Saturday, July 02, 2022

A little on Iraq

I got the second shingles Friday morning at my first doctor's visit of the day.  I was fine and fine when I went on to my endocrinologist appointment.  Kat and I then went looking for vinyl (a friend was selling his collection and I knew Kat would find some stuff she wanted). Still fine.  By nine p.m., I was a little dizzy.  After I got on the bed to rest, it really hit.  I woke up to throw up.  I had a fever, I had chills.  My head felt like it was exploding.  I was dehydrated.  That's how I spent the day.  Sleeping when I could.  If it weren't for music, I'm not sure I'd have made it through.


In my AMAZON history, this is what it says I listened to (I honestly don't remember hearing all of this -- these are albums I love and would listen to and am sure I did but I was in and out of it all day).  

1) The Pointer Sisters' BREAK OUT

2) Pj Morton's WATCH the SUN, 

3) Harry Styles' HARRY'S HOUSE

4) Prince's CONTROVERSY

5) Diana Ross' THANK YOU

6) Harry Styles' HARRY STYLES

7) Pretenders' PIRATE RADIO

8) Peggy Lee's TWO SHOWS NIGHTLY

9) Pretenders' THE ISLE OF VIEW

10) Lena Horne's AT THE WODORF ASTORIA


I am still in so much pain.  And when I cough, the pain in the base of my skull is tremendous and I'm coughing constantly.  Found out at the PCP yesterday this was COVID longual symptoms and that I have scarring in my lungs from COVID.


Despite holding elections October 10th, Iraq still has no president, still has no prime miniter.  And ISIS is getting restless.  REPUBLIC WORLD reports:


Two people were killed while four others were wounded on Saturday after Daesh militants attacked northern and central Iraq. According to security sources, the first attack took place in Nineveh Governate, which borders Syria, where one soldier was killed and two civilians were wounded after a roadside bomb exploded. The blast, which Iraqi security officials believe was planted by the IS, exploded near an Iranian security unit outside a village on the outskirts of Tal Afar. 

Speaking to Xinhua on condition of anonymity, a source said that the attack took place when the country’s law enforcers were hunting down IS terrorists in the area. Meanwhile, a similar explosion occurred in the Salah al-Din governorate, where at least one civilian was killed and two others were wounded. The roadside bomb was planted by IS terrorists and exploded near the village of Tarmiyah, some 30 kilometers north of the capital Baghdad. 


No government, all this time later.  KURDISTAN 24 notes:


The president of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) Masoud Barzani discussed the latest developments in the political process in Iraq with the KDP bloc members at the Iraqi parliament on Saturday.

President Barzani reiterated that “we are the owners of rightful issue, regardless of the political variables and equations”. He added, “solving problems must be through adherence to the constitution and the three principles of partnership, consensus, and balance.”

“These principles must be reflected in the work of the next government and on all political blocs,” Barzani added. “The KDP is not with the conflict and the deepening of the worsening crisis, but rather what is important is to protect constitutional rights and the dignity of citizens.”


As the country drifts along without leadership, hot spots keep developing.  Now it's Basra.  RUDAW reports:


Tensions between two tribes in the southern Iraqi province of Basra on Friday led security forces to use drones to stop the fighting, with the quarrels first surfacing three years ago.

Tensions between the tribes of Albu Hamdan and al-Batut sparked clashes that lasted for more than five hours in the town of Garma, as the two tribes fought over concerns of debt.

"We have closed our shops since 4 pm yesterday because of the bullets of the Hamdan and Batut tribes coming at us," witness Uday Shareef told Rudaw's Halkawt Aziz, describing the situation as "hell."

"We live in hell, not in a country or Iraq," Shareef said.


And that's what I can offer today.  Sorry.  My head's again killing me and I'm going back to sleep.