With all the hoopla surrounding President Obama’s birth certificate, or lack thereof, our writers at All Blogs Considered have come up with a list of ten documents that may be even more damaging to the President’s legitimacy, if he were to reveal them. It is time for President Obama to tell the truth.

1. His dental records – How many cavities has President Obama had? When were his wisdom teeth pulled? These are crucial questions that need answers. For all we know, he could have a whole row of dental implants. He might even be a werewolf. Mr. President, you should disclose your long form dental records, just so we can be sure.

2. His library checkout history – If President Obama wants the United States to really believe he is not Muslim, why has he not simply disclosed his full library checkout history? Then we would know how many times he read the Autobiography of Malcolm X. When he was a kid, was he reading Choose Your Own Adventure or The Qur’an? America wants to know.

3. Notes from former girlfriends – What does the President have to hide that would keep him from revealing high school letters from girlfriends? Did they secretly plan socialist meetings together? Were there references to his lack of authentic American citizenship? America wants to know.

4. His Netflix Queue – What is the first family watching on Netflix? How many times has the President watched “Capitalism: A Love Story”? Are his daughters watching normal shows like Hannah Montana or socialist propaganda like Captain Planet and The Planeteers?

5. His vacation Bible school records – Every red-blooded American went to vacation Bible school (unless he is Muslim of course). If President Obama really wants to help put the hearts of Americans at ease, he should make the full record of his Bible verse memorization and Jesus-related arts and crafts available.

6. Grocery lists – Certain foods will prove his authentic Americaness: meat and potatoes, beer – lots of it, pork of every sort (pork chops, pork rinds, pork loins), BBQ ribs, and apple pie. He should have no objections to revealing his long form lists, unless they include foods like hummus, pita bread, parfait, biryani, and nasi goreng.

7. His full iPod playlist – We all know the official “favorite” music Obama revealed: John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Bob Dylan, The Fugees, Bach, and Stevie Wonder, but what is really on the President’s iPod? Is he really listening to Bob Dylan or Neil Young (a Canadian)? It makes a big difference. America deserves to know the truth about its President.

8. The number of George Foreman grills he’s owned – There are few things more American than the George Foreman Lean Mean Fat Reducing Grilling Machine, and any true American has gone through at least three of these things. How many has President Obama owned, and why is he keeping it a secret? Did he cook with a George Foreman grill or an Indonesian wok? Do they even use woks in Indonesia? American wants the truth.

9. High school tardy slips – According to Donald Trump, the President was a horrible student. Sure, he can never be late as President, but what about in high school? How many times was he tardy? Did he have to serve Saturday school detention, and how does someone with tardies get into Harvard? It just does not add up.

10. His tollbooth records – He claims he spent all those years living in Chicago. Well, he should reveal his tollbooth records because every American Chicago resident has to pay tolls constantly. Did the President have an I-PASS? Did he pay with change? Did he pay tolls at all?

Until these fundamental questions are answered, how can we truly know the man who is running our country? Is he a full-blooded, pork-eating American who got good grades in vacation Bible school, or an immigrant, hummus-eating Muslim with a socialist library checkout history? It is time for the President to come clean.

Tavis J. Hampton is a senior staff writer for All Blogs Considered and the chief BBQ consultant for dedicated host 34SP.com. He enjoys All-American pasttimes like football and stone skipping.

October 30 1974

“Ali Boom I ay!” “Ali Boom I ay” “Ali kill him!” translated into English.  The cheers ring round a Kinshasa stadium sitting in the heart of Africa – now the Democratic Republic of Congo.  The humidity adds to the atmosphere as the heavyweight champion of the world and overwhelming favourite George Foreman waits in his corner, ready to fight former champion Muhammad Ali, the hostile crowd and potentially the Zaire rainy season.

The fight is for the heavyweight championship of the world, but far more is at stake, a fight between two Americans has become more than just a boxing match.  Each fighter represents something to the Africans and people around the world; Foreman, rightly or wrongly represents America, the ‘institution’ and Ali, the underdog, represents Africa, ‘the people’.  But how did this happen? Let’s go back and find out.

April 28 1967

The build up to the greatest boxing match in history arguably started on this date.  The Vietnam War had been raging since the early part of the decade, a disproportionate number of black Americans were sent to Vietnam, which incensed black communities.  Ali, who had failed the entry exam to the army (He was later diagnosed with Dyslexia) was later reclassified and subsequently drafted.  Prior to his draft he had converted to Islam, and going to war would have been against his religious beliefs.  It must be pointed out that this conversation had made him rather unpopular with the American public, as the Black Muslims were seen as a militant group.

Ali refused to step forward to be drafted and his punishment was swift and severe.  The US government stripped him of his heavyweight title, took his passport and gave him a 5 year suspended prison sentence.  These actions eventually bankrupted Ali, unable to work, the tide of public opinion started to turn in his favour, particularly as the government had effectively made him a martyr, coupled with the growing anti-war movement – of which he would take centre stage.

Life without Boxing

Banned from fighting, vilified by the American government, frustrated with the lack of equality in the so called ‘land of the free’, Ali did the only thing he knew how, he talked.  Ali went the length of breadth of America, visiting colleges and advocating his anti-war stance, civil rights and his black pride – his famous ‘Black is best’ speech is one of the better known ones.  In our day and age it sounds like racism and maybe it was, but many black Americans were not proud of their skin, they bleached it, they straitened their hair  – they needed someone like Ali, a role model – a symbol of ‘black beauty’.  A documentary from 1970, while Ali was still banned, claimed that his speeches, and what he stood for had “united young blacks and rebellious white youth”.

The road back to the ring

Ali had not only won over the American people, eventually the US government had to relent and in 1970 he was allowed to fight again while his case was pending appeal.  However, Ali had failed to regain his lost title, losing a unanimous decision to Joe Frazier.  Subsequently, Frazier was annihilated by George Foreman in 1973, which set up the Ali/Foreman fight, which would become known as ‘The rumble in the jungle.’

The Rumble in the Jungle

In the 1990 documentary ‘When we were kings’ it was found that many of the African people did not know what Ali or Foreman looked like.  And were surprised to see Ali was lighter than Foreman.  Foreman sealed his role as the ‘American’ by bringing his German Shepherd dog along, offending the people of Zaire as the breed was used by the Belgians to keep order during colonialism.

But the actual fight was remembered for a different reason.  Nobody thought Ali could win!  Ali had said he was going to dance, that he was too fast for Foreman, but in the first round Ali tried a daring and potentially dangerous move.  He threw a succession of ‘right hand leads’ at Foreman.   A right hand lead is seldom performed in professional boxing as you leave yourself open for a left hook.  In fact, it is almost an insult to throw one, implying your opponent is slow, as your hand had to travel further across your body.  Ali was to trying to knock Foreman out, but it didn’t work, instead causing Foremen to fly into a torrent of attack.  Ali wasn’t dancing; in fact he was on the ropes.

And as he was on the ropes he was talking to Foreman, winding him up, causing round after round of attacks, people thought this was the end of Ali, but between rounds he would wink at the crowd and call out “Ali Boom I ay!”

Round after round Ali stayed on the ropes and talked to Foreman, and by the 5^th round Foreman was beginning to punch himself out.  And by the 8^th, Ali decided it was time make history.  With Foreman resting on Ali, his punches lacking bite or power,  Ali exploded into action, unleashing a combination of punches that culminated in an accurate straight right, which knocked Foreman to the canvas and out for the count.

As the bout finished, the rain that has seemed so threatening arrived, amid scenes of mass jubilation.  The man who has lost his title for standing up for his beliefs had gained it back and with it united at least two demographics of American people for the first time.

About the Author: Matthew White is a copywriter for Fresh Egg.  His client deals with a different kind of ‘spa-ing’ providing Gift vouchers and spa gifts for quality spa experiences.

Photo Credit: Galaxy fm.

One interesting phenomenon that I have noticed, however, is that racism is alive and well within social media.  Although some people would have us believe that racism has faded from our societies, the truth is that most racist people just do not have the audacity vocalize their hatred.  But in the anonymity of the Web, they feel quite comfortable expressing their lewd and bigoted opinions.

Whether that bigotry is directed at African Americans, Muslims, Jews, or any other group, the formula is usually the same.  The commenter is always anonymous, and the comments reflect deep-seated stereotypes and prejudices that many will pretend to have long forgotten when you meet them face-to-face.

I have no statistics to actually measure just how prevalent this phenomenon is, and short of tracing the origin of each comment, there is no way to know how many are from the same small group of people.  Still, it is a not a rare thing, particularly when it comes to YouTube videos.

The other day, I saw a video that portrayed an African American man saying something funny.  The video was presented as being humorous, so it is not surprising for comments to also be humorous, but at least one comment carried stereotypes with its attempt at humor.  ”This man should be paid with a lifetime supply of fried chicken and grape soda,” the commenter said.  Other comments are more blatant, using the “N” word, calling all Muslims terrorists, and other more direct textual attacks.

Racism is not dead at all.  It is still in the hearts of many, and when they have no fear of their identity being exposed, racists hold nothing back and make their hatred known.

Anyway, I finally got around to converting one of them to Mp3 and uploading it.  You can now stream it from the website or download it to your computer, iPod, or whatever you use to listen to music.  Insha’Allah, it will be of some benefit to those who have been constantly emailing me asking about it.

Read the post about it at OneUmmah.net

In that regard, there are some who criticize both Shia and Sunni brothers and sisters who pay respects to Imam Husayn and his mission during these first 10 days of the sacred month of Muharram.  So, the question one must ask is: Why Imam Husayn?  What makes him special?  There were many martyrs, after all. Why do we not remember Hamza (may Allah forever be pleased with him), Ja’far ibn Abi Talib (may Allah make his flights in paradise pleasant), or any of the other Imams from the Prophet’s family when it comes to their martyrdom?  What is it about the message of Imam Husayn, the legacy of his cause, that draws our attention and even unites some Muslims across sectarian lines?

We can find the answers from the Messenger of Allah himself, as the martyrdom of his beloved grandson was not a secret to him.

It is related that Umm al-Fadl bint al-Harith ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib went to see the Messenger, saying, “O Messenger, I have had a loathsome dream.”

The Messenger of Allah asked her what she had seen, and she replied, “I saw a part of your body being cut off and placed in my room.”

“You have a seen a good thing,” he replied.  ”Fatimah will give birth to a boy, and he will be placed in your room.”

Then Fatimah gave birth to Husayn and brought him into the house of the Prophet, placing him in his room.  The narrator caught a glimpse of the Prophet’s eyes running with tears, and said to him, “By your father and mother, O Messenger, what is the matter with you?”

“Jibril (the angel Gabriel) came to me,” he said, “and informed me that my people would kill this son of mine, and he gave me some earth, red with his blood.”

The Messenger of Allah also said: “Husayn is from me and I am from Husayn.”

There are countless narrations like this, where the Prophet clearly explains the distinction of Imam Husayn.  He also confirmed their standing among the populace of Muslims:

“These two sons of mine are Imams, be they sitting or standing.”

Therefore, the position of Imam Husayn over all other Muslims of his time and since was well known, even among his enemies.  It was, actually, for this reason that they felt they needed to silence him.  During a time when corruption had spread throughout the regime of Yazid ibn Mu’awiyah, the movement that followed Imam Husayn was struggling to restore the true message of the Qur’an, the authentic teachings of the Prophet, and the dignity and exalted state of the Muslim Ummah.

Had this mission not succeeded, the face of Islam might have appeared completely different today.  It was not for his own right as khalifah that Imam Husayn fought.  After all, his father and brother also had that right taken away from them prematurely, and his son also deserved that right but did not fight for it.  The cause of Imam Husayn was not such a selfish one.  It was for the preservation of Islamic principles of justice, equality, and truth that Imam Husayn made the ultimate sacrifice on the plain of Karbala in Iraq.

In doing so, the Imam raised awareness of the corruption that was seeping into the Islamic government and the decadence that was becoming widespread among the people.  His sister Zaynab (peace be upon her) continued to preach this message after his death, and as a result, the next generation of Muslims gravitated to his son Imam Ali Zain-ul-Abidin, and his grandson, Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (peace be upon them).  By the time his great grandson, Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) took on the responsibilities of Imam, the position and respect of the Imams of the Prophet’s household was second to none.  All Muslims who sought knowledge of the true teachings of the Prophet came to them first.

That legacy continues until this day, so that only someone unfamiliar with the teachings of Islam would question their knowledge, integrity, and high moral position among the learned of religion.  Even though many Muslims do not claim to follow their school of jurisprudence, all of the schools draw their knowledge from them, and all Sufi orders trace their spiritual lineage back through at least one of them.

This preservation of the divine truth, an undying truth, is the work and legacy of Imam Husayn.   It is for this that we honor him, shed tears for his sacrifice, and are hopeful for the future of humanity.  May Allah guide us on that path of divine truth and wisdom and brand the memory of Imam Husayn on our hearts for the sake of our own youth and the generations to come.

YouTube link to the video

Autotuned remix

She [Mary] said, “How shall I have a son seeing that no man has touched me, and I am not unchaste?”

He said: “Even so: Your Lord says, ‘That is easy for Me: and We wish to appoint him as a Sign unto men and a Mercy from Us’: It is a matter decreed.”

– Qur’an, Sura Maryam (19):19-21

Do you still want to burn a Qur’an?

When I first started OneUmmah.Net back in 1999, it was intended to be my small attempt at uniting Muslims by offering a few thoughts on the subject.  I was ignorant and young, but I hope and prayed I could contribute what little I knew.

Today, I am still ignorant but a little older.  The site has outgrown me and not the other way around.  Of the thousands of monthly visitors who view the site, most are looking for the most pure guidance, the Qur’an, rather than my ramblings or the ramblings of our many hundreds of writers in the Muslim Writers Society.

People liked the way we had the Qur’an translation side-by-side with the Arabic text, but there were serious flaws in the Arabic text that were spreading all over the Internet, and I fear that we may have contributed to the spread.  There is no need to ask for copying permission for the Qur’an, so people freely distributed the same flawed text on a viral scale.

The Tanzil project leaders recognized this and began work on an authenticated textual database that they released to the public under a Creative Commons license.  Allah blessed me to be able to complete the synthesis of that database onto our site earlier this year, using programming skills I did not previously possess.

I have announced it before, but since it is Ramadan, the month of the Qur’an, I thought I would remind everyone that we have this free resource available online.  Futhermore, for those who want a desktop/laptop application for more in-depth Qur’an study, consider the Zekr project.

As a Muslim who enjoys religious freedom in this country, as an African American who has experienced firsthand racism, and as an American who truly believes in the principles of freedom that this country claims to support, it has been sickening to read all of these reports about the mosque that New York Muslims want to build 2 blocks away from “ground zero”, and how 70% of Americans allegedly oppose it.

First of all, I will use the term “racism” in my comments, only because there is really no good term to describe someone who has malicious feelings or even evil intentions against someone of another religion.  ”Religist” simply isn’t a word.

The funny thing about racism is that it can hide in plain sight for years, and even the person who harbors it is unaware of its presence.  We saw this when Obama ran for office, when people threatened him and at times even went so far as to question his citizenship.  We saw it after 9/11, when anyone who even looked like he or she might be Arab was suddenly a potential terrorist in the eyes of many angry Americans.  And if you spend enough time living in brown skin of any shade, you experience it routinely in the work place, with law enforcement, at stores, and elsewhere.  Racism is far from dead.  In fact, in some ways, it has increased, while only becoming more discreet.

Racism against Muslims, for lack of a better term, is apparently at an all-time high.  Not only were Muslims responsible for 9/11, after all, but they are also the “enemy” of what is becoming the next Vietnam in Afghanistan, with no end to the war in sight.  Just as Japanese were the “enemy” in WWII, with Japanese Americans being shunned and even sent off to concentration camps, so too have Muslims become the “other” suspiciously watched in America.

The difference, much to the chagrin of those racist Americans, is that Islam is much more prevalent in this country and Muslims are much more numerous.  We have Muslims in Congress, and your doctor, police officer, judge, or even your nanny may be Muslim, and you may not even know it.  There are generations of Muslims with names like mine, with no hint of Arab, Pakistani, or other middle-eastern/south asian blood.  So, yes, even your librarian may be Muslim.

Does that mean you should freak out now because we’re “invading” America?  No, it’s too late for panic anyway, but there’s nothing to be afraid of, people.  Islam in America is not new.  Muslims came over with Columbus (and even BEFORE Columbus).  In fact, according to many reports, Columbus would not have even made the journey, if it were not for the sea navigation tools of Muslims.

Since that time, slaves and former slaves, farmers, factory workers, and all types of Muslim Americans, from sea to shining sea, have lived peacefully in this country.   And yes, on September 11, 2001, there were Muslims who died as a direct result from those attacks.  There was at least one Muslim prayer room in the World Trade Center itself!

Therefore, people like Mike Lupica of the NY Daily News who ramble off nonsense about “sensitivity to 9/11 victims” are simply finding ways to openly express their racism, without directly mentioning it.  I mean, really, Mr. Lupica, what “sensitivity” is it that these victims, and apparently you also, have?  Are they “sensitive” to having to look at brown people?  Are they “sensitive” to the smell of ethnic food?  Are they “sensitive” to seeing people dressed differently?  What exactly is the “sensitivity”?

He did not answer it in his article, despite taking up two pages.  Instead he danced around the issue, never quite mentioning what exactly it was that offends people so much.  What about the mosque is so wrong?  Don’t the families of Muslim victims of 9/11 also have “sensitivity”?  Don’t they have the right to also honor their loved ones?  Or is that right only reserved for white Christian Americans?

These are not rhetorical questions.  I challenge anyone who opposes the building of the mosque to answer them.  Please tell me you actually have some legitimate reason for opposing the mosque, other than outright racism, and I may very well change my opinion.   I will say this.  Mike Lupica is right.  It’s not about “freedom of religion” at all.  It’s about racism, plain and simple.  They hate us, and they want us gone.

At the end of the day, what really matters is the Qur’an.  It is a book, about which there is no doubt.  Muslims tend to be very intellectual people, questioning just about everything, but regarding the Qur’an, there is no doubt.  It is the book of Allah, and we treasure that above all else.

This month, I pledge to become more intimate with the Qur’an, not just in a race to finish reading it by the end of the month, but to savor each verse, ponder its wisdom, and make lasting, meaningful change in my short life.

Since I was a teenager, in my early days of Islam, Ramadan has always given me almost a magical feeling.  The moment the first day of fasting begins, I can always feel the curtain covering infinite blessings lift and allow the light to pour in on all of us.  Special things always happen to me, even when I show mediocre devotion and am probably not deserving of them.

The moment Ramadan begins, my dreams increase, or at least my memory of them.  They are so vivid and clear, and often provide insight into aspects of existence I had never considered.  I don’t know what this means or why it happens, but it affects me in ways I do not fully understand.  Therefore, this year, I also pray for guidance and more revealing knowledge of what this month of blessings really means.

I pray that Allah blesses all of those striving to seek His divine light in this holiest of months.  And may Allah send blessings of peace on His messenger, on the prophetic household, on all of those who follow them, and on all believers and people of guidance, everywhere.

From this day forward, all of my professional writing and any reference thereto will appear on my new site, TavisOnline.com, a domain I have actually held for nearly a year.

This blog will once again return to what it was intended to be: creative illumination.  My writing always reflects my state of mind, and for the past year, mine has been far too preoccupied with business as usual.  But I have no completed my master’s degree, and I can now safely return to the world of the living.  After all, this life is nothing if we are not consciously living it, rather than just going through the motions.

With Ramadan fast approaching, I cannot help but start to reflect on where I am, where I have been, and where I am going, insha’Allah.  I pray that Allah makes this a fruitful journey and one worth traveling.

May “changing gears” is not even the best analogy.  From this point on, it is a whole new ride.

Photo by Rachael Voorhees

It may not have been a pretty exit, as President Obama himself called it “offensive”.  But the fact remains that by saying Israelis should “get the hell out of Palestine” Helen Thomas amplified the stifled voices of native peoples all over the world.

Much of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and yes, America, was occupied through violence, oppression, and murder.  Israel’s bloody chapter of history has been no different.

The fact that Jews left Europe to occupy Palestine because of their own plight does not make it right.  If anything it reflects the cycle of abuse we see on an individual basis.  The abused child grows up to become the abuser.  Being the victims of a Holocaust does not give Israelis the right to inflict one on the Palestinians, one that has lasted 60 years.

Helen Thomas was right.  They should leave, but they probably will not.  Their children have grown up in Israel, unaware of the crimes of their fathers.  Those children are innocent, just as the children of American slave owners are, but they still reap the benefits of the suffering inflicted on others.  For that, there must be some resolution.

When Mandela opposed Apartheid and spent the better part of his life in jail, much of the western world turned a blind eye.  Voices like Helen Thomas were ignored or even shunned.  Today, they will ignore her, shun her, and maybe even hate her, but she is right.  History will record just how right she was.

Grandson of Malcolm X in Rajae El-Mouhandiz’s latestvideo

Rajae El-Mouhandiz is a young Muslim woman from Amsterdam. She is also a world renowned singer of North African descent whose second CD, Hand of Fatima, was released in December 2009. One of the singles in the video, Malcolm Lateef Shabazz, has garnered a lot of positive attention in the past few months.

Read the rest

Watch the music video

Download it now in PDF format.

“Tonight you have killed a man on a night in which the Qur’an came down, a night in which Jesus son of Mary (peace be upon him) was taken up, and a night in which Joshua the son of Nun, the champion of Moses (peace be upon him), was killed. By God, none of those who were before him are ahead of him and none of those who will come after him will overtake him. By God, if the Prophet (may Allah bless him and his progeny) sent him on a raid, Gabriel was at his right hand and Michael at his left. By God, he did not leave (at his death) gold or silver except for 800 or 700 dirhams, which he set aside for a servant woman.”

“Be obedient to Allah and have faith in Him. The loftiness of those who know the greatness of Allah is expressed in their modesty. The safety of those who know the power of Allah is expressed in their surrender to Him. Do not be influenced by the ignorant. Seek knowledge from its bearers. They are the light with which one can enlighten oneself.”

Imam Hasan was born on the 15th of Ramadan in Madinah, city of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his progeny). He was the second to take the office of Imam after his father Ali (peace be upon him).

The Prophet once said of Imam Hasan and his younger brother Imam Husayn: “Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn are the leaders of the youths of Paradise and Fatimah (their mother) is the leader of its women.”

He (may Allah bless him and grant him and his family peace) said:

“They (Hasan and Husain) are my two sweet-smelling flowers in this world.”

OK, I am making a joke to cover my concern about the news that Disney is purchasing Marvel for $4 billion.  Sure, it means that we will probably see an X-Men theme park in the future.  And yes, Disney has an impressive history of not injecting their own products into their subsidiaries (i.e. we haven’t seen Miley Cyrus giving commentary on SportsCenter — as far as I know).

Still, it just seems like Marvel has lost some of its innocence in a weird, twisted kind of way.  Yes, Disney is supposed to be the juvenile innocent one, but Marvel’s purity was its humble beginning and its fanboy attraction.

My one and only fear is that Marvel will become more of a commodity than it already has.  Disney is all about pushing merchandise.  The cash register goes cha-ching for Disney like every millisecond (note: I have no actual proof of this, but you get the point).  My hope is that Marvel does not become too commercialized.  I shutter at the thought of Disney characters dominating Comic-Con, but technically it could happen.

I’m just going to keep hoping that all will turn out for the best.  After all, our favorite superheroes have faced greater odds, more sinister plots, and villains with bigger speech impediments than Donald Duck.  We will live to fight another day.

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Here are some of the scholars and intellectuals speaking on the English Ramadan lecture circuit.  All of these are video and audio.

Hajj Hassanain Rajabali

Sheikh Jehad Ismail

These are being broadcast live and then the recordings will be uploaded to YouTube.

Sayyid Hossein Al-Qazwini

This will be broadcast live, and the recordings will be available on the YMA website.

Sorry I had to say it. The full story is here.

I believe we are living in the time of the Islamic reformation. In fact, I think we are living in the twilight of that reformation.

For me, the word reform is defined by its inevitability. This process cannot be stopped; it can be slowed down for a time but reform is inevitable. It’s an historic reformation taking place within Islam — it’s adapting itself to the realities of the world around it.

I think we’ll see the same process we saw in the Christian reformation from doctrinal absolutism to doctrinal relativism; toward a truly indigenous Islamic enlightenment.

And it’s up to us as Muslims in the US to give voice to that for our brothers and sisters who don’t have the voice or the same ability to speak out as we do.

Reza, I love you as my brother in Islam, but I think you missed the mark.  I want to write a refutation right here and now, but I think this will need some time, research, and consideration.  Look for an article in the coming weeks.

Nevertheless, I will leave this for everyone, especially Muslims, to ponder:

reform (\ri-ˈform)
transitive verb
1 a: to put or change into an improved form or conditionb: to amend or improve by change of form or removal of faults or abuses

2: to put an end to (an evil) by enforcing or introducing a better method or course of action

From Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary

I am no linguist but “reform” seems to refer to “fixing” something that is fundamentally flawed.  And “doctrinal absolutism” is something that is alien to Islam, aside from the most extreme fringes. More on this later.

“The style is very different from what we’ve done in the past,” Cooper said. “It’s far more mobile than we’ve done in the past on SG-1. The concept is that we wanted to shoot this a little bit like a documentary crew would shoot a ride-along to a space ship out in the universe — that maybe we could get audiences to embrace the science fiction elements and the characters in a realistic way if we shot the show using the ‘language’ of documentary and reality.

What the flip?  OK, my skepticism just escalated.  Please tell this does not mean a wobbly camera running through the forest chasing aliens.  Please, tell me that.  Please?

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“Hugh Jackman has described himself as “heartbroken” by the leak of X-Men Origins: Wolverine which saw an incomplete version appear on several BitTorrent websites ahead of the official 1 May US release date…”

What the flip?  Heartbroken?  Come on Wolverine!  Man up!

See more at http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1562173/a_review_of_the_80s_movie_the_last.html

“The outrageous agitation…will be seen by many to raise serious questions about whether the Obama administration will be able to make its own decisions about the Middle East and related issues…[It casts] doubt on its ability to consider, let alone decide what policies might best serve the United States rather than those of a Lobby intent on enforcing the will and interests of a foreign government…

“The aim of this Lobby is control of the policy process through the exercise of a veto over the appointment of people who dispute the wisdom of its views…and the exclusion of any and all options for decision by Americans and our government other than those it [the Lobby] favors.”

Read the rest here.

We need to hold President Obama accountable for his promises.  If he truly wants peace in the Middle East, it will never come when America is eating out of Israel’s hand.

]]> http://www.lanterntorch.com/politics/866/obama-caves-to-the-israeli-lobby/feed/ 0 http://www.lanterntorch.com/politics/834/hampshire-college-becomes-first-to-divest-from-israel/ http://www.lanterntorch.com/politics/834/hampshire-college-becomes-first-to-divest-from-israel/#comments Thu, 12 Feb 2009 16:23:08 +0000 Adibudeen http://www.lanterntorch.com/?p=834 Good news from Democracy Now:

The Board of Trustees at Hampshire College has agreed to divest from six companies because of their involvement in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. Hampshire is believed to be the first U.S. college or university to divest from companies tied to the Israeli military. The companies are Caterpillar, United Technologies, General Electric, ITT Corporation, Motorola, and Terex. The Board agreed to the divestment following a two-year campaign by the campus group Students for Justice in Palestine. 32 years ago Hampshire College became the first school to divest from apartheid South Africa.

I have a 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP  (yes, the engine is supercharged — that actually felt good to say when gas was under $2.00).

At some point, perhaps more than a year ago, the heating/air conditioning blower stopped blowing on the lowest setting, #1.  Over time, it gradually started losing higher settings, 2, 3, and finally 4.  At that point, heat or a/c would only work on the highest setting, 5.

There was only one thing more unbearable than heat or a/c set constantly on 5, and that is no heat or a/c at all.  On the coldest day of the year, when the temperature was -11 F, and you could see the vapor from your mouth crystallize and fall to the ground when you breathed, the number 5 setting died.

At that point I still had heat.  The blower motor was still blowing full-blast no matter what setting it was on.  When I was leaving work, heading to my car on Wednesday, I noticed a noise coming from the car.  I was standing outside of it, and the doors were still locked.  Upon opening it, I realized that the blower motor was still churning at full power.  Before I could get home, it shut itself off.  Apparently, however, that was just a temporary safety mechanism.

When I went to start the car the next day, the battery was dead.  Charging the battery again would only last until the blower motor zapped the juice again.  I knew I could not delay any longer.  I did not have $300+ dollars to shell out for repairs on my car, so I took matters into my own hands.

Apparently, Grand Prix owners have been plagued with the same failing part: a blower motor resistor that regulates the air output of the blower motor.  If part of it fails, you’ll lose functionality on some settings.  If and when it fails completely, it will never shut off until you pull the fuse, which is what I was forced to do.

It is not just 1997 Grand Prix’s affected by this problem.  Owners of models form every year even up to 2004 seem to have the same problems with this little resistor.  I knew it was a small part and knew that it was located inside of the car (not under the hood or underneath), but nothing could prepare me for the ordeal of trying to replace this part.

In my next post, I’ll detail what it took to obtain the part and finally get it installed into my car.

What is also not surprising, however, is that her conclusions are often wrong when dealing with issues that only “grownups” would understand.  It got my thinking about why this is the case.

For some logic and reason are more important than anything.  Someone with sound logic skills can work out any problem and do so without the tainting of emotional interference.  The true logician is like the Vulcan race from Star Trek, unflinching in their reasoning.

How then can such people ever fail to understand something?  Why does understanding often elude someone steeped in logic?  The answer, which I determined through observation, rather than pure reasoning, is that a person of logic also needs wisdom.

Wisdom is nothing something obtained through first principles or through studying.  Wisdom comes only through life experience, empathy, emotional trials, and often divine guidance.  The child can become very advanced and logic but still does not possess the wisdom that comes naturally with age.  Thus, understanding is not guaranteed.

I am reminded of a story about Luqman (peace be upon him), one of the wisest men mentioned in the Qur’an.  He wanted to teach his son that he cannot please everyone all of the time, but rather than preaching to his son, he allowed him to experience it.

They were traveling with their donkey one day.  Luqman was walking in front of it, and his son was seated on top of it.  A group of passersby saw this and talked amongst themselves (but loud enough for Luqman and his son to hear) saying, “Look at this young selfish boy who lets his old father walk while he enjoys the ease of riding.”

Luqman’s son felt bad after hearing them say this and got down from the donkey, insisting that his father ride it instead.  His father mounted the donkey, and they continued on their way.  Later they came upon some more people, and one of the said, “What a cruel father he is who makes his son walk while he rides in luxury!”

Upon hearing this the two of them both got off of the donkey and walked behind it.  They then came upon another group of people and one said, “How foolish!  They have a perfectly good donkey, yet they walk behind it!  Why do you not ride it?”

Upon hearing this, Luqman’s son decided perhaps it would be best for both of them to ride.  So, they continued with both of them mounted on the donkey.  They eventually passed some more people, and one of the said, “How cruel this duo are, putting all of that load on a small, innocent donkey!”

Luqman and his son dismounted, and he said to his son, “You have heard and seen what the people said. It must have assured you, by now, that whatever you do or whichever way you move, one is not able to please the people of the world.”

“He grants wisdom to whom He pleases; and he to whom wisdom is granted receives indeed a benefit overflowing; but none will grasp the Message but people of understanding.” (Qur’an 2:269)

Let us see what’s going on in the world:

Halal Food on a university campus

Make sure to vote for the Brass Crescent Awards

KDE 4 Video Editor, KDEnlive Released

Alan Keyes and Uncle Clarence Thomas are questioning Obama’s Citizenship

I’ll post more later.  There, I blogged something.  Happy?

In all seriousness, I believe it to be a monumental achievement for a man of color to reach the White House.  He climbed up the backs of many African Americans (and others as well) who have struggled for equal rights for all people in this country.  It is inspirational to so many youth who have been told that they can’t reach their dreams.  Well, my children, rest assured, you can.

Now, however, the business begins.  Like any president, Obama has to put his words into action.  He is a fallible man who will make plenty of mistakes, but my hope is that, unlike Bush, he will learn from them, listen to the people he serves, and make himself and the country better.

I’ve always believed in the power of people to make a difference.  Bush did not drag the American people into two wars.  We let him do it.  He did not care about opinion poles or protesters, and we, the American people, allowed him to continue in his deviance.

My hope, to use Obama’s own favorite word, is that he is someone who will listen to the people, who will not beat the drums of war when the people prefer the melody of peace.  That is my hope for change.  It is up to you, President-Elect Obama, to make the dreams of Americans a reality.

Sure enough, when I arrived, in the cold, in complete darkness, there was already a line formed outside of about 60 people.  I stepped up behind a friendly couple and waited.  Everyone there was excited and upbeat.  No one complained about the cold or the wait.  It was as if everyone had a purpose, a mission to make something positive happen.

As we gradually moved into the building when the doors opened at 6, it was clear that the line would move pretty quickly.  They had 6 booths set up in the gymnasium of our community center.  I live in a predominantly African American area, and to see so many faces of color exercising their right to self govern this country was sight to behold.

At one point, we all paused at the sound of the vote-counting machine giving a loud beep, kind of like a microwave.  A woman stuck her ballot into the machine again, and it beeped a second time.  More people who had finished voting formed a line behind her, and a volunteer quickly got on his mobile phone to ask someone, apparently an expert on the machines, what to do.  After a few minutes, the situation was resolved and voting resumed.

By 7:00 I was finished and extremely tired.  I prayed salatul-Fajr and headed to work.  There was no point in returning home.  I stopped at a store to pick up some donuts and orange juice, and even the cashier and other customers were so upbeat and enthusiastic about voting.

The overall experience made feel like I was a part of something important.  I only pray that the votes are counted without hassle and that history is made.  More than anything, I’m hoping my first voting experience is not my last.

We always knew that Jim Brown had multiple talents: playing football, acting, er…um… diplomacy?  Apparently he has been masquerading as Sudan’s ambassador to the United Nations.  Take a look at the photos.

Nevertheless, I will leave the idea of reviewing it for now and just enjoy the new release, codenamed Intrepid Ibex.

His argument, an overly dramatic one I might add, is that the mainstream media is flushing itself down the toilet because of its open bias towards Senator Barack Obama.  The evidence of this, according to Malone, is the sheer sparsity of negative coverage of the Obama campaign.  There have been so many negative stories about McCain and Palin, he argues.

Before I continue my critique of Malone’s McCain ad (ahem) I mean article, I should make two things clear:  1.  I have experience as a journalist but am not employed in the mainstream media and 2. I have decided to vote for Obama in this election.

Malone, on the other hand, does belong to the mainstream media, and the bias which he laments is partially his own.  And I must say that, at least on the surface, I agree with him.  There has undoubtedly been more negative coverage of McCain, his running mate, and his family.  On this issue, Malone and I are in complete agreement. 

Where I believe Malone falters, however, is in assuming it is because the media is biased in favor of Obama.  We’re talking about the same media, Malone’s own ABC in particular, that has bent over backwards for the past eight years while George W. Bush covered up his prior knowledge of 9/11, committed war crimes, authorized the torture of prisoners (some of them innocent people), spied on his own people, illegally detained some of his own citizens, exposed an undercover CIA operative, and dissolved the fat US economy into leftover grease.

Any one of W’s offenses could have been impeachable (some of them are even treason), yet the mainstream media, while reporting it, has essentially condoned it.  When they could have relentlessly exposed and reported the president’s crimes, they did little more than mention them.  Whenever a protest occurred and police invariably beat and arrested protesters, the mainstream media cameras were absent.  You would think that the country was still relatively pleased with Bush because very few anti-Bush or anti-War coverage was ever given.

Therein lies the problem, Mr. Malone.  The mainstream media rarely cracks the surface.  They’ll report the story but very rarely will they go beneath the surface on important controversial issues.  McCain has plenty of surface faults, and they have done their job to report them.  Obama simply does not have as many.  Am I saying this because I like Obama better or think he’s a better man?  No.  I’m saying it because McCain is older, a lot older.

McCain has been in office for decades and goes out of his way very often to remind us of that.  He is never going to let us forget about Ronald Regan (even though many of us would like to forget him).  So of course there is going to be more negative material to cover on McCain.  He has simply done more negative things.  He has done a lifetime of negative things.  You could write volumes on his deeds (as one day someone will).

This is where Malone’s argument falls flat, and the example he uses proves to be his own tragic flaw.  In speaking about the “war” in Lebanon three summers ago, Malone writes:

I sat there, first with my jaw hanging down, then actually shouting at the TV, as one field reporter after another reported the carnage of the Israeli attacks on Beirut, with almost no corresponding coverage of the Hezbollah missiles raining down on northern Israel. The reporting was so utterly and shamelessly biased that I sat there for hours watching, assuming that eventually CNNi would get around to telling the rest of the story…

Thank you Mr. Malone.  You proved my point very nicely without even realizing it.  When Israel attacked Lebanon, the death tolls were enormous.  1,191 Lebonese civilians lost their lives.  There was indiscriminate bombing of homes, villages, and even relief aid vehicles. Less than 250 Hezbollah fighters were killed.  Hezbollah, which launched missiles day and night into Israel, killed 121 soldiers and only 44 civilians. 

Again it is a simple matter of numbers.  How can you give equal coverage to a “war” that is not equal.  When people are literally dying left and right of you, how can you leave that to report what, by comparison, is only a handful of deaths?  What is surprising is that the media actually did report them and never failed to mention Israeli deaths to the point where people until this day believe that the “war” was an equal and just one, that Israel was justified in the atrocities they committed, and that Hezbollah are the terrorists.

Mr. Malone, it is a simple problem of logic.  Yours is flawed.  Media coverage is quantitative.  It can be measured.  Your mainstream media, Mr. Malone, has long argued that the independent candidates (such as Ralph Nader) or even alternative candidates (such as Dennis Kucinich [D] or Ron Paul [R]) do not deserve as much media coverage because they are not as popular (which is a circular argument).  Well, Mr. Malone, like it or not, Senator Obama is popluar, extremely popular, despite the McCain campaign’s relentless attempts to smear him with negative ads, many of which are outright lies.

I can think of plenty of criticisms of Obama, so do not think that I am in love with the man.  His show (and I emphasize this word) of unbiased support for Israel during his campaign and his rather muffled show of what can best be described as “blackness” are both disturbing yet not upsetting.  I can understand why he felt he needed to behave that way in a predominantly white America that is still electrically charged with racist particles, and his previous record indicates that he is not so black and white (no pun intended).  But the McCain campaign’s criticisms have been paltry at best, and Mr. Malone’s last ditched attempt to rescue John McCain is simply too pathetic and too late.

In what is being called the final season of Stargate Atlantis, how dare they toss in a flashback episode!  The latest episode, “Inquisition”, is perhaps aptly named.  Watching it was almost like being tortured in the Spanish Inquisition.  Naturally, they did develop a little story around the flashbacks, but it was not worth remembering, unlike the flashbacks themselves, of which I didn’t need a reminder.

If you don’t have the manhood to make a full episode, just show a rerun.  Don’t tease into thinking we’re getting a new show, only to see a rerun in disguise.  That’s just wrong.

One thing that has always turned me off from books like Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and others is the complete whiteness of all of the characters and the Euro-centric locations and motifs.  It seems to be understood, without any questioning, that such characters are to be painted white, and the films based on those books seem to confirm that reality without fail.

To find fantasy books with African, Indian, and Middle Eastern motifs that are not polluted with stereotypical characters and plots is rare.  When I set out to write my book, I did not consciously insert such characters into it.  It was rather an expression of the type of fantasy that I had already envisioned in my head as a young adult and later as an author.

I think most authors write about what they know, and it is not unusual for white authors to write about white characters in white settings.  I can, therefore, only conclude two relative rarities:  1. A black author who writes about fantasy and adventure.  2. A black author who writes about fantasy and adventure and includes black characters without making the story a stereotypical “black issue”.

I’m hoping that I’m just making a generalization and there are at least a few exceptions out there.  If there are, please feel free list them in comments.

We participated in several other sessions, two of which were about the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him and his family peace), a topic that never grows old and always softens the heart.  Imam Mohamed Magid, in particular, had beautiful stories to tell of the Prophet that nearly brought the crowd to tears at times and laughter at others.

My wife and I had a nice quiet dinner in the corner of the convention center while the wealthier Muslims among us dined with Congressman Andre Carson and other dignitaries.  At $40 per person for tickets to the banquet, we opted for some $6.99 Chinese food.

They ran severely over their time limit, and those of us who were not in the banquet went ahead and prayed Salatul-Isha without them.  Finally, after waiting at least another hour, the entertainment began.  It started with a Muslim comedian whose name escapes me and whose comedy was not particularly memorable.  That was followed by a nasheed band called the Travelers who seemed a tad inexperienced but nevertheless very soothing and reflective.

After four songs the main attraction, the premiere of Allah Made Me Funny began.  It was spectacular, side-aching humor that left us with a much better impression of the convention than we had the first day. If I can scrounge up some time, I’ll post a full review of the movie.  For now let’s just say that I highly recommend it.

Overall, the convention is still not what it should be.  The price of attendance is steep, $40 per person (or $60 for husband and wife), and the organization, which is supposed to represent the entire body of Muslims in Indiana, is still heavily populated with people from the subcontinent.  It was rare treat to see a african american face in the crowd, even on Saturday.  Despite that, it was a noble effort, and the jewels of prophetic wisdom that we collected from the people of knowledge during those few sessions made the trip not only worth it, but priceless.

The rest was disorganized, rescheduled, and pretty much boring.  The bazaar was bare and pathetic, and the people were mostly of one ethnicity, which certainly does not represent the body of Muslims that we have in this state.  There were truly only a handful of people there.

The part that could have been the best, the film festival, was late getting started (actually, for all I know, it never started).  My wife and I were tired and decided to just leave.  The only thing that could redeem this convention is the showing of “Allah Made Me Funny” today.  Let’s just pray they don’t find a way to screw that up too, insha’Allah.

I’ll post updates and maybe some pictures later, insha’Allah.

I’m sure the majority of people would answer yes, but what I’ve also found is that everyone says, “Oh, I never win those things.”  So, my question is, does anyone really win?  If you’ve ever won anything, any of those contests that say “no purchase necessary” as if they’re daring you to not buy the product and see if you can actually still win just by mailing in your entry, then please post a comment here telling us about your experience.

I want to meet some real winners, real people who have actually opened a bottle cap and seen something other than “We’re sorry.  Please try again.”

Let’s just talk a little about this “financial crisis.”  It is truly amazing that the powers that be have the audacity to spend our money (and it is our money anytime it comes from the government) to bail out organizations that have been swindling us for every penny we own anyway.

The average American is suffering and will continue to suffer, because instead of bailing us out, they’re going to reward the snakes for their venomous bites.  I know all too well what it feels like to not be able to pay the bills, especially hospital bills.  We have been struggling for the past two years, and just one false slip could leave us out on the street like so many others who have lost their homes.

Why are Americans so stupid to allow this to continue?  How can anyone still support these corrupt tyrants?  I’ve lost all respect for the politicians and the people who elected them, and I have no sympathy for whatever happens to them as a result of this mess.  I’m tired of not knowing whether or not I’ll be able to afford to drive to work just so I can pay for more gas to continue driving to work.  Meanwhile, we can’t even afford health care or child care.

And I’m not on minimum wage.  I have what used to be considered a reasonable salary with “benefits”, but it seems not to be enough.

In the end, Allah is enough for me, and I know He will remove us from this condition. Nevertheless, it is sad to see a country I love go down the tube because of a greedy few.

Those greedy few, possibly about 400 people, have more money than the rest of Americans combined.  The world would be better of if the earth just swallowed those 400 people and their pet Zionist Regime along with them.  Yes, I’m an angry black man.  Do something about it if you don’t like it!

In times like these, the world could truly benefit from the wisdom of Islamic economics, ethics, and social values, but unfortunately, too many Muslims are part of the problem.  Leaders in predominantly Muslim countries are just as corrupted, and Muslim-owned businesses tend to deal in the same sinister financial practices.  Meanwhile, there are enough wealthy Muslims to support the weak and poor, but we do not see this either. Instead we see a glittering mosque to the north of the city and storefront mosques in the inner-cities.  There is little cooperation, even less compassion, and absolutely no shame.

The Holy Prophet [may Allah bless him and grant him peace] said: “There will come a time
for people that: they will not respect their scholars except for their
good clothing; they will not hearken to the Qur’an except for the
pleasant voice; and they will not worship Allah except for during the
fasting month; there will be no shyness in their women, no patience in
their poor ones; and no prosperity for their rich ones, they will not
be contented with a small (portion), and they will not be satiated with
abundance. They will strive (only) for their stomach; their religion is
their money (wealth); their women are their Qiblah (direction of
worship); and their homes are their mosques; they run away from their
scholars just as lambs run away from wolves.

We ask Allah to remove the suffering and oppression of those who have suffered and are oppressed.  We ask Allah to uplift the downtrodden and destitute, to heal the wounds of the weak inflicted by the tyrants, and to return justice to the earth.  We ask Allah to remove from the earth the enemies of justice and equality wherever they are, whoever they are, and however He pleases.  We ask Allah to hasten the reappearance of the one who will fill the earth with justice and equality after it had been filled with injustice and tyranny, the champion of the oppressed, the proof of Allah on earth, the beloved of our hearts, Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi.

The majority of us have been experiencing a “financial crisis” since Bush stepped into office, but we’re only now hearing about it in the media when the fat cats need to be bailed out to save their billions from flushing down the toilet.  The rich stay rich, and according to Michael’s analysis, they might even get richer after this bailout. 

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin: “We don’t have to
second-guess what their efforts would be if they believe that it is in
their country and their allies, including us, all of our best interests
to fight against a regime, especially Iran, who would seek to wipe them
off the face of the earth. It is obvious to me who the good guys are in
this one and who the bad guys are. The bad guys are the ones who say
Israel is a stinking corpse and should be wiped off the face of the
earth. That’s not a good guy who is saying that. Now, one who would
seek to protect the good guys in this, the leaders of Israel and her
friends, her allies, including the United States, in my world, those
are the good guys.”

Why does this woman sound like an 8 year old talking about an episode of Power Rangers?

These “good guys” she speaks of are the same ones who have illegally occupied Palestinian land for 60 years; “good guys” who repeatedly abuse, bulldoze homes, kill, and torture Palestinians; “good guys” who occupied Lebanon for 20 years and even knowingly attack reporters, UN observers, Red Cross vehicles, and even ships belonging to their own allies.

She is correct to use the phrase “in my world” because Sarah Palin obviously does not live in the real world.

1. It greatly increase my respect for and admiration of the Iranian president.  He is both intelligent and tactful in his response and also seems genuine.

2. Larry King, all things considered, did a pretty good job of letting Ahmadinejad talk without bombarding him with ridiculous accusations and misquotes (although he did not shy away from many of the dumb controversial questions that many Americans have asked).

Above all else, however, I came away with a new understanding about the Iranian position on Israel.  Although many people in the west commonly assume that Iran wishes for Israel to be destroyed (whatever that actually means), the words of the Iranian president were quite different.

He apparently advocates something that few Americans, Israelis, or even Palestinians dare to even consider: a one-state solution.  For decades now we’ve been inundated with the concept of two states, both a Jewish one and a Palestinian one.  But the only truly fair solution, according to Ahmadinejad, is for the people of that region to unite under one state, hold a referendum for the future makeup of their new government, and reform their country into something open, democratic, and just.

This, of course, would mean that the Palestinians, especially if one includes the ones who are living in exile, would hold a majority vote, just as the black South Africans did when the Apartheid regime was overturned.  Had they instead formed a separate “black” state, they would have been isolated and decimated by their white counterparts.

The real reason for the insistence upon the two-state solution is that it is the only way to preserve a “Jewish” state.  Although westerners commonly refer to Israel as “the only democratic state in the middle east,” it is actually anything but democratic.  It serves the interests of Jews and Jews alone.  It ignores the rights even of the arabs who are citizens while also denying citizenship to the majority of Palestinians.

To give the Palestinians citizenship in Israel would effectively end the reign of the Zionist (Apartheid) regime.  Replacing it with something democratic and free for both Jews and Palestinians is the only way to ensure lasting freedom and success for both parties.

This is Iran’s stance on the issue.  It is not one of violent uphevil and extermination of the Jewish people.  It is a stance that is probably the only realistic (yet bitter-tasting) solution if the Israelis expect to ever live without fear and the Palestinans ever hope to truly have freedom.

Granted, I could labor it at it and possibly get it to stream through the mplayer plugin, but then I’d be tied to my browser.  The benefit of at least having an mp3 download is that I can drop it into my nokia n800 and go or at least stop it and come back to the place where I left off earlier.

At any rate, I turned to youtube in my search for another lecturer and found one who has not left me disappointed at all.  In fact, he’s been quite a pleasant surprise.  His name is Sheikh Jehad Ismail.  He has his own website called The Awaited One Foundation.  It is certainly worth a visit.  This brother, who is quite laid back and even amusing at times, even has a Facebook account and will answer your questions directly on Facebook.

Imam Sayid Hassan Al-Qazwini met on Wednesday May 14, 2008 with Senator Barack Obama, the democratic presidential candidate. The private meeting between the two took place at Macomb Community College – Michigan. In this meeting Imam Qazwini and Senator Obama discussed the upcoming presidential election, the Arab-Israeli conflict in the Middle East and the War in Iraq.

Furthermore, in the end of the meeting Imam Qazwini offered a copy of his newly released book “American Crescent” to senator Obama. Imam Qazwini also invited Senator Obama to visit the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn.

(alqazwini.org)

A few narrations about how and when the Prophet (pbuh) used to fast.

Read it here.

May Allah bless him, forgive him for his shortcomings, and have mercy on him, and there are none who are more merciful than the Most Merciful.

You can listen to his current lectures here.

Also, for other dynamite lecturers and scholars, see this site.

This morning, my alarm clock did not go off or was not loud enough for me to hear. At that time, I was having a dream that a boy was supposed to come and wake me up, but he was absent that day (yes, as if I lived in a school). When I realized that, I fumbled around looking for my clock only to realize that I had missed suhoor.

Momements later, I realized, “Wait! I’m dreaming!” Then, as I gradually became conscious, I said to myself, “And it’s happening in real life!”

I woke up and reached for my clock to discover that I still had about 30 minutes to eat suhoor. Allahu Akbar.

Here is my formal greeting card to all of you.

Shake your wanny fanny fu-unky song!

I’ll give a prize to the first person who can comment with the show where that song originated.

Islamway radio

Qur’anEnglish.com

MP3 Qur’an Online

Any of these can be downloaded, installed on an MP3 player, or burned to several CDs.

If you have the money, there are also many Islamic bookstores that sell complete CD sets of Qur’an recitation in arabic with english translation. They run anywhere from $150 to $200. You can also buy DVD sets with added features.

Today I’m blogging on my new EeePC (more on that later).

Also, Ramadan is right around the corner — truly excited about that. I just pray my health will be better than it has in the past few Ramadans. I suppose that’s a sign that I’m getting old.

Anyway, back to this job. It’s a great school with a brand new building. The Library (media center) is huge with nice wooden shelves, soft new carpeting, plush lounge chairs, built-in media devices, including a projector on the ceiling, HP computers, as well as macbook laptops. The entire school is wireless as well. And my office, don’t even get me started. It’s large, complete with a refrigerator, sink, and a microwave.

I have large windows overlooking a green field and a forest near the river. I’m still getting adjusted, and that has taken more of my time than usual.

There are many issues to blog about, so expect to hear more from me soon, insha’Allah.

July 29, 2008

In a recent interview, Ayatollah Fadlallah, one of Lebanon’s chief theologians, stated that any notions of strife between Shi’ites and Sunnis was untrue. Most Muslims value unity, and simply need some sort of motivation to work together said Fadlallah, suggesting a large scale collaborative project. He admitted that there were elements in the Arab community who wanted to promote discord, but that they were the extreme minority and did not represent Islamic views. For more information, please click here.

But is Barack taking his own advice? For he pledges to shift two U.S. combat brigades, 10,000 troops, out of Iraq and into Afghanistan, raising Americanforces in that country from 33,000 to 43,000.

For, without any visible strategy for victory, Barack is recommending thesame course LBJ took after the death of JFK. Johnson bombed North Vietnam in 1964, landed Marines in 1965 and built U.S. forces from 16,000 advisers on Nov. 22, 1963, to 525,000 troops in January of 1969.

The Soviet Union, whose 115,000-man army in Afghanistan reached more than twice the size of U.S.-NATO forces, even with the Obama surge, went home defeated in 1988. The Soviet Empire did not survive that humiliation.

Obama – and John McCain, who has endorsed the build-up – should, before committing any more combat brigades, explain how and when this war ends in an American victory. For as of today, the Afghan war resembles Vietnam far more than Iraq ever did.

Obama and the other democrats want to continue the war in Afghanistan. He intends to send some of those PTSD patients currently serving their 2nd, 3rd, or even 5th campaigns in Iraq and dropped them into the heart of Taliban inssurection. This comes at a time when more Afghan civilians are being slaughtered by indiscriminate U.S. bombing raids. The total number of innocent Afghans killed has far exceeded the number of Americans killed on 9/11.

Therefore, it is clearn that Mr. Obama is not interested in peace, rather he wants a war he thinks we can win. Well, I hate to disappoint you, Senator, but America is not winning in Afghanistan, and they will never win. No one ever has.

Oh yeah, and it never hurts to head butt the flag of a communist country now and then.

Circle Soup = Spaghetti O’s

Tindo DS = Nintendo DS

Doll waffle = Waffles with pictures of Barbie on them

Brooming = Sweeping the floor with a broom (actually makes sense)

smacks = Gummy snacks (I pretend to smack her when she asks for it)

There are many more. I’ll post them when I hear them again. Keep in mind, she knows how to say all of these correctly. She just prefers her way and will violently oppose you if you try to correct her.

In their 2006 working paper The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, University of Chicago professor John Mearsheimer and Harvard University Kennedy School of Government professor Stephen Walt accuse AIPAC of being “the most powerful and best known” component of a larger pro-Israel lobby that, they say, distorts American foreign policy. They write: “AIPAC’s success is due to its ability to reward legislators and congressional candidates who support its agenda, and to punish those who challenge it. … AIPAC makes sure that its friends get strong financial support from the myriad pro-Israel PACs. Those seen as hostile to Israel, on the other hand, can be sure that AIPAC will direct campaign contributions to their political opponents. … The bottom line is that AIPAC, which is a de facto agent for a foreign government, has a stranglehold on the U.S. Congress. Open debate about U.S. policy towards Israel does not occur there, even though that policy has important consequences for the entire world.”

Cited on Wikipedia 

It seems very few have been willing to admit what we really knew all along: Barack Obama is just another American politician. He is not some savior of humanity, as some would like to portray him, and he is certainly not going to step on the toes of the corporate demons who fund his campaign.

In times such as these, when America is being ruled by a president who will do anything to please his corporate sponsors, whose policies have killed hundreds of thousands in Iraq and Afghanistan, sacrificed thousands of American soldiers, opened the door for torture, championed the imprisonment of innocent people, and welcomed the contempt and disgust of the entire world, there is something the American people need more than politics as usual.

The American people need morality and honesty. Above all else, a leader who is willing to do what is right and to speak the truth even when he does wrong is the type of leader who can truly turn this country and this race (the human one) away from the brink of extinction that it has now brought upon itself.

Instead, Obama has become glossy eyed with the prospect of becoming president and is willing to bend over backwards for Israel and the AIPAC, even if it means echoing Israel’s call to attack Iran, a country that has not invaded nor even threatened to attack another country (something even Iraq could not claim).

Obama sounds like Bush, albeit a more eloquent and intelligent upgrade from the first two Bush versions. He proudly proclaimed, “I will do everything in my power to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Everything in my power to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Everything.”

The evidence, Senator Obama, indicates that Iran is not even trying to obtain a nuclear weapon, so why even mention this? You might very well pressure Iran into doing the very thing you swear you will prevent them from doing. And what does “everything in my power” mean? Surely, a president’s power includes control over the military. Obama is threatening to attack Iran. That is not quite as strong as Hillary Clinton’s language, but the end result would be the same.

” … There is no greater threat to Israel or peace than Iran,” he went on to say.

Any intelligent (and honest) person can easily see that the greatest threat to Israel and peace is Israel itself. It is Israel that invaded Palestinian territory. It is Israel that drove hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their land. It is Israel that committed massacres, one after another, against thousands of innocent Palestinians. It is Israel that continues to hold scores of Palestinians in dungeons, without any formal charges against them. It is Israel that has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran, not the other way around. It is Israel with the track record of invading another country (Lebanon) and occupying it for 20 years, not Iran. It is Israel that has nuclear weapons and refuses to sign the NPT. It is Israel that has had over 40 U.N. resolutions passed against it condemning its atrocities, yet it refuses to take heed of any of them. It is Israel, Senator Obama, that forces the Palestinians to live in Apartheid-like conditions, and that is not just my opinion, Senator Obama. Former President Jimmy Carter and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, agree.

So like Reagan, Senator Obama, you are supporting yet another Apartheid regime, another regime that has acquired and is threatening to use its nuclear weapons against a country that is guilty only of defending the rights and lives of the Palestinian people when everyone else in the world, including you, Senator Obama, is unwilling, or too much of a coward, to do so.

Obama was not finished. He continued with, “This audience is made up of both Republicans and Democrats. And the enemies of Israel should have no doubt that regardless of party, Americans stand shoulder to shoulder in support of Israel’s security. …”

Do we? Do Americans really care about Israel’s security while the policies of our own government continue to degrade our own security? Senator Obama wants us to believe that Israel is a symbiont inside of the heart of America, but there is another more appropriate name for such an organism: parasite.

“The Iran regime supports violent extremists and challenges us across the region. It pursues a nuclear capability that could spark a dangerous arms race and …”

If we really wanted to make this statement true, it should probably be uttered by the Iranian supreme leader, “The American regime supports violent extremists (Israel) and challenges us (Iran) across the region. It already has a nuclear capability that could spark a dangerous arms race and …(blah blah blah)…”

Finally, Senator Obama either wants us to believe he is a complete idiot (just as Bush expects us to believe that about him) or he is a liar in the esteemed tradition of liars who have occupied the oval office, both republicans and democrats. Senator Obama decided to echo the propaganda that has infected our airwaves and television sets, “Its president denies the Holocaust and threatens to wipe Israel off the map. … [M]y goal will be to eliminate this threat.”

I see no point in even trying to disprove this lie again. He never denied the Holocaust (he said that it should be studied by independent historians) and he certainly never threatened Israel (but rather said that Israel will fade from the pages of history).

So how, Senator Obama, do you plan to eliminate a threat that does not exist? I suppose you will do as other presidents before you have done: you will create one.

I’m certainly not voting for McCain, and unless Obama grows a conscience, I’m afraid he has lost my vote as well.

Grandfather: “If you’re good, maybe I’ll give you two some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.”

My 4-year-old daughter: “I don’t like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.”

Grandfather: “Yes you do.”

Daughter: “No I don’t because they make me throw up.”

Not true of course.

Now the dolphin is the default file manager, it only makes sense to add this feature to dolphin.

McClellan went on to say President Bush had personally told him he authorized the leak of former CIA operative Valerie Plame’s identity. McClellan says he asked President Bush aboard Air Force One if he was the one who approved outing Plame to the media. McClellan says Bush replied, “Yes, I was.”

McClellan would have to be crazy to lie about something like that, knowing that his very life could be in danger for even suggesting that Bush is a criminal.  Here we have a witness testifying to the public that Bush committed a federal crime (in addition to all of his war crimes), and they still will not impeach him?

Whatever little faith I had left in the democrat majority congress just leaked out onto the floor.

Prophet: “Your mother.”

Man: “And then who?”

Prophet: “Your mother.”

Man: “And then who?”

Prophet: “Your mother.”

Man: “And then who?”

Prophet: “Your father.”

Click here to watch.

OLBERMANN: Can you clarify…which hypothetical Middle East conflicts would incur massive retaliation by this country and what constitutes massive retaliation?

CLINTON: What we were talking about was the potential for a nuclear attack by Iran. If Iran does achieve what appears to be a continuing goal of obtaining nuclear weapons. And I think deterrence has not been effectively used in recent times. We used it very well during the Cold War when we had a bipolar world. And what I think the president should do and what our policy should be is to make it very clear to the Iranians that they would be risking massive retaliation were they to launch a nuclear attack on Israel.

I always knew Hillary was a Zionist, but it seems she’s even more willing to start World War III than Israel itself. And how many average citizens living in Israel truly feel the way she does? What would even warrant an Iranian attack on Israel? Are we forgetting that a nuclear disaster for Israel is also a nuclear disaster for the Palestinians, the very people Iran has sworn to defend?

It seems in Hillary’s efforts to please the Devil, she’s lost all reasoning ability. It’s amazing that she’s so eager to perpetuate the bigoted depiction of middle eastern people (and nations) as mindless ogres who would attack and kill anyone if given the chance.

Meanwhile, Iran has accomplished more calculated strategic victories in the past four years than any country with interest in the region. Senator Clinton, if you insist on bullying a smaller country and labeling them an enemy threat, at least take the time to know your enemy.

“[My energy policy] will prevent us from having ever to send our young men and women into conflict again in the Middle East,” said republican presidential candidate John McCain.

The “again” implies that it has been done before, and the fact that it is his energy policy that will prevent it indicates that it was done in order to get oil. It doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together.

“We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans and now we are indignant because the stuff we have done overseas is now brought right back into our own front yards. America’s chickens are coming home to roost.”

Amen, brother. Amen.

“Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Dutch critic of Islam, will publish a fictional children’s book about a twelve-year-old Muslim boy who faces many difficulties after befriending a Jewish girl. It is unclear as to what her motivation is for advocating such false and bigoted views that Muslims are opposed to Jews, when it is clearly stated in the Quran that Muslims and Jews come from the same “Family of the Book”. The Quran also speaks highly of Abraham and Moses, insisting that they were righteous Prophets of God.”

She can spread hatred as much as she wants. We must continue to spread love.

Warning: this is not for the faint of heart or a weak stomach.

Meat.org

The first was about the United states’ role in Haiti’s food riots:

“As people around the world continue to protest the soaring prices of basic food items, the World Food Program has described the crisis as a silent tsunami. The head of the Food and Agriculture Organization blamed the current global food crisis on “inappropriate” policy decisions over the past two decades. Nowhere is this more clear than in Haiti, where hungry people are rioting in the streets because they cannot afford to buy rice. Haiti imports most of its rice from the United States, which in turn remains heavily subsidized. We speak with human rights lawyer, Bill Quigley.”

The other dealt with the UN Forum on Indigenous Issues and climate change:

“Representatives of the world’s 370 million indigenous people are
gathered at the United Nations this week to demand that their voices be
included in future talks on climate change. Over 3,000 delegates are
attending the seventh session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous
Issues. We speak with Casey Camp-Horinek, a member of the Ponca Nation
of Oklahoma”

Hope for what? Is their hope misguided? Will the democratic process once again fail us as it did in 2000 when thousands of black voters were disenfranchised and the withering Al Gore laid his own head on the chopping block? Perhaps, but the glimmer of hope in democracy is that people have the power to make changes. The question, however, is whether or not simply casting a ballot is actually enough to effect reasonable change.

Must all of us become CEOs of major corporations in order to have our voices heard? History would argue that when people come together for a common cause, no dictatorial regime or corporate driven machine can stand in their way. The problem that exists now is that so many Americans are still satisfied with the current situation or at least not dissatisfied enough.

Americans get upset on cue. It is as if automatic triggers are set in our brains. The Chinese have been subjugating the people of Tibet for decades, but suddenly it has become an issue. The same people who have found a new cause in Tibet would turn a blind eye to the oppression faced by the Palestinians in the occupied territories. The suffering of the people in Darfur no longer seems so relevant. Add Somalia and nearly the rest of Africa to that list, and it just seems peculiar that some have chosen to protest China’s occupation of Tibet. Do they protest the US occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan?

In reality many of the liberal democrats who are displeased with the president’s invasion of Iraq are not upset because it is immoral, unjust, or because of the ulterior motive of establishing a permanent military stronghold on the doorstep of Iran (after all, both Clinton and Obama seem poised to strap bombs to their chests and lead the suicide mission into Iran even after Bush stumbles down from the oval office). No, the democrats’ opposition to the war is not so complex. The reason is simple: we are losing.

When our military was defeating Saddam’s crippled and undernourished army, and the president stood under a banner reading “Mission Accomplished,” few democrats shivered as I and a few others did. Those of us who had opposed the war from the beginning knew what was on the horizon, but those who claimed they “ignorantly” voted for the war were only stating so to cover their own embarrassed rear ends.

Money talks, and as it stands, the black-colored greasy money flowing out of Iran in the form of Euros is so bitter to the American palette that even the most well-informed liberal proudly proclaims that Iran is a “serious threat” that must be stopped. Without a doubt, the corporations, more specifically the oil companies, spun this, and Israel piggybacked their scheme, albeit for different reasons. Controlling the oil flow to and from Iran would grant them full access to the Middle East and all its resources.

Unfortunately, the plan went sour before it ever had a chance to brew. By invading Afghanistan and ousting the Taliban, the US created a new ally for Iran, an Afghan government that is increasingly suspicious of the seven-year sleepover of coalition forces. By invading Iraq, the US solidified Iranian power in the region, installing a regime dominated by the SCIRI (not their original plan, I should note) and the powerful Mahdi Army, both strong allies of Iran. Then, they gave free reign to a corrupt and possibly delusional Musharraf in Pakistan, allowing him to plunder his nation like a pirate and fashion himself as the dictator for life, only to be snubbed by his less-than-willing people. The only marginally powerful ally the US has left in the region is Turkey, which seems to care little about US interests, now that the Kurds have been turned loose on them. They seem more interested in bombing Iraq than even the US themselves.

Instead of surrounding Iran with a wall of military muscle, the corporate regime led by Mr. Bush has handed central Asia to Iran on a silver dish. The best they can hope for now is to make diplomatic ties with Iran, as they once did with China. But even that will take a president and a group of citizens united behind him or her, who are more concerned with peace and safety than with filling the tanks in their SUVs. God help us all.

“States in the West loyally commit themselves to it, living under a grandiose fantasy of superior humanity and a higher civilization. With this narcissistic perception comes the license to play the global Big Brother, dictating the order of things arbitrarily”

It’s worth reading.

In other news of corruption:

• Papa John’s stole money from me.  We ordered pizzas with Sprite.  They failed to deliver the Sprite and then refused to refund us.  Sure, it might only be $2 from us, but add up how many others they’ve probably ripped off and it becomes massive fraud.  Don’t buy their pizza.  It sucks anyway.

• My sister-in-law was arrested and charged for a crime she didn’t even know about, much less commit.  The cops are pigs, but you already knew that.

• The EU is fining Microsoft $1.45 billion.  Yeah I know it sounds like a lot, but Microsoft makes $1.5 billion in profits each month.  It’s like fining a lemonade stand $0.25.

• Exxon’s case is being heard by the supreme court, yes the one bought and paid for by the Bush family.  Exxon has proved that oil is thicker than water, and so is cold hard cash, with annual profits at $36 billion.

• Black History Month isn’t quite so short this year.  After all, we get an extra day.

Salat al-ayat is an obligation during such events.  Please be sure to perform it during the appropriate time.

Total eclipse begins at 10:01 PM EST in the US.

– W.E.B. DuBois

It shows not only an ignorance of the people and culture but also an ignorance of how human beings in general behave. Under occupation, there is always resistance. This is a fact. If a foreign power were to invade the US today, plenty of people would resist, and it would be viewed as completely legitimate.

Until this very day, however, American policy makers (both democrat and republican) have stood by the invasion of Afghanistan under the justification that it somehow vindicated the attacks of September 11, 2001. That in itself is preposterous, but when you also consider that they believe a continued fight against the Taliban, which, as far as we know, had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks, is necessary, the picture begins to become even more distorted.

There are several changes that must occur in order to eventually relieve the Afghan people from anymore unnecessary suffering:

1. The occupation forces there must develop an exit plan. (It is ridiculous that so many people are opposed to the occupation of Iraq but mention nothing of Afghanistan, as if they somehow deserve to be occupied).

2. The Afghan government must have full control of the policy making (no puppet-regime tactics).

3. The Afghan government must sit down with the Taliban and make peace, whatever the cost. This is the only way to end a war, aside from everyone on both sides being dead. Both sides must be willing to compromise, but in the end, both sides should share the power.

4. Any illegal immigrants (from Arab countries or elsewhere) must be deported (if they are innocent) or legally tried in court (if they are members of al-Qa’idah). This will be much easier if the Taliban are working in coordination with the government.

5. If #4 is not possible alone, then outside assistance should be sought by the new unified government. Preferably, that outside help should come from friendly neighbors (Pakistan and Iran, but not perceived enemies such as the US).

6. The government should nationalize, even if temporarily, the production of their natural resources in order to strengthen their economy and sever any dependence on foreign money.

7. They should establish strong trade agreements with neighboring nations and rely on the United Nations, Red Crescent, and other “impartial” (and I use the term loosely) organizations when necessary.

8. They should setup micro-finance institutions similar to the ones in Bangladesh.

9. They should coordinate military and police training with Iran and Pakistan instead of western powers.

These are just some of the ideas that will make Afghanistan strong for Afghans, rather than occupiers with only their own interests in mind. If you have any other ideas that should be added or better ideas than the ones I’ve listed, please post them in the comments.

It is neither a time of pure sadness nor a time to remember defeat, because from it sprang a movement, one that rescued Islam from the clutches of tyranny and strengthened the message of the Messenger of Allah that morality and justice must always prevail over avarice, oppression, and miserliness.  For this, the Muslim Ummah should experience the ultimate joy, knowing that, as Allah has promised, the believers will be victorious.

It is not a time in which Muslims should be divided because all of us owe our debt to the struggle of the Imam and his companions on that day (the 10th of Muharram) in that desert (in Karbala, Iraq).  The movement that emerged after the tragedy, under the guidance of the Imam’s surviving son, Ali Zain-ul-’Abideen (peace be upon him) and with the tenacity, loyalty, perseverance, wisdom, and honor demonstrated by his sister, Zaynab bint Ali (peace be upon her), the message of Islam not only survived, it championed righteousness over treachery and lewdness.  It summoned the people of knowledge to their feet and challenged them to deny the truth.

For this reason, there is essentially only one version of this event.  For most other events, there is a Sunni version and a Shi’i version, but for Karbala, for the struggle of Imam Husayn, the Muslim Ummah stands in unity.  The account in At-Tabari’s Tarikh is essentially identical to the account given in al-Mufid’s Irshad. 

So on this day and on all days, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon the sweet basil flower of the Messenger of Allah, the grandson of the Last Prophet, the son of the Commander of the Faithful and the Leader of all believing women, one of the two leaders of the youths in Paradise, the chief of martyrs and nephew of the chief of martyrs, the standard bearer of justice and freedom, the pillar of excellence, the one for whom Allah is forever pleased, the love of our hearts, Imam al-Husayn ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib.  As-salaamu ‘alayka Yabna Muhammad-al-Mustafa!  As-salaamu ‘alayka yabna Ali-al-Murtadha.  As-salaamu ‘alayka yabna Fatimat-az-Zahra`!  As-salaamu ‘alayka ya Aba Abdallah!

“F**kin’ with Saddam will bring a new Saigon…”

Truer words have rarely been spoken.

I’ve heard of Korean children growing up in such an environment and then making the choice to go back to their home country to find out who they really are.  But that is not even why I am questioning the real motivation behind such programs that are financed by large Christian missionary organizations.

Why are they choosing Muslim children?  Do they think that they are somehow “saving” them not only from poverty and orphanhood but also from the pyres of Hell?  Is it not only a humanitarian mission but also a crusade?  After all, there are plenty of countries where Christian children need to be adopted (America included).  Why don’t we hear about more Christian families adopting Palestinian Christian babies?  Oh yeah, maybe it’s because most of the organizations support the Israeli occupation of Palestine.  It’s not politically convenient to support Arab Christians.

God knows best what the true intentions of these people are.  Maybe they are just naive political tools or maybe not.  What I do know is that Muslims need to adopt more frequently.  The Prophet did it, the Qur’an highly recommends it, and it seems close to being an obligation for those who can afford to do it.

This also means that Eid al-adha will soon be upon us.  It will be close to Christmas, and I’m sure that many non-Muslims will confusingly assume that Muslims have a “December” holiday every year like Christians and Jews.  This, of course, is not the case, and we should try to clarify the nature of our lunar calendar for them.

1.  Survivor’s Guide to Desert Islands  (if that doesn’t exist, someone should write it).
2. The Qur’an
3. Nahjul-Balagha
4. Any book about Mulla Nasruddin (I’ll need humor and some spirituality rolled into one).
5. Survivor’s Guide to Escaping Desert Islands (yes, definitely)
6. Mathnawi (Maulana Rumi will comfort me on my lonely nights)
7. Essentials of Islamic Metaphysics (since I’ll have time, I can finally try to figure out this book).
8. A book with blank pages (so I can write my own)
9. A Thousand and One Nights (I love the stories, and it just sounds appropriate)
10. Survivor’s Guide to Accepting that You Will Not Be Rescued, including the 3-step easy guide to learning any island language so you can marry the native girl stranded on the island with you.

That is all for now.

For those unaware, niqab is a complete covering where only the eyes are visible. My co-worker’s argument and the argument of the state of Florida, is that, after 9/11, police need to be able to quickly and easily identify “terrorists?” The word terrorists is in quotes because I have serious doubts about their line of reasoning.

It is flimsy at best. First, there is no law on the books in Florida preventing a person from getting a license without a photo at all, let alone a veiled photo. Revoking the woman’s license was illegal, but they got away with it for the same reason Bush got away with illegal wire-tapping: fear. Americans are afraid, and nothing represents their fear more than a Muslim woman wearing a veil. She is mysterious, shady, and probably a terrorist in the making (if not one already). Right?

I, like most Muslims, do not believe that the niqab is required by shari’ah, but a minority of Muslims do. And is not this a country that upholds the religious rights of all, even a minority of a minority?

There are really two questions:

1. Are photos truly a reliable form of identification?
2. Will having photo identification in any way curb terrorist activity?

The answer to both is no, and here’s why:

1. People have the ability to change the way they look very easily.  Women do it all the time.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen a woman after a year or so and could hardly recognize her.  Different hair, different make-up, even a little plastic surgery, and a tiny little driver’s license photo is useless.  The truth is that a photo is completely unreliable and there is no way of knowing that the person who took the photo was indeed the person the license claims to be.  Why?  The BMV does not require photo identification.  As long as you can produce a social security card or even a piece of paper saying you once had a social security card, you can claim to be anyone.

More reliable identification methods include fingerprints and, guess what, eyes.  Yes, iris and retinas are very hard to fake.  Unlike faces and hair, you can definitely ID someone based on their eyes.  In order to accommodate niqab, all the BMV would have to do would be to take a zoomed-in picture of the woman’s eyes.  She’d have no way to fake her identity.  In fact, it would be more reliable than photos.  The flaw is not in the claim against taking the photos but in the concept of photo identification itself.  It is unreliable, and my second point further illustrates this.

2.  You’re a criminal on the run.  The police are after you.  You’re in disguise.  You’re carrying photo identification?  Uh, no.  Criminals don’t do this, and trust me, terrorists definitely don’t do this.  Even after 9/11, the authorities still couldn’t identify the terrorists.  They had names and photos, but the names were as common in the arab world as “John Smith” in America and the photos could have easily been forged.

Furthermore, if a niqabi was really prepared to commit a terrorist attack, why would the lack of a driver’s license stand in her way?  She could hop on the next bus downtown and blow herself up.

The truth is that the objections of the state of Florida, of my co-worker, and of anyone else claiming that if a woman fails to show all of her face for a driver’s license photo, “the terrorists win,” are just spreading FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt).  It is not based on anything credible, relevant to criminal justice, the war on terror, or the first amendment.  It is simply another way the government is taking away our freedoms.  Today it is the freedom of a young veiled Muslim woman, but tomorrow it might be blue-eyed, blond-haired, Christian Sally from Newport, Indiana.  Then, we’ll see if people are so quick to dismiss the First Amendment we all claim to hold dearly but very rarely defend when it comes to the “other.”

available at inminds.co.uk

Please read it and let me know your thoughts.

“The US President (George W. Bush) made an atomic bomb threat,” Chevez said on Thursday, referring to Bush’s war rhetoric against Iran.

“In other words, he’s threatening a third world war but now with atomic weapons.

It’s like he should be taken to the psychiatric hospital. I think he’s on the edge of the psychiatric hospital,” he added.

Full story

Collective punishment.  Sounds a bit like Nazi Germany doesn’t it?  Their oppressors became their teachers.

It is reported that Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq (peace be upon him) said:

Truthfulness is a light which radiates its reality in its own world: it is like the sun, from whose reality everything seeks light without any decrease occurring in this reality. A truthful person, in fact, is a man who believes every liar, due to the reality of his own truthfulness. It means that nothing which is opposed to truthfulness, nothing, even, which is not truthfulness, is permitted to coexist with it; just as happened with Adam, who believed Iblis when he lied because Iblis had sworn a false oath to him and there was no lying in Adam. Allah said,

We did not find in him any determination. (20:115)

because Iblis originated something previously unknown, both outwardly and inwardly. Iblis will be gathered with his lie, and he will never benefit from the truthfulness of Adam.

Yet it benefited Adam that he believed the lie of Iblis, as Allah testified for him when He said that he was not constant in what was contrary to his custom. This really means that his being chosen was not at all diminished by Satan’s lies.

– Lantern of the Path

Oh yeah, and Eid Mubarak to you all.

My advice to any young brothers out there: when it comes time to choose a wife, think deeply about it.  Certain physical and even personality traits will come and go, but a sister who is serious about the Deen, someone who has a connection with Allah that cannot be broken, that is priceless and timeless.

Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq (peace be upon him) narrated that once a man came to the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him and his family peace) and asked him to give him a piece of advice.  The Prophet asked him three times: “Will you make a point of following the advice if I advise you?”, to which the man responded each time, “Yes, O Prophet of Allah.”

So, the Prophet continued, “Then I advise you that when you intend to carry out an action, consider its consequences first.  If they are sound, then go ahead with it, and if they are corrupt, then abandon it.”

– From Wasa’il-al-Shi’a by Shaykh al-Hurr al-Amili in the book “Jihad al-Nafs” #20516.

It’s called, Sunan An-Nabi: A Collection of Narrations on the Conduct and Customs of the Noble Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him and his family peace).

The original work was written by the venerable ‘Allamah Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Taba’taba’i (may Allah make his grave fragrant) and was translated by Tahir Ridha Jaffer.

Here is an excerpt from the back cover:

Outsiders have understood his political genius, his power of oratory, and his great statesmanship, but few have understood how he could be the religious and spiritual guide of humanity and how his life could be emulated by those who aspire proximity to the Almighty Creator.  From the Muslim point of view, the Prophet is the symbol of perfection of both the human person and human society.  He is the prototype of the human individual and the human collectivity and as such, he bears certain characteristics in the eyes of the Muslims which can only be discovered by studying the accounts of conduct and behavior – as seen in this monumental work, Sunan an-Nabi.

In modern secular societies, success often means wealth, so the judgment of someone’s success is based on the amount of money they’ve earned, the investments they’ve made, and even the fame that they’ve achieved as a result of their wealth.  It is only then, that we say of someone, “He is a successful man” or “She is a successful woman.”

For Imam Ali and all of those who walk the path of righteousness, success is something more profound.  To be successful is to know God, and once a person truly knows God, he serves Him in his life.  Therefore, success comes from service to God.  The successful ones, the victorious ones, are those who strive in the way of God with their minds, their words, their wealth, and their lives.

“If moderation and gentleness were physical creations that could be perceived, there would be nothing more beautiful, out of all that Allah has created, than these two attributes.”

– “Jihad al-Nafs” (from Wasa’il al-Shi’a) by  Shaykh Muhammad b. al-Hasan al-Hurr al-’Amili (#20482)

The New One Ummah Network 

by Tavis Adibudeen, Director of Publishing

“Verily, this community (ummah) of yours is one community (ummah), and I am your Lord, therefore, worship only Me.” (Qur’an 21:92)

For the past decade, One Ummah Network has striven to uphold this principle of unity (tawhid). As is narrated from the Messenger of Allah, the Muslim ummah is one body; whenever one part of the body hurts, the rest of it shares in that pain, and when one portion experiences felicity, the entire body shares in that joy.

Now, in a time when outside forces are consciously seeking to divide Muslims along political, ethnic, and even sectarian lines, One Ummah Network reaffirms our commitment to unity and peace. Our main principles have always and continue to be the following:

1. Educating Muslims about Islam is the best way to unite them.
2. All people who claim to be Muslim must be respected as such.
3. All people, Muslim and non-Muslim are welcome to contribute to this cause.

The World Wide Web has evolved rapidly over the years. OneUmmah.net began in 1999 as a small web site that mainly relied on rhetoric to promote unity. As I grew in my understanding, the site also grew, and I realized that unity would be achieved not through preaching but through active dialog and by educating each other about our similarities and differences.

In the 1990s, email mailing lists were extremely popular, and we employed that method to disseminate our message. At the turn of the century, discussion boards rose to popularity, and MuslimMessage.net succeeded our mailing list and became one of the premier forums for Muslim expression on the Internet. Now, as the popularity of discussion boards begins to wane and MuslimMessage.net seems to have run the course of its short life, community sites, portals, blogs, podcasts, and other open methods of content delivery and interaction seem to be riding the wave of the future.

In light of the above, we are reorganizing OneUmmah.net to suit the developing trends. Over the course the next few weeks, during this sacred month of Ramadan, you will notice the following improvements and changes:

1. MuslimMessage.net will be shut down. Most of the articles in the Question/Answer section will be archived in our FAQ section. The domain name will be allocated to other resources or organizations.

2. Registration is now open on the OneUmmah.net main site. Users will have their own profiles, can upload images, connect with other users, comment on articles, rate their favorite content, share content, post videos, and many more features.

3. We will have a full staff of writers as well as guest authors in order to keep a steady flow of knowledge on a weekly basis.

4. The Muslim Writers Society will become more of a standard publication. We have three editors who will more closely select content and also post stricter guidelines for submission.

5. One Ummah will establish an advisory board of intellectuals and scholars from various schools of thought to guide our staff in better serving the community.

This is an exciting time for us at One Ummah Network, and we hope that, insha`Allah, it will be an exciting time for our visitors and friends. As always, if you would like to contribute now, in the future, or on a regular basis, you can contact us at any time. I pray that Allah blesses this venture to be a successful one and that this Ramadan proves to be a fruitful month filled with blessings for us all. May Allah send his peace and blessings upon the last Prophet, upon his honorable family, upon his righteous companions, and upon all followers of truth and justice.

The only problem is, I didn’t make this blog, yet the user wears my name. No other information is given. I’ve heard of this happening to famous people, but I’m not famous…really, I’m not.

“Oh you who believe, remember Allah, remembering often.” (33:41)

Imam Ja’far b. Muhammad as-Sadiq (peace be upon him) reportedly said:

“There is a limit to everything, but there is no limit to the remembrance of Allah. Excess in anything is disliked by Allah, but Allah’s love increases proportionately to the degree of His remembrance a man commemorates in his thoughts and actions. Our true followers are those who, whenever free from their legitimate duties, remember Allah a great deal.”

“Everything has a pillar, and the pillar of this religion is understanding.”

and also:

“Everything has its own path, and the path to Paradise is knowledge.”

– Nahj Al-Fasahah, hadith no. 565 and 566

The Democratic forum has already passed, and the stage has been set for the Republican forum. As with the first one, all candidates were invited, but unlike the first one, many of the top candidates have declined, namely: Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, Senator John McCain, and Governor Mitt Romney.

This is no accident nor coincidence. The same candidates also failed to attend a forum hosted by the Hispanic community, and it only stands to reason that they have little or no interest in hearing the concerns of African American and Hispanic voters.

As to why any African American Republicans in America would vote for such hypocrites who do not even have the decency to listen to or address the concerns of their constituency is beyond me. It only confirms what most African Americans already knew: They don’t care about us. Spread the word.

Amazingly good and unexpected things always happen to me each Ramadan.  I pray for nothing less this year and pray that good will also come to you and yours.

My first one has to be about the Michael Vick case.

I’m not going to comment on whether I think he was treated fairly or on the media circus that has resulted from it. I just want to take this moment to tell Michael Vick how stupid it was to be involved with dog fighting.

He could’ve done cock fighting, gerbil fighting, heck, even people fighting wouldn’t have drawn the negative publicity and collective outcry of shame that dogfighting has rained on him.

This is America, land of baseball and apple pie, yes, but it is also land of the dogs. Dogs have their own houses, their own beds, their own dishes, toothbrushes, spas, doctors…need I go on? Think about it: Rin-tin-tin, Spuds MacKenzie, Scooby-Doo, Lassie, Benji, Snoopy, heck, even Cujo got respect from Americans.

For Americans, dogs are more important than just about anything else. Many Americans would rather have dogs than children. They love their dogs, Michael. Why would you hurt the one thing Americans would actually sacrifice themselves for? At one time, dogs probably had more rights than African Americans (no I’m not kidding).

This is serious business, folks. Michael Vick could have shot a black man in the back of the head in the middle of his front yard and buried him in plain sight, and it wouldn’t have generated as much anger from the American public.

But shooting a dog? Bro, you can forget it. Pack your bags. It’s not even about animal rights. Americans will kill bunnies to have nice looking makeup on their runway models. But dogs? No, you couldn’t even kill a dog for food if you were starving to death. It’s twisted but true. In America, all dogs go to Heaven, and all enemies of dogs go to Hell. And it’s hot, Michael, hotter than the hottest days in Atlanta.

This is not directly stated but is implied both by the title “progressive” (which means forward-moving, changing — essentially someone who embraces secularization) and by the suggestion that their passions (one featured Muslim is a punk rocker and another a comic book author) are somehow beyond the scope of traditional Islam.

What bothers me is not that these young people are seeking to define themselves but rather the title that they’ve chosen. It would seem that they were never properly educated about Islam. They have obviously failed to realize that Islam in itself is dynamic. For centuries classical Islamic civilization flourished in arts, science, technological development, culture, etc.

It was only after European colonization and the subsequent oppression of one ruthless dictator after another that much of the so-called “Muslim world” became stagnant. As one scholar mentioned, their shahadah was altered from being “There is no god but God and Muhammad is the Messenger of God” to “There is no Islam but Islam, and Muhammad is the Messenger of Islam.”

They morphed Islam from a path to awareness and submission to God with many shades of the spectrum into nothing more than a set of unchanging, unquestionable laws, many of which were not derived from shari’ah but rather from the culture of the society in which people lived.

These progressives are mostly the product of those “third world” countries where their ancient cultures have taken dominance not only over their social and economic lives but also over their understanding of Islam. It is skewed by their own ignorance and cultural norms.

The progressive movement is actually a movement to break away from their cultural shackles, not the shackles imposed upon them by Islam itself. As such, they should call themselves progressive Indians or progressive Arabs. The fact that they are Muslim has little to do with their cultural taboos or their rebellion against them.

As someone who converted to Islam, I never struggled with the questions or problems they’ve experience, except when one of their uncles tried to impose their understanding of Islam on me, which I either promptly rejected or studied and refuted. And that is ultimately what this progressive movement is fighting: older generations who are set in their cultural ways. But don’t make it about Islam, forming a new sect simply because you want to play punk music. It is foolish and ultimately arrogant. Islam has room for both the old culturalized uncle and the young punk rocker. Just call yourselves Muslims.

Path of Light
by Adib

Many things are happening. The older issue starts school tomorrow, inshaAllah (preschool that is). We’ve chosen what we think is a decent Islamic school.

The younger one, at 9 months, appears to be just about to start walking. She’s constantly on her feet now.

Me, I’m just trying to make a dollar out of 15 cents and keep my head above water. But I’ve never been happier. Allah is enough for me. SubhanAllah. Allah is enough for me.

“We’re like Fox News. Only smart. And not crazy. And we don’t lie.”

So true.

Much of what Muslims face today in their personal lives, family lives, and even political lives, center around a lack of understanding and application of ethics in relation to those areas of existence. We often turn to western ideas or even to our rationale to try to deal with them, failing to realize that Islam, if studied properly, can guide us even on the most difficult of paths.

If we can come to understand ourselves better, on a deeper level, we can enhance our virtues while also subduing whatever illnesses of the heart we posses. Not all solutions are in one particular act (whether praying, fasting, etc), but those solutions do exist with the right prescription. That requires an honest amount of introspection and also self-determination to be willing to solve one’s own issues or seek proper counsel.

1. Every morning, I have everything laid out and done the exact same way, otherwise I’ll forget stuff. My wallet, mobile phone, shoes, etc. are always in the same place. I also always leave about 15 minutes earlier than I need to. And I get up at the same time everyday, even on the weekends.

2. When I read parts of my book, I have no recollection of writing it, as though something possessed me and wrote it for me. I swear I’m not even really a good writer.

3. If it weren’t for my wife and kids interrupting me, I’d spend hours in front of the computer and forget to eat, sleep, and other important things. I would break for the bathroom and prayer, which leads to my next one.

4. If I miss a prayer, I actually feel it physically. It’s as though it makes me sick. Missing a meal has little effect on me.

5. I don’t use any Microsoft products. I have five computers in my house, and all of them run flavors of GNU/Linux.

6. I hate gum. I hate chewing it and hate listening to other people chew it. I think it’s disgusting.

7. When I was a child, I always wore socks, even in bed.

8. I like to take things apart (and sometimes fix things too)…you know gadgets, computers, houses. I recently halved my humongous desk so that I could have more space in my office. I also cannibalize old parts, a bit like MacGuyver.

Hmmm…let’s see. I tag: SoulElixir, IzzyMo, and Planet Grenada…oh yeah, and Dervish (no just kidding. That would perpetuate the cycle of violence).

[Note: I just tried to spell-check this post and couldn't figure out why it was saying that everything, even words like "that" and "lady" were misspelled. Then I realized I had the Arabic spellchecker on from the last thing I typed. Good thing I wasn't typing a book -- If there was a #9, it would be that I cannot survive without spell check].

Yes, sweet little Zahra has entered the world of imaginary friends. This one is from a TV show called Lazy Town, but apparently, he’s now bumming off of us in our own house. The nerve!

“Don’t sit there mommy! Pixel’s sitting there.”

Pixel. What kind of name is Pixel?

I was one who originally left Compiz with the Beryl crowd. It was just more exciting: more plugins, better community support, and eventually it developed into something more polished and easy to use (handy configuration utility, including a tray icon for easy starting and stopping).

Compiz-Fusion is intended to eventually blend the best of both worlds, and there have been many people on the web already singing its praises. So, I decided to give it a try on my Kubuntu Feisty box.

Needless to say, I was very disappointed. Many of the problems that plagued compiz when I used it over a year ago are still present. It’s still much slower than Beryl, and, worst of all, there is still no fool-proof system tray icon. To top it all off, it’s still largely Gnome-centered.

So, I’ve decided to stay with Beryl until at least October. Why October you ask? By then, we might have a seriously working beta or release candidate of KDE4, which will hopefully ship with a new native KWIN composite system. At that time, I will kiss Beryl and Compiz goodbye, God willing.

After waiting for many months for high definition support, geexbox has made an unofficial release, which I have tried and am very pleased. It’s like coming home after a long journey.

If you haven’t tried Geexbox (a LiveCD and installable home media center operating system), give a whirl. You can burn their preconfigured ISO to CD or use their simple ISO generator to add features and customize your version. You won’t be disappointed.

“If a believer after death leaves even one paper which has religious knowledge, then that paper will become a curtain between him and Hell, and for each letter that is written on the paper, Allah (highly glorified and exalted) will give the writer one city which will be seven times broader than a city in this world.”

— Bihar al-Anwar, Vol 2, pg. 144.

“I asked Abu `Abd Allah (al-’Imam al Sadiq) (peace be upon him) regarding the words of God, `God’s creation (fitrah) upon which He originated mankind‘ (Qur’an 30:30).

The Imam(peace be upon him) answered: `He originated mankind upon tawhid (unity, singularity, oneness of being).”‘

–Al-Kulayni, al-Kafi 2, 12, hadith No.2.

In his commentary, Imam Khumayni, may Allah sanctify him, explains:

“Let it be known that among God-given instincts one is the belief in the existence of the Sacred and Sublime Source of everything; the second is the belief in It’s Unity, i.e. tawhid; the third is the innate belief that that Sacred Being encompasses all perfection; the fourth is the instinctive belief in the Day of Resurrection; and the fifth is the innate faith in nubuwwah (prophethood); the sixth is the instinctive belief in the existence of angels, of holy spirits, in the revelation of scriptures and the path of Divine guidance. Some of the above-mentioned are laws of nature and some others are their necessary corollaries. The faith in God, the belief in angels, the belief in the revelation of Scriptures, in God-sent Apostles, in the Day of Resurrection, and in the Din-which is firm, stable and straight-is a truth which underlines the entire life of the human species…”

– Khumayni, Ruhullah al-Musawi, An exposition of 40 ahadith narrated through the Prophet and his Ahl al-bayt.

To clarify, I’m interested in new western groups (not necessarily cults) that often focus their attention to a guru or adopt some elements of eastern thought (whether it be yoga, Buddhism, etc).

One thing that strikes me immediately is the overemphasis on the self by many of these groups. Whereas traditional eastern spirituality focused on defeating the self, much of new-age spiritual thought seems to focus on uplifting of the self, to the point of almost deification.

Self-help, as it is called, soon becomes self-worship. That is one side of the coin. The other side is the self-enlightened guru who deserves even more worship from his followers because his “self” is even higher than theirs. For lack of better terminology, I’ll call this the “Oprah-syndrome.” (not to say that Oprah is a cult leader — geez, it’s just an analogy!)

The new-age guru is not an ascetic, far from it. He/she is usually rich, in some cases, filthy rich (and I use the term filthy in the sense of “dirty money”).

Although the truer forms of new-age spirituality certainly do have elements of bettering society, protecting the environment, and general good will, too many fall short of this, only to be trapped in self/guru worship.

In a sense, it is akin the business pyramid scheme (although this is a spiritual pyramid scheme), where only those at the top reap the benefits. Those at the bottom work diligently to recruit more like themselves, with the promise of becoming like the Oprah…I mean the guru. When they do not, they become disillusioned and usually leave the religion or cult. Nevertheless, they are easily replaced with new recruits.

Islam is not immune to the infection of new-age groups. The Nation of Islam is one that comes to mind (although very little of their focus is on actual spirituality — they still preach the “do-for-self” motto while mostly encouraging the followers to do for the “guru”, in this case the religious leader/minister).

Still, enlightenment can be achieved, and I’m sure there are authentic gurus out there, but there is a sea of misinformation, complex doctrines, and fresh cash to swim through, whereas the path of ihsan (perfection) that comes through submission to God (al-Islam), has always been clear.

But, before you get out your flag-burning material, you should know that it was in the script. The show is being canceled to “make room for new programmes.”

The craziest part of all: the above was not satire.

A group of the people of Paradise will get worried about some of the people of Hell, and will (therefore) inquire:

“Why are you in Hell? By God, we did not enter Paradise except through what we learned from you.”

The Hell-bound will reply: “We did not practice what we preached.” (literally: we spoke but did not act).

– Nahj al-Fasahah (hadith #70)

Perhaps this is their way of reducing him to nothingness…becoming the deckhand of his pirating secular oppressors. Even politically, he’s an apostate. Was he really hiding from Muslims all those years or from the embarrassment of being famous due to controversy rather than good writing.

And so, I issue him congratulations. Whatever it is he desires from this world, I’m sure he will have it.

Whoever desires the harvest of the hereafter, we give him increase in his harvest, and whoever desires the harvest of this world, We give him thereof, and he has no portion in the hereafter. (Qur’an 42:20)

Yeah, that’s a mouthful. It’s actually two books translated. It also includes Lawa’ih, translated by William Chittick and juxtaposed with the Chinese translation.

Dr. Murata offers plenty of commentary to explain why and how she accomplished the book. Her earlier work, The Tao of Islam, was an attempt to explain Islam through the eyes of someone with a background in eastern philosophy and religion. Interestingly, she was unaware at the time that Chinese ulama had attempted the same thing (and, according to her, much more brilliantly), the earliest of which was Wang Tai-yu’s “Great Learning.”

As the early Muslims of China gradually integrated into Chinese society (and their primary language evolved from Persian to Chinese, it became necessary (in fact crucial) that the general populace was able to approach Islam in the Chinese language and also through the lens of Neo-Confucian understanding.

This required the ulama to not only translate the words but also translate the meaning into Chinese idioms and philosophy. It proved not only that Islam was versatile enough to be translated into any language and culture but more specifically that even eastern philosophy/religion, which is not especially concerned with the specific concept of a deity, was reasonably compatible with Islamic theology. Thus, the Principle of Confucianism was adequate in explaining the concept of tawhid and ultimately the attributes and transcendence of the Divine Presence (Allah, Most High).

I’ve barely started the book, so I’ll post more information when I finish it, inshaAllah.

Soon will We show them our Signs in the (furthest) regions (of the earth), and in their own souls, until it becomes manifest to them that this is the Truth. Is it not enough that your Lord witnesses all things? (Qur’an 41:53)

The outer self is only the shadow. It is but a vestige of the inner light. That is the greatest sign from the Most High. The signs (ayaat) around us can initiate our reconnection to that spark of light, but for the proof (hujjat) of the Divine Presence, one must look inwardly.

“You think the shadow is the substance.” –Rumi

“Oh you who believe, remember Allah, remembering abundantly..” (Qur’an 33:41)

We should not think that only American corporations are involved. Not to be outdone by the US, Canadian and British mercenaries are also raking in the cash. According to some reports, there are now more mercenaries fighting in Iraq than actual troops.

With that revelation, I feel compelled to clarify that just because the corporations call places like the U.S. home, doesn’t mean that their mercenaries are even citizens. Many of the mercenaries are from places like Columbia or even Chile where former commandos loyal to ruthless dictator Augusto Pinochet have signed on to assist in the Iraqi genocide.

This seems to be the intent of the current U.S. administration. It is not an accident that these corporations are now fighting wars, but rather the dream of a corporate-run state, envisioned by Vice President Dick Cheney long before he took office.

Just to give an idea of how these hired killers operate, take notice of the following story:

In April 2004, mercenaries working for a private militia named Blackwater were guarding US occupation headquarters in Najaf when a protest by Shia Iraqi civilians began to stir outside. According to the Washington Post and eyewitnesses, Blackwater opened fire on the protesters, unleashing so many rounds so rapidly they had to pause every 15 minutes to allow their gun barrels to cool down…

You can click the link for the rest of the gritty details of the story. I cannot even bring myself to quote them here. God save us.

Amir Sulaiman’s latest: Like A Thief In The Night was on my Amazon.com wishlist. So, she ordered it for me, and it came probably a week before my birthday. She assumed that it was the correct CD, but when she gave it to me and I opened it, I found Isaac Hayes’ Shaft in my hand.

How on God’s green earth do you mistake Shaft for Amir Sulaiman? It’s not like the CD covers look remotely similar.

Anyway, she complained, and they sent the correct one, received yesterday. SubhanAllah, it takes me back to my roots. Hard hitting, east coast beats under fresh, pleasantly poetic lyrics. He transcends boundaries of race and religion and delivers exactly what the dying hip-hop community needs. It is rich with a tapestry of self-reflection, calls to action, lamenting the suffering of the down-trodden, and foretelling of a victory for the righteous. Absent is the typical lyrical bravado and self-aggrandizement of most rappers (even many Muslim rappers).

Make no mistake about it, he is Muslim and apparently a lover of Ahlul-bayt (peace be upon them), and it’s not unusual for him to fall into the ecstasy of his own lyrics and start chanting “la ilaha il-Allah (there is no god but Allah).” In that way it has the symbolic texture of classical Islamic poetry…as though it were the modern-day qasida or ghazal.

Still, his lyrics are also very political, very pro-black, and very anti-oppression. He is part of the new wave of hip-hop artists trying to reclaim the culture that was abducted and molested by the mainstream music industry. And with guest appearances by cultural pioneers such as the Last Poets and hip-hop reformist and fellow Muslim Mos Def, the message certainly hits home.

The only complaint I could really have about the CD is that it’s not enough. I’d like to sit and pick this brother’s brain for hours, and unfortunately, I only get a little over 50 minutes. May Allah reward his efforts and purify the bounties that he receives through his jihad. I give Like A Thief In The Night a five [change gonna come by the fire by the gun by the word by the deed by the heaven by the street]…out of five.

Ibn Arabi promised him that he would, and so when he arrived in Cairo, he asked the people in the city where this sheikh lived and they said, “Do you see the huge palace on the top of the hill? He lives there.” So he went to this beautiful palace on the top of the hill, knocked on the door, and was received very well. They brought him into a large, luxurious waiting room, gave him food to eat, and made him comfortable. But the sheikh had gone to visit the king. And Sufis don’t normally visit kings or people in high positions. It’s forbidden because they can become an additional curtain between us and God, an additional attachment to the world.

While Ibn Arabi was in this luxurious room waiting for the sheikh, he looked out the window and saw a procession coming. The sheikh was riding a beautiful Arabian horse and was wearing a big turban, diamond rings, a fur coat, and had a whole honor guard of soldiers at his side, and he arrived with great pomp at the palace. But he was a very nice man, and came and greeted Ibn Arabi warmly, and they sat down and started talking. At some point in the conversation, Ibn Arabi said, “You have a student in Tunisia.” And the sheikh replied, “Yes, I know.” And Ibn Arabi said, “He asked for your spiritual advice.” “Tell my student,” the sheikh said, “If he’s so attached to this world, he’s never going to get anywhere.”

So this was confusing to Ibn Arabi, but on his trip back, he stopped in Tunisia. He went to the fisherman there, who immediately asked, “Did you see my sheikh?” “Yes, I saw your sheikh,” he replied. “What did he say?” asked the fisherman. And Ibn Arabi, looking uncomfortable, said, “Well, your sheikh, you know, he lives in great pomp and great luxury.” The fisherman replied, “Yes, I know. What did he say?” So Ibn Arabi told him: “He said as long as you’re so attached to this world, you are never going to get anywhere.” And the fisherman cried and cried. “He’s right,” he said, “each day, when I give those three fish bodies to the people, my heart goes with them. Each day, I wish I could have a whole fish instead of just a head, while my sheikh lives in great luxury but doesn’t care at all about it. Whether he has it or not, it doesn’t touch him.”

– Traditional story, as told in an interview by Sheikh Tosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi

Do they not reflect within themselves? (30:8)

The Messenger of Allah reportedly saids, “Whoever knows himself knows his Lord.”

A man came to the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him and his family peace) and said, “O Messenger of Allah, how does one arrive at knowledge of the Real?”

The Prophet replied, “By knowing oneself.”

Amirul-Mu`mineen Ali bin Abi Talib (peace be upon him) once said, “Knowledge of the self is the most useful form of knowledge.”

– from Prophetic Traditions in Islam: On the Authority of the Family of the Prophet compiled by Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri

I love the store, but there is one problem. Their size charts assume that everyone is a lanky beanpole. Maybe it’s a cultural thing, but men in my family have big chests and broad shoulders. I wear a size 44 in chest comfortably. 43 starts to get tight and 42 makes me feel like I have a kid’s shirt on.

According to Shukr, 44, which is an XL (extra large), is for people over 6 feet tall! Imagine the chest on a 6-foot+ guy only being 44 inches, hence the beanpole reference. Anyway, my shirts end up being below my knees, so I have to get my dear mother to hem them (yeah, my wife just doesn’t do that kind of stuff).

There you have it readers: the silliest post I’ve ever written.

I’ve been wondering lately what precedence there is for enforcing hijab.  By precedence, I mean the historical legal framework under which a law can be established.  In this case, I am referring directly to the lifespan of the Messenger of God (May peace and blessings be upon him and his family).  Was there ever an incident during the Prophet’s life of a woman who refused to cover?  If so, how was it handled?  How was it enforced?  Or was it enforced at all?

I once sent an inquiry to the office of the Supreme Leader, Ayatullah Ali Khamene`i regarding whether or not a state could enforce hijab.  His official response was “Situations vary,” and it then referred me to the chapter of his rulings on enjoining the good and forbidding the wrong.

It was not the answer I expected, and it leaves open the question of whether enforcing it is a legal necessity, following the shari’ah, or simply the prerogative of the jurist-led state.  If anyone out there has any insight into this matter, please share.

All of those issues are real and must be remedied, but they will not be addressed until the Palestinians deal with the issue of leadership. For decades, the leadership of the Palestinians has been monopolized by Fatah, mainly under the leadership of Yasser Arafat.

There is little doubt that Arafat loved his people and wanted to eventually see those people liberated, but he was not a good leader, was certainly not qualified to make any of their dreams reality, and eventually drowned himself in his own corruption. Mahmoud Abbas is, unfortunately, even worse. He has remained in a bent-over position for Israel since taking office as “President.”

G.W. Bush and his administration pushed for general elections. In fact, despite everyone else (except the palestinian people) begging him not to, Bush insisted that they be allowed to democratically elect their representatives and their future. Enter: Hamas, a well-organized, well-funded, well-respected, and well-on-their-way-to-liberation…uh, terrorist organization?

Yes, the Palestinian people chose their leadership, undoubtedly the best leadership, but instead of supporting Hamas’ transition from armed resistance to politics, the West punished the people. As a result, the people are more divided, more confused, and more angry at Israel and America than ever before. Fatah al-Islam is only the beginning, and it will only get worst.

Look to any great revolution, and behind it, you will find a great leader. People like Khomeini, Mandela, and many others had all been accused of terrorism, but it was their charisma and unflinching faith, not their controversy, that drove them to success.

It will only get worse before it gets better. The pointless wall that Israel is building around the occupied territories will eventually crumble. The only question is, will it crumble under a wrecking ball or under bombs? Let us pray that the occupiers wise up and opt for a peaceful two-state solution, before those they have oppressed leave them no choice.

Anyway, the Department of Public Works (i.e. waste management) said that they were no longer picking up dead birds because of the bird flu. So, they told us to call the Health Department…problem is, they don’t answer their phone.

Is that a bad sign?

You can’t find peace, unless you address the existing issues, honestly, and frankly. …

There’s no doubt, now, that a minority of Israelis are perpetrating apartheid on the people in Palestine. The Palestinian people.

It’s not based on race, as I make very clear in my book. It’s not a racist inclination.

It’s a desire for land.
A desire for Palestinian land. …

This occupation, and confiscation, and colonization of land, in the West Bank, is the prime cause of the continuation of violence in the Middle East.

And, what is being done to the Palestinians, under Israeli domination, is really atrocious.

It’s a terrible affliction, on these people.

“The right of your mother is that you know that she carried you where no one carries anyone, she gave to you of the fruit of her heart that which no one gives to anyone, and she protected you with all of her organs. She was highly delighted, happy, and eager in enduring the harm, pains, heaviness, and grief until the hand of power saved her from you and took you out to this earth. She did not care if she went hungry as long as you ate, if she was thirsty as long as you drank, if she was naked as long as you were clothed, if she was in the sun as long as you were in the shade, if she was miserable as long as you were happy. Her abdomen was your housing, her lap your seat, her breast your nourishment, and her soul was your fort. She gave up sleep for your sake, she protected you from heat and cold, all in order that you might belong to her. You should thank her for all of that, but you will not be able to demonstrate your gratitude, except through God’s help and granting of success (tawfeeq).”

– Risalat al-Huquq (Treatise on Rights) by Imam ‘Ali ibn al-Husayn ibn Fatimah bint Muhammad (peace be upon them)

Happy Mother’s Day.

Do not forsake certainty for doubt, and what is clear for what is hidden. Do not pass judgement on what you cannot see because of something you are told about it. Allah despises slander and bad opinion of your believing brothers. What then does He think of boldness in attributing a false statement, false belief or lie to the Companions of the Messenger of Allah?

As He said,

When you welcomed it with your tongues, and spoke with your mouths that which you had no knowledge of, and you deemed it an easy matter while with Allah it was grievous. (24:15)

As long as you can find a way to speak well and act well of people whether or not they are present. Do not do anything else. Allah said,

Speak to men good words. (2:83)

Know that Allah chose companions for His Prophet, honoured them with the noblest mark of honour and robed them in the robe of support, victory and the correct keeping of his company in desirable and undesirable situations. He made the tongue of His Prophet speak about their virtues, excellent qualities and marks of honour; so believe in their love, mention their excellence, and beware of the company of people of innovation, for it will make disbelief and clear loss grow in the heart. If the excellence of some of them is not clear to you, then leave them to the Knower of the Unseen, and say, ‘O Allah, I love anyone You and Your Messenger love, and I hate anyone You and Your Messenger hate.’ There is no obligation beyond that.

– Misbah al-Shari’ah wa Miftah al-Haqiqah translated by Shaykh Fadlallah Haeri

You will find that her art carries the tradition of Islamic calligraphy and abstract, while also fusing modern elements, undoubtedly from her own experiences growing up in the southern U.S.

We need to see more of this in the West from Muslims. Instead of completely mimicking other cultures, we must start to formulate our own identity through both cultural appropriation of the good aspects of our society and the natural influence of our Islamic character.

So anyway, mad props to Sister Izdihar.

“I am totally opposed to any attack on Iran. It would have disastrous consequences for Iran, the U.S., the region, and the world. It would put 140,000 U.S. troops in great jeopardy. It would expose Israel to maximum peril. Even the talk about such an attack should be subject to a review not only by Congress, but by an international tribunal. Iran has neither the intention nor the capability of attacking the United States, yet the administration has been preparing for some time for an aggressive war against Iran.

“Congress must insist the administration come forward now with facts, not fiction, regarding Iran. We must not allow the President to remain unchallenged while he continues to use the media to create a pretext for an illegal war.

“Congress must insist the President come to the full Congress for permission to take any action against Iran. If the President proceeds to attack Iran after an express congressional authorization under article I, section 8, both he and the Vice President should be subject to impeachment.

“We must take a stand against aggressive war or we will lose our democracy.”

None of the other candidates: Obama, Clinton, Edwards, or any of the republicans have ruled out attacking Iran.  None of the others consistently voted against attacking Iraq and funding the continued occupation.  Kucinich did, consistently.

I’m almost tempted to vote next year.

“The various modes of worship, which prevailed in the Roman world, were all considered by the people, as equally true; by the philosopher, as equally false; and by the magistrate, as equally useful.”

– Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.  Chapter 2.

Our little suburban neighborhood has a playground. Zahra recently spent the day there. Click the image above for a larger version, as well as a few more snapshots.

As if the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan weren’t sinister enough with legitimate soldiers doing the Bush Administration’s dirty work, an article by Jeremy Scahill reveals that firms such as Blackwater are employing thousands of private contractors to engage in military activities within Iraq and Aghanistan, as well as recent activities near or possibly even in Iran.To quote the article:

While many of them perform logistical support activities for American troops, including the sort of laundry, fuel and mail delivery, and food-preparation work that once was performed by soldiers, tens of thousands of them are directly engaged in military and combat activities. According to the Government Accountability Office, there are now some 48,000 employees of private military companies in Iraq. These not-quite G.I. Joes, working for Blackwater and other major US firms, can clear in a month what some active-duty soldiers make in a year.

Even more disturbing is that they have almost no accountability, either in Iraqi or U.S. courts. In the cases where they have been accused of committing crimes in Iraq, they are whisked out of Iraq by their private firm.

If all of that doesn’t sound eerily Orwellian enough for you, consider this:

Today, Blackwater has become nothing short of the Bush administration’s well-paid Praetorian Guard. It protects the US ambassador and other senior officials in Iraq as well as visiting Congressional delegations; it trains Afghan security forces and was deployed in the oil-rich Caspian Sea region, setting up a “command and control” center just miles from the Iranian border. The company was also hired to protect FEMA operations and facilities in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, where it raked in $240,000 a day from the American taxpayer, billing $950 a day per Blackwater contractor.

Since September 11, 2001, the company has invested its lucrative government payouts in building an impressive private army. At present, it has forces deployed in nine countries and boasts a database of 21,000 additional troops at the ready, a fleet of more than twenty aircraft, including helicopter gun-ships, and the world’s largest private military facility–a 7,000 acre compound near the Great Dismal Swamp of North Carolina. It recently opened a new facility in Illinois (“Blackwater North”) and is fighting local opposition to a third planned domestic facility near San Diego (“Blackwater West”) by the Mexican border. It is also manufacturing an armored vehicle (nicknamed the “Grizzly”) and surveillance blimps.

But all of that is not even the topic of the article. The Democratic party, supposedly championing the anti-war cause has been quietly supporting these mercenaries and have, until this day, done nothing to stop funding to them. Even if the “withdrawal plan” were approved by Bush, the funding for his private army would still exist. Through the back door, he has doubled the military force in Iraq using “soldiers” who are above the law…all laws.

The democrats want to send FBI investigators to Iraq to “regulate” the activities of the mercenaries instead of taking them out of Iraq altogether. This will only serve to legitimize them, with no real way for even a large party of investigators to monitor 126,000 overpaid fighters. There are no official records of who is there, how many of them have been killed, what crimes they have committed, or who they ultimately answer to (it obviously isn’t the US government). As the name mercenary implies, they are for sale to the highest bidder. It is their best interest to keep the war going. It makes you wonder if maybe it is the President’s agenda as well.

In reality, however, they are not traditionalists or even imitators of traditionalists. Their movement is a modern phenomenon and is not even loosely based upon the principles of Islam. Their political (not religious) ideology is not even exclusive to Islam. Ahmad explains:

“Neither Muslims nor Jews nor Hindus are unique in this respect. All variants of contemporary ‘fundamentalism’ reduce complex religious systems and civilizations to one or another version of modern fascism. They are concerned with power not with the soul, with the mobilization of people for political purposes rather than with sharing or alleviating their sufferings and aspirations. Theirs is a very limited and time bound political agenda.”

A habitable planet has been found. Let’s call it New Caprica! Oh wait, it already has a name: Gliese 581 c (ugh!).

A dress never tasted so good.

Try and think of the last Disney film you have seen that features a protagonist that has both parents throughout the entire feature. There are truly some discrepancies with this trend such as The Incredibles or Hercules, but the numbers that support this idea are alarming.

Read the full article

We left the masjid that day, dumbfounded.

OK, this situation is a little overdramatized, but the point is that the way women are treated in the masjid is preposterous. Call me progressive if you want to, but I see no reason or textual justification for separating women into another room. I’m not saying we should all pray on the same row together, but can’t we at least be in the same room?

But if they absolutely must be placed in another room (due to lack of space), can’t we at least get decent working sound systems? They’re too loud in the brotherss area and not working at all half of the time in the sisters’ area.

Let’s get it together, people.

So, anyway, as I was minding my own business, strolling on the promenade, the hoopoe gracefully landed on my shoulder. What it whispered in my ear was both pleasing and awe inspiring…

If you know of any good Mawlid activities, please post them in the comments. They can be solitary or group activities. I’m looking for ways to remember the Prophet on his birthday by doing meaningful activities.

The Story of Babak, the Lost Dervish

The Gazelle and the Wild Hyenas

I encourage comments and suggestions.

Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 74, pg 177

As a result, their creed, juriprudence, and even their declaration (shahadah) differs from the majority of Muslims. (For most Muslims, there is a shahadatayn, to bear witness that there is only one God and also that Muhammad is the Messenger of God. The Submitters only witness the former).

The language of their writing seems to indicate that those who do not follow this path are not only wrong but are idolaters who barely, if at all, belong in the fold of Islam. As to whether their followers themselves have such strong views, I do not know.

Rashad Khalifa, the founder, won critical acclaim around the Muslim world for his number 19 theory. There was a time when I could not go anywhere without some Muslim talking about about the “miracle” of the number 19. Eventually, however, it came to light how the discovery of that miracle led Khalifa into self aggrandizement. He was elevated to the status of the “Messenger of the Covenant”; the compilers of the Qur’an had “mistakenly” added two verses to the end of a sura that did not fit his perfect number 19 theory. He deleted them.

It reminds me of the slogan of the khawarij: “No authority except for God.” Yes, that’s true, but God has made the people on earth His vicegerents (khulufa), as the Qur’an itself declares. Similarly, the community of Submitters has only replaced one set of hadith books for another. Instead of following the companions of the Prophet and/or the Imams of Ahlul-bayt, they have their own imam, one who declared himself some type of semi-rasul (messenger) — not quite a prophet, apparently.

Many sunni and shi’i Muslims that I’ve encountered are very bitter and resentful towards the Submitters. They lash out at them and, in some cases, even call them apostates. At the very least, they spend hours locking horns with them in logical debates. I, however, have a different approach. I offer this challenge to anyone, not just to the Submitters:

Read the Qur’an. Read the Qur’an and nothing else. That is what I did when I first accepted Islam. Don’t read any hadith books, any books by Rashad Khalifa, or by anyone else. Just read the Qur’an. If, after reading through the Qur’an without any preconceived beliefs, you come to the same conclusions as Khalifa, then all praise is due to Allah, but I can guarantee you that you will not. Allah knows best, and He is the best guardian of all our affairs.

I hate to beat a dead horse, but I think there’s some people who still don’t grasp the predicament in which the U.S. and its allies have placed Iran. So, I decided to produce a visual aide. I hope this doesn’t get me thrown into a cell in Guantanamo.

The blue dots represent strategic U.S. deployments. The arrows represent a possible direction of attack. And, well, X marks the spot: Iran.

Notice:

1. the U.S. has at least 90 prepositioned tactical nuclear weapons sitting inside of Turkey, ready to strike at Iran.

2. They also have aircraft carriers stationed in the Persian Gulf. They just added another one.

3. They have troops inside of Afghanistan, bordering Iran.

4. They have a massive build-up of troops, as well as a fortress (supposedly an embassy) the size of 80 football fields inside of Iraq, also bordering Iran.

That doesn’t even include the base in Saudi Arabia or the Israeli factor. So, the question is, “If you were Iran, what would you do?”

“Gore Urges Congress to Save Planet”

It’s pretty sad when Congress has to be “urged” to save their own planet…kinda makes you wonder if they have a secret escape plan, while the rest of bake in our global oven.

Dip your breadsticks in hummus. It’s delicious!