VOICE OF GLOBAL UMMAH
Volume 154, October 24 , 2010
St. Louis, Missouri, USA
St. Louis, Missouri, USA
Editors: Mohamed and Rashida Ziauddin
In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficial and the Most Merciful
HADITH:In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficial and the Most Merciful
"Prophet Mohammed PBUH stated:
"The one who leads/shows the way to the Good, is the same as the doer of this good”
EDITORIAL:
To our dear Citizens of the World which includes all human beings, we say that extremist forces globally are unfortunately increasing in numbers and we appeal to one and all to join us to keep them at bay and work for universal peace. HATE NONE AND LOVE ALL. Besides the Muslim extremists, there are growing number of non-Muslims extremists growing in numbers, thanks to the continued biased reporting of the mainstream media.
Our focus in this week's issue is on Islam and this includes excellent sources that enlighten the reality of Islam specially from Br. Hamza Yusuf, and United States Muslim Congressman Keith Ellis.
PART I:
WELCOME, SISTER LAUREN BOOTH TO THE WORLD OF ISLAM
WELCOME, SISTER LAUREN BOOTH TO THE WORLD OF ISLAM
We thank Br. Amer Saeed from Los Angeles, California who forwarded us an e-mail of below article.
Tony Blair's sister-in-law Lauren Booth converts to Islam after a 'holy experience' in Iran
Sunday Reporter
24th October 2010
Convert: Cherie Blair's sister Lauren Booth24th October 2010
Tony Blair’s sister-in-law has converted to Islam after having a ‘holy experience’ in Iran. Broadcaster and journalist Lauren Booth, 43 – Cherie Blair’s half-sister – said she now wears a hijab head covering whenever she leaves her home, prays five times a day and visits her local mosque ‘when I can’.
She decided to become a Muslim six weeks ago after visiting the shrine of Fatima al-Masumeh in the city of Qom. ‘It was a Tuesday evening and I sat down and felt this shot of spiritual morphine, just absolute bliss and joy,’ she told The Mail on Sunday. When she returned to Britain, she decided to convert immediately. ‘Now I don’t eat pork and I read the Koran every day. I’m on page 60.
She decided to become a Muslim six weeks ago after visiting the shrine of Fatima al-Masumeh in the city of Qom. ‘It was a Tuesday evening and I sat down and felt this shot of spiritual morphine, just absolute bliss and joy,’ she told The Mail on Sunday. When she returned to Britain, she decided to convert immediately. ‘Now I don’t eat pork and I read the Koran every day. I’m on page 60.
‘I also haven’t had a drink in 45 days, the longest period in 25 years. The strange thing is that since I decided to convert I haven’t wanted to touch alcohol, and I was someone who craved a glass of wine or two at the end of a day.’ Refusing to discount the possibility that she might wear a burka, she said: ‘Who knows where my spiritual journey will take me?’ Before her awakening in Iran, she had been ‘sympathetic’ to Islam and has spent considerable time working in Palestine. ‘I was always impressed with the strength and comfort it gave,’ she said of the religion.
Miss Booth, who works for Press TV, the English-language Iranian news channel, has been a vocal opponent of the war in Iraq. In August 2008 she travelled to Gaza by ship from Cyprus, along with 46 other activists, to highlight Israel’s blockade of the territory. She was subsequently refused entry into both Israel and Egypt.
In 2006 she was a contestant on the ITV reality show I’m A Celebrity . . . Get Me Out Of Here!, donating her fee to the Palestinian relief charity Interpal. She said she hoped her conversion would help Mr Blair change his presumptions about Islam.
PART II
A DEFENSE OF FREE SPEECH
BY AMERICAN AND CANADIAN MUSLIMS
www.theamericanmuslim.org
www.theamericanmuslim.org
We, the undersigned, unconditionally condemn any intimidation or threats of violence directed against any individual or group exercising the rights of freedom of religion and speech; even when that speech may be perceived as hurtful or reprehensible. We are concerned and saddened by the recent wave of vitriolic anti-Muslim and anti-Islamic sentiment that is being expressed across our nation.
We are even more concerned and saddened by threats that have been made against individual writers, cartoonists, and others by a minority of Muslims. We see these as a greater offense against Islam than any cartoon, Qur’an burning, or other speech could ever be deemed. We affirm the right of free speech for Molly Norris, Matt Stone, Trey Parker, and all others including ourselves. As Muslims, we must set an example of justice, patience, tolerance, respect, and forgiveness.
The Qur’an enjoins Muslims to:We are even more concerned and saddened by threats that have been made against individual writers, cartoonists, and others by a minority of Muslims. We see these as a greater offense against Islam than any cartoon, Qur’an burning, or other speech could ever be deemed. We affirm the right of free speech for Molly Norris, Matt Stone, Trey Parker, and all others including ourselves. As Muslims, we must set an example of justice, patience, tolerance, respect, and forgiveness.
* bear witness to Islam through our good example (2:143);
* restrain anger and pardon people (3:133-134 and 24:22);
* remain patient in adversity (3186);
* stand firmly for justice (4:135);
* not let the hatred of others swerve us from justice (5:8);
* respect the sanctity of life (5:32);
* turn away from those who mock Islam (6:68 and 28:55);
* hold to forgiveness, command what is right, and turn away from the ignorant (7:199);
* restrain ourselves from rash responses (16:125-128);
* pass by worthless talk with dignity (25:72); and
* repel evil with what is better (41:34).
Islam calls for vigorous condemnation of both hateful speech and hateful acts, but always within the boundaries of the law. It is of the utmost importance that we react, not out of reflexive emotion, but with dignity and intelligence, in accordance with both our religious precepts and the laws of our country. We uphold the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Both protect freedom of religion and speech, because both protections are fundamental to defending minorities from the whims of the majority.
We therefore call on all Muslims in the United States, Canada and abroad to refrain from violence. We should see the challenges we face today as an opportunity to sideline the voices of hate—not reward them with further attention—by engaging our communities in constructive dialogue about the true principles of Islam, and the true principles of democracy, both of which stress the importance of freedom of religion and tolerance.
PART III- a
(Special thanks to Br. Nooruddin from Los Angeles, California for updating us on below article)When You're a Statistic
Hamza Yusuf
10/17/2010
Sandala Productions
Hamza Yusuf
10/17/2010
Sandala Productions
It’s been said that a liberal is just a conservative that hasn’t been mugged yet. Sometimes it takes something traumatic to wake us up to the realities of our situation, and to force us to rethink our beliefs and behaviors. Americans are essentially civil and decent people and not prone to violent reactions, but now millions of Americans are being exposed to a profoundly radical and extremely distorted view of Islam, which is that 1) Islam is an evil religion; 2) it was born in the crucible of violence, and engenders violence in its followers; and 3) a significant number of American Muslims are actively working to undermine the government of this country, and to establish shariah law.
These ideas may sound outlandish and far fetched, but some of the major websites promoting such views get hundreds of thousands of visitors each month. The trouble with such misinformation is that when someone wants to learn about Islam and Googles it, for instance, shariah law and women, they’re likely to see an image of a girl with her nose cut off. Worse yet, most of the top ten articles returned from such a search are not expository articles explaining what shariah actually is – they are articles propagating the idea that the shariah is evil. Hence, even if people sincerely search for information about Islam, they are likely to get misinformation and anti-Islam propaganda.
Moreover, even educated people are having a harder time sorting the wheat from the chaff, distinguishing what is accurate from what is propaganda against Islam. There are also a lot of very negative emails circulating on the Internet either misquoting Qur’an and hadith or quoting out of context. In fact, if you walk into a bookstore today and simply browse under the subject of Islam, about half the books are anti-Muslim or written by apostates from Islam who actually hate Islam. If a person scans the shelves for a book on the Qur’an, the best looking book that catches their eye could very well be The Infidel’s Guide to the Koran, and so one starts to read it, and it distorts Islam using the sources of Islam, such as Qur’anic verses or hadith.
The verses quoted are explained without historical context, and are used to distort the holistic message of the Qur’an. It is easy to make Islam look like the most evil religion on the planet using quotations from primary sources. It is also easy to do the same with Christianity, Judaism, or any other world-religion, but most people, Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins notwithstanding, know that Judaism and Christianity are not evil. However, they do not know that about Islam because we have allowed other people to define Islam. Look in the bookstore sections about other religions, and you’ll see a vastly different set of books.
For instance, you will find nothing negative about Judaism in the section on Judaism, and if you did, rest assured that major Jewish activist organizations would soon have a slew of volunteers writing to the publishers and the bookstores and have the book pulled from the shelves in record time. The Christian section is so vast as to overshadow the few titles that present Christianity in less than a positive light. Even the section on Wicca and Paganism comprises of titles mostly like, How I Found Inner Peace by Worshipping the Moon and How Satan Can Cure Your Migraines.
When we say “Islam,” is it the beautiful religion of peace and spiritual elevation that sustains millions and millions of people during their journeys through life and inspires countless good deeds, or is it the violent, misogynistic, anachronistic medieval madness that is now infecting America? When we say “jihad,” does it mean an honorable struggle for social justice and the internal struggle with our own selves against the ego, envy, pride, miserliness, and stupidity, and the universal right to defend one’s land or one’s home from aggressors, or does it mean brutally and barbarically chopping off heads, cutting off noses, lopping off ears, flogging women, or blowing up innocent people for simply not being part of the faith? Who is going to define the words?
Is it going to be every Tom, Dick, and Humpty Dumpty? Are we going to leave it for those who have passed through the looking glass and are living in Wonderland where black is white, up is down, and right is wrong, and where, like the queen reminds Alice, “Sentence first – verdict afterward” is how things work? Who is going to decide? This unrelenting and hateful messaging is taking an effect over time. We can see this in the changes in public views of Islam. In polls taken immediately after 9-11, most people did not have a negative view of Islam. That has changed dramatically now.
The majority of people in the United States do have negative views of Islam now. This is because the people who want to propagate that narrative have been working hard. They have been funding organizations, funding the publication of books, getting anti-Muslim messages on TV shows, and in general, they have been the only voices heard by most Americans. Muslims have been sleeping through this, or else simply watching in horror as the propaganda takes hold. Here is what happens. Most people out there who do not like Islam or have a negative view of it are not going to do much, as most people mosey along through life and do not think about much other than their own concerns and preoccupations.
However, talk-show hosts, editorial writers – what Malcolm Gladwell in The Tipping Point calls “mavens, connectors, and influencers” – are reading the negative books on Islam that are best sellers, such as Islamic Infiltration; Muslim Mafia; Muhammad: Founder of the World’s Most Intolerable Religion; Infidel’s Guide to the Qur’an; Why I am Not a Muslim; Infidel; Islamic Invasion – and a lot of these books are being sent to congresspersons and senators.
The majority of people in this country do not read books or even newspapers, but many watch Fox News. They listen to talk-show hosts. They listen to Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, and Bill O’Reilly. And these pundits have access to millions of Americans and for many of them, this is the only view of Islam they’re getting. Now, you have some media figures, such as Keith Olbermann, who do attempt to present another view, but he and those like him are more often than not preaching to the choir.
You also have court jesters who can speak the truth without losing their heads, such as Jon Stewart, and millions tune in to such programs, but such audiences are considered either pinheads or potheads according to the other camp. These shows do not reach the large segment of Americans who are conservatives (or even moderates) and who need to hear a different and more accurate portrayal of Islam. I don’t want to be Manichean about this, as many of the right-wing voices also address other issues that are necessary to address and are often ignored by the left.
They are not hearing any counter voices because we have not made strategic alliances in the conservative community. According to a recent study, over 50 percent of Evangelicals believe that people outside of Christianity can go to heaven, but only 34 percent of that same group believes that Muslims can go to heaven. There are millions of people out there who think that all Muslims are hell bound. Among that segment of society, there are people whom the Qur’an terms sufahah.
These are the fools, the idiotic people – the jahilun: people of ignorance, impetuousness, and zealotry. Every community has such people in it. The Muslims have them; the Jews have them; the Christians have them; the secular humanists have them. Every community has sociopaths or irrational people who may even slit the throat of a Bengali taxi driver because he said, “Yes, I am a Muslim.” Those people are going to be empowered increasingly. And people are more susceptible to new villains during times of economic hardship. As the unemployment rate rises and crimes increase, and people are looking for new targets for their aggression, why not a Muslim? Already, we’ve had “Burn the Qur’an Day” – will it be “Mug a Muslim Day” next?
Our choices are clear. We can sit here and watch all that is happening and think that things are fine. We can think to ourselves, “My neighbors are fine; everybody is nice to me at work.” But if that is what you think, you are living in a bubble. And your bubble is about to burst. I have been watching a trend that is getting worse and worse. And if something is not done, if there is nothing done to countervail, no other mitigating force, things are headed in a dangerous direction. Newton’s law of physics applies here as well: Bodies at rest will remain at rest, and bodies in motion will remain in motion, unless acted upon by an external force.
These ideas may sound outlandish and far fetched, but some of the major websites promoting such views get hundreds of thousands of visitors each month. The trouble with such misinformation is that when someone wants to learn about Islam and Googles it, for instance, shariah law and women, they’re likely to see an image of a girl with her nose cut off. Worse yet, most of the top ten articles returned from such a search are not expository articles explaining what shariah actually is – they are articles propagating the idea that the shariah is evil. Hence, even if people sincerely search for information about Islam, they are likely to get misinformation and anti-Islam propaganda.
Moreover, even educated people are having a harder time sorting the wheat from the chaff, distinguishing what is accurate from what is propaganda against Islam. There are also a lot of very negative emails circulating on the Internet either misquoting Qur’an and hadith or quoting out of context. In fact, if you walk into a bookstore today and simply browse under the subject of Islam, about half the books are anti-Muslim or written by apostates from Islam who actually hate Islam. If a person scans the shelves for a book on the Qur’an, the best looking book that catches their eye could very well be The Infidel’s Guide to the Koran, and so one starts to read it, and it distorts Islam using the sources of Islam, such as Qur’anic verses or hadith.
The verses quoted are explained without historical context, and are used to distort the holistic message of the Qur’an. It is easy to make Islam look like the most evil religion on the planet using quotations from primary sources. It is also easy to do the same with Christianity, Judaism, or any other world-religion, but most people, Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins notwithstanding, know that Judaism and Christianity are not evil. However, they do not know that about Islam because we have allowed other people to define Islam. Look in the bookstore sections about other religions, and you’ll see a vastly different set of books.
For instance, you will find nothing negative about Judaism in the section on Judaism, and if you did, rest assured that major Jewish activist organizations would soon have a slew of volunteers writing to the publishers and the bookstores and have the book pulled from the shelves in record time. The Christian section is so vast as to overshadow the few titles that present Christianity in less than a positive light. Even the section on Wicca and Paganism comprises of titles mostly like, How I Found Inner Peace by Worshipping the Moon and How Satan Can Cure Your Migraines.
*** *** ***
When Alice is in Wonderland and questions Humpty Dumpty about his usage of words, he says, “When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean – neither more nor less.” Alice responds, “The question is whether you can make words mean so many different things.” Humpty Dumpty replies, “The question is which is to be master – that’s all.” That is, which definition is going to be definitive? When we say “Islam,” is it the beautiful religion of peace and spiritual elevation that sustains millions and millions of people during their journeys through life and inspires countless good deeds, or is it the violent, misogynistic, anachronistic medieval madness that is now infecting America? When we say “jihad,” does it mean an honorable struggle for social justice and the internal struggle with our own selves against the ego, envy, pride, miserliness, and stupidity, and the universal right to defend one’s land or one’s home from aggressors, or does it mean brutally and barbarically chopping off heads, cutting off noses, lopping off ears, flogging women, or blowing up innocent people for simply not being part of the faith? Who is going to define the words?
Is it going to be every Tom, Dick, and Humpty Dumpty? Are we going to leave it for those who have passed through the looking glass and are living in Wonderland where black is white, up is down, and right is wrong, and where, like the queen reminds Alice, “Sentence first – verdict afterward” is how things work? Who is going to decide? This unrelenting and hateful messaging is taking an effect over time. We can see this in the changes in public views of Islam. In polls taken immediately after 9-11, most people did not have a negative view of Islam. That has changed dramatically now.
The majority of people in the United States do have negative views of Islam now. This is because the people who want to propagate that narrative have been working hard. They have been funding organizations, funding the publication of books, getting anti-Muslim messages on TV shows, and in general, they have been the only voices heard by most Americans. Muslims have been sleeping through this, or else simply watching in horror as the propaganda takes hold. Here is what happens. Most people out there who do not like Islam or have a negative view of it are not going to do much, as most people mosey along through life and do not think about much other than their own concerns and preoccupations.
However, talk-show hosts, editorial writers – what Malcolm Gladwell in The Tipping Point calls “mavens, connectors, and influencers” – are reading the negative books on Islam that are best sellers, such as Islamic Infiltration; Muslim Mafia; Muhammad: Founder of the World’s Most Intolerable Religion; Infidel’s Guide to the Qur’an; Why I am Not a Muslim; Infidel; Islamic Invasion – and a lot of these books are being sent to congresspersons and senators.
The majority of people in this country do not read books or even newspapers, but many watch Fox News. They listen to talk-show hosts. They listen to Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, and Bill O’Reilly. And these pundits have access to millions of Americans and for many of them, this is the only view of Islam they’re getting. Now, you have some media figures, such as Keith Olbermann, who do attempt to present another view, but he and those like him are more often than not preaching to the choir.
You also have court jesters who can speak the truth without losing their heads, such as Jon Stewart, and millions tune in to such programs, but such audiences are considered either pinheads or potheads according to the other camp. These shows do not reach the large segment of Americans who are conservatives (or even moderates) and who need to hear a different and more accurate portrayal of Islam. I don’t want to be Manichean about this, as many of the right-wing voices also address other issues that are necessary to address and are often ignored by the left.
They are not hearing any counter voices because we have not made strategic alliances in the conservative community. According to a recent study, over 50 percent of Evangelicals believe that people outside of Christianity can go to heaven, but only 34 percent of that same group believes that Muslims can go to heaven. There are millions of people out there who think that all Muslims are hell bound. Among that segment of society, there are people whom the Qur’an terms sufahah.
These are the fools, the idiotic people – the jahilun: people of ignorance, impetuousness, and zealotry. Every community has such people in it. The Muslims have them; the Jews have them; the Christians have them; the secular humanists have them. Every community has sociopaths or irrational people who may even slit the throat of a Bengali taxi driver because he said, “Yes, I am a Muslim.” Those people are going to be empowered increasingly. And people are more susceptible to new villains during times of economic hardship. As the unemployment rate rises and crimes increase, and people are looking for new targets for their aggression, why not a Muslim? Already, we’ve had “Burn the Qur’an Day” – will it be “Mug a Muslim Day” next?
Our choices are clear. We can sit here and watch all that is happening and think that things are fine. We can think to ourselves, “My neighbors are fine; everybody is nice to me at work.” But if that is what you think, you are living in a bubble. And your bubble is about to burst. I have been watching a trend that is getting worse and worse. And if something is not done, if there is nothing done to countervail, no other mitigating force, things are headed in a dangerous direction. Newton’s law of physics applies here as well: Bodies at rest will remain at rest, and bodies in motion will remain in motion, unless acted upon by an external force.
We have a body of messaging in motion, and it is hateful, it is effective, it is well-financed, and it is having its impact on opinions that were at rest before 9-11. The Prophet, peace be upon him, said, “Civil strife is asleep, and may God curse the one who wakens it.” This hadith indicates that calamities are waiting to happen, and people’s passions are easily aroused. This is a recurring phenomenon over the ages and all around the world. Just ask a Bosnian refugee in America how his Serbian neighbors turned on him and his family after being friends for all their lives. This happened through a powerful and violent campaign of propaganda waged by Serbian nationalists allied with certain extreme elements in the Orthodox Church.
The result was tragic, but people thought then as we do now: that could never happen here. Unless there is another force out there to counter this, Muslims are going to wake up in a very different America, an America that has drifted far from its own admirable and noble ideals, and they are going to wonder what happened. What happened was that you were asleep. Just like people slept before. People forget that the 1920’s in Germany was one of the most liberal periods. But there was hyperinflation, high unemployment, a lot of social problems, and before they knew it, they democratically elected fascists into power. The fascists did not seize power; they were democratically elected.
Right now, we have several angry and hateful candidates in close races in the House and the Senate and even governorships. You can say, “Oh, well, they are only a handful of people.” But this is how it starts. And in hard times, people turn to demagogues. And they are waiting in the wings. I plan on writing next about what Muslims can and should do to counter this wave of anti-Islam propaganda.
The result was tragic, but people thought then as we do now: that could never happen here. Unless there is another force out there to counter this, Muslims are going to wake up in a very different America, an America that has drifted far from its own admirable and noble ideals, and they are going to wonder what happened. What happened was that you were asleep. Just like people slept before. People forget that the 1920’s in Germany was one of the most liberal periods. But there was hyperinflation, high unemployment, a lot of social problems, and before they knew it, they democratically elected fascists into power. The fascists did not seize power; they were democratically elected.
Right now, we have several angry and hateful candidates in close races in the House and the Senate and even governorships. You can say, “Oh, well, they are only a handful of people.” But this is how it starts. And in hard times, people turn to demagogues. And they are waiting in the wings. I plan on writing next about what Muslims can and should do to counter this wave of anti-Islam propaganda.
PART III- b
Should We Fear Islam?
(washington post)
08 Oct 2010
PART IV - A
ON INTER-FAITH ISSUES:
Should We Fear Islam?
(washington post)
08 Oct 2010
Keith Ellison discusses the interesting if seriously flawed show that Christiane Amanpour held this past week. He rips into the format and discusses what would happen if we replaced Islam with Black or Jewish and proceeds to call for a heightened more intelligent discourse.
By United States Congressman Keith Ellison
At a time when our nation is seeing a rise in intolerant behavior, crossing every cultural line, whether based on race, religion or sexual orientation, we seem simultaneously stuck with a national news media that is preoccupied with conflict and controversy when we desperately need one that weighs facts and reports fairly. A recent national news program reinforced these concerns. Let me explain what I mean. Imagine a respected TV show or news magazine article with the title, “Should Americans Fear Black People?”
Imagine staccato hip-hop music for the teaser, with clips of black gang members toting guns, hanging around urban scenes, looking scary. Imagine the zoom-in close up of a shoulder tattoo, proclaiming “Thug for Life.” As the host (some household name) opens the show, imagine that the white expert opining about the root causes of urban decay is a nationally recognized racist, like for instance, David Duke. With a straight face, and no sense of irony, the host solicits Duke’s views, who proceeds to declare, “when the American people saw the LA riots, they received a peek into their future.” Imagine the television cameras going in search of voices of ‘real’ black people. Where do they go? The ‘hood of course! I mean, where else do black people live?
The intrepid host invites regular Americans to ask the experts to explain black pathology: “Why is their rap music so degrading to women?” Cynthia from Wyoming wonders. “Why are so many blacks at the bottom of the economic and educational ladder?” Chuck from New York State muses. Is this starting to get a little uncomfortable? Of course, it is. Just ask Don Imus about the wisdom of indulging in racial stereotyping against blacks. Add Jews, Catholics, gays and others as well. Not a good idea. Now replace black with Muslim, and that’s just about how ABC News treated Islam and Muslims this past weekend, on 20/20 and This Week with Christiane Amanpour.
There were the obligatory clips of terrorist training camps, the planes flying into the twin towers, the victims of so-called ‘honor killings.’ The Muslim experts – looking officially ‘Islamic’ in their long beards and hats – included one declaring that one day the flag of Islam would fly over the White House. The non-Muslim experts - Robert Spencer(leading anti-Muslim advocate in the Park51 Project controversy), Ayaan Hirsi Ali (prolific anti-Muslim writer), and Franklin Graham (said Islam “is a very evil and wicked religion”) – are well known, even famous, for spewing anti-Muslim hate.
Of course, these characters emphatically agreed with the caricatures with long beards and white hats, repeating the propaganda that Islam requires its adherents to dominate people. Among the ‘normal’ Muslims interviewed were a woman in niqab (fewer than 1% of Muslim women in America wear the full face veil and accompanying robes), and Muslims in the Muslim ‘hood’, cities, like Dearborn, MI, and Patterson, NJ. Do some Americans fear black people? For sure. But we don’t validate those fears by allowing them to be expressed with fake innocence on respected news shows. Why are fears of Muslims validated by television airings? Are there criminals in America who are African-American? Yes, again. But they’re not presented as representative figures of the community by reputable news programs. Why do such shows go out of their way to find the scariest, most cartoonish Muslims possible and present them as spokespeople for Muslims? No serious journalist would ask a random black guy with a briefcase on the street to explain the pathology of an African American criminal because of the coincidence of shared skin color.
But serious journalists called on ordinary Muslim Americans to explain the behavior of homicidal maniacs and extremists, thereby making the link between the crazies and the mainstream community. Are there people willing to offer all sorts of racist theories about black crime, from problems in black genes to deficiencies in black culture? Plenty. But the only time they show up on mainstream news shows are as examples of racism, not as experts on race. We are having a national conversation about belonging. The threatened Qur’an burning in Florida and the controversy over the proposed Islamic Center in lower Manhattan are examples of this national conversation about whether America can stretch her arms wide enough to embrace Muslims too.
Irresponsible and sensational depictions of Muslims in the popular media are not the cause of Islamophobia, but they certainly can make it worse. Recent news shows and media reports do nothing to shed light or understanding on this national conversation, which is too bad. But the conversation must continue. And I hope it continues in our mosques, churches, synagogues and other holy places, with Americans of all faiths talking face to face about differences and about our shared humanity – free of the stereotypes that, lately, are so prominent in our TV shows and magazines.
Imagine staccato hip-hop music for the teaser, with clips of black gang members toting guns, hanging around urban scenes, looking scary. Imagine the zoom-in close up of a shoulder tattoo, proclaiming “Thug for Life.” As the host (some household name) opens the show, imagine that the white expert opining about the root causes of urban decay is a nationally recognized racist, like for instance, David Duke. With a straight face, and no sense of irony, the host solicits Duke’s views, who proceeds to declare, “when the American people saw the LA riots, they received a peek into their future.” Imagine the television cameras going in search of voices of ‘real’ black people. Where do they go? The ‘hood of course! I mean, where else do black people live?
The intrepid host invites regular Americans to ask the experts to explain black pathology: “Why is their rap music so degrading to women?” Cynthia from Wyoming wonders. “Why are so many blacks at the bottom of the economic and educational ladder?” Chuck from New York State muses. Is this starting to get a little uncomfortable? Of course, it is. Just ask Don Imus about the wisdom of indulging in racial stereotyping against blacks. Add Jews, Catholics, gays and others as well. Not a good idea. Now replace black with Muslim, and that’s just about how ABC News treated Islam and Muslims this past weekend, on 20/20 and This Week with Christiane Amanpour.
There were the obligatory clips of terrorist training camps, the planes flying into the twin towers, the victims of so-called ‘honor killings.’ The Muslim experts – looking officially ‘Islamic’ in their long beards and hats – included one declaring that one day the flag of Islam would fly over the White House. The non-Muslim experts - Robert Spencer(leading anti-Muslim advocate in the Park51 Project controversy), Ayaan Hirsi Ali (prolific anti-Muslim writer), and Franklin Graham (said Islam “is a very evil and wicked religion”) – are well known, even famous, for spewing anti-Muslim hate.
Of course, these characters emphatically agreed with the caricatures with long beards and white hats, repeating the propaganda that Islam requires its adherents to dominate people. Among the ‘normal’ Muslims interviewed were a woman in niqab (fewer than 1% of Muslim women in America wear the full face veil and accompanying robes), and Muslims in the Muslim ‘hood’, cities, like Dearborn, MI, and Patterson, NJ. Do some Americans fear black people? For sure. But we don’t validate those fears by allowing them to be expressed with fake innocence on respected news shows. Why are fears of Muslims validated by television airings? Are there criminals in America who are African-American? Yes, again. But they’re not presented as representative figures of the community by reputable news programs. Why do such shows go out of their way to find the scariest, most cartoonish Muslims possible and present them as spokespeople for Muslims? No serious journalist would ask a random black guy with a briefcase on the street to explain the pathology of an African American criminal because of the coincidence of shared skin color.
But serious journalists called on ordinary Muslim Americans to explain the behavior of homicidal maniacs and extremists, thereby making the link between the crazies and the mainstream community. Are there people willing to offer all sorts of racist theories about black crime, from problems in black genes to deficiencies in black culture? Plenty. But the only time they show up on mainstream news shows are as examples of racism, not as experts on race. We are having a national conversation about belonging. The threatened Qur’an burning in Florida and the controversy over the proposed Islamic Center in lower Manhattan are examples of this national conversation about whether America can stretch her arms wide enough to embrace Muslims too.
Irresponsible and sensational depictions of Muslims in the popular media are not the cause of Islamophobia, but they certainly can make it worse. Recent news shows and media reports do nothing to shed light or understanding on this national conversation, which is too bad. But the conversation must continue. And I hope it continues in our mosques, churches, synagogues and other holy places, with Americans of all faiths talking face to face about differences and about our shared humanity – free of the stereotypes that, lately, are so prominent in our TV shows and magazines.
PART IV - A
ON INTER-FAITH ISSUES:
Thanks to the Imam, My Little Son Got Serious About Synagogue
(loonwatch.com) October 11, 2010
A very nicely written piece by Rabbi Marc Gopin. Thanks to the Imam, My Little Son Got Serious About Synagogue by Marc Gopin(loonwatch.com) October 11, 2010
It was three days before Rosh Hashanah, and I was predictably anxious about my identity, my life, about my family’s Jewish future. As a good and fractious Jew, I was somewhat ambivalent about which synagogue I would go to: The one I sometimes go to? The one I would never step foot in? The one that I really should create on my own, maybe? This Rosh Hashanah was different for two reasons. My 87-year old mother, who lives alone 400 miles away in Boston, had pneumonia. So we were on our way to Boston, but I had to honor a commitment to my dear friend Yahya Hendi, who is an imam.
He wanted the whole family, the whole world, it seems, but especially Jews and Christians, for an iftar, a very sacred celebration as a part of Ramadan. He wanted us all to share in every aspect of the evening, and so made his backyard into a center of prayer and his house into a feast. My son Isaac is so attached to baseball that he brings his glove and ball everywhere, just in case: you never know when you might meet another seven-year-old in search of round objects to bat, pound, throw and kick.
Sure enough, Imam Hendi’s young son was outside pounding a soccer ball, furiously, back and forth, by himself! Ah, a delicious sight for my son, all the right signals of a fellow juvenile madman in motion, a mark of the truly committed, those who play even by themselves! So Isaac lunged toward the boy, but what is this? A soccer ball?! Where is the baseball? And so I witnessed a moment of cultural crisis, that great Atlantic Ocean divide between the obsession with soccer and the obsession with baseball. Not to worry, I turned away for just a few minutes, and they were tossing the baseball. Peace on earth, goodwill toward mankind, Arab/Jewish conflict resolved, game, set, match.
Then something strange happened to my son. The crowds parted on the grass, the Muslims came to the center and lined up precisely, and Imam Hendi called his boy to the front. The imam then gave an impassioned speech on the intense love he felt for everyone there, for all Jews and all Christians, and on how indeed there was no proper way to be a Muslim other than through love. My boy was watching all these men and women gather.
Then Yahya’s boy led the call to prayer, and my son’s face was aglow with his beautiful eyes full of wonder. I stared at Isaac staring at Yahya’s boy in reverence, and I, on the side, in the cool of the night, underneath brilliant stars, prayed that maybe we should just stay in that moment. You see, Imam Hendi felt especially motivated to gather everyone because we were days away from the spectacle of an American Quran burning. He was on television, and I was being called for a television spot that night. So here we were, Yahya and a hundred guests, prayers and blessings, my girls and his girls, my boy and his boy, and also a world gone mad. I noticed a change in Isaac after that night.
He came to Synagogue with me, with the glove, as usual, but I caught him watching and listening intently to ceremony, mouthing many of the words he did not know yet. I saw him begin to explore his identity as a spiritual being. I watched a second birth, the birth of a human being who seeks out what is beyond, at first through the worship practices of the fathers and the mothers, through the ceremonies of the ancients, through engaging what has come before. For that second birth of my son, I have Imam Yahya Hendi to thank, a Palestinian who just buried his father back home in bad circumstances, who is fatherless now, just like me, trying to make the world safe for his beloved children.
I see him there on the grass, hands raised, palms up, the stars blazing above, saying his ancient words, Allahu Akbar. I think to myself, yes, sometimes God is great, when we find the Divine Presence in the eyes of strangers, and in the loving words of long lost cousins. And I think that this year I inaugurated my Isaac on a good journey. Rabbi Marc Gopin, author of To Make the Earth Whole, is the James Laue Professor and Director of CRDC, George Mason University, and a co-founder of MEJDI (www.mejdi.net), a Jewish/Arab social enterprise that offers educational peace tours in support of honest businesses and social change activists.
He wanted the whole family, the whole world, it seems, but especially Jews and Christians, for an iftar, a very sacred celebration as a part of Ramadan. He wanted us all to share in every aspect of the evening, and so made his backyard into a center of prayer and his house into a feast. My son Isaac is so attached to baseball that he brings his glove and ball everywhere, just in case: you never know when you might meet another seven-year-old in search of round objects to bat, pound, throw and kick.
Sure enough, Imam Hendi’s young son was outside pounding a soccer ball, furiously, back and forth, by himself! Ah, a delicious sight for my son, all the right signals of a fellow juvenile madman in motion, a mark of the truly committed, those who play even by themselves! So Isaac lunged toward the boy, but what is this? A soccer ball?! Where is the baseball? And so I witnessed a moment of cultural crisis, that great Atlantic Ocean divide between the obsession with soccer and the obsession with baseball. Not to worry, I turned away for just a few minutes, and they were tossing the baseball. Peace on earth, goodwill toward mankind, Arab/Jewish conflict resolved, game, set, match.
Then something strange happened to my son. The crowds parted on the grass, the Muslims came to the center and lined up precisely, and Imam Hendi called his boy to the front. The imam then gave an impassioned speech on the intense love he felt for everyone there, for all Jews and all Christians, and on how indeed there was no proper way to be a Muslim other than through love. My boy was watching all these men and women gather.
Then Yahya’s boy led the call to prayer, and my son’s face was aglow with his beautiful eyes full of wonder. I stared at Isaac staring at Yahya’s boy in reverence, and I, on the side, in the cool of the night, underneath brilliant stars, prayed that maybe we should just stay in that moment. You see, Imam Hendi felt especially motivated to gather everyone because we were days away from the spectacle of an American Quran burning. He was on television, and I was being called for a television spot that night. So here we were, Yahya and a hundred guests, prayers and blessings, my girls and his girls, my boy and his boy, and also a world gone mad. I noticed a change in Isaac after that night.
He came to Synagogue with me, with the glove, as usual, but I caught him watching and listening intently to ceremony, mouthing many of the words he did not know yet. I saw him begin to explore his identity as a spiritual being. I watched a second birth, the birth of a human being who seeks out what is beyond, at first through the worship practices of the fathers and the mothers, through the ceremonies of the ancients, through engaging what has come before. For that second birth of my son, I have Imam Yahya Hendi to thank, a Palestinian who just buried his father back home in bad circumstances, who is fatherless now, just like me, trying to make the world safe for his beloved children.
I see him there on the grass, hands raised, palms up, the stars blazing above, saying his ancient words, Allahu Akbar. I think to myself, yes, sometimes God is great, when we find the Divine Presence in the eyes of strangers, and in the loving words of long lost cousins. And I think that this year I inaugurated my Isaac on a good journey. Rabbi Marc Gopin, author of To Make the Earth Whole, is the James Laue Professor and Director of CRDC, George Mason University, and a co-founder of MEJDI (www.mejdi.net), a Jewish/Arab social enterprise that offers educational peace tours in support of honest businesses and social change activists.
PART IV- b
Rabbi Menachem Froman and 20 Settlers Replace Burned Qurans
Rabbi Menachem Froman and 20 Settlers Replace Burned Qurans
(loonwatch.com)
06 Oct 2010
Settlers Replace Korans Burnt in West Bank
Haaretz
06 Oct 2010
Settlers Replace Korans Burnt in West Bank
Haaretz
Neighboring settlers disgusted by other settlers opposed to peace have replaced Qurans that were burnt when a mosque in the Bayt Fajar village was attacked. Settlers on Tuesday gave new copies of the Koran to Palestinians in a West Bank village whose mosque was burned in an attack blamed by Palestinians on settlers. Several copies of Islam’s holy book were scorched in the arson attack and threats in Hebrew were scrawled on the wall of the mosque of Beit Fajjar early on Monday.
The village sits on the edge of the Jewish settlement bloc of Gush Etzion. Suspicion immediately fell on settlers opposed to a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, in which some settlements could be turned over to a Palestinian state. “This visit is to say that although there are people who oppose peace, he who opposes peace is opposed to God,” said Rabbi Menachem Froman, a well-known peace activist and one of a handful of settlers who went to Beit Fajjar to show solidarity with their Muslim neighbors.
Froman and other Jews and Palestinians who advocate coexistence held a demonstration by a busy West Bank highway junction, displaying banners saying: “We all want to live in peace.” But fewer than 20 people turned out. “I would like to see more people come to events like this,” said Aharon Frasier, a young American-born rabbi from a nearby settlement who wanted to express his “strong objections” to an attack that contradicts Jewish values. “We can’t leave it to the politicians. We have to do what we believe in” to build peace and security, he said.
The village sits on the edge of the Jewish settlement bloc of Gush Etzion. Suspicion immediately fell on settlers opposed to a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, in which some settlements could be turned over to a Palestinian state. “This visit is to say that although there are people who oppose peace, he who opposes peace is opposed to God,” said Rabbi Menachem Froman, a well-known peace activist and one of a handful of settlers who went to Beit Fajjar to show solidarity with their Muslim neighbors.
Froman and other Jews and Palestinians who advocate coexistence held a demonstration by a busy West Bank highway junction, displaying banners saying: “We all want to live in peace.” But fewer than 20 people turned out. “I would like to see more people come to events like this,” said Aharon Frasier, a young American-born rabbi from a nearby settlement who wanted to express his “strong objections” to an attack that contradicts Jewish values. “We can’t leave it to the politicians. We have to do what we believe in” to build peace and security, he said.
PART V:
SPECIAL REPORT FROM www.loonwatch.com
www.WhatIfTheyWereMuslim.com is Here
(looonwatch.com)
08 Oct 2010
Loonwatchers make the Loonwatch world go round. Your comments, tips, suggestions and critiques help make our site better. One of the types of articles that you guys have responded to favorably and for which we get the most tips has been the running segment “What if they were Muslim.” It is a segment where we bring to light the double standards and hypocrisy of both media and popular culture in the way Islam and Muslims are portrayed. In the segment we highlight the absurd hypocrisy of those who attempt to link every misstep, misdeed or crime committed by a Muslim to his or her faith.
Would the same crime, if committed by a Christian, be treated in a similar fashion if the perpetrator were Muslim? The preponderance of the evidence would suggests otherwise. Now we have created a website, WhatiftheywereMuslim.com, that compiles and publishes all the “what if they were Muslim” stories in one place. From the website, Here at What if they were Muslim we question what would happen if a Jewish, Christian, Hindu, ______(insert religion of choice) were to commit a crime in the name of their faith. Would it be treated the same way if a Muslim committed the exact same crime?
Would very little emphasis be put on the perpetrators religion? Would it be stressed that the act is an aberration, a misrepresentation of the religion? Would the religion be mentioned at all? WITWM is not a site that opines on the “what if” scenario of your favorite Hollywood star being a Muslim. It has nothing to do with Angelina Jolie or Johnny Depp, etc. It has everything to do with the double standards in both media and pop culture that perpetuate the myth that Islam is inherently more violent than other religions or the root cause of misdeeds by Muslims. We hope that our faithful Loonwatchers who have made this site such a success will continue to provide their support by also visiting WITWM and commenting and sharing the pieces.
Would the same crime, if committed by a Christian, be treated in a similar fashion if the perpetrator were Muslim? The preponderance of the evidence would suggests otherwise. Now we have created a website, WhatiftheywereMuslim.com, that compiles and publishes all the “what if they were Muslim” stories in one place. From the website, Here at What if they were Muslim we question what would happen if a Jewish, Christian, Hindu, ______(insert religion of choice) were to commit a crime in the name of their faith. Would it be treated the same way if a Muslim committed the exact same crime?
Would very little emphasis be put on the perpetrators religion? Would it be stressed that the act is an aberration, a misrepresentation of the religion? Would the religion be mentioned at all? WITWM is not a site that opines on the “what if” scenario of your favorite Hollywood star being a Muslim. It has nothing to do with Angelina Jolie or Johnny Depp, etc. It has everything to do with the double standards in both media and pop culture that perpetuate the myth that Islam is inherently more violent than other religions or the root cause of misdeeds by Muslims. We hope that our faithful Loonwatchers who have made this site such a success will continue to provide their support by also visiting WITWM and commenting and sharing the pieces.
PART VI
ON ISSUES OF SOCIAL INJUSTICE:
FIGHTING FOR JUSTICE: WHEN LAW ITSELF NEEDS TO BE FOUGHT
Law Puts Girls at Risk in Cambodia
(ki media)
October 18, 2010
(ki media)
October 18, 2010
By Laurinda Luffman
SOS Children
SOS Children
Across Asia, an estimated 10 million girls and women work in prostitution selling sex to around 75 million men.
The regional director of UNAIDS in the Asia Pacific has expressed concern that many are being put at risk of infection from HIV/AIDS because of laws outlawing sex work. Worried about being arrested, many women are fearful to be found with condoms, let alone seek legal or medical help when they need it.
In Cambodia, policemen believe it is one of their duties to arrest sex workers. Even though possession of condoms is unlikely to be accepted as evidence in court, having condoms can be a factor in a woman’s arrest. According to a July report from Human Rights Watch, even those who distribute condoms can now be implicated in illegal sex acts. UNAIDS is worried such policies will discourage the use of condoms to protect against HIV/AIDS.
Ironically, in Cambodia, the law specifically criminalises HIV transmission and exposure. The situation in Cambodia used to be very different. A few years ago, the country introduced a 100 percent ‘Condom Use Programme’ which required condoms to be made available for sex workers and allowed for selective enforcement of anti-sex work laws. But in 2008, a new law against sex-trafficking was introduced in Cambodia. This resulted in the closure of most brothels and sent the sex industry underground.
According to a recent BBC documentary, there are an estimated 100,000 sex workers active in Cambodia today. Around one third of these are thought to be girls under the age of eighteen. Since brothels were closed, many girls now work in clubs and bars, where they dance on stages to be selected by male clients. Although the legal age for girls working in these bars is meant to be sixteen, many Cambodian girls start much younger and it is not uncommon to find thirteen or fourteen-year olds in the bars.
In the capital Phnom Penh, the BBC film crew found eighteen-year old Alang, who had been sold into the sex industry at thirteen. Alang’s aunt said she was taking her to the city to study, but instead the girl was sold into the sex industry and kept in a hotel for male clients. Even though Alang escaped more than once from the men who first bought her, she still works as a prostitute. With little formal education, Alang has no other way to support herself, though she wishes there was a way to escape her life in the industry.
As well as lobbying governments over how sex trade laws are being implemented, non-governmental agencies and charitable organisations try to offer support to vulnerable girls. But it is not always easy, particularly when children are often sold into the sex trade by their own families. And with an estimated 500,000 dollars spent every night by Cambodian men in the red light district of Phnom Penh, clearly there is no shortage of demand.
Ironically, in Cambodia, the law specifically criminalises HIV transmission and exposure. The situation in Cambodia used to be very different. A few years ago, the country introduced a 100 percent ‘Condom Use Programme’ which required condoms to be made available for sex workers and allowed for selective enforcement of anti-sex work laws. But in 2008, a new law against sex-trafficking was introduced in Cambodia. This resulted in the closure of most brothels and sent the sex industry underground.
According to a recent BBC documentary, there are an estimated 100,000 sex workers active in Cambodia today. Around one third of these are thought to be girls under the age of eighteen. Since brothels were closed, many girls now work in clubs and bars, where they dance on stages to be selected by male clients. Although the legal age for girls working in these bars is meant to be sixteen, many Cambodian girls start much younger and it is not uncommon to find thirteen or fourteen-year olds in the bars.
In the capital Phnom Penh, the BBC film crew found eighteen-year old Alang, who had been sold into the sex industry at thirteen. Alang’s aunt said she was taking her to the city to study, but instead the girl was sold into the sex industry and kept in a hotel for male clients. Even though Alang escaped more than once from the men who first bought her, she still works as a prostitute. With little formal education, Alang has no other way to support herself, though she wishes there was a way to escape her life in the industry.
As well as lobbying governments over how sex trade laws are being implemented, non-governmental agencies and charitable organisations try to offer support to vulnerable girls. But it is not always easy, particularly when children are often sold into the sex trade by their own families. And with an estimated 500,000 dollars spent every night by Cambodian men in the red light district of Phnom Penh, clearly there is no shortage of demand.
PART VII
IMMIGRATION:
www.lifesitenews.com
“Married” Lesbian Couple from U.S., Australia Denied Refugee Status in Canada
By Patrick B. Craine
Toronto, October 21, 2010
www.lifesitenews.com
“Married” Lesbian Couple from U.S., Australia Denied Refugee Status in Canada
By Patrick B. Craine
Toronto, October 21, 2010
Two women, one from the U.S. and the other from Australia, who were “married” in Canada four years ago are trying to gain refugee status in the country by claiming that they would face persecution in their countries of origin.
The couple, whose names are withheld, are appealing after their claim was denied in July by the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board. They came to Canada in September 2007 and filed for refugee status the same month, after being “married” in Toronto in 2006.
At the June hearing, the women claimed that they would be denied a “fundamental human right” in their home countries because the countries do not recognize their same-sex "marriage."
The U.S. woman alleged, further, that in America she would not be permitted to sponsor her same-sex “spouse” as an immigrant, and that she would not be allowed to live with her. The women also alleged that they have already faced persecution in their countries due to their sexual orientation.
Board member Douglas Cryer found, however, that they did not show there is a “serious possibility of persecution” under established international human rights conventions.
"Although I recognize that international human rights are not static and that the interpretation of these rights can develop and expand, at this time same-sex marriage and consequent sponsorship rights are not internationally recognized rights," he wrote.
Cryer pointed out that the women had not reported any incidents of persecution to the police.
He noted, further, that the women’s testimonies “were not persuasive, since they were largely unsubstantiated and were not consistent with the documentary evidence.”
The couple, whose names are withheld, are appealing after their claim was denied in July by the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board. They came to Canada in September 2007 and filed for refugee status the same month, after being “married” in Toronto in 2006.
At the June hearing, the women claimed that they would be denied a “fundamental human right” in their home countries because the countries do not recognize their same-sex "marriage."
The U.S. woman alleged, further, that in America she would not be permitted to sponsor her same-sex “spouse” as an immigrant, and that she would not be allowed to live with her. The women also alleged that they have already faced persecution in their countries due to their sexual orientation.
Board member Douglas Cryer found, however, that they did not show there is a “serious possibility of persecution” under established international human rights conventions.
"Although I recognize that international human rights are not static and that the interpretation of these rights can develop and expand, at this time same-sex marriage and consequent sponsorship rights are not internationally recognized rights," he wrote.
Cryer pointed out that the women had not reported any incidents of persecution to the police.
He noted, further, that the women’s testimonies “were not persuasive, since they were largely unsubstantiated and were not consistent with the documentary evidence.”
PART VIII
IS BELOW NEW MODE OF BUSINESS AN ISSUE OF EXPLOITATION OF WOMAN (AT A MEN'S BARBER SHOP) OR INDIVIDUAL RIGHT OF A WOMAN ?
Half Naked Hairdressers at Wojtek Wasilewski’s Gentleman’s Club
(odditycentral.com)
By Alex onOctober 22nd, 2010
A Polish barber, Wojtek Wasilewski, took a year and a half to start a business that had very high chances of success from the beginning.
He came up with a less common idea, that of opening a salon for men in which four half-naked girls will take care of their hair. Wojtek said that he wanted the salon to be a gentleman’s club where people can come for a proper haircut, made by the four lovely girls. The 26-year-old Polish also said that it took 18 months to find four attractive hairdressers who agree to work half naked.
After all, the business seems to be very profitable, considering that the phone rings constantly for appointments.
PART IX
IF A MUSLIM WOMAN WANTS TO BREASTFEED A STARVING ANIMAL IN HER PRIVACY, IS IT PERMISSIBLE OR NOT ?
(allvoices.com)
In the (above) video its seen that a Indian Villager mother breast feeding an orphaned calf. Even she is nurturing the calf like her own child giving the calf food to eat. A wonderful example of Human love towards animals.
(odditycentral.com)
PART X
IF A MUSLIM WOMAN WANTS TO BREASTFEED A STARVING ANIMAL IN HER PRIVACY, IS IT PERMISSIBLE OR NOT ?
(allvoices.com)In the (above) video its seen that a Indian Villager mother breast feeding an orphaned calf. Even she is nurturing the calf like her own child giving the calf food to eat. A wonderful example of Human love towards animals.
(odditycentral.com)PART X
ON THE LIGHTER SIDE OF LIFE
(IS IT A MYTH THAT WOMEN ARE IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE ?)
Below e-mail forwarded by Dr. Lewis:
The Husband Store!
A store that sells husbands has just opened in New York City, where a woman may go to choose a husband.
Among the instructions at the entrance is a description of how the store operates.
You may visit the store ONLY ONCE! There are six floors, and the attributes of the men increase as the shopper ascends the flights.
There is, however, a catch: You may choose any man from a particular floor, or you may choose to go up a floor, but you cannot go back down except to exit the building.
So, a woman goes to the Husband Store to find a husband.
A store that sells husbands has just opened in New York City, where a woman may go to choose a husband.
Among the instructions at the entrance is a description of how the store operates.
You may visit the store ONLY ONCE! There are six floors, and the attributes of the men increase as the shopper ascends the flights.
There is, however, a catch: You may choose any man from a particular floor, or you may choose to go up a floor, but you cannot go back down except to exit the building.
So, a woman goes to the Husband Store to find a husband.
On the first floor, the sign on the door reads: Floor 1 - These men have jobs and love the Lord.
The second floor sign reads: Floor 2 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, and love kids.
The third floor sign reads: Floor 3 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, and are extremely good looking. "Wow," she thinks, but feels compelled to keep going.
She goes to the fourth floor and the sign reads: Floor 4 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, are drop-dead good looking, and help with the housework. "Oh, mercy me!" she exclaims. "I can hardly stand it!"
Still, she goes to the fifth floor and the sign reads: Floor 5 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, are drop-dead gorgeous, help with the housework, and have a strong romantic streak.
She is so tempted to stay, but she goes to the sixth floor and the sign reads:
The second floor sign reads: Floor 2 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, and love kids.
The third floor sign reads: Floor 3 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, and are extremely good looking. "Wow," she thinks, but feels compelled to keep going.
She goes to the fourth floor and the sign reads: Floor 4 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, are drop-dead good looking, and help with the housework. "Oh, mercy me!" she exclaims. "I can hardly stand it!"
Still, she goes to the fifth floor and the sign reads: Floor 5 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, are drop-dead gorgeous, help with the housework, and have a strong romantic streak.
She is so tempted to stay, but she goes to the sixth floor and the sign reads:
Floor 6 - You are visitor 4,363,012 to this floor. There are no men on this floor. This floor exists solely as proof that women are impossible to please. Thank you for shopping at the Husband Store. Watch your step as you exit the building, and have a nice day!
THE END
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