my brother, is a journalist.
from him i learn that...
1-a reporter will gather the facts
2-sift thru the facts to find an "angle" for the piece to be written.(lets face it...they are writing a story that needs toengage a reader, please an editor, sell a newspaper,push a hidden agenda, who knows...i'll let theconspiracy theorists sort it out)
3-those FACTS that back up the chosen angle will make it into the story (and give someone there moment of fame), and those that don't only live on in the memory of the one who will forever cherish the day that"DUDE, i was interviewed by CNN!!!"
an exemple:
since sept.11 my brother has been running around talking to the local reporters and helping them cover the muslims. yesterday he spent most of eid holiday helping with a piece on the celebration. he gathered quotes from kids, imams, leaders, and added a lengthy quote from the sermon. stressing the fact that it was an uplifting non-political, spiritual message about the holiday. he also went into the subjects of the moon sighting controversy, and all sorts of facts about EID ingeneral and the way Muslims celebrated it.
BUT...after submitting his material to the MIAMI HERALD reporter assigned to write the piece, and reading the article she wrote, He learned a valuable lesson: EID is not a holiday like Christmas or Kwanza and will not get typical Holiday coverage in the MIAMI HERALD like the others get. From the Editor on down, the article was probably chosen to be part of the larger Sept.11 coverage. And since the imam she happened to interview mentioned something about the firebombing incident in Cali and his EID Khutba spoke of Muslim suffering abroad...
HER CHOSEN ANGLE: feelings of FEAR among Muslims at Holiday time!?!
chosen from among my brothers contribution to her set of included facts: a single sentence from our imam's excellent khutba that happened in some way to fit into her angle. (this is why you run around complaining about being misquoted in the press) as frustrated as my brother was last night, he didn't blame her for what even he had been taught in school to do.
she had no knowledge about islam or muslims and was just assigned to cover an event and write a story about it. after reading her article my brother backed of from educating her too much about islam for he would lose credibility as a reporter and tread into the territory of a lobbyist.
so...How many muslims dying in Afghanistan??? Does it fit into the current "angle" our media reporters and editors may be ALLOWED to publish or release in this time of war propaganda??What must WE do to get Non-Muslim Americans (this includes the media) to think of us as Beautiful Human Beings and not just some stray facts that can be ignored or hidden from view?
But...we must also work on becoming those Beautiful Human Beings that we pretend to be.
peace and love.
Monday, December 17, 2001
Tuesday, December 4, 2001
pan islam
Reason #2 for old school loyalties: Pan-Islam...
Its interesting that in the midst of the colonization of muslim lands, jamaluddin afghani and khalifa abdul hamid were trying to take advantage of islam’s built-in call to brotherhood for their own reasons, independant of each other at first. until the khalifa incorprated afghani into his own program of rallying muslims to help defend the empire from a political European threat.
both were sincere efforts of pan-islamism, crafted as a defense against a foreign effort to "divide and conquer." The efforts of both the khalifa and afghani ended up influencing allama iqbal in india and the ikhwan in egypt, whose thoughts carry on to this day.
But, I believe the original fight was lost in the 1920's and we failed to accept our defeat.
Rather than to put the defeat behind us and move on to rebuilding, most of our leaders and movements keep fighting as if colonization is still the threat. Maybe it is, OR maybe they’ve failed to deal with the new political, cultural, economic dynamics of our world.
Any conflict occurring during this transitional period is reacted to in the only way we know how (instinctive pan-islamism): CALLS TO A MUSLIM WORLD COMMUNITY TO HELP RESIST FOREIGN AGGRESSION. Nevermind that the muslim world community back then had no Muslim or Secular Nation States. Back when Pan-islam became part of our ideology, it was still the age of empires and kings. The threat was something you can see and touch, not like Jerry Springer or BaBewatch on Satellite TV or INTERNET PORN.
I don't know how much we're influenced by pan-islamic ideology as crafted NOT by our Prophet(s) but by a khalifate that lost its struggle in 1924.
we’ve reached absolute bottom when we don’t even know right from wrong anymore.
I say...
If the war is over...
there is no more enemy.
The last few generations failed to address the new reality. The struggle now is to find ourselves after a devastating defeat, in our time the enemy is our own selfish desires. Our generation isn’t trying to defend a great civilization. Maybe that great civilization is dead and we should build one from a state of nothing.
Lets build our new abode of peace with a foundation of Love. Our building blocks can be the Best of the Beautiful Muslim Cultures that have made it across to this new land and the handful of scholars that can reconnect us to the methodologies of the Masters. A “global village” may complicate things at times but it can also be a source of knowledge and inspiration.
Then again, maybe the war aint over.
If the right wing conservatives are trying fight us, why should we put down our defenses.
if they have taken on the mantle of our old enemies from the crusades, and want to drop bombs and destroy us in the name of "democracy", what do we do but defend ourselves.
peace and love.
(i'm still confused)
Its interesting that in the midst of the colonization of muslim lands, jamaluddin afghani and khalifa abdul hamid were trying to take advantage of islam’s built-in call to brotherhood for their own reasons, independant of each other at first. until the khalifa incorprated afghani into his own program of rallying muslims to help defend the empire from a political European threat.
both were sincere efforts of pan-islamism, crafted as a defense against a foreign effort to "divide and conquer." The efforts of both the khalifa and afghani ended up influencing allama iqbal in india and the ikhwan in egypt, whose thoughts carry on to this day.
But, I believe the original fight was lost in the 1920's and we failed to accept our defeat.
Rather than to put the defeat behind us and move on to rebuilding, most of our leaders and movements keep fighting as if colonization is still the threat. Maybe it is, OR maybe they’ve failed to deal with the new political, cultural, economic dynamics of our world.
Any conflict occurring during this transitional period is reacted to in the only way we know how (instinctive pan-islamism): CALLS TO A MUSLIM WORLD COMMUNITY TO HELP RESIST FOREIGN AGGRESSION. Nevermind that the muslim world community back then had no Muslim or Secular Nation States. Back when Pan-islam became part of our ideology, it was still the age of empires and kings. The threat was something you can see and touch, not like Jerry Springer or BaBewatch on Satellite TV or INTERNET PORN.
I don't know how much we're influenced by pan-islamic ideology as crafted NOT by our Prophet(s) but by a khalifate that lost its struggle in 1924.
we’ve reached absolute bottom when we don’t even know right from wrong anymore.
I say...
If the war is over...
there is no more enemy.
The last few generations failed to address the new reality. The struggle now is to find ourselves after a devastating defeat, in our time the enemy is our own selfish desires. Our generation isn’t trying to defend a great civilization. Maybe that great civilization is dead and we should build one from a state of nothing.
Lets build our new abode of peace with a foundation of Love. Our building blocks can be the Best of the Beautiful Muslim Cultures that have made it across to this new land and the handful of scholars that can reconnect us to the methodologies of the Masters. A “global village” may complicate things at times but it can also be a source of knowledge and inspiration.
Then again, maybe the war aint over.
If the right wing conservatives are trying fight us, why should we put down our defenses.
if they have taken on the mantle of our old enemies from the crusades, and want to drop bombs and destroy us in the name of "democracy", what do we do but defend ourselves.
peace and love.
(i'm still confused)
global village
Some say that are not concerned enough about our neighbors in general and american muslims living in poverty. I agree that We should be. American muslim's are often more concerned for the refugees and/or the poor of India, Pakistan, Sudan, Kashmir or Palestine or whatever other troubled region close to where they immigrated from. Why?
i think its for two reasons:
1-that “global village” some say we live in.
2-our lingering pan-islamic resistance to “the west.”
A few months ago I had a thought...
its unfair when ignorant Americans want new Americans to choose between allegiance to USA or their former nations.
I’m a citizen of the world!
Why the Heck not!
Our presidents speak of “New World Order,”
our economic gurus adwokate a “global economy” and orgs like WTO.
New technology and communications help maintain extremely close ties to other nations. Our Indian and Arab American parents and friends aren’t like the Irish, Italian, German Americans who arrived earlier this century and weren’t able to keep in touch or participate in what was going on in Europe the way that Bosnian and Turkish Americans can these days.
Examples...
#1-last month, Colombia won a soccer match, dude yall should’ve seen the flags and spontaneous rallies of joy here in Miami, where its not uncommon to have a flag from Latin America or the Caribbean waving right below old glory on car antennas.
#2-for the past few years Paki's can get the latest Junoon album in local ethnic grocery stores or watch Prez Musharraf come on the PrimeTV Satellite channel and
tell us what Pakistanis in America can do to Uplift their Economy. or our Indians watching the latest Bollywood Hit Film on B4U channel
#3-those I-rane-e-yan Shee-yite Fundy Terrorists who
voted in an “election” back home without leaving LA.
I love it!!
I can be extremely proud of and linked with my Indo-Pak Muslim Heritage while also being a proud citizen of THE nation that makes it easy for the decendents commoners and peasents to raise their status of living.
In this new smaller world, I hope there’ll be more of US and not those fools trying to pass English Only laws.
What??...
So You live in the Border States or Miami and can’t speak ez-pane-yo-lez or fed up with all those "chups" in Chinatown or running around in Hollywood action fliks
these days, Tough!! Deal with it, Expand your WORLDview!!
So...
I can understand my Ohioan Kashmiri American Muslim Sister’s Dad loving his Motherland and raising funds for victims of aggression. I'll donate because the
cause is Right...
Or my Texan Palestinian American Muslim Brother and his "Halaqa" group rallying to change some unjust laws that affect him. I'll march with them to show my support for justice...
TRUE, maybe these political struggles aren't about ISLAM (Allah will protect the Deen despite us)...BUT, the struggle IS against things UNISLAMIC.
but beware of those pesky Memons and their Universal Brotherhood of Shady Businessmen. A network out for global domination, more powerful, intricate and
dangerous than Al-Qaeda or Freemasonry, I tell ya.
my thoughts on pan-islam in another post...
peace and love.
i think its for two reasons:
1-that “global village” some say we live in.
2-our lingering pan-islamic resistance to “the west.”
A few months ago I had a thought...
its unfair when ignorant Americans want new Americans to choose between allegiance to USA or their former nations.
I’m a citizen of the world!
Why the Heck not!
Our presidents speak of “New World Order,”
our economic gurus adwokate a “global economy” and orgs like WTO.
New technology and communications help maintain extremely close ties to other nations. Our Indian and Arab American parents and friends aren’t like the Irish, Italian, German Americans who arrived earlier this century and weren’t able to keep in touch or participate in what was going on in Europe the way that Bosnian and Turkish Americans can these days.
Examples...
#1-last month, Colombia won a soccer match, dude yall should’ve seen the flags and spontaneous rallies of joy here in Miami, where its not uncommon to have a flag from Latin America or the Caribbean waving right below old glory on car antennas.
#2-for the past few years Paki's can get the latest Junoon album in local ethnic grocery stores or watch Prez Musharraf come on the PrimeTV Satellite channel and
tell us what Pakistanis in America can do to Uplift their Economy. or our Indians watching the latest Bollywood Hit Film on B4U channel
#3-those I-rane-e-yan Shee-yite Fundy Terrorists who
voted in an “election” back home without leaving LA.
I love it!!
I can be extremely proud of and linked with my Indo-Pak Muslim Heritage while also being a proud citizen of THE nation that makes it easy for the decendents commoners and peasents to raise their status of living.
In this new smaller world, I hope there’ll be more of US and not those fools trying to pass English Only laws.
What??...
So You live in the Border States or Miami and can’t speak ez-pane-yo-lez or fed up with all those "chups" in Chinatown or running around in Hollywood action fliks
these days, Tough!! Deal with it, Expand your WORLDview!!
So...
I can understand my Ohioan Kashmiri American Muslim Sister’s Dad loving his Motherland and raising funds for victims of aggression. I'll donate because the
cause is Right...
Or my Texan Palestinian American Muslim Brother and his "Halaqa" group rallying to change some unjust laws that affect him. I'll march with them to show my support for justice...
TRUE, maybe these political struggles aren't about ISLAM (Allah will protect the Deen despite us)...BUT, the struggle IS against things UNISLAMIC.
but beware of those pesky Memons and their Universal Brotherhood of Shady Businessmen. A network out for global domination, more powerful, intricate and
dangerous than Al-Qaeda or Freemasonry, I tell ya.
my thoughts on pan-islam in another post...
peace and love.
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