I beg to differ. Despite all the talk and two marginal but expensive wars, ( america always fights a war on the expense account) Muslim affairs are deeply unimportant for the rest of the world. The radicals should be contained in a rational and ruthlessly efficient manner best achieved by clandestine operations.
But the petty squabbles among various immams, shiekhs, ayatollahs, tribal chiefs, petty warlords, fanatics of all kinds both Sunni and Shiite are deeply irrelevant to the post-modern world.
Muslim world is hopelessly behind in all indicators of commercial, cultural, educational and scientific development. ( ever heard of a product made in Oman?)
Soon enough they will run out of petroleum and if no reform is forthcoming, they'll go back to the moribund existence, unnoticed by the rest of the world and dreamin of the past glories of white Rolls Royces and yachts in Nizza.
Re. Muslim immigrants: learn to keep quiet, work hard, keep the nose out of trouble, get an education and let your achievements speak for themselves!!
like innumerable European, Jewish, Chinese, Hindi, Mexican immigrants are doing day in and day out.
And for Darwin's sake, N.Y cabbies-- GET A GPS or somethin' ...Ayalla.
Salaam out.
After the Historical Race Speech, Obama Should Address Islam and the West
The barring of two Muslim women from sitting behind Barack Obama during his Detroit rally last Monday illustrates that now more than ever, Barack Obama must address the issue of Islamophobia in the United States in an exclusive speech.
Rally volunteers were concerned that the Muslim women wearing their traditional headscarves would appear on camera with Obama, thus giving Obama's opponents the opportunity to suggest that Obama is pro-Islam and, therefore, pro-terrorist. Yet this was not just an "unfortunate" experience for Aref and Shimaa Abdelfadeel, the two women involved in the incident; rather, it is a bold reflection of a deep-rooted fear about the Muslim identity in the United States, which has become a matter of security, a fear which harms many Muslims everyday.
The fear expressed by the volunteers is a general reflection of what the Bush administration, mainstream media, Hollywood, and, recently, a part of blogsphere have done to portray Islam and Muslims as a security threat rather than a historical culture with its own identity.
By asking the Abedelfadeels to remove their scarves before being seated, the volunteers bluntly showed the penetration of this fear into the campaign. Any connection to Islam, is automatically perceived as a negative factor for Obama campaign.
Evidently, seven years after the declaration of the "war on terror", little has changed regarding the general mood of Americans towards Muslims. No wonder, Republicans and their advocates help spread this fear by suggesting that Obama's childhood connection to Islam is a valid reason why Americans should not vote for him.
However, one of Obama's major foreign policy challenges is dealing with the predominantly Muslim countries of the Middle East and as a result Obama's personal understanding of the most dominant religion in the region should be something that is welcomed, not criticized.
Millions of moderate Muslims have been the first victims of the failed policies of the war on terror doctrine. They want to see a man in White House who has a basic understanding of "other" religions, ethnicities, and cultures. Obama's knowledge of Islam could help the United States find ways to address terrorism without senseless and violent military attacks.
Though race has been one of the deepest, oldest struggles in United States, religion, specifically, the way in which the United States perceives and interacts with Muslims, is one of the country's most vital, urgent and crucial international issues. Americans may cast their votes based more so on the candidate's stance in domestic issues, but Obama's campaign should also highlight for voters the importance of international issues and how foreign and domestic policy are interrelated.
Obama should use his understanding of different faiths to help voters realize the commonalities among all religions and challenge the identity the "War on Terror" Era has left Muslims. He should emphasize that terrorists, not Muslims, are the enemy, and terrorists can be found among the supporters of all religions.
Like McDonald's, Disneyland, Starbucks, and other cultural symbols, America's horrible characterization of Islam has spread to other countries. With a speech on this issue, Obama could start to end this trend.
Just a few days ago, I was amazed watching a movie on "modern terrorism." The Russian documentary "World War 3" depicted the effects of stereotyped hate speech centered around Muslims and Islam as a whole. This was screening at the United Nations, not at a radical right-wing organization in Washington. It was graphic, even offensive to some of the attendees, but it left one question unanswered: with this horrible global mischaracterization of the Islam and Muslims, how can America deal with this huge amount of hate and cynicism in the coming years?
Unfortunately, the widespread nature of this mischaracterization makes it hard for even people knowledgeable of current events to distinguish the Muslim reality from the myth.
Millions of Muslims worldwide closely follow the US election process, and they should not be treated with disrespect and prejudice as the Abedelfadeels were for wanting to express their religious beliefs along with their political affiliation.
Obama, As the next president of the United States, will not be able to negotiate with either America's friends and foes as long as American culture continues to propagate such a gross mischaracterization of Muslims.
Just as he addressed the issue of race during the Pennsylvania primary, Obama should address America's islamophobia. In a speech he can say that by reducing the whole Islamic World and all its contributions in world history to a few terrorists groups and characterizing Muslims as security threats, America has done itself more harm than good. Hate mongering and ignorance are the foundations of terrorism. Such a speech clarifying this point would beneficial for both Muslims and the United States.
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OMID..the min obama mentions anything positive about islam,all what he has been fighting for and all his campaign will fly out the window,he will never smell the white house.
on the other hand if he addressed judaism and his love for isreal,then its guarantee,he will enter the white house with great ease.
never forget 40 yrs ago america was still treating blacks as non-humans..this is a racist country,either you accept it,or waste your time talking to your hand
Barack Obama has clearly spent much of his life thinking about issues of race and identity in the USA, and when he made his race speech, it all showed. It's probably unreasonable to expect that he has similar speeches at his fingertips on all the other issues anyone can think of.
Omid,
While I wholeheartedly agree that America has done itself more harm than good regarding it's perception of Islam and in the assessment of the shameful campaign of fearmongering by this administration and the political right, I am taken aback at your lack of acknowledgment of the responsibility Islam holds for the development of and contribution to that perception, and the responsibility it refuses to accept in stemming those actions worldwide that reinforce that negative perception.
Although it has been manipulated by the right, the "set in stone" mandate of separation of church and state is just that, a mandate. By law It's not Obama's place to address it. It belongs only in the hands of the religion itself, and right now the only group standing up to represent Islam in America is CAIR. Even you would admit, they are not helping. Those moderates you talk of need to rise up and seize hold of the reigns, only they can change it.
To be continued---(250 words is not long enough)
How is CAIR not helping?? They bend over backwards to try to move us forward not withstanding the onslaught from the AIPAC bought Congress. I think really you need to examine this last statement.
As far as the moderates rising up...how can any of them do that when we are silenced to the core with every attempt? Really, we have tried, tried, TRIED in a 1000 ways all across the country. No one will give us the time of day for the most part.
Even Al Jazeera America which is a GREAT channel for communication and understanding was blindsided by Rupert Murdoch who sent a letter/edict to every cable and news agency to refuse to contract with them.
You really need to be aware of the depth and breadth of this shut out.
abdallac, before responding to your question about CAIR not helping, let me tell you that most sincerely, having read the rest of your comments here, I have no doubt of the opposition you face, from both sides, and your righteous intent. Not that you need my approval, but I read in your words the fire of the real struggle and I hope for your success.
About CAIR: The problem with CAIR is that I don't and can't believe them, or trust their intentions because of their strong link to Hamas, dissemination of falsehoods, attempts to stifle the 1st Amendment, and belief that the US Constitution should be replaced with Sharia Law.
-CAIR named as un-indicted co-conspirator in Hamas funding case
-CAIR Makes false statements about Hate Crimes
-CAIR calls prosecution of 1993 WTC bombers "hate crime" (?!!!!)
-CAIR Communication Specialist and Civil Rights Coordinator Randall Royer indicted as one of the Virginia jihad group associated with Lashkar-e-Taiba
-CAIR Chairman Omar Ahmad states "the Koran ... should be the highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion on earth" San Ramon Valley Herald, 7/4/1998
From TheNews International
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Blaming others
By Farooq Sulehria
"One can mention from the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait to the recent Hamas-Fatah infighting. The list is long. Indeed, unending. However, the solution to all our problems is always simple: return to an imagined past which, mercifully for the people of the seventh century, never existed. Every time, a scientist in the West is ready with an invention, our readymade answer is: we knew about it 1,400 years ago what the West has found only now. We kill Theo van Gogh when confronted with a film. We burn down our own cities in response to a blasphemous and racist caricature. Still, we refuse to understand that our answer to every "provocation" is either a fatwa or mindless violence " perhaps because creativity is anathema to us. Not because we lack fertile minds, but because we lack liberation and freedom -- liberation from self-imposed mental, moral, and cultural censors. And freedom to think and express.
Heed the great Syrian poet Nizar Qabbani, who said:
Five thousand years
Growing beards
In our caves.
Our currency is unknown,
Our eyes are a haven for flies.
Friends,
Smash the doors,
Wash your brains,
Wash your clothes.
Friends,
Read a book,
Write a book,
Grow words, pomegranates and grapes,
Sail to the country of fog and snow.
Nobody knows you exist in caves.
People take you for a breed of mongrels."
http://thenews.jang.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=118852
powerful
So Obama's campaign staffers make a racist decision, and instead of condemning it (like I believe the Obama campaign did), you'd like to hear a speech? First off, Mr Obama is not a Muslim "as far as we know" (jk), why does he have to deliver this speech. You seem to be an expert, and being Middle Eastern, you would seem like a good choice for this speech. News flash, Mr Obama is a great speaker, and while his racism speech was an important speech, it didn't end racism. he won't end sexism, tribalism, or even bag-ism (thanks Mr Lennon) Hopefully, he'll be our next presidnet, but newsflash to this website, he will not be our messiah.
He is not jewish either..BUT HE ADRESSED THE AIPAC....mmm quite childish of you seen,there exists american muslims,who need to be respected and aknowledged
Racist decision? Exactly which race is Islam?
None and all, including Anglo Saxon.
A conservative estimate is that 10% of the Islamic world is radicalized. There are 1.1 billion Muslims in the world.
It is my opinion that 1,100,000 people willing to die to kill americans is a problem. It's a big problem, and we should be concerned about it.
I would call that a problem too. Good thing that estimate is over by a factor of 1000 or WW3 would have already started.
i would say that hitler and stalin who went through the seminary were responsible for more human fatalities than all the muslims in recorded history. i wont even mention general franco, queen isabella, pinochet, marcos ,mussalini, the list is endless including mcveigh. where did your ten percent come from ? i could guess but i wont..
Please charlie..dont forget bush the chimp,how many muslim blood he has on his hands.
and soon when mr magoo wins(mcain) there will be more blood spilled and more terrorists born.
not only americans suffer from terrorists,we suffer too from the terrorist in the white house.
There's probably some islamophobia ion the West. It should be opposed, like any other kinds of racism.
Compare it to the vile Anti Americanism and laughably rabid Anti-Semitism which passes for reasonable discourse in most of Islamic media, and suddenly American attitudes looks rather tame.
Yes, we should all try to develop communication between civilizations, BUT without sugar coating the situation.
The situation is this. Majority of Muslim world is peaceful.
However, this is a sizable minority estimated to be about 1-2 million individuals who are actively involved in military actions that make the world (not just U.S.) extremely apprehensive.
Not counting the disastrous Iraqi adventure, the reaction of the world has been relatively tame to the waves of Muslim terrorists acts which swept through the world.
Muslim Immigrant in U.S. and Europe have fared very well, considering.
I think if progressive Muslims ( hint) should be braver to confront the terrorism in their midst, and take a stand like like Sir Rushdie or few others. Both the world AND the image of the Muslim civilization would benefit greatly from this. Just as brave Soviets like Sharansky and Sakharov, who opposed the oppression.
But instead what do hear: mostly inane apologies, victim narrative or bellyaching for Muslim cause that have little do with the reality on the ground or genuine effort to create common ground between our two civilizations.
Salaam.
Interestingly there is a defense of Obama on www.townhall.com regarding the Muslim women that were not seated. Austin Hill claims that NO people wearing scarves, hats or caps were allowed behind Obama on the stage. Staffers picked who they wanted behind the candidate in the video and two men that were selected asked to bring the women with them. They were told no.
You said: "the Muslim women wearing their traditional headscarves would appear on camera with Obama, thus giving Obama's opponents the opportunity to suggest that Obama is pro-Islam and, therefore, pro-terrorist."
Exactly right my friend. Are you such an idealist that you believe America is not only ready to elect an African American as President AND listen to a lecture on Islam as well?
One step at a time brother.
Additionally, why is it Obama's job to speak out about Islam? He spoke out about what was relevant to him: race relations between blacks and whites in this country.
Let an ISLAMIC moderate leader make a speech about Muslims and the relations between Muslims and Christians in this country. Let an Islamic leader preach about tolerance and brotherly love between American Muslims and everybody else.
Well put.
agreed. Obama was able to talk about race because it was relevant to his life. How is he supposed to talk about Islam when he is not a Muslim and it is not part of his life. It's like expecting McCain to talk about race relations in this country.
Give me a break. Stop trying to make this man be the end-all be-all speaker on every issues of dissonance on the planet. You're not only setting youself up for disappointment but your asking him to fill impossible shoes. Its so disturbing that people NEED someone to have all the secret answers for them.
THANK YOU!!!
IN Europe, long time ago we had this slogan:
Atom power?
No thanks.
I woould like to rephrase it.
MahatmObama?
No thanks.
This is a very good suggestion as one of his first speeches as President. If he delivers it now, the Republicans will use it to create hysteria. The American public is too uneducated to understand the realities of the Mideast now, it's going to take some time.
Let's elect Obama first.
I agree. Most commenters pushing for Obama to have a photo-op with headscarves are wingers looking for an anvil on which to smash their attacks.
It's not fair, it's not just, it's not even real. But the election climate is none of these things either.
Elect Obama first.
Leave Obama out of this. What is Saudi Arabia and all those Islamic leaders who are friends of the Republicans doing to portray a good Islamic image in America. A lot of Islamic countries are the bed rock of the world oil reserve. They supply the whole world with oil without which the whole world cannot survice at the moment. What are those countries doing to show the good side of Islam? Please leave OUR OBAMA out of this. He is not a muslim and cannot speak for muslim. Period.
"YOUR" Obama??? What a silly statement of ownership. And considering how America has single handedly shown a repugnance for the Muslim world it's shocking to me that you think they should bend over backwards to make our lives even MORE easier here.
As far as oil prices....the US pays far less than the rest of the world pays for a gallon of gasoline. BUT we use 2.5 times the amount PER PERSON than the rest of the world. Let's not get things confused and want to blame the Saudi's. We need to man up and take responsiblility for our NOTORIOUS, CONSPICUOUS AND WASTEFUL consumption of resources and the deregulation of these record profit busting AMERICAN oil companies - because in the end we are largely responsible for this debacle.
OK, so never mind the oil. What about all that "Great Satan" stuff that Muslim kids are taught in school?
Baby steps. Obama is dealing with a touchy situation... getting this far is miracle enough for now. Be patient.
Ok, seriously, Obama didn't want to give the race speech, what pol in their right mind would want to talk about race that bluntly. The stark reality is that as an African American Obama has enough firsts to deal with without taking on the baggage of Islam and the west. Once he is president I believe he will pull a 180 degree turn on how the US deals with Muslims at home and abroad, but the goal is to actually get there. The way the women were treated was disgraceful. But Obama didn't do it, volunteers did, and he addressed the issue as best he could. I think the way the smears about Obama being a Muslim have been wildly damaging tp this country, but the fact of the matter is, Obama is a christian, and in America right now being a Muslim makes you unelectable. I agree that Obama should talk about the issue here of Muslim rights in America, but no way should he discuss it until he has been elected. Obama has enough dues to pay being black, Muslims, for the short term, and for that matter women, who also want him to give a speech on gender, need to wait...
You know,
Posted June 21, 2008 | 11:02 AM (EST)