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Community News (V11-I39)
September 17, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
World's tallest man honored for honesty and service
MIAMI, FL–Aurangzeb Khan, the world's tallest man alive, has been honored by the Miami-Dade County Services Department for his quality service as a cab driver. He was recently given the Chauffer of the Quarter Prize for his efforts to help his passenger. In one stance he even drove long distance to return a purse full of credit cards, cash, and medicines left behind by an Australian tourist.
`It is actions like this that restores faith in human nature, and as a regular traveler to America, it leaves me with a great feeling about traveling in your country,'' the Australian tourist wrote ina commendation which was later used by the county in its press release announcing the award.
The Pakistan born Khan is 8 feet tall and now stands taller than Shaquille O'Neal. He has been living in US since 1981 and now drives a cab after stints with circuses around the country.
But Khan is a towering figure not only in his physical height but also his honesty and kindness.
In 1992, he returned a bag with $10,000 a passenger forgot in the cab.
"Mr. Khan represents the kind of attitude that all chauffeurs should have when providing services to visitors and residents of this community,'' said Sonya Perez, of the Miami-Dade Consumer Service Department. "By doing a kind deed, Mr. Khan gave this tourist a positive experience as well as a positive view of our county.''
Hillary Clinton hosts Iftar at State Department
WASHINGTON D.C.–Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hosted an Iftar on Sept.15 at the State Department. She said that the White House is committed to improving relations with the Muslim world.
In her speech to the guests she said, "Now, this time of self-reflection and clarity reminds us that the principles that are the hallmark of Ramadan – charity, sacrifice, and compassion – are also values we cherish as Americans. They guide us towards good stewardship of our families, our communities, our country, and our world. It is, as one of my wonderful young aides who Farah has already referenced – Huma Abedin – summed up in the words of Abdul Ghaffar Khan, that we need to be inspired by our leaders to fight poverty, injustice and hate with, "the weapon of the Prophet—patience and righteousness." Well, that, to me, sums up much of what we celebrate tonight as we break fast.
Now, we recognize that the relationship between the United States and Muslim communities has at times suffered from misunderstanding and misperception. But we are committed to learning and listening; to creating bridges of understanding and respect; and building stronger bonds of cooperation. We believe that there is more that unites people of all faiths than divides us.
The Obama Administration will work to ensure that our communication, our partnerships, and our policies reflect that core belief. Because whatever God you pray to—or even whether you believe at all—we all need to work for the same goals: a world where our children can live together in peace and prosperity, and fulfill their own God-given potentials."
Sultana Ali promoted at Massey Communications
ORLANDO, FL–Massey Communications, Orlando, has promoted Sultana Ali to account executive, business development.
Ali is a former national board member of the United Nations Association-USA (UNA-USA) where she represented the Young Professionals for International Cooperation. Currently, she serves on the board of directors locally for the Central Florida Women's Resource Center, FHSMUN (Florida High Schools Model UN) and Harbor House of Central Florida, where she serves on its executive committee as Second Vice-President.
She has been honored with a Global Young Advocate Award from UNA-USA, the Central Florida Women's Resource Center Junior Summit Award, the Girl Scout Council of Central Florida's Young Woman of Distinction and was named one of Central Florida's "13 Shining Stars" by Central Florida News 13 and the American Red Cross. She also received the agency's Todd Persons Award. Recently, she was named as a Finalist for the eWomenNetwork Foundation's Emerging Leader of the Year Award.
A Walt Disney Scholar and Florida Academic Scholar, Sultana graduated from University of Central Florida with a Bachelor of Science degree in International Business Marketing and a minor in Political Science where she was recognized with the J.C. Aspley award and scholarship.
Muslim students at Lehigh U. fight hunger
BETHLEHEM, PA–Muslim students at Lehigh University have joined the national push against hunger by volunteering at the Trinity Beth Episcopal Church's soup kitchen.
The students are part of a national organization called Muslims Against Hunger, an organization that partners with soup kitchens and food pantries to provide volunteers and food, the student newspaper reported.
Taha Haque, contacted Zamir Hassan, the founder and head of Muslims Against Hunger, and expressed interest in bringing the organization to Lehigh. Haque said the chapter will be the first in Pennsylvania.
About 15 students helped serve a lunch of Hassan's special chicken, rice and green beans to the people gathered at Trinity Beth. Haque said the participating students were from all different campus groups, including ROTC, Hillel Society and Hindu students.
Sierra Foundation hosts Iftar
RENO, NV– The Sierra Foundation,a Reno based nonprofit intercultural and interfaith dialogue foundation, hosted three Iftar dinners in the past two weeks. The events were attended by a large number of non-Muslims.
Apart from the dinners the participants were treated to lectures on Islamic practices and a cultural presentation on the poetry of Rumi.
Did Hitler Want War?
September 10, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Patrick J. Buchanan
Poland, 1930 | German map of Poland, 1942 |
On Sept. 1, 1939, 70 years ago, the German Army crossed the Polish frontier. On Sept. 3, Britain declared war.
Six years later, 50 million Christians and Jews had perished. Britain was broken and bankrupt, Germany a smoldering ruin. Europe had served as the site of the most murderous combat known to man, and civilians had suffered worse horrors than the soldiers.
By May 1945, Red Army hordes occupied all the great capitals of Central Europe: Vienna, Prague, Budapest, Berlin. A hundred million Christians were under the heel of the most barbarous tyranny in history: the Bolshevik regime of the greatest terrorist of them all, Joseph Stalin.
What cause could justify such sacrifices?
The German-Polish war had come out of a quarrel over a town the size of Ocean City, Md., in summer. Danzig, 95 percent German, had been severed from Germany at Versailles in violation of Woodrow Wilson's principle of self-determination. Even British leaders thought Danzig should be returned.
Why did Warsaw not negotiate with Berlin, which was hinting at an offer of compensatory territory in Slovakia? Because the Poles had a war guarantee from Britain that, should Germany attack, Britain and her empire would come to Poland's rescue.
But why would Britain hand an unsolicited war guarantee to a junta of Polish colonels, giving them the power to drag Britain into a second war with the most powerful nation in Europe?
Was Danzig worth a war? Unlike the 7 million Hong Kongese whom the British surrendered to Beijing, who didn't want to go, the Danzigers were clamoring to return to Germany.
Comes the response: The war guarantee was not about Danzig, or even about Poland. It was about the moral and strategic imperative "to stop Hitler" after he showed, by tearing up the Munich pact and Czechoslovakia with it, that he was out to conquer the world. And this Nazi beast could not be allowed to do that.
If true, a fair point. Americans, after all, were prepared to use atom bombs to keep the Red Army from the Channel. But where is the evidence that Adolf Hitler, whose victims as of March 1939 were a fraction of Gen. Pinochet's, or Fidel Castro's, was out to conquer the world?
After Munich in 1938, Czechoslovakia did indeed crumble and come apart. Yet consider what became of its parts.
The Sudeten Germans were returned to German rule, as they wished. Poland had annexed the tiny disputed region of Teschen, where thousands of Poles lived. Hungary's ancestral lands in the south of Slovakia had been returned to her. The Slovaks had their full independence guaranteed by Germany. As for the Czechs, they came to Berlin for the same deal as the Slovaks, but Hitler insisted they accept a protectorate.
Now one may despise what was done, but how did this partition of Czechoslovakia manifest a Hitlerian drive for world conquest?
Comes the reply: If Britain had not given the war guarantee and gone to war, after Czechoslovakia would have come Poland's turn, then Russia's, then France's, then Britain's, then the United States.
We would all be speaking German now.
But if Hitler was out to conquer the world — Britain, Africa, the Middle East, the United States, Canada, South America, India, Asia, Australia — why did he spend three years building that hugely expensive Siegfried Line to protect Germany from France? Why did he start the war with no surface fleet, no troop transports and only 29 oceangoing submarines? How do you conquer the world with a navy that can't get out of the Baltic Sea?
If Hitler wanted the world, why did he not build strategic bombers, instead of two-engine Dorniers and Heinkels that could not even reach Britain from Germany?
Why did he let the British army go at Dunkirk?
Why did he offer the British peace, twice, after Poland fell, and again after France fell?
Why, when Paris fell, did Hitler not demand the French fleet, as the Allies demanded and got the Kaiser's fleet? Why did he not demand bases in French-controlled Syria to attack Suez? Why did he beg Benito Mussolini not to attack Greece?
Because Hitler wanted to end the war in 1940, almost two years before the trains began to roll to the camps.
Hitler had never wanted war with Poland, but an alliance with Poland such as he had with Francisco Franco's Spain, Mussolini's Italy, Miklos Horthy's Hungary and Father Jozef Tiso's Slovakia.
Indeed, why would he want war when, by 1939, he was surrounded by allied, friendly or neutral neighbors, save France. And he had written off Alsace, because reconquering Alsace meant war with France, and that meant war with Britain, whose empire he admired and whom he had always sought as an ally.
As of March 1939, Hitler did not even have a border with Russia. How then could he invade Russia?
Winston Churchill was right when he called it "The Unnecessary War" — the war that may yet prove the mortal blow to our civilization.
Myths and Facts about al-Qaeda
September 3, 2009 by TMO · 2 Comments
By Karin Friedemann, Muslim Media News Service (MMNS)
The media myth of a global Islamic conspiracy never got much traction in America before 2001 because the minority Muslim American population simply did not seem like much of a threat, because Saudi Arabia and other Gulf States are loyal US allies, and because Americans generally have a positive attitude toward wealthy investors. After 9/11 pro-Israel propagandists exploited public ignorance and created a nightmarish fantasy of al-Qaeda in order to put the US and allies into conflict with the entire Islamic world. What is al-Qaeda? What do they believe? What do they actually do?
Osama bin Laden first used the term "al-Qaeda" in an interview in 1998, probably in reference to a 1988 article written by Palestinian activist Abdullah Azzam entitled "al-Qa`ida al-Sulba" (the Solid Foundation). In it, Azzam elaborates upon the ideas of the Egyptian scholar Sayed Qutb to explain modern jihadi principles. Qutb, author of Social Justice in Islam, is viewed as the founder of modern Arab-Islamic political religious thought. Qutb is comparable to John Locke in Western political development. Both Azzam and Qutb were serious men of exceptional integrity and honor.
While Qutb was visiting the USA in 1949, he and several friends were turned away from a movie theater because the owner thought they were black. 'But we're Egyptians,' one of the group explained. The owner apologized and offered to let them in, but Qutb refused, galled by the fact that black Egyptians could be admitted but black Americans could not," recounts Lawrence Wright in The Looming Tower. Qutb predicted that the struggle between Islam and materialism would define the modern world. He embraced martyrdom in 1966 in rejection of Arab socialist politics.
Azzam similarly rejected secular Palestinian nationalist politics as an impediment to moral virtue. He opposed terrorist attacks on civilians and had strong reservations about ideas like offensive jihad, or preventive war. He also hesitated to designate any Muslim leader as an apostate and preferred to allow God to make such judgments. Inspired by the courage and piety of Afghan Muslims struggling against the Soviets, Azzam reinterpreted Qutb's concept of individual and collective obligation of Muslims in his fatwa entitled "Defense of the Muslim Lands, the First Obligation after Iman (Faith)." Qutb would have prioritized the struggle of Egyptian Muslims to transform Egypt into a virtuous Islamic state while Azzam argued that every individual Muslim had an obligation to come to the aid of oppressed Muslims everywhere, whether they are Afghan, Kosovar, Bosnian, Thai, Filipino, or Chechen.
John Calvert of Creighton University writes, "This ideology… would soon energize the most significant jihad movement of modern times."
At Azzam's call, Arabs from many countries joined America's fight against Communism in Afghanistan. No Arab jihadi attack was considered terrorism when Azzam led the group, or later when bin Laden ran the group. Because the global Islamic movement overlapped with the goals of the US government, Arab jihadis worked and traveled frictionlessly throughout the world between Asia, Arabia and America. Azzam was assassinated in Pakistan in 1989, but legends of the courageous sacrifices of the noble Arab Afghans energized the whole Islamic world.
After the Soviets left Afghanistan, bin Laden relocated to Sudan in 1992. At the time he was probably undisputed commander of nothing more than a small group, which became even smaller after he lost practically all his money on Sudan investments. He returned to Afghanistan in 1996, where the younger Afghans, the Taliban welcomed him on account of his reputation as a veteran war hero.
There is no real evidence that bin Laden or al-Qaeda had any connection to the Ugandan and Tanzanian embassy attacks or any of the numerous attacks for which they have been blamed. Pro-Israel propagandists like Daniel Pipes or Matthew Levitt needed an enemy for their war against Muslim influence on American culture more than random explosions in various places needed a central commander. By the time the World Trade Center was destroyed, the Arab fighters surrounding Osama bin Laden were just a dwindling remnant living on past glories of Afghanistan's struggle against Communism. Al-Qaeda has never been and certainly is not today an immensely powerful terror organization controlling Islamic banks and charities throughout the world.
Al-Qaeda maintained training camps in Afghanistan like Camp Faruq, where Muslims could receive basic training just as American Jews go to Israel for military training with the IDF. There they learned to disassemble, clean and reassemble weapons, and got to associate with old warriors, who engaged in great heroism against the Soviets but did not do much since. Many al-Qaeda trainees went on to serve US interests in Central Asia (e.g. Xinjiang) in the 1990s but from recent descriptions the camps seem to currently provide a form of adventure tourism with no future enlistment obligations.
Although western media treats al-Qaeda as synonymous with Absolute Evil, much of the world reveres the Arab Afghans as martyr saints. Hundreds of pilgrims visit Kandahar's Arab cemetery daily, believing that the graves of those massacred in the 2001 US bombing of Afghanistan possess miraculous healing powers.
Karin Friedemann is a Boston-based writer on Middle East affairs and US politics. She is Director of the Division on Muslim Civil Rights and Liberties for the National Association of Muslim American Women. Joachim Martillo contributed to this article.
The Quest for Swat…!
September 3, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Tariq Choudry
June 8, 2009–Swat valley is one of the most beautiful landscapes in the world and is known for its splendid natural beauty and legendary hospitality. The people are somber yet innocent however, reluctant to care about the worldly affairs due in part because of inherent poverty, government's innate laxity towards general education and welfare of the citizens; and mistreatment of tribesmen. The ordinary people are hardworking and steadfast in fundamental aspects of religious duties. They flout deep political dogma in favor of performing religious duties and often defer chores of utmost necessity to fulfill their routine spiritual desires – prayers. Subtly, the ultimate warriors so they claim to be the guardians of ultimate fate and fraternity betraying all rules of shariah went fervently assailing with full thrust, wit and will, destroying all dwellings of the in-candy poor citizens leaving with plight to ponder their fate and fathom. Something is happening there, and I'm getting a little worried. To organize my discussion, I suggest that we take one step back in the causal chain and protect our peace, privacy, and wellbeing.
All the deals that The Taliban's make or desire are strictly one-way. They get all the rights, and the other party gets all the debit and obligation to the society. This seems to be their ultimate demand. Their cock-and-bull legends are becoming increasingly parochial. They have already begun to goad muddle-headed grizzlers into hurling phantoms. Now fast-forward a few years to a time in which the society might have enabled the Talibans of Pakistan to create a world without history, without philosophy, without science, without reason—a world without beauty of any kind, without art, without literature, without culture, without freedom of even religion but theirs. If you don't want such a time to come then we all must subject the so called Taliban's belief systems to the rigorous scrutiny they warrant. Help me focus on the major economic, social, and political forces that provide the setting for the expression of a corrupt agenda.
Though many people agree that we must work together against anti- pluralism, resistentialism, etc. The Talban's really struck a nerve when they claim to be the guardians of shariah. That's why the so called "Taliban's" are trying so hard to prevent themselves from full exposure that they think we want them to paint people of different races and cultures as inarticulate alien forces undermining the coherent national will.
Do we not, as rational men and women, owe it to both our heritage and our posterity to present another paradigm in opposition to their boisterous posture? I think we do. Should we sit back and let them exert more and more control over innocent individuals, or should we unmask their true faces and intentions in regard to Stalinism? That choice sure sounds like a no-brainer. The "Talibanism" has lost what little credibility they once had by helping to unravel normal citizens from their own towns and cities by fear and plight. And that's why I say to every one of us with a little wit and will: Have courage. Be honest. Be a true follower of the true fundamentals of our noble religion and refrain from supporting or adopting stern and extreme views that lead the whole of society to a path of mischief and misfortune. And reinforce the contentions of all reasonable people and confute those of irascible, wicked fence-sitters. The implementation of Shariah law does not have to take a start from Swat or NWFP, it must start from within-and by first adhering to its own demands of treating everyone equally and with respect. Woe to those who indulge themselves in shameful acts of hurting the children of all ages, women and the sick and the flaky wise elderly in the name of religion.
However, the quandary that remains a cancer of our society is that billions of dollars in foreign aid has disappeared or consumed by few (or perhaps evil-one) which no-one dares to question and not single penny has seen towards helping the deprived homeless. At least international media has no reporting on that. Perhaps the entire society and media has become immune to treachery, infidelity and corruption. Haven't we really become a nation of vindictive scumbags with no conscience or dignity for our own apathy? Look around the misery and sufferings of those living in make-shift tents; those who once lived with grace and dignity in their own moderately built pithy sanctuaries, have been left out under the scorching sun in misery and plight; and a majority of them feel humiliated to seek public aid. What is their fault? What have they done wrong? Isn't it the government's full responsibility to provide maximum protection and comfort from elderly to the infant! Instead, hundreds of private organizations and NGOs are playing the key role of taking care of their needs and desires. Those who once lived with grace and pride are being humiliated in the open-air with no guards to protect their modesty, security or creed. Where are those who are hiding their faces cowardly behind the black scarves pretending to be the lieutenants of the lords? If they are true to their cause, they must face the reality like Spartans and create an environment of trust in order to advocate and defend their scrutiny with poise.
Once Talibans realize that they have in fact inflicted atrocious wounds to the naive citizens, maybe then they will see, and I deeply believe that it will be within our grasp to honor our nation's glorious mosaic of cultures and ethnicities. Be grateful for this first and last tidbit of comforting news. The Talibans like to disguise the complexity of issues, the brutality of class, and the importance of religion and culture in the construction and practice of conformism. Such activity can flourish only in the dark, however. If you drag them into the open, Talibans and their cronies will run for cover, like cockroaches in a dirty kitchen when the light is turned on suddenly during the night. That's why we must push the envelope on our knowledge of the world around us. As this letter draws to a close, I want to challenge you, the reader, to recognize and respect the opinions, practices, and behavior of those with wisdom, will and resort. That's what is left to do.
Unless there is one single Central Islamic Authority, the dream of implementing Islam as a System, or as an alternative to secular democracy, can never be realized. Without a stable government and an honest leader, Islam may exist, as it is today, like a downgraded ritualistic religion, in which every individual or faction may keep on living on the inane desire of pleasing Allah or rendering Him worship in its own way and in its own right but it can never become a truly Islamic way of life to bring forth its pledged remunerations. And that means the transfer of power from individual provinces, as they exist today; to the Central Authority which itself would work under the Ultimate Sovereignty of Allah, i.e. The Shreah Law. Moreover, this also means the end of the authority of the Ullema and the Muftis of today. The interpretation of the Laws and the formulation of by-laws will be done by the "Central Authority" alone, within the bounds of the Quran. There will be no party or cult, no religious or political parties, not even an opposition party within the Islamic System of governance. That's the patriotic thing to do, and that's the right thing to do, to defeat fundamentalism and to adopt the ways of those who render themselves for the sake of tranquility, sovereignty and contentment.
May Allah SWT guide us in the right direction and help us understand true lessons of religion Islam; and may peace be upon those leading a positive change intended to cultivate an environment of peace and tranquility and justice for all.
Rabita – Muslim World League Fatwa on Moon Favoring Local Sighting
August 20, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
The Muslim World League issued a fatwa with very strong support for local sighting of the moon, signed by prominent Saudi Salafi jurists. http://www.hilalsighting.org/papers/MWL-1981HilalSighting-locality.pdf. This link contains the original Arabic, with English translation.
Qaradawi Fiqh on Jihad
August 13, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
Yusuf al-Qaradawi, probably the single most influential living Sunni Islamist figure, has just written a major book entitled Fiqh al-Jihad (The Jurisprudence of Jihad) which decisively repudiates al Qaeda's conception of jihad as a "mad declaration of war upon the world." At the same time, he strongly rejects what he calls efforts to remove jihad completely from Islam, and strongly reaffirms the duty of jihad in resisting the occupation of Muslim lands, specifically mentioning Israel as the arena of legitimate resistance. Qaradawi's intervention has thus far received no attention at all in the English-language media. It should, because of his vast influence and his long track record as an accurate barometer of mainstream Arab views.
His book, described by the Egyptian newspaper al-Masry al-Youm last week in a seven part series, is far more important than the much-discussed "recantations" and "revisions" of former jihadist intellectuals such as Dr. Fadl (Sayid Imam) and the leaders of the Gama'a Islamiya. The internal revisions by ex-jihadists (which Qaradawi praises) may influence that tiny group of extremists, and demonstrate cracks in their intellectual foundations. But for the most part, the mass Arab public has never heard of and doesn't care about them. And unlike the Gamaa leaders or Dr. Fadl, Qaradawi did not produce his revisions from an Egyptian prison cell (hence Ayman Zawahiri's cutting rejoinder to Dr. Fadl, that Egyptian prisons hadn't had fax machines back in his day). Qaradawi is different. Qaradawi, an intensely controversial figure in the West, appears on a weekly al-Jazeera program and is probably the single most influential Sunni Islamist figure in the Arab world. The Egyptian-born Qaradawi is closely associated with the Muslim Brotherhood (he reportedly turned down an invitation to become its Supreme Guide because he felt he had more influence from his base in Doha). He is a populist whose views generally reflect widespread attitudes in the region — he strongly endorses democracy, for instance, while also supporting Hamas attacks against Israelis. Whether he leads or follows popular opinion is a difficult and fascinating question — but either way, he is quite a useful barometer.
His criticism of al Qaeda is not new — he condemned 9/11 and has engaged in a number of public polemics with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and with the leaders of al Qaeda. But the timing of this book merits attention. His views generally closely mirror trends within wider mass public opinion will reach a far wider swathe of the Arab mainstream and will likely have far greater impact than did the internal revisions which received such attention in the West. His intervention strengthens the impression that al Qaeda's extreme form of salafi-jihadism is on the wane in the Arab world, but political Islam and the spirit of muqawama (resistance) remains strong.
Qaradawi's text deserves lengthy discussion, but a brief summary here will have to suffice. Fiqh al-Jihad stakes out the centrist (wasatiyya) ground where Qaradawi has always comfortably resided (he has authored dozens of books about wasatiyya concept). He rejects two trends: those who seek to eliminate jihad completely from the Muslim world, stripping it of its power and its ability to resist (which is how he sees the project of much of so-called moderate Islam or secularists); and those who apply it indiscriminately in a mad campaign of killing of all with whom they disagree (like al-Qaeda). Straw men, yes. But very effectively allowing Qaradawi to distinguish between al Qaeda's excesses and the legitimacy of resistance to occupation and to Israel.
Qaradawi also offers an intriguing broadening of the concept of jihad, away from violence to the realm of ideas, media, and communication — which he calls the "jihad of the age." The weapons of this jihad should be TV, the internet, email and the like rather than guns. Persuading Muslims of the message of Islam and the importance of this jihad in the path of God should be the first priority, he argues: "the jihad of the age, a great jihad, and a long jihad." He also goes into great detail about the different forms of jihad, the need for pragmatism, and the diverse nature of possible relations between Muslims and non-Muslims.
There is much more to Qaradawi's text worth discussing, including his views on international law (he deploys Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib to depressing effect), his form of argumentation, his categories of jihad, his conceptions of Muslim relations with non-Muslims, and much more. Parts of it are deeply problematic, others are surprisingly forthcoming. But for now, I mainly want to signal the appearance of this important text, which deserves close attention from all those interested in such matters.
Amany Jamal On Demoracy in the Arab East
August 6, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Geoffrey Cook, Muslim Media News Service (MMNS)
Berkeley–A little over ten months ago, Amany Jamal came to talk to a small group on his work in progress, The Crisis of Political Legitimacy in the Arab World.
It has too often been assumed that the Arab nations do not wish democracy. This is not true, but the majority of the regions monarchies and republics' pre-eminent dominant authorities are distrustful of democratic reforms. The social restructuring towards democratization has not arisen to the same extend as in the second World as yet, and there is a great deal difference to the degree and the liberality that the Arab world desires their democratic forms, and as your author has emphasized before the democracy that develops in any country has to take into account of its traditions, history and the constituencies of the larger geographical zone et al. The error that the Bush and the Neo-Conservatives made in dealing with the Middle East was to shove down the Jeffersonian tradition in the Near and Middle East and other Islamic zones with the democratic values that had evolved in North America!
A Capitalist economy is not conducive to all types of democracy! The State should make its own decisions on its own allocations, and not the individual citizens or corporate entities. Exiting theories to social inequality are emphatically universal. There are pronounced amoralities within almost every Arab State – except Kuwait. In most of the topography under study, restrictive legislation is applied toward propping up authoritative regimes.
"If (a) society is equipped for [democratic] change, it will do so [i.e., change]," further, "…States [do] not necessarily [promote their] society's preferences." Her hypothesis is that "…the elites are worried over jeopardizing their client status with the United States." These privileged rules are more likely to oppose democracy.
The more an Arab country lacks development, the more dependent it is upon Washington. The Arab nations have less bi-lateral ties than they do with the U.S.A.! Thus, North America has a strong military presence there. The Arabs, though, are only subordinate partners within the American Empire.
Today, small Kuwait holds 10 percent of the known world oil reserves, but has one of the highest per capita percentages of militants within the Middle East. The residents in all of the nations are well aware of it potential political weaknesses within the structures of their individual states. If the Islamists would come to power, they would not necessarily sever ties with the D.C., but there are places where "Anti-American forces are of a concern – such as Jordan" where the Islamists could weaken the Monarchy. Jordan is considered the most stable realm in the Middle East because of American buttressing.
There still remains a fear among the Iranians that, if the U.S. deserts Baghdad too fast, Tehran will have to cope with a security risk there again.
Amany Jamal finished her remarks of last fall, "…Anti-Americanism has stifled democratization" throughout the neighborhood; therefore, "…The route [towards] democratization lies in addressing the…increase of Anti-Americanism…" within the locale.
Threatening Iran
July 23, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Paul Craig Roberts, Countercurrents.org
When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Japan did not spend years preparing her public case and demonstrating her deployment of forces for the attack. Japan did not make a world issue out of her view that the US was denying Japan her role in the Pacific by hindering Japan's access to raw materials and energy.
Similarly, when Hitler attacked Russia, he did not preface his invasion with endless threats and a public case that blamed the war on England.
These events happened before the PSYOPS (Psychological Operations) era. Today, America and Israel's wars of aggression are preceded by years of propaganda and international meetings, so that by the time the attack comes it is an expected event, not a monstrous surprise attack with its connotation of naked aggression.
The US, which has been threatening Iran with attack for years, has passed the job to Israel. During the third week of July, the American vice president and secretary of state gave Israel the go-ahead. Israel has made great public disclosure of its warships passing through the Suez Canal on their way to Iran. "Muslim" Egypt is complicit, offering no objection to Israel's naval forces on their way to a war crime under the Nuremberg standard that the US imposed on the world.
By the time the attack occurs, it will be old hat, an expected event, and, moreover, an event justified by years of propaganda asserting Iran's perfidy.
Israel intends to dominate the Middle East. Israel's goal is to incorporate all of Palestine and southern Lebanon into "Greater Israel." The US intends to dominate the entire world, deciding who rules which countries and controlling resource flows.
The US and Israel are likely to succeed, because they have effective PSYOPS. For the most part, the world media follows the US media, which follows the US and Israeli governments' lines. Indeed, the American media is part of the PSYOPS of both countries.
According to Thierry Meyssan in the Swiss newspaper Zeit-Fragen, the CIA used SMS or text messaging and Twitter to spread disinformation about the Iranian election, including the false report that the Guardian Council had informed Mousavi that he had won the election. When the real results were announced, Ahmadinejad's reelection appeared to be fraudulent.
Iran's fate awaits it. A reasonable hypothesis to be entertained and examined is whether Iran's Rafsanjani and Mousavi are in league with Washington to gain power in Iran. Both have lost out in the competition for government power in Iran. Yet, both are egotistical and ambitious. The Iranian Revolution of 1979 probably means nothing to them except an opportunity for personal power. The way the West has always controlled the Middle East is by purchasing the politicians who are out of power and backing them in overthrowing the independent government. We see this today in Sudan as well.
In the case of Iran, there is an additional factor that might align Rafsanjani with Washington. President Ahmadienijad attacked former President Rafsanjani, one of Iran's most wealthy persons, as corrupt. If Rafsanjani feels threatened by this attack, he has little choice but to try to overthrow the existing government. This makes him the perfect person for Washington.
Perhaps there is a better explanation why Rafsanjani and Mousavi, two highly placed members of the Iranian elite, chose to persist in allegations of election fraud that have played into Washington's hands by calling into question the legitimacy of the Iranian government. It cannot be that the office of president is worth such costs as the Iranian presidency is not endowed with decisive powers.
Without Rafsanjani and Mousavi, the US media could not have orchestrated the Iranian elections as "stolen," a n orchestration that the US government used to further isolate and discredit the Iranian government, making it easier for Iran to be attacked. Normally, well placed members of an elite do not help foreign enemies set their country up for attack.
An Israeli attack on Iran is likely to produce retaliation, which Washington will use to enter the conflict. Have the personal ambitions of Rafsanjani and Mousavi, and the naive youthful upper class Iranian protesters, set Iran up for destruction?
Consult a map and you will see that Iran is surrounded by a dozen countries that host US military bases. Why does anyone in Iran doubt that Iran is on her way to becoming another Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, in the end to be ruled by oil companies and an American puppet?
The Russians and Chinese are off balance because of successful American interventions in their spheres of influence, uncertain of the threat and the response. Russia could have prevented the coming attack on Iran, but, pressured by Washington, Russia has not delivered the missile systems that Iran purchased. China suffers from her own hubris as a rising economic power, and is about to lose her energy investments in Iran to US/Israeli aggression. China is funding America's wars of aggression with loans, and Russia is even helping the US to set up a puppet state in Afghanistan, thus opening up former Soviet central Asia t o US hegemony.
The world is so impotent that even the bankrupt US can launch a new war of aggression and have it accepted as a glorious act of liberation in behalf of women's rights, peace, and democracy.
Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan administration. He is coauthor of The Tyranny of Good Intentions.He can be reached at: email@example.com
Convincing the Soul of the Muslim world: A New Drive for 'Common Sense'
July 23, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Ruby Amatulla
It has taken a long bloody history to convince many parts of humanity that it is only through constructive engagements and integrated efforts– and not through wars, conflicts and exploiting others – that a win-win situation is possible in human affairs.
After hundreds of years of incessant bloodshed and violence, Europe finally came to grips with this truth. Seeing the enormous effects of the integration and cooperation of the diverse community of the 50 states across the Atlantic – Europe, after World War II and its massive death and destruction — started to pursue constructive engagement and integration in its own affairs.
Today, another vital part of humanity – containing 1.5 billion Muslims — appears not to take heed of this truth. A mosaic of different tribes, sects, ethnicities and groups of Muslims remain deeply divided, unstable and conflict-prone.
Despite controlling 76% of the world's oil reserves, this huge community has failed to assert itself as a legitimate power-broker or a significant partner in the affairs of the world. The state of affairs of many key areas of the Muslim world remains degrading and disturbing.
The cause of the grim reality in the Muslim world is its failure to unite, integrate and engage constructively, both among its own populace and with others. And this failure is largely, if not entirely, due to the absence or lack of an 'impartial' and balanced rule of law.
We often talk about equality and freedom as being essential factors of democratic rule, but we fail to recognize its paramount influence in stabilizing and integrating a nation. With the existence of an 'impartial' rule of law that prohibits destructive ways of resolving issues in society and that does not allow any group to take undue advantage over others by virtue of race, ethnicity, gender, religion, etc., the people ultimately accept and build a culture of coexistence and constructive engagement.
This is the key to integrating a nation on the fundamental ideas of equality and liberty.
I am convinced that America, by providing the most forceful and impartial system of due process, has become the superpower in our time. By providing the most progressive program of integration to the most diverse community in the world it has tapped a treasure that is unparalleled in its importance and impact in leading a nation towards prosperity.
This is the secret of America's enormous success.
Good governance is the solution for a dysfunctional state. An accountable, transparent and representative government stabilizes a society. Serious grievances and the possibility of turmoil are less likely, as the citizens hold the ultimate power. The legitimacy of that governance increasingly builds up trust and confidence among its people and institutions to participate and help sustain a stable and consistent pattern of rule. The broad decision making process and the balance of power in a democratically managed society work as shields against tendencies of tyranny and/or domination of one group by another. Self-rule offers important incentives for a society to become stable and progressive.
Importantly for the deeply-religious Muslim world, a democratic system does not need to be 'secular,' if secularism is defined as a system discouraging religion. A good governing system should not be averse to religion — as religions and religious institutions play a vital and profoundly important role in society — but it must be impartial as to a specific religion and/or a specific interpretation of a religion. 'Impartial' rule of law and avoiding endorsing a religion is how the conflict-prone Thirteen Colonies were saved from disintegration.
Democracy provides a secure environment for all its citizens to practice their respective faiths. If a government maintains neutrality in its rule of law and enforces the resolution of conflicts only through constructive engagements among its citizens, it builds a stable society with a mindset of coexistence, integration and collective welfare.
The Quran is unequivocal in commanding that: 'There is no compulsion or imposition in religion.' [2:256]. A faith or conviction must be the outcome of the exercise of free will, for which an individual is responsible only to God and to no one else in the society.
Therefore a state that enforces a religious injunction, or an interpretation [denominations or sects] thereof, violates this fundamental tenet of Islam by enforcing on those who do not believe or accept that interpretation of faith.
A democratic spirit was exemplified in the very first Muslim community under the leadership of the Prophet Muhammad (s) in Medina fourteen centuries ago. The Charter of Medina has amazing similarities with the constitution drafted more than eleven hundred years later among the Thirteen Colonies who united to form the United States of America.
The similarities among these documents are to be found in their establishment of federalism, impartiality, consultative decision-making processes and the use of constructive engagement to resolve disputes.
These structures allowed the society to maintain security and functionality, as well as to provide freedom of religion. They also allowed diverse groups of people – in the case of Medina then, the Muslims, Jews, and Pagans – to manage their own community affairs and maintain their own lifestyles within the greater legal framework of society . This paramount example of the Prophet (s) has largely gone unnoticed by the Muslim world.
More than two hundred years ago a small pamphlet called "Common Sense" made a huge impact among the people of the Thirteen Colonies and their leaders. It allowed them to come together and fight against the British, the most formidable power then, to establish self-rule. How powerful and constructive this self-rule has been to integrate the most diverse community in the world and to create a superpower!
More than two hundred years later, a Muslim citizen of the nation that 'Common Sense' helped to establish is wondering what degree of human welfare could flow out of a new drive for common sense in one of the most vital parts of humanity: the Muslim world with which the interest and welfare of the world is intricately and profoundly connected! Facing the enormous challenges of our time, how badly needed is that drive!
World's Youth Leaders Gather to Address the Challenges of Militarization, Nuclear Weapons and the Misuse of Religion
July 16, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
File: A busy street in Kathmandu. |
(Kathmandu, July 10, 2009) The International Summit of Religious Youth Leaders on Disarmament for Shared Security was inaugurated by His Excellency the President, Dr. Ram Baran Yadav, in Kathmandu on 10 July 2009. Organized by the World Conference of Religions for Peace, the world's largest multi-religious organization accredited with the United Nations and headquartered in New York, the Summit brought together approximately 100 Nepali and 50 international religious and civil society leaders from 25 countries.[1] Other prominent participants in the Summit included Mr. Kul C. Gautam, former UN Assistant Secretary-General and former Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF; Mr. Taijiro Kimura, Director, UN Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific; Rev. Kyoichi Sugino, Assistant Secretary General, the World Conference of Religions for Peace; and Ms. Stellamaris Mulaeh, International Coordinator, Religions for Peace Global Youth Network.
Globally nearly 1,000 people a day die from various kinds of weapons. Military spending in 2008 reached a new high of $1.464 trillion, even as the global economy faltered and the majority of the world's population continued to live in extreme poverty. Four billion dollars worth of small arms are traded legally each year, while another $1 billion is traded illegally. The world is confronted with proliferation of nuclear weapons, continued use of cluster munitions, landmines and other conventional weapons, rising military expenditures at the expense of development, and the misuse of religion in support of violence and war.
His Excellency Dr. Ram Baran Yadav, the President of Nepal, stated that "We need to harness the power of the world's religions to counter violence with the message of peace, love and compassion, especially among the youth of our nations. I want to compliment the Religion and Peace Academy of Nepal (RAPAN) and the World Conference of Religions for Peace (WCRP) for convening a very timely 'International Summit of Religious Youth Leaders on Disarmament for Shared Security' in Kathmandu."
Mr. Tadatoshi Akiba, Mayor of Hiroshima, Japan, and president of Mayors for Peace, a global coalition of mayors from 2,926 cities in 134 countries and regions, stated in his message that "The possibility of proliferation and the use of nuclear weapons are growing, and the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is on the verge of collapse. Mayors for Peace welcomes the possibility of working with the world's religious communities and young people through the Religions for Peace global network to promote our 2020 Vision, a program to eliminate all nuclear weapons by the year 2020, the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki."
Mr. Kul Gautam, former UN Assistant Secretary-General and former Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF noted that "Youth are the soul of the society. They are essential to transform culture of violence we are seeing at present to culture of peace, which is an intrinsic and inherent part of Nepali culture. Based on my long association with Religions for Peace, I am confident that this conference will help advance a powerful campaign for peace and non-violence through multi-religious cooperation in Nepal and around the world." He urged the World Conference of Religions for Peace to support a massive campaign to rollback violence in Nepal as a direct follow-up of this conference in Nepal, and consider similar campaigns in other post-conflict countries in the world.
Rev. Kyoichi Sugino, Assistant Secretary General of the World Conference of Religions for Peace, said, "This Summit intends to further unleash the positive socially transformative power of religion, underline the crucial role of young people in shaping our world, and highlight the added value of multi-religious cooperation and multi-stakeholder approach to disarmament for shared security, development and peace."
Ms. Stellamaris Mulaeh, International Coordinator, Religions for Peace Global Youth Network said, "This Summit is a great opportunity for religious youth leaders to discuss major challenges to shared security and develop action plans. Based upon these, Religions for Peace youth leaders from national, regional and global networks will launch a campaign on reducing military expenditures to advance shared security."
[1] Afghanistan, Argentina, Cambodia, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Georgia, Greece, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Malaysia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka and the US.
Muslims Count Michael Jackson as One of Our Own
July 16, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Iftekhar Hai, San Mateo County Times
THE UNTIMELY death of Michael Jackson became international news, and it has affected many people, including my children and grandchildren.
I dedicate this column to the philosophical and spiritual turmoil I felt when I heard Jackson died June 25 of an apparent cardiac arrest.
He had an extraordinary charisma, absolute innocence and a childlike charm that never left him.
As his music spread all over the world, bringing him wealth and recognition, he slowly transformed his God-given African texture and features into something else.
I could never explain this part of his life to my children.
He appeared to have a genuine concern for children and wanted to offer them a world that was denied to him as a child because of the abuses he claimed to have suffered.
I was very happy for him last year when he reportedly became a Muslim in Bahrain. He had apparently followed the footsteps of his brother Jermaine Jackson, who converted to Islam 20 years ago and found peace when he gave up drinking, drugs and womanizing. Michael Jackson admired this kind of change in him.
So in search of peace, he lived in Bahrain.
For some time, Jackson thought of making an album in Bahrain to promote spirituality and signed a contract. However, when he returned to America, he was too afraid of the consequences of aligning with the Islamic faith.
Islamophobia is a curse in America. He was advised by close associates and sincere friends not to go public with his new found spirituality.
He remained in his own closet of spirituality that few outside his close circle knew.
American pop culture is not about religion but about a world of fantasy — a flamboyant facade. And he sunk deeper and maintained a lifestyle that increased his dependency on drugs.
He lost all peace of mind and self-control to such an extent that his personal doctor said, "I had to wake him up with medication and had to put him to sleep with the help of medication."
Michael Jackson is a trivial pursuit of American popular culture.
In my culture we say, "this was a bud that was cut before it could fully blossom."
Practically, we have powerful people who worship money and power and who are constantly defeating any new ideas that challenge the status quo. Jackson — who was sweet, innocent and talented — fell victim.
I am obsessed with the question, "Why couldn't Elvis and Michael Jackson remain famous, rich and on a musical pedestal and still live a drug-free and spiritual life?"
Ali Akbar Khan of Berkeley was such a musician, who gained great wealth, fame and popularity and left more than 1,000 students who are spiritually elevated musicians.
Michael Jackson's death to all of us is one that is sobering. One can climb to fame, acquire great wealth and riches, but death comes knocking without much fanfare.
Nevertheless, Jackson's very public death is a powerful reminder that no matter how famous, talented or wealthy one is, death comes sometimes sooner than later.
He has now entered a world of extraordinary perception, a world that makes his "Thriller" video seem mundane.
Given Michael's r eported conversion to Islam last year, Muslims count him as one of our own, and we pray that he can finally find the peace he never found in this world and that he is in a place, God willing, of mercy, forgiveness and solace.
Iftekhar Hai is president of United Muslims of America Interfaith Alliance and a resident of South San Francisco.
Dr. Kamran Khan leads team which predicts H1N1 spread
July 13, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
TORONTO, Canada–A system developed by Canadian researchers to rapidly evaluate the world's air traffic patterns accurately predicted how the H1N1 virus would spread around the world. The team is led by Dr. Kamran Khan.
Infectious disease physicians at Toronto's St. Michael's Hospital say that by evaluating air traffic patterns around the world, they were able to predict how the virus would spread globally.
Dr. Kamran Khan and colleagues analyzed flight itineraries of more than 2.3 million passengers who left Mexico on commercial flights in March and April. The team found that countries that received more travellers from Mexico were more likely to import cases of the H1N1 flu virus.
As well, the cities that received the largest number of travellers from Mexico were more likely to have imported H1N1 flu cases. The researchers found that welcoming 1,400 travellers from Mexico put a country at high risk of imported cases of the virus.
Dr. Khan has an MD from University of Toronto and an MPH from Columbia University. His research focuses on global migration and infectious diseases with a particular emphasis on the health of recent immigrant and refugee populations to industrialized nations such as Canada and the United States.
At Peace at Last
July 2, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Hamza Yusuf
As a little boy, Michael Jackson had an extraordinary charisma — as well as an absolute innocence — that was disarmingly charming. It captivated millions of Americans and eventually people around the world.
As the years went by, his career took strange turns and he slowly turned white, transforming his face eerily into a pale and ghastly masque, perhaps to conceal the pain of alienation from his own self and family. He was also rumored to have unsavory predilections that would never have been suggested if one used the rigorous criteria of Islam before hurling an accusation. Despite the rumors, he appeared to have had a genuine concern for children, wanting to provide them with a world that was denied to him as a child due to the abuses he claimed to have suffered.
I was very happy for him last year when he reportedly became a Muslim. He had apparently followed the footsteps of his dignified and intelligent brother, Jermaine, who converted to Islam 20 years ago and found peace. It seemed befitting that Michael sought refuge from a society that thrives on putting people on pedestals and then knocking them down. He was accused of many terrible things, but was guilty of perhaps being far too sensitive for an extremely cruel world. Such is the fate of many artistic people in our culture of nihilistic art, where the dominant outlet for their talents is in singing hollow pop songs or dancing half-naked in front of ogling onlookers who often leave them as quickly as they clung to them for the next latest sensation.
In the manner of Elvis or the Beatles, Michael is unwittingly both a cause and a symptom of America's national obsession with celebrity, currently on display in the American Idol mania. Celebrity trumps catastrophe every time. Far too few of us make any attempt to understand why jobs are drying up, why mortgages are collapsing, why we spend half-a-trillion dollars to service the interest on the national debt, why our government's administration, despite being elected on an anti-war platform, is still committed to two unnecessary and unjust wars waged by the earlier administration, wars that continue to involve civilians casualties on an almost daily basis. Instead, we drown in trivia, especially trivia related to celebrity. And the response to Michael's death is part of the trivial pursuits of American popular culture. The real news about death in America is that twenty Iraq and Afghan war veterans are committing suicide every day. But that does not make the front page nor is it discussed as seriously as the King of Pop's cardiac arrest.
Nevertheless, Michael's very public death notice is a powerful reminder that no matter how famous or talented or wealthy one is, death comes knocking, sometimes sooner than later. Michael has now entered a world of extraordinary perception, a world that makes his "Thriller" video seem mundane. It is a world of angels and demons, and questions in the grave, a world where fame is based upon piety and charity. Given Michael's reported conversion to Islam last year, Muslims count him as one of our own, and we pray that he can finally find the peace he never found in this world and that he is in a place, God willing, of mercy, forgiveness, and solace.
Unrest in Iran Inspires Pro-Democracy Activists in the Arab World
June 27, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
New America Media, Commentary, NAM Correspondent
NAM Editor's Note: Arab regimes haven't publicly criticized or even mentioned what is happening in neighboring Iran, triggering much speculation among Arab bloggers as to why that is. The author of this piece wished to remain anonymous due to safety concerns.
Former Iranian Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi pauses while he speaks about Iran at the National Press Club in Washington June 22, 2009. REUTERS/Larry Downing |
DAMASCUS — Images of bloody protesters and crowds numbering in the hundreds of thousands in the streets of Tehran have been broadcast into living rooms across the Arab world for five consecutive days, enchanting and inspiring pro-democracy activists in a region where pushes for democratic reforms tend to be met with an iron fist.
Meanwhile, Arab regimes have largely remained silent over the contested election. Leaders of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan—the major Sunni powers in the region—haven't mentioned the elections or allegations of fraud. In normal circumstances, this would be strange — these countries are the regional archenemies of President Ahmedinejad's Iran.
Some say the reason behind their silence lies in their fear of bolstering pro-democracy movements in their own countries. "The unrest in Iran frightens dictators in the region because it makes it harder for them to justify their own absolute authority," says Syrian blogger Yasir Sadiq. "If they see tyrannies come down around them, they'll be afraid."
Whether or not the Iranian elections were "stolen," Iran is a long way ahead of most Arab countries when it comes to democracy — the country has a functioning electoral system. Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the Gulf states don't hold elections, and in Egypt and Syria, "elections" are so tightly controlled that the results are always known in advance.
The state controlled media in authoritarian Arab countries have mostly downplayed the events in Iran. Government controlled newspapers like Al-Thawra in Syria, Iran's strongest regional ally, have kept Iran off the front pages and run headlines like, "The West needs to stop intervening in Iranian elections," using age-old claims of conspiracies to deflect attention from actual popular desire for democratic reform.
"Governments all over the Arab world accuse pro-democracy movements of serving the west, or of being tools of the CIA or Mosad (Israeli intelligence)," says Syrian freelance journalist Khaled Al-Khetyari. "They are just trying to manipulate people by using this language because the people in power don't want their populations to analyze what is actually happening in Iran."
The Obama administration has been relatively silent on the unrest in Iran. On Wednesday, Hillary Clinton said it was up to Iranians to "resolve this internal protest."
Al-Khatyari says the U.S. administration's measured distance is a strategy the U.S. should stick to. "The last American administration latched onto any internal opposition to regimes it didn't like. This always hurts local movements because it connects them to a country that most people here see as harmful to the region and it justifies repression by our governments."
Syrian blogger Yasir Sadiq says he is encouraged by the Iranian opposition's seven-point manifesto being circulated on the internet, which calls for the "Dissolution of all organizations — both secret and public — designed for the oppression of the Iranian people."
"It's inspiring to see people in the Middle East call for the end of secret services," Sadiq says. "Organizations like this have oppressed people in the Arab world so much."
Sadiq is reticent to believe that what he calls Iran's pro-democracy "intifada" could be exported to Arab countries any time soon. "It's difficult to hope for this kind of movement in the Arab world. We have a long way to go, but we hope that eventually, something like that will happen here."
For now, he says, Arab activists will attempt to learn what they can from their counterparts in Iran. For days, Sadiq has been pegged to Twitter, the social networking tool that has allowed Iranians to organize demonstrations while the Iranian government institutes a near blackout of internet services.
"Arab bloggers' main interest in what is happening in Iran is in figuring out how Twitter can be used to organize and bring our voices forward in our own countries," he says.
The government in Syria may eventually try to ban it, like they have with other networking sites like Facebook, but Sadiq says he is not deterred. "The more they ban, the more ways we will find to get around their restrictions."
The American Empire Is Bankrupt
June 27, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Chris Hedges
This week marks the end of the dollar's reign as the world's reserve currency. It marks the start of a terrible period of economic and political decline in the United States. And it signals the last gasp of the American imperium. That's over. It is not coming back. And what is to come will be very, very painful.
Barack Obama, and the criminal class on Wall Street, aided by a corporate media that continues to peddle fatuous gossip and trash talk as news while we endure the greatest economic crisis in our history, may have fooled us, but the rest of the world knows we are bankrupt. And these nations are damned if they are going to continue to prop up an inflated dollar and sustain the massive federal budget deficits, swollen to over $2 trillion, which fund America's imperial expansion in Eurasia and our system of casino capitalism. They have us by the throat. They are about to squeeze.
There are meetings being held Monday and Tuesday in Yekaterinburg, Russia, (formerly Sverdlovsk) among Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and other top officials of the six-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organization. The United States, which asked to attend, was denied admittance. Watch what happens there carefully. The gathering is, in the words of economist Michael Hudson, "the most important meeting of the 21st century so far."
It is the first formal step by our major trading partners to replace the dollar as the world's reserve currency. If they succeed, the dollar will dramatically plummet in value, the cost of imports, including oil, will skyrocket, interest rates will climb and jobs will hemorrhage at a rate that will make the last few months look like boom times. State and federal services will be reduced or shut down for lack of funds. The United States will begin to resemble the Weimar Republic or Zimbabwe. Obama, endowed by many with the qualities of a savior, will suddenly look pitiful, inept and weak. And the rage that has kindled a handful of shootings and hate crimes in the past few weeks will engulf vast segments of a disenfranchised and bewildered working and middle class. The people of this class will demand vengeance, radical change, order and moral renewal, which an array of proto-fascists, from the Christian right to the goons who disseminate hate talk on Fox News, will assure the country they will impose.
I called Hudson, who has an article in Monday's Financial Times called The Yekaterinburg Turning Point: De-Dollarization and the Ending of America's Financial-Military Hegemony. "Yekaterinburg," Hudson writes, "may become known not only as the death place of the czars but of the American empire as well." His article is worth reading, along with John Lanchester's disturbing exposé of the world's banking system, titled "It's Finished," which appeared in the May 28 issue of the London Review of Books.
"This means the end of the dollar," Hudson told me. "It means China, Russia, India, Pakistan, Iran are forming an official financial and military area to get America out of Eurasia. The balance-of-payments deficit is mainly military in nature. Half of America's discretionary spending is military. The deficit ends up in the hands of foreign banks, central banks. They don't have any choice but to recycle the money to buy U.S. government debt. The Asian countries have been financing their own military encirclement. They have been forced to accept dollars that have no chance of being repaid. They are paying for America's military aggression against them. They want to get rid of this."
China, as Hudson points out, has already struck bilateral trade deals with Brazil and Malaysia to denominate their trade in China's yuan rather than the dollar, pound or euro. Russia promises to begin trading in the ruble and local currencies. The governor of China's central bank has openly called for the abandonment of the dollar as reserve currency, suggesting in its place the use of the International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights. What the new system will be remains unclear, but the flight from the dollar has clearly begun. The goal, in the words of the Russian president, is to build a "multipolar world order" which will break the economic and, by extension, military domination by the United States. China is frantically spending its dollar reserves to buy factories and property around the globe so it can unload its U.S. currency. This is why Aluminum Corp. of China made so many major concessions in the failed attempt to salvage its $19.5 billion alliance with the Rio Tinto mining concern in Australia. It desperately needs to shed its dollars.
"China is trying to get rid of all the dollars they can in a trash-for-resource deal," Hudson said. "They will give the dollars to countries willing to sell off their resources since America refuses to sell any of its high-tech industries, even Unocal, to the yellow peril. It realizes these dollars are going to be worthless pretty quickly."
The architects of this new global exchange realize that if they break the dollar they also break America's military domination. Our military spending cannot be sustained without this cycle of heavy borrowing. The official U.S. defense budget for fiscal year 2008 is $623 billion, before we add on things like nuclear research. The next closest national military budget is China's, at $65 billion, according to the Central Intelligence Agency.
There are three categories of the balance-of-payment deficits. America imports more than it exports. This is trade. Wall Street and American corporations buy up foreign companies. This is capital movement. The third and most important balance-of-payment deficit for the past 50 years has been Pentagon spending abroad. It is primarily military spending that has been responsible for the balance-of-payments deficit for the last five decades. Look at table five in the Balance of Payments Report, published in the Survey of Current Business quarterly, and check under military spending. There you can see the deficit.
To fund our permanent war economy, we have been flooding the world with dollars. The foreign recipients turn the dollars over to their central banks for local currency. The central banks then have a problem. If a central bank does not spend the money in the United States then the exchange rate against the dollar will go up. This will penalize exporters. This has allowed America to print money without restraint to buy imports and foreign companies, fund our military expansion and ensure that foreign nations like China continue to buy our treasury bonds. This cycle appears now to be over. Once the dollar cannot flood central banks and no one buys our treasury bonds, our empire collapses. The profligate spending on the military, some $1 trillion when everything is counted, will be unsustainable.
"We will have to finance our own military spending," Hudson warned, "and the only way to do this will be to sharply cut back wage rates. The class war is back in business. Wall Street understands that. This is why it had Bush and Obama give it $10 trillion in a huge rip-off so it can have enough money to survive."
The desperate effort to borrow our way out of financial collapse has promoted a level of state intervention unseen since World War II. It has also led us into uncharted territory.
"We have in effect had to declare war to get us out of the hole created by our economic system," Lanchester wrote in the London Review of Books. "There is no model or precedent for this, and no way to argue that it's all right really, because under such-and-such a model of capitalism … there is no such model. It isn't supposed to work like this, and there is no road-map for what's happened."
The cost of daily living, from buying food to getting medical care, will become difficult for all but a few as the dollar plunges. States and cities will see their pension funds drained and finally shut down. The government will be forced to sell off infrastructure, including roads and transport, to private corporations. We will be increasingly charged by privatized utilities—think Enron—for what was once regulated and subsidized. Commercial and private real estate will be worth less than half its current value. The negative equity that already plagues 25 percent of American homes will expand to include nearly all property owners. It will be difficult to borrow and impossible to sell real estate unless we accept massive losses. There will be block after block of empty stores and boarded-up houses. Foreclosures will be epidemic. There will be long lines at soup kitchens and many, many homeless. Our corporate-controlled media, already banal and trivial, will work overtime to anesthetize us with useless gossip, spectacles, sex, gratuitous violence, fear and tawdry junk politics. America will be composed of a large dispossessed underclass and a tiny empowered oligarchy that will run a ruthless and brutal system of neo-feudalism from secure compounds. Those who resist will be silenced, many by force. We will pay a terrible price, and we will pay this price soon, for the gross malfeasance of our power elite.
The Lid is Off
June 18, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Dr. Aslam Abdullah, TMO Editor-in-chief
For almost three four five decades the elected representatives of the world's most powerful country lived in fear of a lobby that was capable of destroying their lives and careers. Through whatever means, they were told not to say a single word against the state of Israel, otherwise they would not be re elected and their reputation would be destroyed. Many a congressmen lost their careers.
The lobby thrived on the basis of its money and influence at various sectors of American life. The lobby is still there, but the people have started to speak out against the apartheid and inhumanity of the state of Israel in protecting its interests. People no longer fear the accusation of anti-semitism because speaking for the Palestinians rights as guaranteed in the UN human rights charter is not an act of hatred against anyone. Calling Israel an apartheid state is not an act of speaking against Judaism and describing the Zionist state a shame to all that is decent is not a hate speech.
More and more people are saying openly that the Zionist state is the worst in its human rights record towards Palestinian. They are saying it loudly and clearly that never in history a people like Palestinians have been treated so inhumanly by an aggressor like the state of Israelis. Former US President Jimmy Carter summed up the feelings of all those decent human beings who are felt intimidated by the Israeli lobby when he said after visiting Ghaza., "Never before in history has a large community like this been savaged by bombs and missiles and then denied the means to repair itself."
The lid is off now and more and more people would speak up. Israeli lobby can no longer blackmail US Congressmen and public. It is an accomplice in crimes against humanity and the American public must make it known to it. Obviously, it would be a white before the real damage caused y this lobby to America and its interests in the world would become known. In order to support criminals in Tel Aviv, this lobby has forced Americans to put their resources at the behest of those who can easily be put behind bars for all they have done to deny other human beings the right to live.
Describing the scenes of destruction in Ghaza, the former president said, "I feel partially responsible for this as must all Americans and Israelis."
We are waiting for decent voices from amongst the supporters of Israel to stand for human dignity of others and not just theirs. We have not heard any significant voice from amongst Christian Zionists or American Jewish establishment in support of the Palestinians right to live in their homeland. On the other hand we hear many of them supporting the criminals, and terrorists who have destroyed homes and generations.
We acknowledge that Hamas and those Palestinian elements who use terror as a tactic to achieve their goals are wrong and we denounce their acts. But we have no doubt in our mind that the criminals who occupy positions of significance in Israel are bigger terrorists. They use all the might they have at their disposal to kill innocents. We denounce them as well. But we don't see any Jewish establishment or Christian Zionists in the US who have spoken in defence of human rights of Palestinians.
As American citizens, we are waiting for decent voices to emerge from the lobby and supporters of the state of Israel that in the mind of many analysts is nothing but an apartheid state.
Chaos on Cairo Streets
May 7, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Sumayyah Meehan MMNS Middle East Correspondent
Cars on bustling Cairo streets compete with pedestrians, donkey carts, buses and motorcycles as they make their way down the ever congested and polluted roadways. And that's in addition to sharing the street with countless other vehicles. As a result of the chaos, Egypt is ranked as 2nd in the world for traffic fatalities. According to a World Health Organization report, there were an estimated 7,000 road fatalities in Egypt last year alone. The reasons for the deaths can be chalked up to several factors such as poor driving skills by motorists, a failing infrastructure with poor roadways and a general indifference by a population who is one of the poorest in the world.
Most drivers in Egypt do not even have to pass a driver's education course before they are licensed to hit the road. This is evident the moment you pull onto any street in Cairo. Driver's weave in and out of traffic and get off at exits without even turning on their blinkers. Since bus stops are few and far between, buses often stop in the middle of the roadway to dispense their passengers, who just might get hit by a speeding motorist the minute they get off the bus. The speed limit is too often ignored and even traffic stoplights serve as mere road ornaments as driver after driver blow through the red lights.
Taking a look inside a typical vehicle driven by an Egyptian citizen reveals a whole new world of hazards and violations. For one thing, most seatbelts are either missing or tucked down into the seat without even a thought to their purpose being taken into consideration. The occupants of the car are jostled about unrestrained, which includes children who often use the car as an excuse to jump around and play. A children's carseat in an Egyptian car is an unfortunate rarity. There are also countless distractions that cause the driver to keep his eyes off of the road, which includes hot beverages like tea, cell phones and the all too common cigarette balanced between fingers.
There are an estimated 4.4 million cars on Egyptian streets and the number is growing. The Egyptian government is fighting an uphill battle in combating the roadway mayhem. However, parliament has recently taken measures to punish those who break traffic safety laws and hopefully send a message to others that reckless driving is no longer acceptable. Last year a new traffic safety code was adopted in Egypt. Simple traffic transgressions, such as not yielding to pedestrians or driving in the opposite direction on a one-way street, are now punishable by jail time and a hefty fine.
The government has shrewdly turned to technology to maintain some level of road safety. Egyptian roads are now monitored by cameras, which are remotely manned by a control center that operates around the clock. A system of radars has also been established at congested intersections to catch traffic violators in the act. Policemen have also been equipped with portable digital devices to quickly issue citations. And the government plans to study traffic accident patterns to prevent future calamities.
The Ministry of Interior has also launched a media campaign to educate the public about the importance of road safety. This month the ministry plans to launch a monthly documentary about specific traffic accidents that resulted in one or more fatalities. The documentary will show viewers, up close and personal, the reason for the accident and how it could have been prevented. The ministry also plans to go a step further by interviewing family members of the deceased to see how traumatic their loss has been. The Egyptian government hopes that the programming will wake its' populous out of their slumber to take road safety seriously.
Response to the Muslim Evolutionists
April 13, 2009 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Hakim Jensen
The subject of evolution is extremely incendiary among Muslims, which is a surprise to me as a convert.
I was raised on evolution, and would have considered anyone an ignoramus who denied it—until I accepted my faith.
I had previously accepted the lies spoon-fed to me from infancy to age 24. Now, however, things are different. My religion states clearly that Adam and Eve were the first members of our race of people, and all of today's people are descended from them—and Allah made nations and tribes from them. My job is to believe my religion if I want to adhere to it. And I believe it—it makes more sense to me than any alternative. And now I actually devote some thought to it instead of mindlessly parroting the stupidities of those who taught me evolution.
Belief in the unseen is part of Islam. There are many miraculous events which are described in Qur`an which cannot be explained according to the natural laws of this universe. The only explanations come from belief in the unseen world—there is not really any way around that. The essential distinction between believers and unbelievers is belief in the unseen world. Allah, angels, messengers, holy books, the Day of Judgment, and destiny, both the good and the bad: these are elements of our faith which we must believe in or our faith is not complete. And you cannot explain away those unseen things, or reduce them to footnotes in an otherwise purely physical world.
But now I see that many Muslims don't want to believe. They consider all of the actual beliefs and practices of Islam to be anachronistic embarrassments better tucked away as far as possible towards the back of the closet. As Muslims, our lives do not rotate around seen things, or around the physical world. And certainly our lives do not rotate around imitating unbelievers in their unbelief. Let them be rich and fat and happy—they are still living off the fat of the accomplishments of Muslims, whether algebra, trigonometry, medicine, astronomy, or other creations of Muslims, which in reality make their modernity possible—and unfortunately they lose themselves completely in their lives of waste and dramatic overconsumption. Islam is what gave unbelievers the very comfort and prosperity in which they take so much pride. But now Muslims imitate those unbelievers, in their stupidity, because they want the wealth and pleasure which Allah gave the unbelievers.
Those who run after this life, leaving Islam behind or covering it up, are making a mistake. Allah gave us difficulty in this life. Those who love Allah, and those who love Prophet (s), face extreme difficulty and poverty. Prophet (s) told Companions that. That is not an indication that we are on the wrong way. Our Holy Prophet (s) faced hunger beyond our imagining, saw his Companions tortured and killed, faced people who wanted to kill him and all his people, was himself wounded and tormented. Some Companions were tortured, forced to revoke their faith. It is actually an indication of our being good Muslims when we also face difficulty, although we hope not to face so much difficulty as those who came before us. It is not a dishonor to us that we face difficulty, or that Muslims are poor around the world. That is an indication of our goodness. Some people from other religions prefer this world over the next—so in this world they get to enjoy themselves, but we Muslims hope for the next world, and we seek our God's pleasure in this world—believing in Him despite our being unable to see Him; acting on our belief in Him sometimes to our own physical detriment—it builds our own honor that we do this. That said, if someone becomes wealthy but keeps his religion properly, that is tremendous good luck for him; it is good, not bad. A grateful wealthy person is better than a poor worshipper.
In imitating the unbelievers, Muslims betray us and support the arguments of the unbelievers, for example in evolution.
There are fundamental logical flaws in evolution. Evolution is a theory which pretends to explain a process of development that leads to the multiplicity of organisms that exist today. And yet the essential underpinning of that system is missing. There is no explanation for how the first life came into being. As Harun Yahya has shown, scientists are unable to create from primordial soup even the building blocks of life, simple proteins, let alone coalesce millions of proteins into a living organism and breathe life into it in one go. It is completely impossible. You can shoot lightning at ocean water all day long, and no frog is going to jump out of the soup. No amoeba will ever be created and pulse and migrate around a petri dish, inspired to life by a scientist who didn't first put that amoeba there after bringing it from wherever God had previously put it.
There are other flaws with evolution. Darwin could not have known that the mutations of organisms only happen within preset boundaries. A cat can be bred through multiple generations to favor only characteristics that were hidden within the genetic material of its ancestors. It cannot be bred into a dog, no matter how many generations you devote to the task. Nor can an ant's grandchildren be fish; nor can a crow, however bred, produce an ostrich or a chicken. If that is true under the direct manipulation of human breeding, then how can random mutations progress in ordered fashion from one species to another to build millions of species? If I am wrong, prove it. Breed any pair of cats into a dog (no direct genetic manipulation by injecting canine genes—that's cheating). If your friend is on a train on tracks between Washington and New York, don't sit at the Berlin train station waiting for him, because he is never going to arrive there. He is also not going to arrive in Paris or London, unless there is direct intervention from the unseen world. You have to wait at some point on the connected tracks between Washington and New York.
But Islam explains everything without any flaw. Believers have a consistent explanation from their faith. In Islam there is an explanation for everything, for all of the so-called evidence that people use to argue against the underlying realities that are quite clearly explained in Islam. There is no logical flaw, the explanation is consistent and permits growth to our own understanding far beyond where we currently are scientifically. There is no religious limit to our scientific understanding as Muslims. Islam fed scientific inquiry, and did not retard it.
The basic explanation is this. There were 124,000 Adams, as stated in the hadith that Jibril (as) asked "Which Adam do you mean?" Our grandfather Adam was the last of those 124,000. That is the explanation for the footprints and other evidence of mankind that have been found from before our Adam. There have only been approximately 7,000 years since the flood of Noah. In the past there were many creatures, some of which were destroyed by Allah, or some of which were transformed by Allah. Dinosaurs became small, punished by God. Even in Qur`an are examples given of communities of people who were transformed into other creatures, apes or pigs. Species found only in fossil form simply are extinct species, or much diminished species that could still be living as far from humans as possible—they are not transitional life forms. If Allah wants animals to transform, He can make them transform—that does not invalidate Muslims' understanding of the origin of all living things. But as a general pattern that is not how humans came into being. Allah could have made amphibious creatures, that does not mean that fish turned into frogs. If you look at Allah's creation, He makes things appear as trees—many variations from a central theme—the similarities and the multiplicity of small variations are only evidence of the beauty and symmetry of His all-powerful design. The existence of one leaf next to another does not indicate that the first leaf has just climbed from the spot now occupied by the other leaf.
The so-called transitional human forms much promoted in bumper stickers and false depictions of progression from hunch-backs to homo sapiens sapiens are all fakes, forgeries, or either humans or apes—they are not as advertised, stepping stones between apes and humans. And this also Harun Yahya has shown in his arguments.
Everything about life indicates the existence of a planner, even the existence of a blueprint stamped on every cell of each creation—DNA.
In fact, Qur`an is so perfect and magnificent that it itself can be studied scientifically. In the glory days of Islam, people did study Qur`an. There are amazing facts, much discussed by believers but much ignored by those who battle for evolution—there are many facts about Qur`an which show an inhuman beauty and symmetry and order, as a small example consider that the word angel appears exactly as many times as the word devil, 88. Or that if you look at the very middle two words in Qur`an, they say "Be soft"—an instruction intended to be found by a diver who dove deep with belief into study of God's Holy Words. There are many other examples—please forgive me if I have made any mistake in the two I have cited. But the fact of the awesome precision of the Holiest Book is evidence that it itself is a valid subject for scientific study. These are only small examples of Qur`an's central planning and order.
Islam itself can be studied scientifically. The Prophet (s) should be studied scientifically—his example is more beneficial than studying the number of legs on ants, or whatever scientists waste their time studying. Those who worship science should not try so desperately to pry our fingers away from the study of our own lovely religion.
Now if you don't want to believe what Allah said, you are free. You can contradict Islam, contradict Qur`an, try to argue that Qur`an is not literal, say whatever you want, say you don't have to believe. You are free. Say your grandfather is an ape. Say your grandfather is a mosquito. Marry an ape yourself. Marry a donkey, marry a mosquito. Do what you want. But if you say those things, as a favor to me I am just asking that you not say you are Muslim. If you worship science, and not God. If you imitate the unbelievers, and shun the practices of the Holy Prophet (s). We are Muslim, so we want to believe what Allah tells us in Qur`an, and we want to follow the example of our Holy Prophet (s). And we want to devote ourselves to what Allah said—so please do not try to distract us and dissuade us, persuade us and subdue us.
In fact, to sum up, there are two explanations for the "origin of the species," as the idiot Charles Darwin called it. One is Darwinism, logically incomplete, based only on the world that is visible to unbelievers; the correct one is creation, it is logically complete, but based on the world known only to believers, to those who believe in the unseen. So choose your camp, but choose wisely. Because there are consequences to your decision. Choose the logically consistent explanation that explains everything, or choose the idiotic explanation that unbelievers love, which does not even bear up to logical scrutiny, and for which you may be punished.
It is remarkable even that unbelievers are able to persuade themselves to accept the pure stupidity of evolution. But at least it makes sense—cast adrift with no knowledge of the truth, they have to cast about and it is understandable that they could invent a childish explanation for the world around them—after all they don't know any better. But it is a shame beyond shamelessness that Muslims and other believers bow and scrape and otherwise abase themselves to the abomination, the utterly moronic theory of evolution, which lies at the foundation of almost all of the pure evil of the last 100 years, Nazism first of all.
Diabetes Spirals Out of Control in Gulf
By Sumayyah Meehan, MMNS
The unprecedented growth of diabetes around the world has raised red flags in the medical community, which is seeing a global spike in the disease in both the young and old alike. Nowhere is this more evident than in Gulf nations where the UAE is rated as 2nd in the world for the most diabetics per capita, 27% of the population is diabetic with the same percentage at risk for developing the disease. Other Gulf nations like Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are also fighting an uphill battle against the illness with more and more of their residents succumbing to a similar fate as their tiny Gulf neighbor.
Diabetes is one of the most common chronic illnesses in the world. It happens when the body stops producing insulin or when the body still produces insulin but is unable to respond to it. The most common treatment is the external administration of insulin through injection. However, many cases of diabetes in the Gulf go undetected until severe signs of the disease become manifest. Unlike most western nations, who are increasing budgetary expenditures to meet the influx of chronic disease within their borders, Gulf nations spent less than 4% of the GDP on the health sector last year that is in sharp contrast with the US who spent more than 11% of its GDP.
Perhaps the most disconcerting aspect of diabetes is the requirement, for some patients, to have a limb or extremity amputated. Diabetes restricts the amount of blood that flows throughout the body thus damaging nerves and often causing gangrene to set in. The only way to save the patient's life is to amputate and even then it is estimated that the patient will only have 5 more years to live. In Saudi Arabia, where 25% of the population is diabetic, more than 90 foot amputations are carried out each month, which roughly translates into 3 amputations per day.
The increased revenue from years of oil surpluses and a life of ease has created a perfect storm that has swept through the Middle East with a ferocity that has taken many by surprise. With more money in the family budget, many families eat out a few times a week. And the choice of restaurant is not always the healthiest. Fast food restaurants, junk food and fizzy carbonated drinks have for years crept into the hearts of Gulf denizens who often prefer a McDonald's Big Mac to traditional fare. Add to that the lifestyle in the Gulf, which turns lounging around into a sport and makes 'exercise' a dirty word. Children are the most at risk for developing diabetes before they even reach puberty due to obesity, a decrease in physical activity and an increase in sedentary activities such as surfing the Internet or playing video games.
Diabetes is called the 'silent killer' for a reason as many people either don't know they have it or ignore the treatment to care for it. Eating healthfully and engaging in exercise is often pushed to the wayside in favor of more pressing issues, like earning a living or caring for a family. According to the International Diabetes Fund, there are more than 250 million known cases of diabetes in the world. That figure is set to exponentially rise to 380 million in the next 15 years. And unless the governments of the Gulf take preventative measures now, the Middle East nations will make up a bulk of those cases. For this reason, the UAE based Harvard Medical School Dubai Center (HMSDC) has launched an initiative in cooperation with His Highness Mohamed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum's Academic Medical Center to make 2009 the year to combat diabetes in the kingdom, educate the public and help doctors to better treat the disease.
Breaking the Gaza Siege
November 13, 2008 by TMO · Leave a Comment
By Ramzi Kysia
GAZA CITY, FREE PALESTINE (29 October 2008) – This morning I walked to the Indian Ocean and made salt in defiance of the British Occupation of India. This morning I marched in Selma, I stood down tanks in Tiananmen Square, and I helped tear down the Berlin Wall. This morning I became a Freedom Rider.
The Freedom Riders of the 21st Century are sailing small boats into the Gaza Strip in open defiance of the Israeli Occupation and blockade. This morning I arrived in Gaza aboard the SS Dignity, part of a Free Gaza Movement delegation of twenty seven doctors, lawyers, teachers, and human rights activists from across the world, including Mairead Maguire – the 1976 Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
When I close my eyes, I still hear the crash of ocean waves, I still feel the warm sun on my face, and I still taste salt from the sea spray. When I close my eyes, I can still see the Israeli warship that tried to intimidate us when we reached the twenty-mile line outside Gaza, and I can still see a thousand cheering people crowding around our ship when we refused to be intimidated and finally reached port in Gaza City. Today, the proudest boast in the free world is truly, "Nam, Nehnu Nastatyeh!" – "Yes, We Can!"
Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, an independent member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, sailed aboard the Dignity, along with six other Palestinians from the West Bank, from 1948/inside the Green Line, and from countries in Europe. What should have been a ninety-minute drive from Ramallah to Gaza City became a three day odyssey as he travelled from the West Bank to Jordan, then flew to Cyprus, before finally coming aboard the Dignity for the fifteen hour sea voyage to Gaza.
"We're challenging Israel in a manner that is unprecedented, "said Dr. Barghouti. "Israel has prevented me from visiting Gaza for more than two years now. I am so pleased that we managed to defy Israel's injustice so that I can see all the people I love and work with in Gaza. Israel's measures are meant to divide us, but it is our defiance and resistance which unite us. "
Photos from Gaza: Hamas sailors watch as a boat carrying European politicians (unseen) leaves Gaza's seaport November 10, 2008. The boat arrived at Gaza from Cyprus on Saturday after attempts to get to the Palestinian territory via Egypt failed. Other pictures of the boat, and of Palestinians in Gaza. Reuters |
This is a resistance which can and should light the fire of all our imaginations, and bring hope not just to Palestinians, but to peoples suffering the terrible tides of oppression and injustice the world around.
After watching the Dignity's arrival, Fida Qishta, the local coordinator for the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) in the Gaza Strip, said "If Gaza is free then it's our right to invite whomsoever we wish to visit us. It's our land and it's our sea. Now more groups must come, not only by sea but also the crossings at Erez and Rafah must be opened as well. This second breaking of the siege means a lot, actually. It's the second time in two months that people have come to Gaza without Israel's permission, and that tells us that Gaza will be free."
For over forty years, Israel has occupied the Gaza Strip. Despite the so-called "Disengagement " in 2005, when they shut down their illegal settlements here, Israel maintains absolute control over Gaza's borders and airspace, severely limiting the free movement of goods, services, and travel. Israel is still an occupying power.
For over two years, Israel has maintained a brutal blockade of Gaza. Less than twenty percent of the supplies needed (as compared to 2005) are allowed in. This has forced ninety-five percent of local industries to shut down, resulting in massively increased unemployment and poverty rates. Childhood malnutrition has skyrocketed, and eighty percent of families are now dependent on international food aid just to be able to eat. An hour after we arrived, I watched a teenage boy digging through the garbage, looking for something he could use.
Israel's siege isn't simply illegal – it's intolerable.
Renowned human rights activist Caoimhe Butterly also sailed aboard the Dignity, and will remain in Gaza for several weeks as Project Coordinator for the Free Gaza Movement. But, said Butterly, "My feelings are bittersweet. Although we're overjoyed at reaching Gaza a second time, that joy is tempered by the fact that the conscience of the world has been reduced to a small boat and 27 seasick activists. This mission is a reminder of not only the efficacy of non-violent direct action, but also of the deafening silence of the international community."
Our first voyage in August, the first voyage of any international ship to Gaza in over forty years, showed that it was possible to freely travel. This second voyage shows that it is repeatable, and this sets a precedent: The Siege of Gaza can be overcome through non-violent resistance and direct action.
Today, the Free Gaza Movement has a simple message for the rest of the world: What are you waiting for?
Ramzi Kysia is an Arab-American writer and activist, and one of the organizers of the Free Gaza Movement. To find out more about Free Gaza and what you can do to help support their work, please visit http://www.FreeGaza.org <http://www.freegaza.org/>