the recent idea that Muslim fundamentalism is a product of Western political correctness or Communism. Not convincing, in my opinion.

Ahmad doesn't oppose the wars of conquest carried out by Muslims historically. He regards them as defensive wars to protect Islam from its enemies, who were even more brutal and barbaric. However, Ahmad claims that the era of legitimate holy war has come to an end. His main argument is to assert his own authority. Ahmad claimed to be the “spiritual return” and an “avatar” of both Jesus and Muhammad. He calls himself the Promised Messiah, and even says “I am Jesus the Messiah and Muhammad Mahdi”. According to Ahmad, the Messiah or Mahdi would end all wars. Since *he* is the Messiah, he therefore orders all Muslims to cease waging holy wars…

Needless to say, few Muslims listened to Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. His support for the British Raj may have alienated some, but the religious arguments probably loomed even larger. Orthodox Sunni Muslims accused him of elevating himself to a position similar to or greater than the Prophet Muhammad, traditionally seen as the last and greatest of the prophets. Thus, the Ahmadiyya became regarded as apostates. Despite supporting the establishment of the Muslim state of Pakistan in 1947, the Ahmadis were eventually declared non-Muslims in 1974. They currently have more rights in India and…Britain.

Although I personally dislike the pro-British stance of “The Promised Messiah”, I nevertheless consider his pamphlet to be a remarkable indictment of religious fanaticism, and therefore give it four stars.

An Afghan in Abakan

Hmmm…A stamp from “Hakasia”, presumably Khakassia, a republic in the vast Russian Federation. And then, maybe not, since both the Russian and Khakas languages use the Cyrillic alphabet. Yet, on this stamp, the Latin alphabet is used. 

He he, if you ask me, this stamp is as bogus as the king of Syldavia or the mayor of Duckburg. But pssst…I don't really mind, since I loved bogus stamps during my short “philatelist period” as a kid. 

Besides, I think Afghan hounds are pretty cool! So I will give this fake made in southern Serbia five stars!

Scheduled castes and Afghan guerrillas

As a kid, me and my best friend collected stamps. We cherished bogus stamps in particular. Unfortunately, my friend got all the Nagaland stamps. I'm still jealous! I think I still have a few of those magnificent bird stamps from Staffa, though. Somewhere. 

Apparently, one Clive Feigenbaum was behind all these schemes. Good ol' Clivey is described as a "colourful British businessman" by Wikipedia. No argument there. I take it the stamp at this product page comes straight from Feigenbaum's collection? Nagaland is a real place in India, but I doubt it issues its own stamps, although I'm sure the local armed separatists might be interested in the profits from Clive's colourful business operations... 

Thus, we're dealing with another beautiful forgery. And, it seems, another Afghan Hound!

Beautiful and bogus

Yet another review of a fake postage stamp from Russia...

Another beautiful but probably bogus stamp showing an Afghan Hound, this time from the Republic of Kalmykia. These stamps are explicitly said to be “unofficial” on other sites, and sometimes even more explicitly condemned as “illegal”.

Personally, I don't necessarily mind gorgeous fakes, as long as people know what they are buying. In this case, the “unofficial” character of the stamp is easily spotted, since (of course) Kalmykia doesn't spell its name in English, and doesn't even use the Latin alphabet! The symbol on the stamp is that of scouting, not Kalmykia (which uses a different flower on its flag).

Perfect for philatelists with a weird sense of humour, or Afghan Hound super-afecionados. Therefore, five stars despite probably being printed in somebody's back yard in Nagaland…

An Afghan in Monte Carlo

Afghan Hounds have a classy, aristocratic reputation. This is the dog of choice of celebrities and zillionaires. It's therefore fitting that Monaco has issued a stamp showing this king of dog breeds. Let's be honest, Monaco isn't a real nation, it's more like a floating casino overseen by an American businessman who pretends to be prince. Of course, Afghan Hounds are completely impossible to really tame, so I suppose the poor servants of the rich folk down Monte Carlo has to take them out for a stroll. The rich owners can't cope with them themselves. I wonder how many stray Afghans are running around on the beaches of the French Riviera, ha ha. Somehow, it seems fitting that this independent-minded hound also has a strange "hippie" image...

Don't get stuck at Staffa

Ah, this brings back fond memories. A Staffa postage stamp! In elementary school, me and my best friend collected stamps. Some of these came our way. At sale in the local supermarket, LOL. We had never heard of Staffa before, so we checked up the place in my father's *very* detailed super-world atlas. Sure enough, we found Staffa. It's a small cliff just off the coast of Scotland?! Naturally, we drew the conclusion that the stamps (which showed birds) were bogus, fake and forged. And yes, we loved every minute of it. 

Apparently, these stamps were produce by a colourful British businessman, one Clive Feigenbaum. They weren't *completely* bogus, though. The small island is uninhabited (except by sea birds), but apparently visiting tourists could use a mail box on the island. The owner of the island gave Feigenbaum permission to print "stamps", which were ostensibly valid at this particular mail box! A tourist attraction, no doubt. 

If this is one of the pseudo-genuine Feigenbaum stamps, or an even later forgery-of-the-forgery, I honestly don't know. The Basset hound looks cute, though.

From Tuva with love

And now, the real story. Tuva isn't an independent state, but a "republic" within the Russian Federation, i.e. it's still part of Russia. Tuva was nominally independent 1926-44, but then it was Communist. Bogus postage stamps from Tuva are a virtual growth industry, and even have their own entry at Wikipedia! 

Apparently, some ostensible "Tuva stamps" show unlikely Tuvan subjects such as Bart Simpson and the Teletubbies. My guess is that Airedale Terriers are pretty unlikely inhabitants of a Russian-Mongolian border region, as well. But hey, I don't mind. 

I think bogus stamps are great fun, as long as you know what you're getting, and the price isn't too extortionate. I used to buy "stamps" like these at the local supermarket as a kid! Therefore, I give this product (probably made in Britain) five stars anyway. But don't tell me I didn't warn you.

A strange trade

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the international market has been virtually flooded by bogus stamps from various non-existent “independent states” in the ex-Soviet area. Most of them, apparently, are really printed in Britain. Often, the bogus issue is easy to spot, with the name of the “independent republic” spelled out in Latin letters, rather than Cyrillic. The motives on the stamps are often unrelated to the places they are supposedly from. Thus, the small Russian-Mongolian border region of Tuva has supposedly issued stamps showing African giraffes, Bart Simpson or Sylvester Stallone!

In order to give the bogus stamps an air of authenticity, they are often shipped to the region of their supposed origin, where underpaid post clerks wanting to earn some extra money applies the correct postmarks to the product, and sometimes even envelopes with fictitious addresses. I wouldn't be too surprised if the stamp shown on this product page is also of that character.

Do I mind? Well, maybe a little bit, but not awfully much. As a kid, I was actually actively looking for bogus stamps, usually Clive Feigenbaum's Nagaland sets. Not to mention Staffa! But sure, if you are a collector (or the Tuvan official responsible for the authenticated gift shops), you might find this strange trade somewhat irritating…