This type of initiation was frequently required of young African men
who wanted to join the warrior class.
I don't know if this was customary among the Zulus or the Masai, but
it's easy to imagine one of Shaka's merry men proclaiming, "Ah, young man,
you want to join our impi (regiment)? Only brave men in this impi!
You must come back with skin of lion before you can join!" (Which leads
to the old joke about having to down a bottle of whisky, satisfy a lusty
woman, and kill a lion... Hint: drink the whiskey last.) |
This
form of initiation is common among young Palestinian "men" who want to
become "holy Islamic warriors" in the struggle to "liberate" the West Bank
from Israeli "opperession."
Sudarsan Raghavan, Knight Ridder-Newspapers, 28 April
2002 "Disguised gunmen kill 4: Girl, 5, among victims of terrorists in
Israeli army uniforms"
ADORA, West Bank
Palestinian terrorists dressed as Israeli soldiers slipped
into a quiet Israeli settlement near Hebron Saturday morning...
The gunmen entered the home of 5-year-old Danielle Sheffi,
who lived with her parents and three siblings. After they left, the little
girl's room-- decorated with a Micky Mouse doll, bed sheet, and poster--
was scattered with bullet holes and stained with blood. Danielle died instantly.
Pay close attention to the traditional punishment for
this behavior,
even if the perpetrators harm no one. ISRAELI DEFENSE
FORCE, PLEASE READ THIS.
From "World
War II" at http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Camp/7624/wwII.htm
(Dec. 16, 1944 - Jan. 25, 1945)
A special Nazi unit (under Col. Otto Skorzeny)
disguised as Americans penetrated the rear, disrupting communications and
transportation. They spoke perfect english and once caught they were to
say that thousands of German SS soldiers had infiltrated dressed as American
soldiers in a special mission. This slowed American movement because now
every soldier was stopped at checkpoints and asked American questions to
see if he was a real American. Thousands were arrested because they did
not know the height of the Empire State building for example. However,
under the Geneva Convention, German soldiers in American uniforms were
not protected and thus any caught was executed on the spot. The Germans
were forced to abandon this successful mission because of the American
executions.
"Executed on the spot" sounds like they didn't even bother
with a court-martial, let alone a "tribunal" of the type for which some
people are criticizing President Bush. |