The society of Afghanistan traditionally is a male dominated one. From the era of the empires of great and often ruthless Shah’s to its visible reminants in contemporary Afghan culture, women have often played a minimal to non-existant part its history and society. The traditional dogma stating men as the breadwinner and the women as the child bearer lives on even today as we see a great deal of the female population married at young ages, or even in the sense of being seen as property. This was usually tipical of the rural-village areas where back in the 1900’s the practice of a young women being “married off” at a young age (below 16) was common because most poor families couldn’t afford to keep daughters as they were a burden: taking up space, food, and cloth. The price the girls paid for that was often being tramatized psychologically and physically abused by their husbands who were often older.

But now its the  70’s and citylife around Afghanistan’s capital brought new hope for enlightenment and modernization as the new generation, as I will label, the  ”intelligentsia” and the newly budding middle class begain to brigde the socio-economic gap that, as I would see could have brought new meaning to being a woman in Afghanistan. The fact is, during the era of Shah Zahir to the end of Soviet Occupation with the fall of Dr. Najib Afghan women began going to college, holding political office (in the Khalq and Parcham governments), and joining the military. Not too ong ago these were mainly male activities in which women could have only dreamed about. Shah Zahir might have unknowingly spirred this modernization as Queen Suriya, his wife, was often pictured without a headscarf or a burka making her the image of “the modern woman”. This perhaps had a “trickle down” effect on the populace as usually the masses often emulate the “elite”. The subsiquent years of communist rule (Taraki and the “Khalq”, Karmal and the “Parcham”) probably had a greater influence on brigding the gap of gender equality. As we all peharps know, communism preaches equality in its extreme (social and economic plus the “abolition of traditional family roles”) and thus at this time period we find women activists, women in the political parties, some women in government, and in the military. A good outcome from the wrong method or perhaps a rapid modernization process akin to a “social” Five Year Plan.

If the United States didn’t back the Mujaheddin, and the Soviet Union won in Afghanistan the world would be a very different place. Perhaps it would still be the cold war, Afghanistan would be a satillite, most likely the country would be more modern than in the events after the fall of Dr.Najib and the rise of the Taleban. The Taleban for the global observer is the more current in the mind. We see a sharp downwards trend on the rights of women in this time period (1995-2001). A woman was like a piece of property; she was nothing unless she had a husband and 6.5 children and even then she was considered nothing by society. Many of the basic rights of a human being (see Universal Declaration of Human Rights) were taken away in favor of a ultra-strict interpretation of the Qur’an (see Shariya Law for a basic introduction to Islamic Law). And thus we find the women who had once held a career or a high position stuck in at home.

In today’s Afghanistan, we see a trend of slow re-intergration of women in society and in the professional fields. Though a great deal of gender equality ideas in the third world comes from globalization of western culture and modernization in general, the surge of media and information in Afghanistan most likely contributes to this “new wave” of enlightenment. As the current generation of youth thirst for knowledge and opportunity we may observe an upward swing in the number of women who participate in actively in society. Currently there are many women in the “Loya Jirga” or parliment plus many in the work force. The condition of the Afghan woman will perhaps improve by the next generation of youth, meaning that true equality and freedom may not be reached in our life times but hopefully in the life time of our children (>50 years). Through what we can observe so far, there is certianly hope for the women of Afghanistan.

Photo front: by tj_200pk http://flickr.com/photos/12397654@N08/2919733917/

Photo in post: by: german http://flickr.com/photos/12439365@N04/2049445265/

In all good standing once again, I am delighted to announce our return. I will personally take the helm and guide us on a better path. This may not sound like the usually fair that we report or write about, its clearly news for us. Expect new material in the coming weeks and months! I am delighted to be able to start up once again what I felt was a great project. This website started out as way to bring to light critical issues and news from Afghanistan plus provide some opinion. So, staying true to its original goal, this website will once again focus on the happenings of Afghanistan. Coverage will also be given to usual fair of arts and society plus other pieces of noteworthy information from international arena. I believe that our short break has allowed us to find the strength and determination to once again pick up our pens and write. This round, our original vision will become the focus.

- The Good Doctor

Plus, recent engagement with the Taleban and Pakistani Army against the Afghan - Coalition forces on the volatile Durrand Line caused another reason for Karzai to call his people to arms. As Pakistan condemned the airstrike as cowardly, as it caused the death of 11 paramilitary soldiers plus Taleban fighters. The boarder region with Pakistan is chaotic to say the least. Waziristan is home to many Taleban and al-Qaeda militants and sympathizers. As the Durrand Line remains “undrawn” most of these merchants of death freely cross in and out of both countries leaving terror and destruction in the path, especially in Afghanistan.

President Karzai stated in his press conference that if Pakistani militants cross into Afghanistan and cause trouble that they will chase them right to their very door step in order to eliminate the threat. The Afghan President warns Pakistan against military activities in Afghanistan or else there will be consequences. With this new policy agianst Pakistan, Afghanistan is on the offensive instead of standing by passively. And Hamid Karzai on the other hand, is starting to show his executive effectiveness and control over the situation in his country. Plus, in regard to the Durrand Line itself, President Karzai mentioned the fact it is not draw further showing his acceptance of it in general. Hamid Karzai has definately shown today that Afghanistan is not going to stand by idlely and let the insurgence choke the country. 

As heard from various resources from Afghanistan. Photo from Pingnews, under creative commons licence attribution - share alike.

Over the past couple of years, news about Afghanistan has dwindled to the usual car bomb or Opium problems. It seems as though the main issues that split Afghanistan to the point of revolution have not been addressed. Ethnicity and clan alignment was a major part of Afghan society back in the time of the Zhair Shah, and seems to continue to divide its people into factional and warlord-like allegiances. Case in point the more over riding conflict between the “Farsiwan” and the Pushtuns.

          Afghanistan has two major languages Pushto and Farsi. Farsi can be traced back to the Persian Empire and its roots run all the way to the second and first Aryan migration. It is not a Semitic language (Arabic, Aramaic and Hebrew are Semitic languages) and can be most closely compared to German, and French surprisingly. The “pure” Farsi speakers are usually the Tajiks who are related to both the Iranians and the Tajikistanis in Tajikistan. They are of more European stock and have mediterranian features, so one could concluced that in the greater scheme of things, they are most likely related to the Europeans of non-Anglo-Saxon stock and more over of “Aryan” (used in context of the tribe, not the “war” term) descent. And even more so, the Qizelbash, who are of purely Persian and Turkic descent, are more closely related to the Persians mercenaries called on by Nader Shah of Afshar, in his India campaigns in 1738. The Farsiwan usually are found living in the northern half and near Kabul in the pre-Communist era. Though, the exception of the Qizelbash who lived at one point in Kandahar in the 18^th centery then relocating to Aftshar to become known as the Afshari clan of the Qizilbash. The Farsiwan, as they will be all known as collectively from now on, through out history have conducted administrative, bureaucratic, and advisory roles in the government of various kings. One Afshari recounts (name withheld for security reasons) how their grandfathers, and those before them were highly involved in the government as advisors and close confidants to kings ranging from Nadir Shah all the way to Zahir Shah. The Farsiwan made up the intellectual and professional sector of society and became the weak but growing middle class in the 1970s. The only problem was they were mostly Shia Muslims and not Pushtun who ruled all sectors of government and education in their large, incapable and ineffective numbers.

            The Pushtuns can all trace their lineage back to one man by the name of Qias, a member of the Prophet Mohammad’s close followers. They are of Arabic origin though, now showing traces of Pakistani/Hindi stock in their features. The Pushtuns are mostly found in the southern lawless regions of the Pak-Afghan boarder and also in the larger Kandahar province. Being of mostly Arabic descent, it is safe to say that most of the nomadic Bedouin tribes that one wandered may have landed in Afghanistan at one point in time to create part of the Pushtun tribes, that of the nomadic Kochi and then the second half coming from the Arab conquest of parts of Persian and Samanid Dynasty (which was the then region of Afghanistan. The Arabs conquered Heart then Kandahar leaving a new Islamic Ghaznavid Dynasty. Many Pushtuns claim to be “Saiyid” or a direct descendent to the Prophet Mohammad, which indicates further more their Arabic roots. On Islamic grounds, they are Sunni Muslims, one of the largest sects of Islam in the world.

            The Pushtun itself is a mostly rural and rugged individual who pledges undying loyalty to their clan. They follow a code called the Pushtunwali which dictates a few rather simple rules to live by. The first being that of Nanawateh or sanctuary and asylum to a surrendering opponent.  The second is Jyrga or assembly in which major decisions are often decided by a meeting of the heads of the clan often the elderly. Namus which is the protection of honor, in this case women. This is a very tricky one to describe. A women in Pushtun society is often as much a property as a goat. If she steps “out of line” and brings “shame to the family and clan” she must be killed. This can rang from harmless conversations with men, going outside without an escort, not veiling herself from a foreigner or a man in general, or the truly horrifying, being seen having fun. But on a serious note, mostly adulterers or women who are raped are killed because they are considered shamed and un-pure. Badal is another rather violent part of the Pushtunwali code. It declares revenge or the seeking of revenge against another in any way or means necessary to achieve it. This could be a simple neighborly rivalry to a more complex blood feud that spans generations. But it ends in death both ways so there is really no difference.

More modern concepts to the Pushtunwali include khachakbar or drug and arms trafficking, Taleban or terrorist insurgency, Pushtunistan or the destruction of Afghanistan and Pakistan in order to make a more chaotic nation by combining the wild tribal regions of Kandahar to Waziristan through Peshawer, and my personal favorite Sarandoy e Islami or Islamic police in which they throw journalists in prision, beat women, and complain about the Karzai government while following most steps in the Taleban section of the code.

In all seriousness, minus the rather theatrical and satirical paragraph above, the Pushtuns have excerted their influence on Afghanistan to the point that, if your not Pushtun, your not in the club. Which club do we mean? Well, that of the professional fields, higher educations, betterment of ones position in society, and gaining of government positions. The problem here is that an unequal amount of highly skilled individuals is left in a state of despair and static social status while Pushtuns are favored for higher education trips abroad (mostly in the 1965-1980s) and government positions. The Farsiwan was usually left to lower level professional jobs unless they had contacts in the government to vouch for them. Afghanistan in the 1970s was a free for all in the job market and in admissions to Kabul University. Even entrance was skewed as one individual told us that when applying to the college of engineering, they scored the highest points but quickly accepted others to go study abroad instead of him, though he was more qualified academically then those who left. Another problem became the Pushtunistan question. Yes, I know that Shah Wali Khan fellow did say Afghanistan held no claims on it but still those Pushtuns still yell “Pushtunistan Zamung!” The Durrand Line is a major dividing factor in this conflict. The Pushtuns want to keep it as it is, unrecognized so as to let more drugtrafficker, insurgences, Extremeist Mullahs, Pakistani job poachers, and Taliban into the country. As I have said before, the more they wait to recognize the line and appease the Pushtuns, the more the country will fall into turmoil. Even that Musharaf fellow said he would recognize it and draw a series of check points and board walls through the area. This problem lies in the Pushtun tribes themselves, they have this idea that the Waziristanis and “Paks” all the way to Peshawer are their brothers and want to help them. Wrong. They could careless about the Pushtuns in Afghanistan. Even the “Pakistani Taliban” (I thought it was implied…) claimed to stop all activity (Murder, rape, killing, destruction, radicalisms, etc…) on Pakistani soil and carry out their reign of terror on Afghanistan. Now the question is, why do the Pushtuns still give their lives for these “monsters” and are still so madly in love with the idea of a separate country with them that will never happen? And if it did, hypothetically, they would create another third world country poverty stricken, illiterate, and the home to probably a great deal of insurgences and terrorist activities. That is where the conflict lies between these two groups. As the Pushtuns countinue to push their cause, the country divides further and falls into deeper unrest and chaos all the while exploiting and detaching the Farsiwan from his birthright, to be free to pursue his own life and happiness.

But as reported by many from Afghanistan itself, most of this conflict lies in the many expatriated and those who fled the communists back in the 1980s. Through the use of media and other outlets they have inflated this conflict. The feeling in Afghanistan today about this issue is less surface than in abroad. Though these issues exist, most Afghans are too busy trying to make the equivalent of 50 a month and save up for a bag of rice to feed their half starved to death families; they want peace, land, and bread, not conflict. Watching this issue unfold, seeing the hatred it has sparked, makes me wonder when Afghanistan will truly be free of the chains of oppression and conflict?

Photograph by: Zane Edwards of Flickr.com actual photo can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zane/18504380/

This attempt on Karzai’s life was very alarming. Afghanistan is still a fledgling democracy and if he fell, then all hope falls with him. The Afghani Government and military are weak and unable to excersie their power in the countryside. It was because of this problem that the Taliban were able to get so close to Karzai in the first place. The wild tribal territories are opportune areas for them to regroup and plan plus the relative easiness of access to Pakistan gives them ample opportunity to gain more power and influence.

The moral of this story is, instead of creating an extravagant show of mediocre armaments and lack of military might, the National celebration could have been one for the people employing the arts and tighter security.  It seemed as though the Afghan government took a que from the Russians considering they have a certian prefrence towards military parades. But still credit is given to those who continue to try and better their country in the face of adversity.

How did this happen you wonder? It all goes back to 1990s when it was cool to be politically active and every other teenage know-it-all attended their first protest about an issue they could careless about or didn’t know anything about. Raise your fist for equality, liberty, and the ever-popular Darfur issue. But Palestine was excluded; it was unable to coexist with our foreign interests and deemed un-cool by most “globally aware” hipster cliques (if they could be called that). Now it’s a different story.

Its understandable that the post 9/11 world is a much different place. At one point people didn’t even know where Afghanistan was or that Saddam Hussain was the leader Iraq let alone what the infamous acronym WMD stood for.

Somehow the Middle East has morphed into what Trotsky was to the Stalin Era. (For those who don’t know this is an allusion to a scapegoat) Yes, there is enough ignorance to go around for seconds. It was hard enough for an Afghan describe to their Anglo-Saxon comrades that they are not guerilla warriors, radicals, or have a special urge to fight the soviet specter of atheism and yes Afghanistan is indeed a country and no, its not in the south of France. But now, since the Iraq War became the new muse, the Arabic community must deal with repercussions.

Case in point, the Keffiyah. As has been reported on earlier this symbol of solidarity of the Palestinian cause and Arab nationalism has turned into a water-down mass-produced consumer good quickly dawned by the idealistic or more likely unaware youth. But if this wasn’t enough, Palestine in general is now “couture”. Marketing the Keffiyah became too safe, the fashion industry demands “more shock value and controversy”. Enter the T-shirts by local Fresh Jive clothing company based in Los Angeles, California. First of all is the “Victimized” shirt depicting a freedom fighter and a small stamp of the Palestinian flag. Okay, they are in support of a free and peaceful Palestine. Wrong. They want to “market” the sad struggle of a disenfranchised people for Americans consumerist pleasure.

Secondly, Yasser Arafat, its just that, an Arafat shirt. Most intellectuals would agree Arafat’s role in the PLO and in Palestinian politics in general were a key part in raising the voices of the Palestinian’s to the ears of most first world countries. Many conclude the man is an icon, a freedom fighter, and a nationalist. To haphazardly stamp his face on a shirt to sell at a convenient $19.00 takes away from almost everything he had fought for as the population who would be most inclined to by this shirt often couldn’t point to Palestine on a map let alone know who Arafat was. 

Yes folks, corporate American has done it again. They have successfully conquered the youth’s newfound obsession with International Affairs (a popular major in most universities) by exploiting Middle Eastern icons and leaders. Who knows what’s next? Soon every 16 through 29 year old will be sporting (the Great) Ahmed Shah Massoud’s pakol. This new kind of nostalgia for the east, is now with the Middle East. Coming soon to a store near you.

Check out the shirts on Karma Loop: www.karmaloop.com

Cheers,

Administrator

Call to arms, upheaval, uprising, rebellion, insurrection, change;Whatever you call it all refers to the same idea, one word that shook worlds, toppled governments, and changed the lives of people forever: Revolution.
The Zapatistas, sure their names sound familiar, but who are they? What do they stand for in this crazy world of ours? The first true revolution in the post-modern world, brews in the green heartland of Chiapas Mexico, organized by the Zapatista Army of National Liberation or EZLN and its spokesman undoubtedly being the charismatic and iconic Subcommadante Marcos.

The Zapatistas are not all about that famous revolutionary and his pipe. Its roots run deeper; much deeper. Lets take a step back to an earlier date. In 1910 during the heat of the Mexican Revolution with Emiliano Zapata and his band of the landless peasant riding against the current government calling for land, liberty, and justice. The Zapatistas, as Zapata’s followers were called still seem to live on in the heart of the EZLN, they feel they are the “ideological heirs” to Zapata.            

Why do they want to go against the old system? The answer simply lies in Chiapas. This area in the south of Mexico holds vast green forests and the homes of indigenous people of mostly Mayan descent. Usually in Mexican society and government, the indiginenous population is looked down upon. Since the enforcement of the constitution of 1917, they have felt disenfranchised from any benefits that the government had to offer. Since the time of the ejidos, the indigenous wanted to own their land. But with the crisis’s of 1982, the issues of land redistribution and organization were clearly pushed aside for more important matters. This left the indigenous population in a situation of continual desperation, which would worsen with the later signing of NAFTA. It was from this state of uncertainty that the EZLN grew out of from FLN guerillas and the indigenous of eastern Chiapas in November 17, 1983. Their structure consist of a 23 commander and one sub-commander Revolutionary Indigenous Clandestine Committee which makes up the collective leadership of the Zapatistas. The Zapatistas control nearly a quarter of Chiapas and use Councils of Good Government which organize and somewhat legislate these areas of influence, by using a system of representation made up of the people who are rotated in 2 week terms which in a sense gives every person in the village direct representation. They finally when public in January 1, 1994 at the signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA between Canada, US, and Mexico.

In Article 27 section VII of the Mexican constitution guarantees land reparations to the indigenous but with the signing of NAFTA, these provisions became null and void. Gortari, the president at the time felt that with opening trade, Meixco’s economy would benefit greatly. This “benefit” came at the expense of the indigenous population who were now no longer guaranteed their land holdings.

The Zapatistas stand for the indigenous, anti-globalization, and anti-neoliberalism, feeling that treaties such as NAFTA hurt the small indigenous farmers who can’t compete with mechanized corporate farms and end up losing their land. A mesh of Marxism and anarchism makes up the crux of their ideological belief system but they don’t hold strong to any one ideology. Their idea of a complete overhaul of the government’s system would be one that would do politics from the bottom up rather than the other way.

To address the Zapatista movement would be incomplete without mention of one of their most notable commanders. What would the Zapatistas be without Marcos? Little is known about Marcos except rumors that surround the mysterious revolutionary. Allegedly Mexican officals consider his true identity to be that of one Rafael Sebastian Guillen Vicente of Tampico the son of Spanish immigrants, educated in early on about Liberation Theology in Jesuit school then going to obtain a philosophy degree at the University of Mexico. The Tlatelolco Massacre of 1968 where the police and military shot student demonstrators became a defining factor in his life. This event took his political ideologies for a turn towards the left becoming a militant in a Maoist organization and finally emerging as one of the most influential figures of the Zapatista movement.

As said by Marcos himself, life in Chiapas for an “outsider” was difficult at first.
“Imagine a person who comes from an urban culture. One of the world’s biggest cities, with a university education, accustomed to city life. It’s like landing on another planet. The language, the surroundings are new. You’re seen as an alien from outer space. Everything tells you: “Leave. This is a mistake. You don’t belong in this place.” And it’s said in a foreign tongue. But they let you know, the people, the way they act; the weather, the way it rains; the sunshine; the earth, the way it turns to mud; the diseases; the insects; homesickness. You’re being told. “You don’t belong here.” If that’s not a nightmare, what is?” (A Place Called Chiapas)

             Subcommadante Marcos’s defining moment being the 1996 cease fire talks with the Mexican government under President Carlos Salinas de Gortari after the Zapatista’s first armed insurrection, a march towards Mexico City beginning in January of 1994 and finally ending in defeat in February of 1995 with a surprise raid of Zapatista strongholds by the Mexican Army. The San Andreas Accords were signed in 1996 guaranteeing autonomy of the indigenous and other special rights. This seemed like a victory in the eyes of the people until President Zedillo sent more troops to Chiapas put a hold on the spreading influence of the Zapatistas. The military presence proved to be more than negative. Rumors of abuse committed by the Army including the killing of Zapatistas and their supporters started spreading. And the paramilitary group ironically called peace and justice began committing heinous crimes against the population and sent death threats to anyone they deemed to be a sympathizer.

All the while the Zapatistas dawned a policy, being sworn to not lift their gun in aggression. In the mean time they started a new campaign, one that the used the most powerful weapon of all, the Internet. Communiqués and news of the movements actions started to spread as they started the revolution again but this time in through one of the most massive information portals in the world. Their support base increased drastically spanning from the United States and North America to Europe. This rag-tag team of ski mask clad, red bandana dawning fighters soon took their place in world politics. In this new era the Zapatistas, as they pursue a new route of non-violence through the Other Campaign, in which they promote the reform to the constitution by adding clauses that address the prohibiting the privatization of land and giving autonomy to the populations of indigenous in Mexico. Even Subcommadante Marcos was on the move promoting the word of the Zapatistas in various cities around Mexico in his January 2006 tour under the assumed name Delegate Zero.

             The Zapatistas continue to oppose the government and its policies against the indigenous and its treatment of the indigenous population as written by Subcommadante Marcos in his current communiqués. Also, the Zapatistas have tried to incorporate women in politics and in their own personal leadership as seen with the famous Subcommadante Ramona. Both these goals are radical in their very fabric as most Latin American countries traditionally excluded the indigenous population let alone women from government and professional positions. Trying to co-op both groups and successfully accomplishing it is quite a remarkable feat for any revolutionary group.

But will the Zapatistas ever reach the goals the set out to accomplish? As said by Subcommadante Marcos:

“…We will resist. Even though we suffer in resisting, even though they attack us, even though they imprison us, even though they kill us, even though they tell lies about us, we will not permit the governments actions that cause death, misery, neglect, and fear. And if we do this, its not just for you. We do this for the millions of Mexican men and women who are poor like us. They deserve that the nation’s wealth benefit them and not the government and its gang of thieves.” (Marcos)

And thus, the legendary fighters of Chiapas live on to continue their fight against a government that has disfranchised its people.

Apparently this is a very important issue for most Afghans. The probability to further one’s career or gain higher positions sometimes can increase from being ethnically Pushtun. Currently most of the government of Afghanistan consists of Pushtun tribesman. What happened to the rest of Afghanistan? It seems that a bias towards one clan versus another has caused an unproportionate number of Pushtuns to gain admittance in Kabul University than most other ethnicities. This is not because they strive for higher education but instead a product of prejudice and Pushtunism.
Even representation of the populace has turned into a one clan one rule situation. Many ethnicities have been systematically persecuted and under-represented with even non-existant or virtual representation.
Pushtunism is a result of hundreds of years of Puhstun rule (monarchies) over an area roughly stretching from Afghanistan to the interior of Pakistan. Under the rule of Ahmed Shah Durrani 1747 the Pushtun tribes finally united and the Empire fell apart. The wars with the Rajput Sikhs lessened the influence of the Durrani empire and eventually lead to the loss of the Pakistan area of the empire. Throughout the ages, Pushtun tribesmen call for a return to Pushtunistan, the reunion of the old Durrani empire. This movement has proven to drive more conflict than unity by dividing the population between ethnic and cultural lines plus calling for the destruction of two sovereign nations Afghanistan and Pakistan in favor of an illegitimate autonomous state ranging from the south of Afghanistan in the mostly Pushtun areas to the near reaches of Peshawar.
Personally, I find this a little on the side of overly obsessive. The problem lies in rebuilding Afghanistan, not in trying to tear it apart. What is most appalling is the fact that instead of trying to focus on the future, they remain stuck on the past. On June 1948, Shah Wali Khan even announced that the tribal areas in Pakistan were Pakistan’s, and Afghanistan would lay no claim to it, and thus the Durrand Line was drawn. But still the Durrand Line in the cause of many conflicts. The Pakistan-Afghan Boarder is still not offically drawn with checkpoints or any kind of boarder security leaving Afghanistan vunerable in invasion by insurgents. The “Pushtunistan” supporters are against any offical move to recognize the boarder feeling that it will divide the people; its a boarder, thats what its for. It keeps the peace between two soveriegn countries. In order to keep the country secure, the lines must be drawn between the volitle Waziristan terriory and Afghanistan. As they continue to evade the issue, Afghanistan continues to be plagued by Taliban and Al-Qeada filtering in from Pakistan.
Considering the issue seems somewhat resolved, we often wonder why the Pushtun’s aren’t moving on yet. The boarder must be recognized and security must become the priority. It seems that the past even now, continues to play a big part in the future of Afghanistan.

Photograph of “Taliban fighters” by Hans Proppe (Copyrighted and reproduced by permission) you can find the real photograph here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/shadowplay/74969157/

Kasabian is a UK based band that could arguably categorized as a electro-indie rock band. Their lyrics feature political and social themes giving weight to all of their work. The music itself can be described as nothing else but amazing. Its rich, fluid keyboards mixed with the hard riffs of a screeching guitar makes their rhythms equal to none. Adaptable but consistent, their music can range from softer rock to an all out call to arms “power ballad”. Such ability in an artist is truly admirable.

The bands beginings start in Leicester where they were founded by members Tom, Sergio, Chris E., and Chris K. This indie group was at first called Saracuse but then changed their name to Kasabian at the suggestion of Chris K. Their debute album ‘Kasabian’ released in 2004 and included songs like the famous Club Foot and Reason for Treason. This sucessful album soon lead the group to record their next album Empire (2006). Its safe to say that between the two albums there is not one song that you will get tried of listening to. Kasabians success in the indie rock scene promises that this band has staying power.

Listen to their music at:

www.kasabian.co.uk

Or watch a music video: