Ever since the Syrian civil war broke out over three years ago and the progressive departure of US troops from Iraqi soil, the situation in the Middle East appears to be more uncertain and explosive than ever. The sudden rise of ISIS as a regional power is worrisome not only because they appear to be well organized and well funded, but also because their methods of ruling have turned the most gruesome acts of violence into banal occurrences of the daily life.
Vanity Fair published the story of an anonymous citizen of Raqqa, the de facto capital of the self-proclaimed caliphate. The witness recounts in their words what the daily life in this city has turned into. Molly Crabappaple illustrated the article based on pictures taken with a cell phone.
Na’eem in Arabic means “paradise,” but ISIS changed this beautiful public place into the complete opposite. The square that was a favorite place for boys and girls to have dates, for little kids to play, and for the elders to relive their youths by taking in the activity of the city, is now the awful place of spikes upon which chopped-off heads are placed. The story of this square sums up the dark story of the whole city.
The story and depictions align with what can be seen in the the Vice videos that were released in August and September – these are the only independent video documents that have been published since ISIS asserted power over eastern Syria. They are well worth watching as a first-hand account of what is happening and what is at stake in this region.
Apart from being my birthday, tomorrow will also mark the 25th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake, the Bay Area’s worst natural disaster since the great 1906 shake.
Shawn Clover created a page where he presents photographical mashups of the damages from the 1989 along with the same location in present day – the results are visually stunning. It is a testament to both the humbling forces of nature and the capability of human societies to tirelessly rebuild.
The article also presents in a succinct and rather terrifying way the blunt truth: what’s ahead of us is worse than Loma Prieta in every possible way – magnitude and duration. How are those emergency supplies going for you?
I went to hike the Dipsea Trail this past Sunday and it was amazing – it’s the kind of typical Bay Area thing I feel I should have done years ago but the occasion never presented itself before today. We drove to Stinson Beach in the morning to catch the bus to Mill Valley then hiked our way back over Mount Tamalpais. The path essentially ends by the beach, so we were in for a nice sunset by the ocean, in which we could also dip our toes and get rid of some of the dirt. I’m still having a hard time believing that people run this trail (much less twice or even four times in a row).
The vistas were simply breathtaking. I had had a pretty nice bike ride on the previous day exactly in the same area and I am generally speaking quite familiar with the roads in Marin County, but I was surprised how different it feels to walk the paths by the side of the road. I’m not much of a hiker – I can’t say this was an easy hike (the walk itself took about 4hrs) but there are plenty of places to stop and take pictures or just rest.
The variety of terrain helps to stay distracted and it’s easy to lose track of time. There was also plenty of wildlife around the path – deers, squirrels and a whole array of species of birds. My understanding is that this is one of the greatest trail in North California, yet there were remarkably few people on it, possibly due to the occurrence of Fleet Week that same week-end. I feel like this is the kind of perfect introduction to somewhat serious hiking, a bit like a gateway drug. At $2 for the bus ride, this is one hella cheap habit to get into.