Qaradawi on cartoon protests

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

From Islam Online: "The sabotage done by some Muslims in some [Arab] capitals in response to the offensive cartoons is unacceptable and should be denounced," Qaradawi, who heads the Dublin-based International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) told Al-Jazeera’s Shari`ah and Life program. "We never call on people to set fire to cars, but to express their anger in a prudent manner to head off serious consequences," said the prominent scholar. "True that Islam has been the subject of attacks recently,... Read more

The sudden passing of a dear friend

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

As Shabana has reported, a dear friend, Ahmed Hussein, just passed away suddenly and completely unexpectedly in Baltimore. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi rajioon. May he be forgiven for his sins and he be blessed with Jannah. Ahmed was a rarity, a truly kind and warm person. He was also a budding scholar whose knowledge of Islam, Sufism, and spirituality in other religions was inspiring. His jovial, light-bringing presence and mischevious sense of humor will be sorely missed by myself... Read more

Of skewed priorities and selective criticism

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

The Angry Arab observes pointedly: This is something that always bothered me about many Muslims: their sense of outrage is so odd, to me at least. They get more upset over cartoons in a Danish newspaper than about American or Israeli occupations, or about poverty and oppression. “Kuwait strongly condemns insult of Holy Prophet in Danish papers.” This is a long-standing frustration of mine as well, and the huge (and sometimes criminal) overreactions by Muslims that we’ve seen over the... Read more

The pig picture

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

It sounds like the delegation of Danish Muslims also has some explaining to do. Not all the pictures that it distributed in the Middle East in order to drum up support for the boycott were actually from Jyllands-Posten. One bogus picture was particularly inflammatory, as it portrayed a pig-like man. (I’ve seen it–it’s hideous.) I must say I’m disgusted, though not terribly surprised, that some Muslims would intentionally spread lies while on a mission to defend the Prophet’s honor. It... Read more

“French row over charity pork soup” (BBC)

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

Another example of the anti-Muslim prejudice that bubbles just beneath the surface in so many situations. I imagine Michelle Malkin and the rest of the bigot brigade will defend France’s sacred right to self-expression in the kitchen. French row over charity pork soup: A charity run by an extreme-right group in the south of France has caused anger by serving the homeless only pork soup, which Jews and Muslims do not eat. Read more

Hamas is the Solution

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

In the Sunday edition of the Washington Post, there was a photo of some Palestinian girls walking by a wall covered in Arabic graffiti. It read "Islam is the solution" (as in al-islaam howa al-Haal). The caption underneath mistranslated it as "Hamas is the solution"! How fitting. A generic, almost trite, religious slogan that one hears at every turn in the Middle East (and even in places where Muslims do not speak Arabic) gets utterly misinterpreted and transformed into a... Read more

“Cartoons, Personal Agendas and Denmark”

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

Here’s the conclusion of an informative roundup by Bookish. The whole post and the often thoughtful comments are well worth reading. bookish » On Cartoons, Personal Agendas and Denmark The cartoons were deliberatedly published to promote an outcry from the Muslim community – particularly the orthodox part of the community. The outcry was desirable for the newspaper in sofar as it would further a political agenda. What nobody had anticipated was that the outcry would spread outside Denmark and cause... Read more

Viking mouths, Indian smiles

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

Tooth marks link Vikings, Indians [via Xefer] A scientist who found deep grooves chiselled into the teeth of dozens of 1,000-year-old Viking skeletons unearthed in Sweden believes the strange custom might have been learned from aboriginal tribes during ancient Norse voyages to North America — a finding that would represent an unprecedented case of transatlantic, cross-cultural exchange during the age of Leif Ericsson. Read more

Venit, vidit, vicit

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

Meant to crow about this earlier, but shabash, Shabana! My better three quarters came, she saw, and she conquered. And while 7 months pregnant. Doctor Koonj has arrived, and academia will never be the same. Not only did she pass her PhD defense in Bloomington on Friday afternoon with flying colors–and inspite of my best efforts (I goofed and left a bag containing her presentation notes in our living room.)–but her advisors were so enthusiastic about her dissertation (which... Read more

“Portraying prophet from Persian art to South Park”

Last updated on: May 7, 2013 at 6:41 pm By Svend White

An interesting article from the The Times Online:"Portraying prophet from Persian art to South Park" While I am not particularly interested in seeing the Prophet (peace be upon him) depicted at all, I do not agree that it should be strictly forbidden. To the extent there is a prohibition–and this can be debated–it is ultimately a matter of personal conscience. As offensive and distasteful as I find them on a personal level, my grievance against Jyllands-Posten‘s cartoons is their political... Read more