Saturday, March 13, 2010

Terrorism: Negated by Religious Ideology?

Dear Readers,
Sallams to you. Recently, we have seen a lot of terrorism. Most notably though, are terrorist acts committed by non-Muslims. I have written about terrorism in the past and those of you who read my posts frequently know that I do not support it. However, I am not here today to talk about whether terrorism is justified or not. Rather, I am here to help us redefine terrorism--from the perspective of people who hate Islam and make a living out of hating us. What do I mean by this? Well, consider the incident in which a man flew a plane into an IRS building. Is this terrorism? How about the man who tried to blow up a plane on Christmas Day 2009. Is this terrorism? How about a man who drove from California to the Pentagon with the intention of killing government officials, and ended up shooting and wounding two officers. Is this terrorism? How about Nidal Malik Hasan. Is he terrorism?

The Christmas Day bombing was labeled as an act of terrorism which actually prompted the TSA (Transportation Security Agency) to introduce a whole new line of equipment to airports, the controversial body scanners. Nidal Malik Hasan's Fort Hood shooting was dubbed as an act of terrorism, and he was claimed to have "contact with radical Islamic clerics overseas." This is all well and good; keep these points in mind, it's important here.

Consider the IRS plane crash. According to the DHS (Department of Homeland Security,) it was a "deliberate criminal act." Terrorism? No, of course not. In another article I read on this topic, the DHS was quoted as saying "this does not appear to be an act of terrorism." People, wake up! A man just flew a plane in to a government building! You're saying it's not terrorism? Are you telling me you must have the name Abdul Malik Hasan Muhammad Hakim for it to be terrorism?

The DHS' dismissal of this terrorist act would not have angered me if I had thought it was a mere slip. However, a while later, a man by the name of Bedell John Patrick drove from the West coast of the US to the East coast to attack officers at the Pentagon (military headquarters of the US for those of you who aren't American.) Yet, I do not see "terrorism" anywhere. In fact, the article from Fox links his actions to depression. That's right...they view him as a victim! The Fox article goes on to mention that the attack on the Pentagon came four months after Nidal Hasan's attack on Fort Hood, which they linked to "radical Islamic leanings." What are you suggesting, that Patrick got the idea of shooting people at the Pentagon because of the actions of a terrorist who is a "radical Islamist" and Islam should be the blame for Patrick's actions? Of course, you're a news agency so you can't come out and say that...but that's what it sounds like from what you've written.

Now take all this, and we can answer our questions above.


  1. Are Stack's actions of flying a plane into the IRS building terrorism? According to our government, "No, he's not Muhammad Abdullah Al-Zawiri."
  2. Are Patrick's actions of shooting two officers at the Pentagon an act of terrorism? According to our government, "No, it was Hasan's fault and Hasan gave him the idea. Besides, he suffered from depression."
  3. Are Hasan's actions of shooting military personnel at Fort Hood an act of terrorism? According to our government, "Yes! He had ties with radical Islamists and he was a radical Muslim with radical Jihadi ideas, and he was also radicalized by radical Islamic clerics overseas."
  4. Are the actions of the Christmas Day bomber's actions an act of terrorism? According to our government, "Yes! He was an Al-Qaeda member so he was a radical Muslim with radical Jihadi ideas and he associated with Radical Islamic clerics."


Finally, I have outlined the criteria which constitute a "terrorist" based on recent responses to terrorist acts committed by non-Muslims:

  • Must have a beard.
  • Must be on, or look as if to have the potential to be on, a terrorist watch list.
  • Must pray five times a day, so when we make a movie about you, we can show you praying right before you commit said terrorist act.
  • Must speak Arabic.
  • Must shout "Allahu akbar" before committing said terrorist act. During the act and after the act is optional, but highly recommended.
  • Must have a name similar to Al-X; preferably, the name should include the following:

    • Muhammad
    • Abdullah (or any variation thereof)

  • If death to the said terrorist is inevitable, said terrorist must only speak in Arabic during the last moments prior to his or her death; this includes, but is not limited to, Islamic prayers, curses, and common phrases such as "death to America."

Please note: Anyone who shows hatred an anger and carries out an act of extreme violence, will not qualify as a terrorist unless he or she meets the criteria above--it does not matter how similar the act is to an official terrorist. Failing to meet these criteria will result in the following:

  • A diagnosis of mental health issues, and possible transfer from the category of "aggressor" to "victim" due to any mental health issues found.
  • Front page headlines for only one (1) day.

If you do meet the criteria for "terrorist" as listed above, your benefits include the following:

  • You will be dubbed "radical Islamist". This will allow you to blame Allah instead of yourself for your actions.
  • You will receive front page headlines for at least one (1) month--even if you managed to kill no one.
  • Our president will give a speech about your act, even if it failed, and you will completely change how passengers are scanned before they board public transportation.
  • When we see another act similar to yours, we will remember you.
  • We will come up with all sorts of dramatic names for your actions (examples of this include "Ground Zero" and "Christmas Day Bomber.")
  • We will use your actions to say how bad Islam is, even though inside we know better.
  • We will claim we suffered Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder because of your actions, but we're perfectly okay with one of our guys committing the same act you did; because of this, you will be remembered forever.
  • We will have fun saying your name for years to come.
  • We will blame every similar act on you. In this way, you will help us ignore how distressed our people are, since you will give us a solid reason for why one of our own guys did what you did.
  • You will give us another excuse to hate everyone who is not us. In this way, we will praise you for years.


Ma'a sallamah,
Munawar

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Fathima Rifqa Bary: The Truth Has Prevailed; An End to the Saga?

Sallams All,
Welcome to the first post of 2010! I thought it best to start off by writing more about Fathima Rifqa Bary, especially since this saga seems to be coming to a close--finally!

While the Fathima Rifqa Bary saga has moved out of Orlando and back to Ohio, the pastors who brought her here are not off the hook. In a recent development, we find that the pastor who is based here in Orlando was fired from Global Revolution Church. If you recall, an earlier post stated that Global Revolution Church has moved. However, it turns out that the church was disbanded. According to this article from the Orlando Sentinel, Blake Lorenz was fired on September third. He lied to church officials--and to the public, an investigation found. Fathima never hitch hiked a bus; she was brought here to Orlando by the church--I have mentioned this before when I wrote a summary of an investigative report concerning this case.

The media obtained a recording of the final meeting in which Lorenz was fired, and he can be heard calling church officials devils. In fact, WFTV even published a derogatory statement he made against Muslims:

"Why lie if no crimes have been committed? Why?” a church board member asked Pastor Blake Lorenz."To protect innocent people who could be killed by Muslims, that's why," Lorenz replied.

To protect innocent people who could be killed by Muslims? What are you going to say next, Blake, "Halal means it is lawful for them to kill me?"

You can find the audio of the meeting from WFTV in their article about the case.

This is not all. Other articles from the media suggest that Blake could be charged with transporting a minor across state lines, even when advised against it by lawyers. Oops...I don't think this is what Blake signed up for. Sorry, but this is what you get when you mess with us. Who ever said the being that crushed Fir`on can't crush you? Oh yes, and didn't you say once "the truth will prevail?" I think it's finally prevailing, Blake. In fact, it's prevailing so much that Fathima "admitted to being unruly." Amazing! Fathima admits she went overboard! Alhamdulillah--I never thought I'd see this day! So much for your wishes of honor killings and anti-Islam rhetoric, Blake.

On another note, although Fathima's back in Ohio, she's in foster care and will probably remain there until she is an adult--under the consent of her parents. So they do have control of the situation now, and I'm glad they battled for it. You can find the article about foster care here.

I wonder if I'm a devil now too because of this post.

This is the latest in the Fathima case, but it may come to an end now--from Fathima's perspective anyway. The pastor seems to have a lot of face-saving to do, but I'm not concerned about that. I'm glad Fathima's at least back in Ohio--instead of with a hitherto unknown family.
Ma'a sallamah,
Munawar

Thursday, December 31, 2009

Summary Of 2009; Is 2010 Predictable?

Sallams Everyone,
In the last entry for 2009, I would like to recap everything that has gone on this year--at least, the stuff I have talked about and paid attention to. Although we can say "we hope 2010 to be a better year," these hopes are often times false optimism. I do not think things are going to be getting better for Muslims any time soon, but only time can tell.

We start with the very first entry on this blog which was a paper I wrote in 2007 concerning a documentary Fox had done that year. This posting was in March, and it was the birth of "Stop!...Look At It From THIS Perspective." Can you believe it? It's already been ten months! I'll be fair and not round it up. This means the one-year mark will be in March 2010, conveniently the month we all have Spring Break at university. I started this blog mainly to vent about things, in a fun way. However, I quickly realized that this sort of task will be everything but good, happy-go-lucky news.

For instance, we soon had the Free Speech Summit 2009 in April. This was probably the biggest event this year, prompting a seven-page response which was cleverly ignored by the rich corrupt government that is supposed to be serving us. Did anyone hear Obama say "The people have spoken" in his victory speech? I certainly was not speaking when I saw how fake this man turned out to be. At any rate, the paper was posted here in June. Nothing was written between March and June; things were strangely quiet, perhaps because the environment was getting ready for the big storm.

Nonetheless, the Free Speech Summit battle raged on in July, with a co-sponsor of the hate campaign deleting my comment to the paper which I posted on her blog. Now that I think back on it, I'm amazed at how much momentum this whole ordeal gained.

Shortly after, I managed to get a hold of the entire Free Speech Summit video, and I wrote a post concerning it. To this day, I am utterly disgusted with how the so-called "officials" acted in the video. They were like little kids playing "House" on a cold night. I shake my head at the thought that these people are the ones who run my country.

August started off on a good footing, with the first post for that month talking about an in-depth discussion I had with a friend. We talked about the common problem with people and how they apply religious philosophy. In addition, I mentioned an article CNN ran concerning women in hijab. This was the first time in a long while I had heard something positive about Islam from the mainstream media, and it made me happy. Thank you again ladies for representing us so well.

Unfortunately, the smiles did not last long. A day or two before Ramadan, Obama decided to release a Ramadan greeting to "fellow Muslims." Keep in mind, this was after he completely ignored my letter (how can you not see that, it was seven pages!) I have dismissed the argument that he probably never even got it. I want to point out that it is now a long time after, and I still have no response from him. Despite the fact that he is vacationing in Hawaii.

That same day, another shocking piece of news falls into my hands, and thus we begin the saga of Fathima Rifqa Bary. In this first post, Gov. Charlie Crist decides to intervene in the Ohio runaway's case, stating that Florida should keep her here and support his administration's position.

The next month continues the Saga, first with a video taken by pastors of Global Revolution Church coming to light. I started by updating readers on Fathima's case, and then talking about the video. Apparently, this girl has turned in to a Muslim hater, and thinks "halal" means "it is good for them to kill me."

Shortly thereafter, a local news station released a report by Florida Department of Law Enforcement--the investigation into Bary was complete! Prompted by the story the news station ran about the report and an amazing comment on my last entry, I decided to throw in my two cents on the matter. I also discovered that CAIR had stepped up as well, dismissing "honor killings" as mere tribal actions. I would like to add here that since then, Fathima has been sent home to Ohio and is currently staying with a foster family. In addition, the pastor who transported her across state lines, Blake Lorenz, may be charged with criminal activity for transporting a minor and not reporting her whereabouts to FDLE. See how the case has turned on him! At any rate, the Ohio runaway saga is pretty much over. I'm so glad she's out of Florida.

We kick off the next month with an earthquake hitting Iran, and no one blinking an eye. The only agency who ran the story was BBC. However, it's not the earthquake that made November a significant month.

In November, a soldier named Nidal Hasan decides to shoot up Fort Hood, one of the largest military bases in the US. What struck me about this incident is when General George Casey firmly stated that Nidal's actions do not represent the way of the Muslim populus. Yes! It was good news at last! I was absolutely amazed that the General said this; I wasn't expecting a comment like this at all from the military. Thank you again, General.

Once again though, the joyous occasion doesn't last long. In December we're back to the negativity again, this time with Robert Spencer stating his view on honor killings, which, naturally, turned in to a hate statement against Muslims. This isn't surprising though given his track record and his all-famous Jihad Watch site. Nonetheless, I was let down by the fact that Spencer got interviewed by a mainstream media outlet. It was extremely disturbing to see this happen, especially since the article stated that Spencer has "trained FBI authorities on Islam." I can't imagine what he told them about us. No wonder the Patriot Act was enacted!

Also in December, we get another military killing incident--except this time, it's not by a Muslim! This post focused on the next to no media coverage the story got, and I firmly believe the reason no one paid attention to it is because the man who executed this murder didn't have a name like Sheik Abdullah Hasan Noorullah Hakim.

Finally, we close off this year by the first ever historically-based post on this blog: "Who Are The Shia?" This post was just two days before the day of Ashoorah, and I talked about the role the Suni sect had in the corruption we see today in Islam. The post gives an overview of Ashoorah, with background on the time of Islam's birth and the situation after the death of Prophet Muhammad.

With that, we come to the end of the first ten months (though full calendar year) of this blog. Will things change for us in 2010? From what it looks like right now, most likely not. The war in Afghanistan is escalating to a frightening level, and I seriously doubt this president knows what he is doing. Muslims are still being killed worldwide, and the election of Obama hasn't changed a thing; we're still fighting two wars. In fact, I recall a general stating that "the Taliban will kill us, and we will kill them," and that besides that, he doesn't think anything will change. I do not remember which general it was (I'm positive it wasn't Mccrystal,) but I agree with this statement. At least in Iraq the military had sane, educated Iraqis to work with. The general stated that they're dealing with a vastly illiterate, uneducated, and loosely connected country with a weak central government. Basically what he is trying to say is, the US (and now NATO as well) are picking up feathers from the ground on a windy day.

A lot of you may argue "so what should we do, just leave them?" My answer: yes! I'm telling you, if we had the military force here in this country, guarding neighborhoods, providing female business workers with escorts when they leave the building at night, patroling the area to make sure we don't have home invasions, we'd live in a much safer America. But no...they're stopping crime there while our home country rots away, crime escalates, women get raped and beaten, and innocent store owners have to shoot people because some robber broke into their store. Of course--we don't care about that. We're more concerned with stopping the once-a-year terrorist threat than we are with protecting the public from common harm.

While you think about that, what can I say? We're starting a new year but it seems like it will be the most ineffective year yet to come.

There is always hope though (as long as it is not unrealistic hope,) and that is all we have at the moment, so keep hoping inshallah, and one day things will be different.

I would like to thank CAIR for really stepping up this year and fighting back against anti-Islamists, with your statement concerning Adam Hasner where you implored the government to remove him, and later speaking out against Rifqa Bary. Please continue doing what you are already doing.

Next, to everyone who signed the letter in March through June! You took the first step in making sure we have a better world to live in. Now it's time for you to take it to the next step. Be a representative of Islam in every action you do. Never forget what you are representing. The spotlight is on you, so stand up tall and accept it. Run with it. Dive for it. You can make a difference; even someone saying "I never knew Islam was like this" is a difference--in fact, a larger one than changing a government's position, because you set right one person, and that person is genuinely changed, versus the government that half the time releases written apologies that don't mean anything, with their robotic stamping machines and overused scripts.

Ma'a sallamah,
Munawar Bijani

Friday, December 25, 2009

Karbala: Injustice Costs Blood; Who Are The Shia?

When many people say "X has been oppressed or Y has been oppressed," they often times forget the cost of being Muslim. Since the beginning of monotheism--from the Prophet Abraham (may peace and blessings be on him) to the death of Prophet Muhammad (SAWH,) people who "identify" with a religion of monotheism have been crushed, ridiculed, insulted and tormented. Still, there is one tragedy that no Muslim can ever forget, and that is the tragedy of Karbala, where the blood of the leader of Islam was spilled to save the minority--Shiatul Ali; where the blood of the leader of Islam was spilled to save the very essence of humanity. It is a known fact that Muslims were not the only ones who fought on Yomul Ashoorah; rather, there was a Christian named John and several Hindus who fought alongside Imam Hussein.

They all had a common goal: to stop the oppressive nature of the Abu Bakr-started regime, and this battle ended with 72 martyrs, including Imam Hussein; the leader of the movement. Who was Abu Bakr, you may ask.

During the time of Prophet Muhammad (SAWH,) there was no such thing as Shia, Suni, Ismaeli, etc. Islam ([the philosophy of] submission) was just that--Islam. A famous narration by the Prophet says "I have come to reform your manners." This was Islam until the death of the Prophet. Indeed, when a reformer comes to a land, the "reformed" tend to revert back to their old ways after he leaves. Refer to this paper for a discussion on this topic. This is exactly what happened to Islam. Those of you who asked me "who are the Suni," because of the repeated references I made to them in the rebuttal, I will answer you now.

Before the Prophet died, he had made his son in law, Ali, his successor. The first person to accept this decision and acknowledge it was Abu Bakr. Ironically, this was the first man to turn against the Prophet after he died.

After the death of the Prophet, Abu Bakr mentioned that Prophet had not left a successor. Two miles away from the Masjid of Kufa, Abu Bakr gathered his close friends and held elections. Naturally, he was elected to be the successor of Islam. Bare in mind that this position was supposed to be held by Ali, not Abu Bakr.

Meanwhile, back in Kufa, Ali was overseeing the burial of the Prophet (yes, the Prophet hadn't even been buried yet!)

During the reign of Abu Bakr, several things were happening to the religion of Islam. Most notably was the corruption that ensued. Several narrations tell us that Abu Bakr enjoyed drinking to a great extent. We know that Alcohol is forbidden in Islam. Further, Abu Bakr himself has stated on many occasions that "had it not been for Ali, my reign would not have lasted." Whether he liked it or not, Abu Bakr had to accept Ali, in the end, as his adviser. (Ali was eventually given the leadership of Islam, but only after three rulers: Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman.) After Ali came Muawiya who started the Umayyad dynasty. Until then, tensions between Suni and Shia escalated. This was because, while Ali was to have the leadership from the beginning, the Suni took it and then proceeded to corrupt Islam. Thus, we can view the Shia as the reformists.

During the reign of Muawiya, Imam Hussein, the third descendant of the Prophet, was told to bow to Yazid--the commander of the army of Muawiya. He was told to either bow or die. Hussein chose death, and that is why, today, we commemorate Ashoorah on the tenth day of Muharram every year. Instead of giving in to the corruption, Imam Hussein stood his ground and said "no" to corruption and tyranny. This is the very reason why people from several different faiths fought alongside him. This is why Suni-Shia conflicts are still ongoing.

A common Suni argument is, "we follow the Prophet, the Shia follow someone else besides the Prophet, which is against Islam's teachings." Not only is this claim logically false, it is also factually false. Remember that Prophet had declared Ali as his successor (at Ghadeer-E-Qum.) Thus, to not accept Ali as the leader of Islam after the Prophet's death is going against the very wishes of the Prophet. Further, to follow someone does not mean to worship them. We follow Ali because the Prophet said " if I am your master, Ali is your master." In another narration he says "I am from Ali, and Ali is from me."

Next, bare in mind that the Suni follow someone who instigated (and later carried out) the killing of the grandson of the Prophet. What better way to say "I love Islam" than to kill the Prophet's grandson?

On Ashoorah, we commemorate the brutal killings of the 72 martyrs in Karbala, Iraq. That night--after all the men had been killed--the ladies of Islam who were in the tents were dragged from the tents, their hijab torn and the tents burned. This, my dear reader, was done by the leader of the Suni sect of Islam! The suni attack us by saying "crying and wailing is against Islam." Show me a narration that supports it. They also say "grieving is against Islam." My dear reader, Prophet Jacob, the father of Prophet Youssef (may peace and blessings be on both of them) cried until he went blind when his son was supposedly killed by a pack of wolves--and the Suni sect is saying the Prophet's actions were forbidden. This statement defies the very logic of the infallibility of the prophethood in Islam.

Today, we find that the suicide bombs are all Suni. We find that Saddam Hussein continued oppressing Shia until his death. We find that women are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia because of the way the Suni sect continues to degrade its women. Ashoorah represents the day our Imam (leader) took a bold stand against the Umayyad government to save his Shia people from falling into the hands of corruption. His blood was spilled; his head was cut and speared. Narrations tell us the government rode on horseback carrying the Imam's head on a stick (they did this to the grandson of the Prophet!)

During the day of Ashoorah, the troops of Hussein were cut off from the water supply; Muawiya's army had surrounded the river of Karbala. Hussein's son, Ali Asgar, who was still an infant at the time was dehydrated. Hussein took him to the opposition and begged them to give him water at least, stating "maybe you hate me, but this child has done nothing wrong to you." You know what they gave the infant? An arrow that went in to his right ear and came out of the left. This, my dear reader, is the same exact leader the Suni sect follows. In fact, you will see a lot of them celebrating on Yomul Ashoorah.

Today, history books have misinterpreted history, saying that the Suni sect believes in elections and the Shia sect believes in blood royalty. If Abu Bakr--the elected representative of Islam confessed that his reign was saved because of Ali's advice, who seems more qualified and knowledgeable to you, the Suni Abu Bakr, or the Shia Imam Ali (may peace and blessings be upon him?) When I used to teach at the local Islamic school, one of my students told me she had some Suni friends who were smoking weed. When she confronted them, they claimed that Abu Bakr smoked weed so it was fine for them to do it because he was the leader of Islam. Can you see how corrupt their mentallity is? Today, when you go to Suni gatherings you will notice a lot of their women shedding their hijab; they call it "modernization" of Islam. Suni people have completely thrown their religion away; they have fabricated it to such a great extent that today all Muslims are suffering because of the fabricated narrations to debase the Prophet in order to raise the status of Abu Bakr. Refer to this paper for a discussion on this topic. I asked an instructor a couple years ago why Suni people fabricated the narrations of the Prophet; it brought no favor to Islam. He answered me with logic and said "think about it. Set aside all the Shia Suni stuff. Why would you debase someone like that? Because they stole the leadership position, and needed a way to debase the Prophet--put him below them." This answer made so much sense to me, and I see that debasement today. They blinded their followers.

There is a narration concerning the event of Ashoorah where the fourth descendant of the Prophet (who took over after Imam Hussein was martyred) was shackled to a carriage and lead through the city of Kufa. An old man approached him and started insulting him (the propaganda had begun against the family of the Prophet.) The fourth Imam, Zainul Abi-Deen, stopped him and said "have you read the verse in the Quran that states that a man who gives charity during prostration in prayer will be your [Prophet Muhammad's] successor?" The man said "yes." The imam replied "we are from his family!" The man broke down and cried "I have been lied to!" The man the Quran talks about was Ali. A narration states that he was in prayer while a woman came into the Mosque to ask for assistance. The Imam stuck out his ring finger to signal for her to take the ring he was wearing; she did. He did this while in prostration and this is the very man against whom injustice was done by your fellow Suni suicide bombers!


Peace be on you, O Abu 'Abdillah
Peace be on you, O son of the Messenger of Allah
Peace be upon you, O the chosen one and the son of the chosen one
Peace be on you, O son of the Commander of the Faithful and the son of the chief of the successors.
Peace be on you, O son of Fatima, the leading lady of the worlds
Peace be on you, O fearless warrior of Allah, the one who was killed, but to whom blood revenge is still denied
Peace be on you, and on the souls who died with you.
I send peace of Allah on all of you forever, so long as I remain alive, and the night and day remains.
O Abu Abdillah,
Great is the loss,
And unbearable and great is your tragedy for us, and for all the Muslims,
And unbearable and great is your tragedy in the heavens, and for all the dwellers of the heavens.
May Allah curse the people, who laid down the basis of oppression and wrongs against you, people of the House
May Allah curse those who removed you from your position, and removed you from the rank in which Allah had placed you.
May Allah curse the people who killed you,
And those who facilitated for them the means for your killing
I turn to Allah and to you, away from them,
And from their adherents, their followers, and their friends
O Abu 'Abdillah,
I am at peace with those who make peace with you,
And I am at war with those who make war with you, till the Day of Judgement.
May Allah curse, the family of Ziyad, and the family of Marwan,
And May Allah curse Bani Umayya entirely,
And May Allah curse Ibn Marjanah
And May Allah curse 'Umar ibne Sa'ad,
And may Allah curse Shimr
And May Allah curse the people who, carried out, saw, and tried to conceal, your killing
My father and mother be sacrificed for you, great is my sorrow for you.
I pray to Allah who has honoured your status, and honoured me through you,
To grant me an opportunity to seek your revenge with a victorious Imam, from the family of Muhammad, blessings of Allah be on him and his family.
O Allah, make me of a worthy status in your eyes, through Hussein, peace be on him, in this world and the Hereafter.
O Abu 'Abdillah,
I seek nearness to Allah,
and to His Messenger,
and to the Commander of the Faithful,
and to Fatima,
and to Hassan,
and to you, through the love and dedication to you,
and through disassociating with those who killed you, and prepared to fight you
and disassociating with those who established the foundations of tyranny, and wrongs against you (O Ahlul Bayt).
I turn to Allah, and His Messenger, away from those who laid grounds for it,
and those who built the house of injustice upon it,
and carried out oppression and cruelty, against you and your followers.
I turn to Allah, and to you, away from them,
and seek nearness to Allah, and then to you through love for you and your friends,
and by disassociating with your enemies, and those who went to war with you,
and by disassociating with their adherents and those who follow them.
I am at peace with those who made peace with you,
and I am at war with those who went to war with you.
I befriend those who befriended you,
and I am the enemy with those who were your enemies.
I pray to Allah, who has honoured me with awareness of you, and my awareness of your friends
and has enabled me to disassociate from your enemies.
(I pray) that He may place me with you in this world and the Hereafter.
And (I Pray) that He may strengthen for me a truthful stance in this world and the Hereafter.
And I pray that He may enable me to reach, your honoured station with Allah
And that He may grant me the opportunity to seek victory, along with a rightly guided Imam from amongst you, who will manifest and speak the, truth.
I ask Allah by your station, and by the honoured position you have with Him,
That He grants me for the grief at your sorrows, more than the personal grief that troubles anyone in tragedy.
What great sorrows (you experienced)! How great was your tragedy, for Islam and in all the Heavens and the earth!
O Allah, make me, at this moment, one who receives from You, blessings, mercy, and forgiveness.
O Allah make me live the life of Muhammad and his family,
and make me die the death of Muhammad and his family.
O Allah, this is a day when Bani Umayya rejoiced, and so too the son of the she who eats the liver of man.
the condemned son of the condemned as said by You, and Your Prophet blessings of Allah be on him and his family,
at every location and occasion in which Your Prophet stood.
O Allah, curse Abu Sufyan, and Muawiya, and Yazid son of Muawiya an everlasting curse
And this is a day when the family of Ziyad was happy, and the family of Marwan because of their murder of Hussein, (blessings of Allah be on him).
O Allah, so increase the curse on them from You, and the painful punishment.
O Allah, I seek nearness to You on this day, and in this position, and for the rest of my life,
through disassociating from them (the enemies) and cursing them,
and though the love of Your Prophet, and his family, peace be on them.

O Allah, curse the first tyrant who oppressed the right of Muhammad and his family,
and the last one who followed him on that.
O Allah, curse the group who fought al-Hussein,
and the group which followed and supported, and joined hands to kill him.
O Allah curse them all.

Peace be on You O Abu Abdillah and on the souls that died with you.
Greetings of Peace of Allah be on you, from me, forever so long as I live and so long as the night and day remain.
May Allah not make this my last pledge of your visitation (ziyarat)
Peace be on Hussein,
and on Ali the son of Hussein,
on the sons of Hussein,
and the companions of Hussein.

O Allah, curse particularly the first tyrant
and begin with him first,
then the second, the third, and the fourth.
O Allah, curse the fifth one, Yazid,
and 'Ubaydullah bin Ziyad,
and Ibne Marjanah,
and 'Umar ibne Sa'ad,
and Shimr,
and the family of Abu Sufyan,
the family of Ziyad,
and the family of Marwan, till the Day of Judgement.

O Allah, for You is Praise, Praise of those who thank You during tragedy.
Praise be to Allah for my intense grief.
O Allah, grant me the intercession of al-Hussein, on the Day of appearance (before You),
and strengthen for me a truthful stand by You, with Hussein and the companions of Hussein,
who sacrificed everything, for Hussein, peace be on him.

[ Sallutations Of the Day Of Ashoorah]

You can read more about Abu Bakr at a Web site which is dedicated to him and his reign: www.abubakr.org.
Munawar

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Non-Muslims Do It Too! Oh Wait... We Couldn't Care Less

Sallams Readers,
I came across this story in Florida Today about a week ago, but just now got time to write about it. A man is accused of killing his two military buddies. You can read the article here. My question: where is the terrorist label? Where is Robert Spencer? Most importantly, where is the wide publicity? Let us consider the headline of this story from a different perspective.

First, change the title from "Soldier charged in Fort Drum murders had dead man's car" to "Muslim Soldier charged in Fort Drum murders had dead man's car." Next, give the man an Arab name--Sheik Abdullah Hakim. What do you think would happen?

Firstly, the media would insert the word "Muslim" into the headline as I have done. Why? Simple: Arab = Muslim, and Muslim-1 = Arab. However, if someone without an Arab name kills his own soldiers, we won't call it "broad acceptance." In fact, we won't even talk about it after the day it happened. When other people do it, we attribute it to psychological disorders; however, when a Muslim does it, we attribute it to "radical Islam," "Jihadist ideology," and "radical Muslim clericks." There was no mention of the man's religion or motive here; it was plain and simple. He killed two soldiers, and that was the end. There was no second thought about it. Do you believe me now when I say Muslims are being hated for no reason just like the Jews just because they owned big businesses and people needed someone to hate?
Ma'a sallamah,
Munawar

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Honor Killings: Robert Spencer Gets Another Chunk Of Meat

Sallams Readers,
A few days ago I found an article in USA Today concerning so-called honor killings. Here is the beginning of this particular article:

Muslim immigrant men have been accused of six "honor killings" in the United States in the past two years, prompting concerns that the Muslim community and police need to do more to stop such crimes.

"There is broad support and acceptance of this idea in Islam, and we're going to see it more and more in the United States," says Robert Spencer, who has trained FBI and military authorities on Islam and founded Jihad Watch, which monitors radical Islam.

There is broad support? Wait, since when did Robert Spencer get media attention? I know he sponsored a memorial recently for another girl who was killed by a so-called honor killing; but right from the start, this reporter seems to be aiming at something: to give only one side of a story. We can see that from their writing below:

Many Muslim leaders in the USA say that Islam does not promote honor killings and that the practice stems from sexism and tribal behavior that predates the religion.

"You're always going to get problems with chauvinism and suppressing vulnerable populations and gender discrimination," says Salam Al-Marayati, executive director of the Muslim
Public Affairs Council.

Not all agree. Zuhdi Jasser says some Muslim communities have failed to spell out how Islam deals with issues that can lead to violence.

"Not all agree?" Let us qualify that statement. "Arabs don't agree."

As far as Muslim communities failing to deal with violent actions. Let me say it like this. If we were to capture those men and stone them for committing crimes against Islam, this same reporter would say "Muslims kill each other for committing violent acts--Muslims are savages!"

The reporter immediately switched away from Salam Al-Marayati, who was explaining that honor killings predate Islam. This action reminds me of the video "Terrorism In Its Own Words" aired on Fox back in 2007. In that video, the interviewer cut off an interviewee who was explaining that suicide bombing is a political action and has no basis in Islam.

I agree that honor killings are a real concern; I'm not arguing against that. Instead, I want to make the distinction between Arabs and Muslims clear, once again, just like I did in a rebuttal to Geert Wilders.

Common fact tells us that before monotheism came to Saudi Arabia, Arabs would bury their daughters alive. If you're going to throw that "Palestine is not Arab" argument at me like they did on this Discover Vancouver thread, stop slamming me with cheap shots.

Finally, Mr. Spencer, let me show you exactly what Islam says concerning justice and women: (I have bolded important words and phrases. Sorry screen reader users, I'll find a way to textually denote this next time.)

O mankind! Be dutiful to your Lord, Who created you from a single person (Adam), and from him (Adam) He created his wife [Hawwa (Eve)], and from them both He created many men and women and fear Allâh through Whom you demand your mutual (rights), and (do not cut the relations of) the wombs (kinship) . Surely, Allâh is Ever an All­Watcher over you.

Ironically enough, this comes from a chapter called "The Women."

Notice, firstly, the text uses the word "mutual." Here, the Quran doesn't specify "mens' rights" or "womens' rights." Next, the Quran commands Muslims to be "dutiful to your lord." In other words, don't commit injustice. Mind you, I'm taking this directly from the Quran, and you can read it for yourself.

(15)
And those of your women who commit illegal sexual intercourse, take the evidence of four witnesses from amongst you against them; and if they testify, confine them (i.e. women) to houses until death comes to them or Allâh ordains for them some (other) way.

The girl killed in the story I referenced was killed because she brought shame to her family because she had a boyfriend. Indeed, dating without a contract is illegal, hence she may have committed illegal sexual intercourse. Now, apply this verse to all that, and you can easily see that even in this circumstance, killing her is not permissible!

(16)
And the two persons (man and woman) among you who commit illegal sexual intercourse, punish them both. And if they repent (promise Allâh that they will never repeat, i.e. commit illegal sexual intercourse and other similar sins) and do righteous good deeds, leave them alone. Surely, Allâh is Ever the One Who accepts repentance, (and He is) Most Merciful.

Why, may I ask you, oh Mr. Spencer, is honor killing confined to women only? Clearly, if these so-called Muslims based it from the Quran, they would have killed both men and women who brought shame to their families; not just the women.

Despite the fact that CAIR released a statement some time ago saying exactly what Salam Al-Marayati said: it's a tribal thing, reporters still persist that honor killings are islamic, when in fact they're not. This becomes obvious when we look at the article as a whole:

Prosecutors charged Almaleki's father, Faleh Almaleki, with murder, saying the Iraqi immigrant was upset that his daughter rejected a husband she married in Iraq and moved in with an American.

See? It was a shame issue, not an Islamic issue. I know several parents who are upset over who their daughters are married to--the only difference between us and the Arabs and Middle Easterns is, they kill their daughters for these acts; we don't. Why is it when Japanese school students commit suicide, we're okay with it? "It's amazing how tied they are to family values." Then when an Arab does it, "Muslims are evil!" Do I support honor killings? No--no Muslim who actually studies the Quran will (I've proven that to you above.) I'm only asking you to look inward. Indeed, I'd love to hang this father over fire and watch him burn for committing such an act against his daughter; the same daughter God has commanded him to show mercy towards. Anyway, I don't see how such "shame" as the reporter puts it can lead a father to kill his daughter.

"By his own admission, this was an intentional act, and the reason was that his daughter had brought shame on him and his family," says Maricopa County prosecutor Stephanie Low, according to The Arizona Republic.

Again--a shame issue, not an Islamic issue.

Leaving all this aside, as I read further and further, I started wishing I'd never even opened the paper that day. Apparently, having boyfriends and girlfriends is "assimilating" with American culture. So you have to "get laid" to assimilate?

"How should young adult women be treated who want to assimilate more than their parents want them to assimilate?" asks Jasser, founder of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, which advocates a separation of mosque and state.

This is the exact problem we get when people are Muslim "just because" as I mentioned in an earlier post concerning religious robots. There is a narration from the Prophet Muhammad concerning this very question, where he says that you should raise your children in their time, not yours. A related narration talks about a father who came to Prophet and told him his son doesn't understand the father's native language, and all the lectures are in the father's native language. The Prophet said that because the father brought the son to this land, the father should learn the child's native language and not vice versa. All this shows us that people are allowed to "assimilate" as long as it is in the bounds of Islam. I guarantee you, if you really knew what was going through your so-called boyfriend's mind, you'd be horrified. Islam never said "don't date." All it says is "plan before entering a relationship"--hence the contract.

"How does an imam treat a woman who comes in and says she wants a divorce ... or how to deal with your daughter that got pregnant, and she's in high school?"
...
"The religion has failed to address this as a problem and failed to seriously work to abolish it as un-Islamic."

Jasser says his community needs to address how to treat young women who want to assimilate.

"Until we have women's liberation ... we're going to see these things increase."

My honored readers! All these answers are in clear sight! If a woman wants a divorce, based on Islamic law she is entitled to one. I already referenced verses above that talk about sexual acts with a non-mahram (someone who is not in a lawful relationship with you.) Won't you people read your book? When are you going to pick up that thing collecting dust on your book shelf and open it and find answers yourselves instead of looking at your religiously robotic parents for empty, misleading, and culturally influenced answers? Don't you get it? Open your ears!

"Womens' liberation?" That statement made me laugh. This man is a Muslim, and yet he whole-heartedly believes his religion condemns women. Islam doesn't need womens' liberation; Arabs need it. If Islam needed it, Saudi Arabia wouldn't be the only country to ban women from driving. Concerning assimilation again: it seems as if Jasser is implying that American women should shed their hijab and "be free." I still do not see how a Muslim can call himself Muslim and truely believe that total assimilation is the answer to all the problems. I do not see how you define womens' liberation as making them remove their hijab. I seriously doubt Muslim women want to be as disrespected as "assimilated" Western women are--if that were the case, women would not be converting to Islam quicker than men, Jasser.

I seriously think this calls for the birth of a new organization. I've honestly had it with these petty arguments and accusations time and again. I'm so sick of opening the paper and finding an anti-Islam article in there at least once a week; and I'm absolutely annoyed that I'm seeing the godforsaken name Robert Spencer pop up in mainstream media now.

At any rate, this is the newest attack on Islam--once again, thanks to Arabs. You baby killers with your 72 virgin philosophies, drinking, and opium growing. You're messing up the world for the rest of us, and I wish Islam had never come to you idiotic backwards animals in the first place. Go fill your harems and stop spreading your corrupt ideology in our land!
Ma'a sallamah,
Munawar

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Out Of The Darkness: General George Casey Speaks For Islam In Light Of Nidal Hasan's Actions

Sallams Everyone,
It's not often I write about positive news, but I have found this particular event to be most surprising. First, I will summarize the events around the light. On November 5th, a Muslim gunman fired shots in the Fort Hood military base in Killeen, Texas. Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a counsellor for the US military, killed thirteen people after jumping on a table in the Readiness center and shouting "Allahu akbar [God is great]."


Amazingly though, I found this article today concerning it.


The Army chief of staff says it's important for the country not to get caught up in speculation about the Muslim faith of the alleged Fort Hood gunman.

I smiled when I read that. An army staffer is warning people about jumping to conclusions about the Islamic faith. You see who you murdered, Malik? Just because they were sending you to Iraq gives you no right to do what you did. I understand you felt disturbed; however, it turns out these servicemen are still your brothers and are protecting Islam from unfair discrimination by their own people.

He says focusing on the Islamic roots of the suspected shooter, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, could "heighten the backlash" against all Muslims in the military.


Casey says diversity in the military "gives us strength."


Amazing. I'm speechless at the moment because of this statement. This is the first piece of good news I've heard in some time concerning Muslims; apparently General George Casey isn't going to fall for anti-Islam rhetoric.


Even if the general had said Muslims are messed up in the head, I most likely would have agreed with him. There are probably thousands of soldiers who feel the way you do, Malik, that doesn't mean you go shooting your own brothers. These are the same people who would have gladly jumped in front of you to save your life.


You really took things too far, and go "Allahu akbar" someone else next time. I have no idea what you were trying to prove, but all you did was get media attention and get Arab names back in the media. You also reiterated the misconception that "Allahu akbar" is a war cry; thanks for that.


General George Casey, thank you for being our voice today. That statement meant a lot more to me than Obama's Ramadan speech. Keep it up, and God bless you sir. I hope you are the voice of unity for years to come; we need people like you.
Ma'a Sallamah,
Munawar

Friday, November 6, 2009

Earthquake Hits Iran, World Turns Blind Eye

Sallams All,
A shocking discovery came to me this morning. On November 4th, an earthquake hit southern Iran. You can find the story here. I am not going to reiterate the injury count. Instead, I would like to bring your attention to something which I find to be more than coincidental. CNN--a "world news agency", which brings news from India, US, and several other countries, had no mention of the earthquake. Instead, I found it on BBC news. Someone correct me if I simply missed the article, but I remember checking CNN that day at the university while I was bored in Calculus, and I found no mention of an earthquake.


This would not have been a shock to me, if the following were not true: (1) CNN did a "Generation of Islam" series in which they made a clear distinction between terrorists and Islam and (2) CNN did a piece about the real meaning of hijab [cover]--the Muslim modest dresscode. Is it just me, or do they appear to be swinging both ways? Putting CNN aside, I do not even remember reading about the earthquake from USA Today--another paper that carries US and international news. Both papers have, in the past, reported about earthquakes in other (non-Muslim dominant.) countries. I am shocked at how quiet the news was about the earthquake in Iran. You may say "Munawar, earthquakes happen in Iran all the time." I accept this argument. However, "hundreds of people" injured (according to BBC) is not an every day occurrence. Maybe CNN isn't turning around after all.


Ma'a sallamah,


Munawar

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Fathima Rifqa Bary: Investigative Report; Exaggerated Or True?

Sallams All,
The case on Fathima Rifqa Bary continues. This time, however, the case has taken an interesting turn. Just to make sure we are all on the same page, here is the summary of the case. So far, it has been an ideological battle between Ohio and Florida. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) conducted an investigation into Fathima, and wrote a seven page investigative summary on it. The report was provided by WFTV Eye-Witness News. The investigation suggests that there is no evidence or proof of any abuse having occurred; it goes on to state that Fathima's beliefs of an "honored killing" are influenced by her culture and customs, and FDLE found no factual grounds for these claims. One part of the report reads as follows.

I ran OCR on the report which was originally in a PDF embedded image. Since the report was scanned, parts of the report were handwritten and did not come out correctly. I have replaced these parts with [unintelligible] even though the missing parts may be deduced from the context. This is to avoid "guess-and-replace" and to keep me out of trouble.


[ Unintelligible ] discussed her upbringing and stated that she had been a cheerleader at New Albany High School. When asked if her father approved of her cheerleading she stated that her father had no real idea what the concept or activities involved in cheerleading were, and allowed it. She stated that she always wore sweatpants or other coverings to hide the short skirt of the cheerleading outfit from him. She stated her father had never been to an event in which she performed as a cheerleader. Furthermore, she stated the family had no photos of her cheering or team photos as would appear in a yearbook.
...



When FDLE and other investigators visited the household on August 27, 2009, several photos of dressed in her cheerleading uniform were prominently displayed in the family living room.

Two things could be going on here; either (1) she had a real reason to run away from home and is now, under the influence of her current environment, out to destroy her family; or (2) what happened was a spur of emotions and now she does not know how to handle the situation. Either way, the investigative report broke through her. The most recent report on Fathima as of this writing can be found at WFTV Eye-Witness News here.

In essence, the report indirectly states that Fathima's case is not immediately valid. The report claims that she has named noone besides her father who will conduct the so-called "honored killing" and even goes as far as to include an interview with CAIR (the Council on American-Islamic Relations):

On August 27, 2009, [unintelligible] was asked if there was any Islamic punishment for
conversion from Islam to Christianity. [Unintelligible] answered "absolutely not" and "there is no such thing as honor killing." An attorney present at the time, Mr. Romin Iqbal, characterized the concept as cultural and tribal, not related directly to the Islamic religious practice.

So finally someone is stepping up and saying "hey, she could have been set up." Indeed, the investigation was not even started by Muslims. I'm amazed that non-Muslim investigators--who were not motivated by religious bias have written this report. Thank you CAIR for stepping in as well.

The report also found no evidence of the child abuse Fathima talks about. The lie about the pictures of her cheerleading is what really brought her credibility down. If any of you wish to add to this, just leave a comment. I was not able to touch on everything here (and I do not always find everything as proven by an excellent comment on my last post) so feel free to add to this summary.

One thing of note is that her father did admit to picking up her laptop; but he did not strike her with it as Fathima claimed he did. The report claims that her father was about to throw the laptop but then decided against it because it was expensive. In addition, Fathima's original story of hitch-hiking a ride to the bus station was proven false. As it turns out, Brian Williams--the one who Baptized her--drove her to the station from a residence. In other words, she was not out on the street.

On August 31, 2009,
FDLE's investigation has revealed that the ticket was purchased in
Orlando under a fictitious name and provided to [unintelligible] During her interview, [unintelligible] acknowledged that it was her signature on the ticket. FDLE has maintained a copy of this ticket for this case file.

So they interviewed her, and then gave her a ticket to Orlando. Why is she so excited in the video? As one of the authors posted in the comments to the previous entry, "A pastor was filming a 16-year-old girl in her bedroom... I find that very suspicious. If her parents were so strict, how did she sneak a grown man into her room to film her?" I agree, it looks very suspicious, and I think law enforcement is seeing that as well.

For my visually impaired readers (or whoever does not wish to download the PDF version of the report,) you can get the rich text version here. Please note that this is the exact report contained in the PDF image, with no alterations of any kind. The document has not been edited for scanning errors or layout. The document is provided "as is" with no modification except that it has been converted to text. The rich text format was used to preserve all formatting as found in the original report. I make no warrant of any kind concerning this document, and do not claim a copyright on it; the document is only here for those of you who cannot read the original image. I disclaim all misinformation caused by any optical character recognition errors, missing parts, poor formatting, unrecognizable text, etc. Use at your own risk. If you are concerned about downloading the converted version, you may obtain the original version from WFTV. The original document just linked is provided by Eye-Witness News and written by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. All copyrights remain with them.
Ma'a Sallamah,
Munawar

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Fathima Rifqa Bary: A Suicide Bomber To Our Cause

Sallams All,
In my last entry I wrote about Fathima Rifqa Bary, a runaway Christian convert who is 17-years-old. As the case progresses between her family, who she claims are trying to kill her, and the state of Florida--which has the governor backing it--new stuff is being released daily. This particular piece, I found to be interesting.

An article was posted talking about a video fillmed by a minister before Fathima ran from home:

In a newly surfaced online video that was apparently filmed before she ran away from
her Ohio home and ended up in Florida, a passionate and vivacious Fathima Rifqa Bary
shares her testimony and talks about Jesus.
The nearly eight-minute video was posted on YouTube earlier this week. The video
details state it was filmed by "Minister Joe of P4CM in May of 2009 while Rifqa was
in Ohio."
A giddy Rifqa, then 16, starts her testimony: "Crazy how I found the Lord. Be prepared
to be blown away, but my parents are actually Muslim. They're radical, radical Muslims."

Great...so now this Fathima has resorted to not only running away from home, but also downtalking Islam. She uses "Muslim" as if it is something horrific, and the church played a big role in it. Way to go Suni parents. As always I will not take sides as to who is correct or wrong in this case--we can debate that for hours. However, it seems as if her Suni parents seem to be misguided themselves. I deduced they were Suni because Fathima's mother's name is Aisha.

Rifqa made national headlines when she ran away from her Columbus, Ohio, area home
and sought shelter with an Orlando family in July. The teen said she feared her Muslim
family would harm or kill her because of her conversion.
Her family has denied any wrongdoing, and investigators have not found evidence supporting
Rifqa's claims.

I'm glad someone is finally looking at this case from a rational perspective versus a clash of religious ideals.

In the video, Rifqa said she was abused. She said she didn't know who Jesus was.

How interesting. A Muslim girl not knowing who Prophet Jesus is, despite the prophet being one of the greatest and most honored prophets in Islam? Is it becoming obvious who's to blame?

"If you're listening to this .it's the best thing that can ever happen to you. If
there's a hole in your heart that yearns for something more it cannot be filled with
drinking or MTV or any of that stuff. Only Jesus can fill that whole in your heart,"
she said.
"Just come to Jesus and he will set you free."

I left some parts out because copy and pasting gets old. Here's what happened. She meets girl, girl meets Fathima. Fathima tells the girl she is Christian and gets invited to church. Fathima has an emotional breakdown.

Now, she believes that Jesus is the only way to God. This, my friends, is what happens when we take kids to Mosques and Islamic Centers without teaching them Islam. "Kids, we're going. Come on. Do homework later." With these parents though, it was probably more like "Come on or you're grounded." Look what they gained from it. Their daughter is now a runaway, supported by a conservative Christian governor. She is a daughter who lived with two pastors for two weeks before Florida took her into their care. She is a daughter who hates Islam, and what will the Suni people do? "We support Abu Bakr." Go on, keep supporting him, and watch your religion crumble. I am sitting here laughing as I write this and read the article. Only one thing goes through my mind: "I told you so."

For centuries you have contaminated, corrupted, slandered, mocked, and ridiculed your own religion. You started by murdering Prophet Muhammad's grandson. Next, you swung to radicalism by the introduction of Wahabiism by the British people. Why do you think Abdul Wahab couldn't corrupt Shia (the real Ithna Asri sect, mind you) and went instead with your corrupted faith? If this girl knew Ehlul Bait, if she knew Prophet Jesus existed in Islam, maybe she wouldn't be in the position she is in today. Maybe, just maybe, she would have tried to unite the three religions instead of tearing them apart. But no, her parents wouldn't let her. And that is why I make this statement:

Fathima, I am glad for you. I'm glad that you no longer support Abu Bakr and his drinking, and practicing of un-Islamic philosophy. Fathima, I am glad that you were able to find Prophet Jesus--indeed, he deserves to be honored, and I am ashamed that your parents took that away from you. Fathima, I am glad that you found completeness; indeed, I doubt your sect of Islam would have given it to you. Every article I read about you makes me so mad, not because of what happened to you, but because of what radical Christians are doing to steal the opertunity.

And here is my flip-side statement:

Fathima, I despise your actions; you have undone so many rights we have done. Had you been more mature, you would have handled this situation in a better way. Had you but understood, you would have seen things for what they really are. You are a mess of emotions, and your church took advantage of you. I doubt they mean any better for you than your parents did. You have not only upset the political balance, but have also upset the religious peace we were on our way to establishing. Thank you for nothing, and I have no idea why Florida had to be your place of choice to run away. Now, me, and the rest of the Shia Ithna Ashri Muslim community have to start explaining your situation--once again becoming defenders in a war that has been heightened by your deeds; a war that we are losing quickly, thanks to you.

Because of you, we find ourselves, once again, on the receiving end of radical anti-Islam comments; battles that were faught time and again, only to resurface because someone like you has to go parading in the streets. Thank you for making our jobs that much more difficult. I hope you are happy with yourself and the Global Revolution Church.