Shemagh anyone?????

Ken C. said:
Really? Was your comment necessary as it pertains to the conversation? Are you trying to stir up a political hornets nest in a forum where it does not belong?

Cease and desist any future political commentary in this forum.
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I don't know this dude, but he may not be trying to screw with anyone. London has some serious anti-western sections where muslim garb is warn and displayed intentionally as an AFFRONT to westerners. There are some neighborhoods in London where the local imams have enacted sharia (islamic) law and have their own punishment system. Wearing the shemagh, keffiyah or whatever you want to call it there can be interpreted as a display against the UK, the US and other western, non-barbaric cultures.

I wouldn't wear one over there, either cause the association is different. They don't call it Londonistan for nothing.
 
Ken C. said:
Really? Was your comment necessary as it pertains to the conversation? Are you trying to stir up a political hornets nest in a forum where it does not belong?

Cease and desist any future political commentary in this forum.
Click to expand...

The title was "Shemagh anyone?????"

I gave my opinion as to why I wouldn't wear one in the UK, I wasn't trolling.

I didn't rant about anyone, it wasn't full of hate. I don't see why you should feel like you should stamp on my opinion.

FWIW, if I'm cold I'll wear a scarf, neck gaiter or hat. If my head is hot I'll wear a thin hat.

As a do all piece of cloth of course it has its uses, but so does a bath towel or tea towel. They too can be used to wrap stuff up, make a temporary bandage etc...

No I don't come from London, I come from northern England, Leeds to be exact. My city and the neighbouring areas were home to the 7/7 bombers and many other militants who have been convicted of international terrorism (the Canadian bombing plot was hatched in Bradford as were many more).

This isn't me bashing Muslims (most are decent enough), it's reality and where I'm from if you are wearing a shemagh it means you're either a lefty student or you're an Islamist.

As the ESEE forum quite often deals in urban survival, I would have to say not wearing a shemagh where I come from is a good idea if you don't want to be tarred with the lefty or Islamist brush. I don't fancy getting beaten up why white, right wing extremists because they mistake me for somebody else.
 
I always have one in my bob. Is there a big diff. betwene the nicer ones like blackhawks shemagh and the cheap us cav shemagh?
 
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Yeah, how big is the bestglide one, and what's it made of?

Been wanting to pick up a shemagh, but I've been at a lost of where to buy a decent quality one on the web.
 
I've been curious about picking one up for some time now. As a non-veteran, I feel like a poser even thinking about one. :o You guys pull it off, though, and that makes me feel better about it. :D:thumbup:

Later this spring we'll be taking off for a 2600-mile hike, the first 700 miles of which is in the desert. I've done this trip before and the desert section can be HOT (though not especially dusty or sandy). Been thinking about packing a shemagh for that first month just to finally field-test the concept. It'd be a cheap experiment. For PERSEC, we don't need the Hamas Hassle from hicks, though.

It has always struck me as odd that dark shemaghs are so popular among Westerners. I'd think they'd be HOT. :eek: The most traditional patterns seem to be black or red patterns on a white base. I've got a lighter "foliage" one in my Amazon cart right now, though the various tans might be OK in the sun too:
Shemaugh-Foliage1.jpg
shemaghTAN.jpg


ETA: OK, this is a shemagh thread. I just have to ask: could anyone be so kind as to weigh their dry shemagh for me? Thanks!
 
I am out of country but will fly back on mon and be back the day before aka sunday(weird) i will check both mine and give you an average
 
I seen alot of guys use these overseas. I personally never did. Mainly used to keep the sand out of our mouth, but I think it became a hot item because all the high speed units(Seals, Force Recon, Special Forces) starting wearing them on missions and then everybody followed in suite.
 
I don't carry a shemagh because the black and white ( Pro Fatah) or red and white (pro hamas)shemagh or Keffiyeh has been worn in Europe for 20 years as a political symbol in left wing and militant islamic circles too clearly send out their support for the palistinian people. Apart from it beeing a great tool in a wilderness enviroment, it has strong political connotations in Europe. it is known in Europe as an "Arafat scarf", and sends out a clear anti-israelian message if you wear it in the traditional colours. This has never been a big issue in the US, but in other parts of the world the shemagh has long been a political symbol. The SF guys started to wear the shemagh in the sandbox because it was handy to keep the dust out and conceil their western identity, but in the suburbs of brussels, London and france it states that you support the existence of a Palistinian state, and the intifada
I really don't want to stir a political discussion. Just be aware that symbols can have different meanings in different cultures. If you go to buddhist countries you see a lot of swastika's, without these people ever realising that their symbol of prosperity would be misused by some idiots 2000 years later. Just be aware of what you wear. I know the Keffiyeh is a cool tool to have especially in military colours, just realise that in some parts of the world you send out an different message. I know these scarfes are widely used during street robberies and urban left wing or islamic riots in europe because they conceil the identity of the wearer very good, and are disposable or quickly tucked away.Wearing a keffiyeh openly (especially the classic ones) will draw attention of the police forces in Europe, and Israel.

see links for more info.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keffiyeh

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yRhAJNJvL8&feature=related


http://www.uitpers.be/archief/pics/106_01.jpg

http://www.thoughttheater.com/upload/2006/07/Riots_Muslim_Danish_Cartoon_1_Edit.jpg

http://www.veteranspostnews.com/ImagesM/muslim/muslim6.jpg

This doesn't mean that you should not own one or not use it, or that this is in any way a political thread, it is indeed a very handy tool, just be aware that it already was used for different purposes.
 
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tradja said:
I've been curious about picking one up for some time now. As a non-veteran, I feel like a poser even thinking about one. :o You guys pull it off, though, and that makes me feel better about it. :D:thumbup:

Later this spring we'll be taking off for a 2600-mile hike, the first 700 miles of which is in the desert. I've done this trip before and the desert section can be HOT (though not especially dusty or sandy). Been thinking about packing a shemagh for that first month just to finally field-test the concept. It'd be a cheap experiment. For PERSEC, we don't need the Hamas Hassle from hicks, though.

It has always struck me as odd that dark shemaghs are so popular among Westerners. I'd think they'd be HOT. :eek: The most traditional patterns seem to be black or red patterns on a white base. I've got a lighter "foliage" one in my Amazon cart right now, though the various tans might be OK in the sun too:
Shemaugh-Foliage1.jpg
shemaghTAN.jpg


ETA: OK, this is a shemagh thread. I just have to ask: could anyone be so kind as to weigh their dry shemagh for me? Thanks!
Click to expand...

About the colour black in hot environments... so long as the clothing is loose fitting dark clothing is actually cooler than light clothing.

Strange but true.
 
British soldiers having been wearing them for over 90 years.

T E Lawrence in WW1
te-lawrence.jpg


The Long Rang Desert Group and SAS of WW2
sas-north-africa.jpg


Right the way through into the modern day with camera shy SBS in Afghanistan.
sbs-afghanistan.jpg


Mind you instead of looking like a special forces hardman you could go chic like these two. :p

colin.jpg


sting.jpg
 
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