America is the greatest nation on earth partly because of the independent thinking of individuals and family units, this independent thinking holding great institutions such as the state, church and corporations accountable. This is one reason I believe that everyone should be a gun owner.

After reading Ralph Peters’ new book, I had acquiesced to the idea of the importance of tribes in understanding this culture (and all of the Middle East). But after thinking more about it, I am finding myself more in agreement with Nibras Kazimi, who claims that this is not a good thing. Statism tends to reduce the family unit in importance and remove it from its rightful role of fundamental building block of society. It appears to me that tribe can have the same effect.

While I don’t think that there is anything necessarily wrong with “orchestrating” the neighborhood watches and groups of concerned citizens, I think it is better to see people finally deciding that enough is enough all on their own. Not because a tribal shiekh says so, but because they believe so. They have taken up arms to retake control of their neighborhoods from the criminals who stole them, and this is a good sign for Iraq. This type of awakening has a different genesis than one that is born out of meetings of tribal elders.

Anyway, that’s the fundamental point.

BAGHDAD — In a well-lit meeting room in a government building in the Iraqi capital, 20 Iraqi women were sitting in a circle, intently watching the demonstration in the center of the room. They were dressed modestly but with some……

From the subscription required:
http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/unabridged?book=Third&va=spurious

Main Entry: spu·ri·ous Pronunciation Guide
Pronunciation: spyrs, -pyür- sometimes ÷ -pr.- or -p.r-
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin & Late Latin; Late Latin spurius false, from Latin, of illegitimate birth, from spurius, n., bastard (often used as a praenomen)
1 : of illegitimate birth : BASTARD
2 a : outwardly similar or corresponding to something without having its genuine qualities : FALSE, COUNTERFEIT b : simulative in symptoms or development without being pathologically or morphologically genuine
3 a : of falsified or erroneously attributed origin or authorship : FORGED, INAUTHENTIC b : of a deceitful or fictitious nature or quality : FRAUDULENT c : faulty in reasoning or conclusion : ILLOGICAL, SPECIOUS
4 : marked by spuriousness or falseness
5 : of an excrescent or superfluous character : undesirably intrusive : EXTRANEOUS
6 : irrelevantly inapplicable : lacking correspondence to reality : vaguely ambiguous : PSEUDO

Please elucidate because I’m certain you didn’t mean counterfeit.