Two Articles
Two good articles from IPA: Muslim homosexual asylum seekers flock to Canada Inside Al Jazeera: A conversation with Samir Khader
Category: Current Affairs
A Letter from Saudi Arabia
Passed on from a friend from a friend. I can assure that the person is writing from Saudi Arabia. Dear Friends, As I am sitting in front of my home computer, an intense pounding is trying to break through my forehead. I am wondering how quickly the Tylenol will kick in. I have been up this morning since 5:30 AM, which any of you who know me well will be surprised to hear. I was awakened this morning by a telephone call from the Booz Allen senior employee in Riyadh who works on the Saudi Navy Project and lives on…
Rage
Not outrage. Simply rage. Demi has commented before about how amazed she is that we can be (relatively) calm about the situation in Iraq. I think I’ve hit my limit. I’ve previously posted about how the abuses committed by insurgents are utterly un-Islamic. Nick Berg, Paul Johnson, Kim Sun-Il, God rest their souls, each one, and may God grant their families strength and peace. Regardless of the fact the Wahhabis think that beheadings are cool, they are not, and furthers my argument that the Wahhabis should not be a voice for Islam if they are not Muslim. I feel an…
Islam does this, Islam does that…
Been laid up up for a few days with a bum ankle. This has given me some time to catch up on my web reading. It doesn’t look good from here. Forgetting Iraq and Saudi Arabia, for the moment, I am saddened that calmer voices have been shouted down both here and in the Muslim world. We have made this an issue about Islam, and I too have been guilty of this. I apologise. I have recently been in the company of some really interesting thinkers listening to them debate the current state of Islam. Thinkers such as Reinhard Schulzeand…
Say it ain’t so
Brigitte Bardot believes in racial purity. [Thanks to Miamvi for the link.]
Marriage is a gay event
While I don’t live in the Republic of Cambridge, I do spend enough time there that the ruling concerning gay marriage has a personal impact on my friends. I posted a while ago about how I think it’s a bad idea for the state to legislate morality. There may be arguments for legislating against marriage for same-sex couples, but morality is surprisingly not in the state’s interest. Haroon, from over at Avari-nameh, challenged my basic assumption, and I promised him a good fight, but let it go. Now he’s posting on the same subject, using the same source no less!,…
Hijab
There is an op-ed written in a NY Urdu language paper (English translation) that deals with the issue of hijab. I’m looking for the Urdu version, but the English translation reminds me very much of what some of the early debate was like in NY in English. You would throw out a whole bunch of arguments and see what would stick. The arguments have become much more sophisticated and targeted, helped both by time and the easy accessibility of more academic material. I think this article is important, not because of what it says, but because of the language and…
Independence Day
So today begins Iraqi sovereignty. Apparently they are exercising their right not to go along with the US already. So we have Paul Bremer, Lakhdar Brahimi and the former IGC trying to figure out who is NOT in charge. So now the question is who’s taking care of our people?
Commencement Speech
John Stewart’s commencement address at William and Mary. Pay particular attention to the section the “greatest generation,” and where he talks about Bethseda. We do need a new greatest generation, but not necessarily a military one. This country needs to be rebuilt, and we need to find the passion that makes us Americans; we just can’t be “no them.” We are better than that.
Project Syndicate
Just came across this website entitled Project Syndicate. It is an international association of quality newspapers devoted to: 1. Bringing distinguished voices from across the world to local audiences everywhere; 2. Strengthening the independence of printed media in transition; and, 3. Developing countries as well as upgrading their journalistic, editorial, and business capacities. As part of their coverage, Project Syndicate has a section on Islam, which is really quite good and may be of interest to islamicate readership. Here is the introduction by the featured contributor, Mai Yamani. “Whether because of the perceived defeats inflicted upon Muslims by the outside…