Angelina Jolie makes a third UNHCR trip to Iraq before going to Jordan

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This is why Angelina Jolie needs a publicist! Because news and gossip outlets aren’t caught playing “Where In the World Is Angelina Jolie?” for half a day. Anyway, it turns out the rumors were true. Angelina Jolie went to Iraq before heading off to Jordan to be honored for her work at the Arab Children’s Congress. The UNHCR’s site describes Angelina’s Iraqi visit as a “day-long visit to Baghdad” to draw attention to the internally displaced Iraqis living in makeshift refugee centers in the capital city. The press release also has some quotes from Angelina (as she is speaking to refugees, not press), and some interesting data about the civilian situation within Iraq:

BAGHDAD, Iraq, July 23 (UNHCR) – UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie returned to Iraq on Thursday to offer support to the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis who remain displaced within their own country.

During her day-long visit to Baghdad, Jolie visited a makeshift settlement for internally displaced people in the Chikook suburb of north-west Baghdad where she met four families displaced from the district of Abu Ghraib, located to the west of Baghdad, and from the western suburbs of the capital.

Despite the difficulties in Iraq, Jolie said this was a moment of opportunity for Iraqis to rebuild their lives. “This is a moment where things seem to be improving on the ground, but Iraqis need a lot of support and help to rebuild their lives.”

The families that Jolie met complained that their children could not go to school and they could not afford to pay for medical treatment for various ailments. 43-year-old Ali* built his crude brick dwelling in Chikook after escaping from Abu Ghraib district with his 38-year-old wife and six children four years ago.

“The only help that we got was from UNHCR. They are the only people who knocked on our door. But look at this life, it’s very hard on us,” he said.

“It takes a lot of strength for you to survive this life. I don’t know if I would be strong enough to survive this,” Jolie told him.

Jolie was on a one-day mission to Iraq to bring attention to the plight of displaced people in the region. In a nearby house, the acclaimed actress met a family of nine, including children who don’t go to school and a baby with a rash all over its body. Jolie rocked the new-born on her lap throughout the visit. A daughter-in-law studied law before the violence forced the family into flight and ended her education.

“No way,” the family said in unison when asked by Jolie if they wanted to return to their former home district. “Our neighbours returned and their three daughters were killed,” the daughter-in-law, Salwa,* said. “Why is this happening to us?,” she asked.

“They are right to feel that it is not fair,” said Jolie, who pledged to return to Iraq. “I want to come back and find you in a better place and in a different situation. We hope that UNHCR and the government will support you in getting a piece of land. You need help not because you are poor, but because you are the future of Iraq,” she stressed, adding that she hoped Salwa would be able to become a lawyer.

“The picture in this camp is a rough one but there are also some people that were able to return home to other safer areas,” Jolie said later. “There are some changes. There are returns of displaced people, not a big number but there is progress.”

Chikook is home to more than 20,000 people, mostly women and children and including several thousand local people. It lacks drinking water, an operational sewage system and paved roads. The area is littered with garbage, despite a UNHCR-organized clean-up earlier this year.

The UN refugee agency has been trucking in potable water for the residents over the past few months, and has worked on the rehabilitation of the water system and conducted minor shelter repairs.

UNHCR estimates that 1.6 million Iraqis were internally displaced by a wave of sectarian warfare that erupted in February 2006 after the bombing of a mosque in the ancient city of Samarra. Almost 300,000 have returned to their homes amid a general improvement in the security situation since mid-2008.

Since April last year, UNHCR has provided emergency shelter rehabilitation and shelter upgrade to 5,000 families. Close to 20,000 homes will be rehabilitated by the end of this year. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees remain in neighbouring countries, mainly Syria and Jordan.

Jolie was making her third trip to Iraq. In August 2007, she visited 1,200 refugees trapped in Al Waleed camp near the border with Syria. She also visited the country in February last year, when she highlighted the problems faced by the internally displaced and urged action to help them.

* Names changed for protection reasons

[From UNHCR]

I have no idea if Maddox joined her on this Iraqi leg of their trip, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he did. He’s old enough to appreciate his mother’s activism, and to understand the perspective of a privileged Hollywood kid seeing that kind of immense poverty and destruction.

This is Angelina’s third trip to Iraq. She made her first visit in 2007, when she not only spent time speaking to refugees, she also made a USO trip to the Green Zone to meet with soldiers. Her second trip was in February of 2008, when she was pregnant. She also joined her UNHCR work with a USO trip that time. Instead of playing the “Where In the World…?” game, I’m just going to make an educated guess and say that Angelina will probably stop into to Green Zone and quietly make a USO visit to some of the troops today. Just a guess.

Angelina Jolie is shown in Iraq on 7/23/09. Credit: UNHCR

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90 Responses to “Angelina Jolie makes a third UNHCR trip to Iraq before going to Jordan”

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  1. HashBrowns says:

    Good job UNHCR for giving these displaced people water and helping them get their homes together. It’s a very noble and wonderful thing to do to help people who literally have no one else to turn to.

    Angelina Jolie: go home. Stop “talking” to these people who are probably looking at you like, “what the hell does this white privileged westerner know about anything? Why is she here, talking to us and not doing anything? She ‘hopes’ I become a lawyer? I barely have shelter and drinking water. And I’ve got a baby with a rash all over it and you’re standing there holding it like it’s something to show off. ‘Look at me, I can hold the rash covered baby without fear!'”

    Sorry but all this going to different countries and “talking” to the people bothers the hell out of me. Go there and help the UNHCR build houses or tote water. You aren’t doing anything by sitting in their house rocking a rash covered baby. Get someone to get some damn ointment for the kid. Jeez.

    The refugees would be better served talking to someone who actually made the transition back to their original home safely and securely. They would be better served talking to an IRAQI who actually knows what they are going through.

  2. A says:

    beautiful woman

  3. Lola says:

    In a bad hair day, uh? Thin and ugly.

  4. Annie says:

    Yes, because when talking to refugees and war-victims, the biggest concern I have is my hair too.

  5. Mollybloom says:

    Ugly is as ugly does (or says), Lola. Too bad your mother never taught you that.

  6. Sauronsarmy says:

    That thing is supposed to be “the most beautiful woman in the world”?

  7. shasha says:

    Ugh, Voight’s face just seems so fake. Just don’t like her or her acting.

  8. Dan says:

    I think she’s great.

  9. Cheyenne says:

    @Hash: Maybe she should have done a quick flyover and dropped Smartwater on the natives? That would have taken their mind off their problems, I bet.

    While you’re bitching at AJ for going over there and observing the situation at first hand, what have you done for anyone lately?

  10. Embee says:

    As anyone who has suffered knows, the fact of someone (from the outside!) listening to you and validating your experience is incredibly empowering.

    I thank Jolie for doing this service for these people, and for bringing their plight to my attention, so that I can help.

    And to me, she has never looked more radiant than when she is in one of these camps, without makeup and connecting to the refugees.

    As for “just talking”, I seem to recall her doing some heavy lifting in Haiti while pregnant with Shiloh. As an ambassador she does what the UNHCR asks–which appears to be “talk”. And rocking the rash-covered baby IS providing relief–especially under those circumstances.

  11. nnn says:

    She is gutsy.

    Those who think they have a legitimate say to decide if she should go or not in place and lieu of those she is visited, refugees and US army included are arrogant and clueless.

    She probably is 100 times more brave than most of us who would probably p*ss on our pants on our way to Irak.

    So good job Angelina Jolie, i bet no refugee nor member of the US army, nor those member of the political body who worked jointly with the UN on that mission, including the US secret services supervising her visit know better and are more aware of what is at stake and why your presence was required within the competence surrounding your UN job.

    Let those professional hollyweird whiners whine behind their PC about superficiality while real people like jolie and all the team around her and in the ground are dealing with real people with real dramas with real death and real suffering.

  12. ray says:

    Hashbrowns what have YOU done for these displaced and underprivileged people? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

  13. Kelly says:

    man hands
    eat u freak
    thanks for caring

  14. ash says:

    I’m pretty sure what she’s doing is appreciated, regardless if she’s just “rocking a rashed baby”. Jeez hash.

  15. Praise St. Angie! says:

    whatever she’s doing there, she’s bringing attention to UNHCR and what they do, and that’s a good thing.

    OK, I said something nice.

    Now…

    I agree with Sauronsarmy…THAT is, in no way, the most beautiful woman in the world. in fact, in that top pic, her face is almost cartoonish.

  16. Mimi says:

    Worth repoting from JJ
    Dani @ 07/23/2009 at 2:08 pm

    You trolls should be ashamed of yourselves. Mother Theresa wasn’t outwardly beautiful yet she brought joy and comfort to many. Princess Diana while outwardly beautiful had a lot of emotional problems and she also brought joy and comfort to many. Angie does the same.

    Can you trolls imagine being a soldier in Iraq waking up each day to ugliness and fear? Of being maimed, injured or killed? And then in walks Angelina Jolie? She has visited the troops on all of her visits. Here is this beautiful woman inside and out taking a moment out of her busy schedule to let you know that you are important and cared about., Your life is hell, but she takes time to say a kind word, take a picture with you which you can send home and brag to your friends that you met Angelina Jolie.!

    Or take the refugees that feel they have no hope and no voice. She listens, she goes back to the UNHCR and reports on what she has been told and then the UNHCR tries to help. Angie is more than an Ambassador now. She goes to these places and she reports back on conditions so someone can try and alleviate them.

    Yet you trolls seem to feel that these people of Iraq or Iran or Pakistan or whatever don’t matter. They don’t deserve to have someone care about them even for a moment in time. They don’t deserve to have someone hold their hand and give them hope. Our troops don’t deserve to have someone of Angie’s A list stature come over and show that America cares. Someone to break up the fear and monotony of their day.

    And why? Simply because she is Angelina Jolie. A woman you have demonized. Shame on you all for your petty little grudges.

  17. yoco says:

    If you have a problem with AJ being there then you have a problem with UNHCR since they use her celebrity to raise money and awareness Maybe you can ask them to

  18. Lola says:

    Isn’t she a loving mother taking her son to a soooo safe place? She loves kids, imagine if she didn’t…..

  19. Annie says:

    Perhaps if more parents exposed their children to the truths around this world, we’d have less spoiled monsters running around.

    Unfortunately, as it were, I’m still inundated with screaming kids wanting an ice cream at the super market.

  20. fizXgirl314 says:

    i’m all for bitching about celebrities, but not while there are pics up of them talking to refugees for chrissake… :/

  21. me says:

    she will definitely bring the attention to their cause.

    on a side note, i wonder if the next baby she adopts will be iranian.

  22. Kelly says:

    Not for nothin’, but I’d respect what she does a lot more if there wasn’t — coincidentally — a photographer usually present.

    Character is how you act when no one’s photographing, too.

  23. duh says:

    Why would the next baby be Iranian if she’s visiting refugges in Iraq Anyway I doubt either country allows International adoption

  24. bros says:

    Me: why would it be Iranian? Iran doesnt have a bunch of refugees and she wasnt anywhere near Iran. she was in Iraq and pakistan and jordan, but as far as I know, not Iran. I also dont think Iran has a large international adoption program.

    and to the top poster: to denigrate talking and listening as somehow worthless shows what a myopic bigot you are. talking and listening are two of the most basic human skills and as another poster noted, sometimes the basics of being heard and allowed to tell your story are incredibly healing and validating. you may think talk is cheap, but its really one of the most basic forms of interaction: to be seen and be heard by other humans reaffirms our common humanity in even the most inhuman conditions.

    and kelly, she was just at the Vet’s hospital without camera people around. obviously, when the UNHCR is involved and having her go as an ambassador, there are going to be cameras. I cant believe there are still haters here who begrudge the amount of caring energy she puts out because they have personal issues with how she found her mate over 5 years ago. pathetic.

  25. Rose says:

    Grow up Lola.

  26. Ron says:

    If she wasn’t there and there wasn’t this pic, would any of you have thought of this or these people today. Doubtful. I know I wouldn’t have. She could choose to do a million other things, but she is civic minded. I applaud any celebrity that uses their fame to bring attention to those who truly need it.

  27. HashBrowns says:

    I would say all the things I do for my community but none of you would believe me anyway. I’m not going to list all the things I do to help the African American community right here in my neighborhood and in the neighborhood I grew up in because none of you would believe me, regardless.

    Anyway, having someone listen who hasn’t experiened what you’ve experiened doesn’t help.

    I was sexually assaulted in college. Having people listen to me who had gone through similar things helped a lot more. Having people listen who had never experienced it made me feel like they just didn’t understand.

    I don’t have a problem with Angelina when she’s doing something. I have no problem with her donating her time or money to causes. I have no problem with her doing “heavy lifting in Haiti”.

    I don’t care that it’s Angelina Jolie, but the subject of the story is Angelina Jolie. If this were anyone else, I’d say the same thing. But because there is such a large community of Brangeloons here, I get demonized for my opinion.

    But standing around talking to people who would more appreciate her handing them a bag of grain and a jug of water seems so…useless.

    Edit:
    @bros: I do NOT think talk is cheap. I do think, however, that having certain people listen helps a lot more than having others listen. I clearly stated that in my first comment. Had you read and comprehended my entire comment, you’d have seen that the last two sentences handled your comment.

    “The refugees would be better served talking to someone who actually made the transition back to their original home safely and securely. They would be better served talking to an IRAQI who actually knows what they are going through.”

  28. Zoe (The Other One) says:

    @Hash Browns & Kelly – word!

  29. curious says:

    Ron:
    July 23rd, 2009 at 3:54 pm
    If she wasn’t there and there wasn’t this pic, would any of you have thought of this or these people today. Doubtful. I know I wouldn’t have.

    So now that you’ve been informed, what are you going to do about it??

  30. bros says:

    in that case hashbrowns, psychologists and counselors could never do their job if they havent experienced first hand their client’s problems? a therapist could never help you work through sexual assault because she hadnt been there herself? if these are your criteria for whom is able to listen to whom, the world would be even worse off than it is today, because your demands for who gets to talk and listen are unreasonable and ignorant. they are living in a refugee camp. they have the attention and ear of UNHCR, and more than likely, people on their staff are busy getting food and water and supplies to the refugees. to say then, that the only good another person can do is fetch water, is absurd. jolie donates countless hours and a lot of money to her causes, and basically puts her money and herself where her mouth is. your definition of activities that are worthwhile or helping is far too narrowly defined.

    I also think its ridiculous for you, never having been an iraqi refugee, to say who they ought/ought not to be speaking to and from whom they derive the most support and understanding from. presumptuous to say the least.

  31. Jules says:

    I imagine that those of you posting your hate for someone who is actually doing something to help people are as UGLY on the outside as you are on the inside. Think on that.

  32. Lola says:

    OMG she is the worst actress! She cannot even pretend she cares! That ugly face is not even showing it.

  33. HashBrowns says:

    @jules: In case you didn’t read, i’ve already said that I help people in my community, right here, where I can and whenever i can. I am not ugly on the inside just because I have an opinion about someone standing around talking to people.

    @bros: I did not say that people who have experienced the same things are the only ones qualified to help others. I said it helps more. Stop trying to twist my words and make me look bad just because I’m not praising your Saint’s Good Deeds.

    You still didn’t read or completely comprehend my previous comment. Please go back and read and comprehend. Your entire comment is refuted by the comment I made.

    I said I was sexually assaulted. I had a therapist who listened to me and a psychiatrist who prescribed medicine to me. Neither of them had been assaulted. BOTH of them told me that the best people to talk about this type of thing were people who had experienced the same type of thing. The therapist is trained to help me become mentally stable. The psychiatrist is trained to prescribe proper medication.

    A person who has also been sexually assaulted has no training…all they have is a knowledgeable ear and I have to say that having them nod at me felt different than when the therapist did or the psychiatrist did. When they nodded at me it was with full and complete understanding of my situation and how I was feeling.

    Please stop trying to make me look bad just because I’m presenting good arguments about how I disagree with “goodwill ambassadors” standing around talking to people who they cannot relate to in the slightest.

  34. me says:

    oops! i’m an idiot, i know.

  35. TinaWithPom says:

    @ Annie – Hear, hear!

  36. Catherine says:

    My goodness, so many of you are so nasty. What exactly have you done to help people in these horrid situations around the world? How about your own state? Your own town? Her just “talking” to these people help them feel as if they are finally being heard and Angelina’s voice can travel to the right people to possibly make a difference. If it was all a big publicity stunt for her, she would have stopped years ago after her first stint of helping the less fortunate.
    And you are worried about her hair and how thin she looks? Start looking at the bigger picture in life.

  37. DD says:

    Personally, I don’t know if the publicity she brings actually helps them. Maybe it does in some way. But I do know that Angelina gets a lot of positive publicity and she has become a very powerful celebrity since taking this up. So she definitely benefits in a major way for sure. And someone said she’s not made up, but I see a hella lot of lipstick and some eye make up on her, not that it’s even important.
    In the end though as long as she’s not causing any harm by doing this than it doesn’t bother me.

  38. Lola says:

    Can you imagine that she would like to be a new Audrey Hepburn (and that is the reason to wear black clothes). Hepburn was a real actress, well behavior, and educated, religious and classy woman. So far from that home wrecking person!

  39. Jules says:

    Yes Lola, you have it all figured out. Are you a psychiatrist or just a mind reader? Because AJ is the first person since Audrey Hepburn to wear black clothes. Not because it’s slimming, easy, classy, etc. Hate the woman for a reason that has some substance. And really, I don’t think you know Audrey Hepburn as well as you think you do. I don’t know why I try to educate/argue with people who have tiny brains.

  40. hatsumomogirly says:

    Hashbrowns: If you are so damn proud of the charity work you do and think you’re so damn better than Angelina and so good looking, post a link to the charity’s page that your on. Or your myspace or facebook Page. If you are truly proud of what you do then you would have no problem advocating it to everyone else. Walk the walk and talk the talk unless you’re full of shit.

  41. hatsumomogirly says:

    And Lola, same for you. I know I’m no beauty, and I’m pretty sure none of you are either. But I dont go ragging on other obviously beautiful women due to my own jealousy and insecurities. I know I’m beautiful to the only person in the world that matters. Are you? I dont think so.

  42. xploxite says:

    She really is an Angel & nothing compares to her, always thinking about the less fortunate ones & doing something about it, she has more CLASS, KNOWLEDGE & DEPTH in her little finger than any actress or anyone else, hope she always be able to continue helping others.

  43. boo says:

    Effing harsh! We are so damned lucky. I was having a day where I rag on things that I should be grateful for including family. This story was a total reality check for me. I think it is awesome AJ is out there bringing attention to this tragic situation.

  44. Granger says:

    I bet the people who choose to focus on how Angelina looks instead of on what she’s doing in Iraq are the same people who skip the stories in their morning paper (or change the channel on the television when a report comes on) about refugees in war-torn countries, and walk by homeless people on the street without so much as a quick glance. Get over yourselves. So what if Angelina “stole” some other woman’s husband — a woman, incidentally, you’ve never even met! Do you honestly believe that makes everything she does invalid and worthless? And can’t you see how intolerant and self-righteous you are???

  45. HashBrowns says:

    I think my previous comment didn’t make it through moderation so I’ll just abbreviate:

    I do things for my community and for my neighborhood where I grew up. I am not ugly inside just because I do not think an Iraqi refugee standing around and talking to someone who couldn’t possibly understand their plight helps them as much as talking to a fellow refugee, or a former refugee who managed to pull themselves out of the camp safely.

    @bros: Please read and comprehend.

    I had both a psychologist and a psychiatrist after my assault. Both told me that it would help me immensely to speak with someone who had gone through the same thing and could help show me that there would be happiness afterward, that I could one day be ok. They both helped me in different ways as well, of course. Don’t put words in my mouth. Don’t try to make me look like, in your words, a “bigot”, “unreasonable” and “ignorant”.

    Angelina Jolie telling an Iraqi refugee that she hopes he can be a lawyer is stupid. It’s not helping. It’s reminding him that he’s stuck in that sh*thole and probably won’t get a chance to be a lawyer.

    It is in no way ignorant to hope that a refugee who had already gotten out of the camp and was living happily somewhere else and could HELP them move or could lend an EXPERIENCED ear to their situation would be speaking to them as opposed to an actress from the West who rents homes for who knows how much a month just while filming.

  46. Giz says:

    I’m not a huge fan of Jolie’s work, I don’t have to agree with her lifestyle or with whom she sleeps with, but thank God for individuals like her who do believe that “I am my brother’s keeper”.

    Just by reading some of the postings proves why people needlessly suffer in the world. It is jealousy, pettiness, selfishness, unsubstantiated hatred and greed along with indifference that makes such suffering possible.

    What have most of us done to ease someone else’s sufferings aside from adding to it by ignoring it or profiting from it? Some of you need to check yourselves. You could find yourself in dire straits one day as well.

  47. sam says:

    She looks like a sad plastic barbie

  48. hello! says:

    Hash Browns, I have a hard time beleiving anything you say. Every week it’s an entirely different story. And, I remember you calling Kate Hudson Squinty McNOBOOBS and Katherine Heigl “heavy.” Sorry, I don’t have too much sympathy for superficial, nasty people like you. You seem to have issues with these celeb. women, for which a therapist would do wonders.

  49. HashBrowns says:

    @hello!: Every week it’s a different story? Meaning…what exactly?

    Kate Hudson has really really tiny boobs. It was a joke referring to something that is true about her.

    Katherine Heigl and I have a personal issue with each other regarding her being extremely rude to me the first time we met therefore, I dislike her.
    And she is a bit heavier than your average Hollywood star. It’s not superficial and I’m not nasty.

    I like a lot of female celebrities. I never said anything superficial about this story. I said that I don’t like it when wealthy westerners come and talk to refugees like they have anything in common or could sympathize at all.

    How is that superficial? Personally, I think you are just annoyed because someone is making a good point about how superficial it is to stand around acting like you care about people whose condition you could never understand.

    Edit: And about not believing me: that is and was exactly my point. I could tell you my real name, give a list of the different organizations I’m involved with, invite you to come along with me to said organizations and have you physically help me and you STILL wouldn’t believe that it was the same person who you took issue with telling a joke about a person who has small breasts.

  50. flourpot says:

    “Perhaps if more parents exposed their children to the truths around this world, we’d have less spoiled monsters running around.”

    ^this. well said, Annie. as usual.

  51. Rosalee says:

    The work Jolie has been doing has provided an increased awareness to issues that would more than likely be ignored by the general population. She should be commended for her efforts.

  52. karen says:

    The hatred of Jolie certainly clouds people’s better judgment. Going to IRAQ is dangerous! She frequently travels to these dangerous places, taking HOURS of her time. And, I don’t see a body guard with her. Someone who risks their life, I can’t doubt that she does care on some level.

    By way of contrast, years ago, I had the displeasure of working at a charity fundraiser as a waitress. At the event, a D-list/tv star from the 80s showed up. First, he shows up late. Then, he muscles his way to the front, trying to make sure the photographer gets his pic. The photographer wasn’t a paparazzo and worked for the charity itself.

    Later, my boss told me that the celeb’s agent demanded money for the guy to show up! When the charity balked, they dropped it. The nerve of that guy. I’m dead positive he thought donating his time was “a gift” to the charity. He seemed that self-absorbed.

  53. sarcra says:

    I commend Jolie for what she does on this level, but I am tired of seeing headlines about every little thing she does. Three stories in one day on her here… it’s just a bit much. I think some of us are having an Angelina overdose.

  54. karen says:

    Sorry I was cut off. Overall, I think many celebs show up at charity balls looking fabulous in expensive designer clothes, donate a few hours of time, or write checks (probably a teeny portion of all their money). It takes real guts to go to dangerous places, spending time with people. That takes a major investment, and I commend her for doing it.

  55. Charity is Chic says:

    The problem with all of these visits is that people have become desensitized to what she claims to be doing. Most of the news articles and the comments focus on Angelina, not on the people who need the help. Instead of bringing attention to the cause she is bringing attention to herself. She is actually taking the attention away from the refugees. And that’s a major problem. Especially when every month it’s a different place, a different cause. People start to tune out after awhile.

    They’ll turn their attention to something else, like losing their jobs, their homes, their security. They might start taking offense to some spoiled Hollywood chick who sleeps at the Queen’s house and lectures people on the real world by asking us to care about a crisis started by a war she never even bothered standing up against.

  56. wtf says:

    Bros *sigh* love.
    thanks also to Karen and Jules, couldn’t have said it better.

  57. beatrix says:

    Hey Chey,
    WHy do you have to go and screw the fun by attacking poster? Hash has all the right to post her opinion about this article. DOnt shoot the poster. We all gather here for fun.

    And what does SmartWater have to do with this refugee thing? Obsessed much?

    In my opinion, this could be another desperate attempt to escape herself from an inevitable break up. And If I had an 8 year old son, Iraq would be the last place I had in mind to bring him to. A child is a child. You dont bring them to war torn countries, unless you are one of those refugees.

    But thats JMO. Sure Chey will check every details of my post to find good holes to attack.

    P.S. Are you from JJ, Chey? You sound like one of them.

  58. beatrix says:

    Mimi,

    There is nothing worth reporting from JJ brangelunatics. It’s a public worshipping club. I always like Jared, but his followers are too damn scary.

  59. joe says:

    I wondered why Angie and Maddox didn’t use the private underground entrance/exit at LAX. It is obvious that Angie needed and wanted press for this trip. Without that obvious airport picture no one would have been guessing about where she was. And by everyone we mean the tabloids.

    Helping people is a good thing. However I do tire of the constant press around this. Why release pictures. And remember when Angie went to that court case? What was accomplished by that? What is accomplished by this trip? More press for sure but it won’t change how the war is going to go, it won’t change what Americans are going to donate. What does it do? I think it is fine that she goes but quit releasing pictures. Go talk with the troops, meet people, talk with the government, but don’t release pictures of yourself. It really doesn’t help anything just brings press. And each trip she does gets less and less press. When her and Brad went to India it was huge. Now it is not that big of a deal. Same with George Clooney – who cares where he goes anymore – same with Angie. It gets tiring.

  60. karen says:

    Number 58, what are you talking about? I live in LA. There is NO underground/private entrance to LAX’s Tom Bradley Terminal for international flights. The departing flights are on the first floor. Everyone has to step out of their car and onto the same curb to enter the same complex. You obviously don’t live in LA. And, I think it’s fairly easy for the paparazzi to figure out who’s traveling when. Celebs can’t change their names if flying commercial. When I came to pick up a friend at the airport, Edward Furlong was there, tailed by the paparazzi. Furlong was in Terminator 2! So, if people follow Furlong around, I think they’ll do the same for Jolie.

  61. Cheyenne says:

    beatrix: Are you from JJ, Chey? You sound like one of them.
    **************************************

    Beatrix, why ask me if I’m from JJ? Are you from DListed or Female First? You sound like one of them. Those people have some serious issues.

  62. justathought says:

    Hashbrowns and Lola- try and get a life someday…you might like end up liking yourselves…and people may end up liking YOU! Jolie has a life, and an admirable one indeed.

  63. anon1000 says:

    i visited that Female First filth site and i became phyically ill!!! i did not realize such vile filth could come from “human beings”

  64. Cheyenne says:

    anon1000: i visited that Female First filth site and i became phyically ill!!! i did not realize such vile filth could come from “human beings”
    ************************************************

    You think they’re human? I think they’re troglodytes.

  65. lunachick says:

    @ bros, thank you, I agree with everything you said!

  66. hello! says:

    Hashbrowns, I don’t believe you’ve met Heigl. Try again–show pics or quit lying.

    So, your question is “How are you superficial?” If you can’t see that yourself . . . but hey, let me spell it out for you.

    1) Calling Heigl “heavy” says volumes about you, not her. Are you into ana? Heigl is not heavy by any stretch of the imagination. There’s more to women than weight.

    2) Calling Kate Hudson Squinty McNOBoobs is your idea of a joke? So, she’s not curvy or silicone-enhanced. So what? It’s nice to see a woman who doesn’t cave in to Hollywood, which rewards women like Pamela Anderson.

    Your excuse–it’s true–is lame. So, then it’s ok to make fun of her?

    Your jokes are judgmental about what women look like, and hence, superficial. Sad you can’t see that.

  67. Josephina says:

    Hash Browns-

    After nine years serving as an effective and results-oriented ambassador for UNHCR, I trust that Angie knows what she is doing. Her job as an ambassador is to bring awareness using her celebrity status. Therefore she must be seen in order to get the message across. It is sort of like producing out a newsletter in color instead of black and white only because it increases reading retention by 80%. Got it?

    When people are suffering and in dire need of basic necessities, HOPE is the greatest nourishment of all. Hope, which is a form of prayer, can change the outcome of any situation, especially when the odds are stacked very high. Hope/prayer/faith can put cancer into remission. Hope defies logic and the oversimplification of fate.

    You are not in complete control of everything that you desire in life. If you were, you would never get to embrace grace, humility, and empathy as part of your character. You could not control what happened to you (assault) any more than the refugees can control what has happened to them.

    Refugees are not cattle, they desire and deserve to have an existence beyond food and shelter. Is that all you need to be happy? Nourishment of the soul is what all human beings need the most, regardless of where they live. Angie understands that and tries to encourage them for the future as they are already a proud people.

    There exists a higher order of why things happen that is beyond your comprehension.

  68. cakes says:

    I can appreciate what angelina jolie is doing for the people of Iraq. Hash- I understand what you initially said. I hope one day I can have the time and resources to help out and maybe touch a persons life in a positive way.

  69. Luci says:

    I find comments like shes so beautiful amusing!
    come on! she’s in Iran to bring awareness, because hello!! If angelina wasn’t in Iran we wouldn’t be reading about the situation there in gossip sites, and yes! that’s the main information point for most people
    😛

  70. Zooni says:

    Lola – you’d be hilarious if you weren’t so pathetic.

    HashBrown – I think it speaks volumes about you when all you can do is sit behind a computer and criticise someone who is actually risking life and limb to help out in some way, ANY way. And spare us the sob story about your life, we’re really not that interested. If you have issues, sort them out, don’t project onto celebrities. That’s pretty lame.

    As for those who claim she just has to have a photographer around, well DUH! Read up on the point of a being UN Goodwill Ambassador and the pieces will start to fall in place. Slowly.

  71. greta says:

    It’s hard to take my eyes off Angelina’s face. She looks emaciated. Kind of alarming. I wonder if she has a chronic illness that makes it impossible for her to gain weight, like Crohn’s disease.

  72. Aspen says:

    Actually, Hashbrown’s point about assault victims needing the the reassurance that they are not alone is very true. If her therapists were at all worth their salt, the first thing they handed her was a card for a support group.

    She never said there was nothing substantive in talking or counsel.

    As a person who has worked with people who’ve been through things I don’t have experience with at ALL, I’ve learned that my place in the line of help is simply to make sure they have all of the services they are legally entitled to offered to them and that no one disobeys the rules while handling her casework.

    I can sympathize all along this process…and I do. My listening, however, is not the same as the listening they get in group.

    So.

    Whereas I see value in what Miss Jolie does and I don’t share Hash’s opinion of her service, I think it’s ridiculous to just dismiss what she said out of hand, because every word is true. Jolie is probably a comfort and confidence boost, but men and women (like my husband and their civilian counterparts along with the RIDICULOUSLY brave Iraqi men and women who step up every day and risk their lives to do the hard work for their country) do more in 5 minutes than Miss Jolie’s talking has done over the entire course of her work since 2007.

    I love that Angelina is doing what she is doing…but sainting her for it is neither deserved nor being asked for.

  73. so what says:

    Mimi..I think its ridiculous to compare Jolie to Mother Teresa..apples and oranges. I don’t think Mother Teresa ever did drugs, or chased around with married men, or acted like a slut! But it is nice that AJ brings attention to these causes.

  74. pipoke says:

    why is only one angelina jolie in the world? we would need thousands

  75. Beth says:

    Why do the haters keep calling Angelina a saint but claim her fans are the ones doing it? The fans only say good job, she’s great, love her, etc. Nobody thinks she a saint or perfect. The only place I see St. Angelina is from the haters. It always amazes me that people criticize for doing these trips yet nobody has a problem when George Clooney, Matt Damon, etc do the same trips and say the same thing.

  76. karen says:

    To all the critics relax.. Had no doubt that some of you were the first to post. I am sure that the soliders who lined up to take pictures with her appreciated her visit. Appreciated that she came. They looked very happy to me. And the fact that she spent hours taking photos and talking to them may not have mattered to you.. But trust seeing a face from home when you are so far away.. Matters. Not many people have done what she has done. They sit and complain yet do NOTHING. It is easy to say she is doing this for attention.. BUT THAT IS THE PURPOSE.

    But those men and women who are protecting your right to be an As& apprectiated that she took the time to be there.. for me that is enough

  77. Rosalee says:

    @Beth – it’s because she’s beautiful – successful and with a hot dude. She has everything she could possibly desire. Women don’t like her because she should have been stoned in a public square for her past sexual behaviours and of course the never ending allegations of husband stealing. For some reason there is a fixation on Angelina Jolie – she sells magazines, tabloids and has the craziest fans in all of blogdom – I’m not a fan, but I do respect her ability to get news cameras to follow her around the world and focus in on issues that would more than likely be ignored. I enjoy this blog immensely my highlight is reading the comments posted – the heated debates on whether or not she is visiting refugee camps for her own benefit or to raise awareness. Was Brad Pitt’s marriage really over when they hooked up.. The comments at times can be repetitive. But nevertheless they are highly entertaining.

  78. Ned says:

    Regadless of the discussion above, I think someone friendly should talk to her about eating.

    Those pictures are alarming and it’s not just about making her “look ugly”. It’s a health concern now.

  79. Rose says:

    Great Ned, your ‘concern’ is noted.

  80. Rachel says:

    For all you people who are complaining that Angelina Jolie is “Standing around taking pictures”, if you were literate you would have read the article when it said:

    “This is why Angelina Jolie needs a publicist! Because news and gossip outlets aren’t caught playing “Where In the World Is Angelina Jolie?” for half a day.”

    This is because she went here on her own to help people and listen to their problems. She also visited the Walter Reed Army hospital a day before I went to speak to the wounded and dismembered troops and no one found out until a month later because she went there on her own accord and gave each one a $1000 gift card to Best Buy, just to say “I appreciate everything you’ve done for your country”

    How many other famous people in Hollywood care about anything else but themselves to visit a war-filled, poverty-stricken country instead of a resort on some tropical island with photogs???

    You are obviously an idiot if you call her “Ugly” because as Mimi and some other commentors said, Beauty comes from the inside.

    All of you who are critizing the way she looks and the things that shes doing over there should travel to a 3rd world country or even the ghetto in a city near you and see how much just hanging out with people and listening to them can affect their lives.

    But anyways, Karma will correct all the selfishness and nastiness you have inside of you.

  81. Cheyenne says:

    FF is not so bad either. But it’s a forum. So, there’s just posters opinion there. They post anything they like.
    ********************************************

    What they post and the way they post it would turn any decent person’s stomach.

  82. 88Modesty88 says:

    Kelly said: Not for nothin’, but I’d respect what she does a lot more if there wasn’t — coincidentally — a photographer usually present.

    Character is how you act when no one’s photographing, too.

    Kelly, what part of “raising awareness” don’t you understand?

    **
    And Hash, telling a person who was once busy with law studies that you hope that person may some day continue those studies — how is that harsh or silly?
    So refugees aren’t allowed to hope for a better tomorrow? We’re not supposed to encourage them to believe their lives may change for the better? I don’t get your criticism.

  83. Lys says:

    Thin and ugly!

  84. crystal says:

    It takes hours of time and dedication to do what Angie does, which she’s been doing for 9 yrs! But it takes only 30 second for someone to rip her to shreds on the internet. Those of you looking for any little thing to criticize are sad. Hope it makes you feel better about your own pathetic lives.

  85. Lovi says:

    BEAUTIFUL!!

  86. stacy says:

    so i’m reading all these comments on how aj’s status brings awareness to these issues happening overseas, yet nobody has actually commented on these war issues or even made suggestions about what they would do to help if they could. So it is true that her status brings awareness, but it is blaringly obvious it is the wrong kind. Instead of discussing world issues and having adult conversations, people attack each other over personal opinions and rag on aj like they have nothing better to do. People are disgusting!

  87. Bina says:

    Angelina’s been over to my country a couple of times. Her visits have always been appreciated. She and Brad helped in an airlift to get supplies out to victims of the earthquake in 2005. Refugees and victims of war often feel that the world has forgotten about them. Angelina’s visits prove that it hasn’t.

  88. Who Gives A Sh*t... says:

    Well…I think that the support I see for her here is laudable. In light of it, all I will say is I hope her visits are genuinely heartfelt and not as Ted Casablanca asserts: that these are, typically, disingenuous, publicity stunts meant to gloss over her current-misdeed-of-the-day. With all of the break-up rumors of late, I am skeptical of her timing.

    Plus, she does wear a look that might’ve benefitted from a stint in rehab before embarking on saving the world.

  89. filthy cute says:

    Is she shopping for a new kid?

  90. The Domestic Goddess says:

    “But anyways, Karma will correct all the selfishness and nastiness you have inside of you.”

    If it weren’t for AJ, I wouldn’t be as aware as I am now of the plight of the peoples in Iraq, Jordan, and anywhere else she has visited.

    Such a sad statement on those individuals who have posted here, with bigotry, hatred and judgement running through their ice cold veins.

    Cheers to those who have posted with kindness, clarity and understanding for what this woman has done to open our minds to the suffering of others.

    Thanks to the internet and such, the world is no longer a wide open space where we can conveniently bury our heads in the sand and ignore these horrors that are being inflicted on our fellow human beings each and every day.

    I’d rather listen or see what AJ is attempting to educate me with, than the hateful comments posted by those who project their fears and prejudice upon us. Rather easy to do from behind the screens of their computers.

    Cheers to those who understand what AJ has and is doing for others. As one person said … Wish we had a 1000 AJ’s … what a better world it would be.