underdog

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  1. Well Rudy, the closest I've come to your weather this week is singing Jimmy Cliff's "Bright Sun Shiny Day" while I was trying to shovel my car out of a parking space.
  2. you think thats bad, This is how we're livin' in Toronto
  3. underdog

    SOMALI NUMBERS

    were you guys having that marqaan discussion on "if every somali on the planet gave you a dollar, you'd be a muliti-millionaire"
  4. If you have the time, it's worth the read. Muslims in the West : Between Ghetto-isation and Assimilation by M. A. Bari Ever since the keys of Islamic Granada was handed over to Ferdinand and his consort Muslim, fate was sealed to be global underdogs for centuries to come, not only in Europe but in the rest of the world. Spain was cleansed of Muslims and their legacy of nearly eight hundred years of civilisational history was uprooted with vengeance. Although the Ottoman Turks made a headway in the Eastern Europe and remained a military power for a few more centuries, they could not stop the downward spiral of the ummah. The inner stagnation brought forth an era of subjugation and humiliation by the European adversaries. Once the spirit of Islam was lost, the Muslim vitality and creativity dithered. They were replaced by dogma and passivity. For the last five hundred years Muslims have taken a back seat in the world affairs. Even five decades after de-colonisation, the Muslim world is the consumer of western market economy and hedonistic ideas. The community, with the treasure of Qur'an in their midst, is at the receiving end in almost every sphere. As the entire Muslim world, except a few nominally independent countries, was subjected to European colonialism 'the best community' (ali-Imran 3:110) has undergone a tremendous metamorphosis. Today, in the West, most Muslims, apart from those in the Balkan hotspot, are 'immigrants' from the ex-colonial lands of Asia and Africa. The effect of colonial hegemony, not only in the form of material dependence and internal disharmony but intellectual servility and psychological despondency, is haunting the ummah everywhere. On the other hand, many Muslims are leaving behind the trauma of war, violence, poverty, tribal and sectarian intolerance in their own lands. Many in the community are disoriented and uprooted from their anchored past. The Muslim psyche is still influenced by historical complexity. On one extreme there are the colonial brainchildren who are zealously trumpeting their masters' voice, on the other there are the inward-looking ghettoised mass who cling to what they understand as their past. The challengers of the status quo are caught between these two extremes. The effect of Muslim decline is the upsurge of modern Jahiliyah which is leading mankind far away from Truth and Justice. This has, in effect, robbed peace from the surface of the earth. Man has downgraded himself from the position of his Creator's vicegerency to a status which is unworthy of human dignity. Humanity is suffering from an unparalleled identity crisis. The Muslims are also facing a multifarious problems in the East and the West. Being in the fore-front of dazzling material and scientific achievement, the West has a hypnotic attraction for the impoverished people of the 'third world'. The intellectual explosion that gave rise to free thinking and creativity during the Renaissance culminated in Industrial Revolution and technological monopoly of the West over rest of the world. That still continues un-abetted. However, after the Second World War the policy of brute military domination of the world has been replaced by a 'humane and civilised' method of coercion. This has given them a psychological edge over others. As the West is still occupying the driving seat of world affairs, not only in military and political strength but in intellectual and organisational skills as well, it remains a dreamland for millions. However, like all the empires of the past, the West has invented its own monster, the adulation of extreme materialism. The melting pot is becoming too hot to maintain one's exclusive characteristics. The Muslim community has the worst fear. Over the past decades, as the community has expanded and is trying to assert its own rights, new frontiers of challenges are opening up. In the land of their previous masters the first generation has undergone immense psychological complexities in adjusting with the 'alien' environment. On the other hand, the later generations are struggling hard to come to terms with the two 'opposing' worlds - the traditional inward-looking Muslim life and the highly materialised and complex western lifestyle. The secularised education system and permissive social dynamics are having colossal influence on the evolution of the ummah. The overt animosity towards divinely ordained values and the promotion of moral relativism and permissiveness is having a disastrous consequence. The proliferation of consumer culture and entertainment industry is eating away the spirit of innocence from the younger people. The display of erotic adverts in public places and the mass circulation of pornographic tabloids are inviting people towards promiscuity. Radical feminism, modelling, glorification of extra-marital sex and homosexuality have become the tools of modernity. The effect is the erosion of morality, the disintegration of family structure, child abuse and other social ills. Numerous help and chat lines are alluring young people, including Muslim, and contributing to the rapid social disorientation. In contrast, the ummah's emergence is for the common good of humanity. This requires a comprehensive and all-out vision, with the manifestation of exemplary conduct in everyday affairs. Muslims emulate the life of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and his companions who fully belonged to the society. They not only participated in the affairs of the society, but took a leading role in alleviating the spiritual and material needs of common human being. They became the role model to the rest of the community. The Muslims are undergoing an internal transformation everywhere. The ummah in the West, being in the heart of a dominant material civilisation, has a formidable task ahead. Their first and foremost responsibility is to create a strong community of their own based on common values and wider participation of all sections of Muslims. As the Islamic vision is based on the servitude of Allah (SWT), the bond of love and brotherhood is a pre-requisite for a cohesive force to challenge the overwhelming Jahiliya of the modern days. The rejuvenation of a spiritually rich human society is now a crying need. If the Muslims in the West can create an open society that has warmth and compassion for all, that gives identity and pride to its younger generation and behaves with responsibility and maturity, a new era will usher in the world. Given the extreme limitation and constraints, the Muslim struggle to create some infra-structure through the establishment of mosques, Islamic centres, schools, halal food, etc, is an encouraging phenomenon. They have brought a new look to the western landscape and paved the way for pluralistic societies in many western countries. These are the products of dedication, perseverance and undiluted love for Islam by majority Muslims. But unfortunately, most of these proud contributions are fragmented. As a result, these pockets of uncoordinated good works have little national impact. Too often, they are also marred by sectarian, linguistic and tribal intolerance. The absence of accommodation and broad-mindedness is pulling down these hard-earned achievements. This has occasionally proved fatal to the community. The perpetrators of the imperial 'divide and rule' policy find pleasure in this situation. In this internal challenge, unity is the only solution. But unfortunately this is an arduous job. Unity is a cherished goal of the ummah which can only be enhanced through broader understanding, positive attitude towards others, openness and acceptance of diversity in human creation. In order to accomplish unity of action, unity of hearts is the fundamental ingredient. This can only be achieved by the blessings of Allah. Organisations and institutions have to take the burden of taking initiative in this regard with understanding and sensitivity. Help one another to virtue and God-consciousness and do not help one another to sin and transgression. (al-Maidah 5:2) In this frightful situation there are Muslims who have little knowledge of their surroundings. There is ignorance, apathy and sad fatalism. There are also those who, out of fear and hatred against the West, tend to hide from the reality and confine themselves within their own ghettos. There are also those who have succumbed to the greed and lethargy of disproportionate extent. Others who try to do something are adopting very narrow and simplistic approaches. On the contrary, there are the powerful elite, the remnants created by the imperial powers in the Muslim land, who advocate for total assimilation with the secular liberal culture of the West. They are the apologetics, the 'brown sahibs' of today who represent the fifth column within the ummah. On the whole, although there is hope in the inner strength of the ummah, there are disturbing adversities ahead of us. We must remember that when a nation of divine purpose choose to be complacent and shows reluctance in the affairs of the world, the result is ignominy and sufferings. Unless you go forth He will punish you with a grievous penalty, and put others in your place. You cannot harm Him at all. Allah has power over all things. (at-Tawbah 9:39) In this daunting task the options for the Muslims are very limited --- ghettoisation, assimilation and assertion. In history, many a nation have lost out because they preferred to remain secluded from their 'host' nations. As a result, they were either wiped out from the surface of the earth or 'ethnically cleansed' at some stage. The Bani-Israel in Egypt, Jews in Europe before the holocaust and, to some extent, the Muslims in Spain are the archetypal cases. The examples of assimilation are also many. Many a nation had lost their own identity and were swallowed by the cultural octopus of the dominant civilisation over decades and centuries. The black people in the West and the Muslims of Balkan could be mentioned here. Only recently, these people have shown a tendency to assert their identity, but with a huge cost. The best alternative for a community to survive and prosper is to assert one's unique values and principles in wherever they live. Muslim traders in the Far East and the European nationals in the colonial period are the examples. Assertion is linked with power - either material or moral, spiritual. In the hey days of Islamic expansion Muslims were equipped with both of these. Later on, as Muslims were gradually losing material power, spiritual assertion was the key factors in opening up new frontiers. From 18th century onward that also declined and Europe asserted itself with primarily the material power. Assertion only works when the community interacts with others. Interaction is the first stage to take part in the common affairs. 'Guest community' then becomes a part of the 'host community', integrated, not assimilated. They work for a shared benefit, a common agreement (ali-Imran 3:64) This Qur'anic injunction can only be implemented when the Muslim community takes an active part in 'enjoining good and forbidding evil'. The criteria of basic good and evil are common to everybody. When the Muslim community genuinely stands on the moral high ground and they effectively address the issues that concern all, only then the meaning of the best community is fulfilled. In a world of Jahiliyah where peace has all but vanished, the Muslim ummah is in the cross road of their destiny. The Muslims in the West has a tremendous responsibility on their shoulders. Their future depends largely on their ability to face the challenge of time. Muslims are now a significant minority in the West. They have the immense material resources and diverse cultural and civilisational heritage. Islam is the ultimate solace to human soul as it is the "religion of nature" (ar-Rum 30:30). Every human being is born as Muslim with an innate nature of goodness in him. Muslims are blessed in the sense that Islam's original source, the Qur'an and Sunnah, are still in their pristine form and without any adulteration, unlike other religious texts. It is under this context that the Muslims in the West can play a significant role for the future of humanity. They can be the catalyst of a divine change to moulding the future of man in the new millennium. What is important is an unquestionable faith, deep knowledge and commitment to what they profess. It remains to be seen whether they can take this prophetic burden on their shoulders.
  5. I think you guys a re running off on a tangent here....I could be wrong :confused:
  6. Originally posted by Opinionated: If we can't sell anything to non-muslims..none of us would be here Does that not depend on WHAT you're selling? If I published a book on Somali tribes, detailing how tribe A is a bunch of theiving murdering low-lifes and Tribe B can never be trusted because they'll sell you out to the highest bidder and kill you in your sleep and Tribe C is known for having homosexuals and prostitutes. If I wrote that book and mass produced it through Goldstein and Walberg for Cash, you're saying that fine because it's just a means to an end, right?
  7. so when you have problems with your family you go talk to joe schmoe on the street?
  8. See Ameenah, you're now in a state known as Illusion of Total Control (ITC). Marka aad xanaagtid oo is waashid, xariga aa laguu dhereeya waana lagaa gambadaa. Then when the rant is over we slowly pull you back to reality
  9. I can assume we know what that statement means. Your goal or what you want to accomplish does not validate how you get there. I'm bringing this up because it seems we can easily avoid seeing the whole picture by focusing on a positive out come. Example: 1) End: Comedic entertainment, cultural religious education. Means: touring around establishments that primarily sell alcohol and performing for intoxicated audience. 2) End: Provide for your family and make sure the don't go cold or hungry. Means: Sell Crack and weed 3) End: Writing a book to help research misconceptions and contradictions about your faith. Means: Breaking one of the biggest rules of your faith and publishing through and for outsiders that can't relate and are quick to shun. I need some help here. Can I get some more examples?
  10. Ameenah, didn't miss the point. Just couldn't find a witty comeback.
  11. Are we slowly slipping away? Have we ever bought something solely for the purpose of showing it off? Have we ever taken home a few of our employer’s office supplies… pens, paper clips, copy paper? Have we ever been a participant to negative “chit chat” about someone who’s not in the room? Have we ever zipped into the last parking space in a busy lot because we got there two seconds before the old lady creeping toward the space in the beat-up Buick? Have we ever averted our eyes in disgust from a homeless man who’s lying in the gutter? Have we ever been so busy that we haven’t had five minutes to return a phone call from a friend in need? Have we ever turned someone else’s problems into an opportunity to talk about ourselves? Have we ever said “yes” to an invitation we knew we weren’t going to keep because it was easier than saying “no”? Yes, little sins—the small, almost invisible faults that silently tear down our character and our moral resiliency. Little sins—the blind spots that make us more vulnerable to the larger scope of evil. There are seven underlying platforms of human vulnerability that account for many of the “little sins” in our lives. These platforms are at the root of many things that we do and say. They may make us feel vaguely bad, a bit naughty, or maybe we feel nothing at all. The roots of little sin fall into the following areas: Unfair Judgments—how our view of surface indicators and appearances leads us to make false and harmful conclusions about others. Vanity—how focusing on our looks and worldly accomplishments propels us into an exhausting, spinning, competitive state that undermines our walk with God. Materialism—how commercialism, excess spending, and misarranging our priorities distance us from God. Boredom—how an idle, unchallenged mind feeds itself on destructive earthly nourishment like gossip and pop culture. Omission—how we “look the other way” and slip into a net of inertia when people need us the most. Indolence—how our over-scheduled, consumer-oriented lifestyle drains us of the energy required to give to those who don’t have the means to “return the favor.” Broken Promises and Empty Words—how our spiritual and earthly relationships suffer when we don’t keep our commitments and mean what we say.
  12. Don't know what big fuss is about. I know real women take pride in the presentation of their homes, their children and their spouses. What I want to know is why you young ladies are afraid to step up and captain a decent household and wear your domestic accomplishments as a badge of honour? If all else fails, we'll pack you up and ship you back to hooyo.
  13. wiseman say: nagta iska sir. I got your defense right here, Interesting. Box of beligian choclates, 12 longs stems and some jewellery and they can drop the electric prods and scissors and get back to thier control center (i.e. right between the jiko, the ironing board and the baby's room) to dream of how wonderful faarax is.
  14. LOL @ "toosh aa lagu raadiyaa". Couldn't have said it better myself, Caramel. Lucky, if I had the manual, I'd hook you up for 3 easy payments of $19.99 + S&H.
  15. What Women Want in a Man, Original List (age 22) 1. Handsome 2. Charming 3. Financially successful 4. A caring listener 5. Witty 6. In good shape 7. Dresses with style 8. Appreciates finer things 9. Full of thoughtful surprises 10. An imaginative, romantic lover ================================ What Women Want in a Man, Revised List (age 32) 1. Nice looking (prefer hair on his head) 2. Opens car doors, holds chairs 3. Has enough money for a nice dinner 4. Listens more than talks 5. Laughs at my jokes 6. Carries bags of groceries with ease 7. Owns at least one tie 8. Appreciates a good home-cooked meal 9. Remembers birthdays and anniversaries 10. Seeks romance at least once a week ================================ What Women Want in a Man, Revised List (age 42) 1. Not too ugly (bald head OK) 2. Doesn't drive off until I'm in the car 3. Works steady - splurges on dinner out occasionally 4. Nods head when I'm talking 5. Usually remembers punch lines of jokes 6. Is in good enough shape to rearrange the furniture 7. Wears a shirt that covers his stomach 8. Knows not to buy champagne with screw-top lids 9. Remembers to put the toilet seat down 10. Shaves most weekends ================================ What Women Want in a Man, Revised List (age 52) 1. Keeps hair in nose and ears trimmed 2. Doesn't belch or scratch in public 3. Doesn't borrow money too often 4. Doesn't nod off to sleep when I'm venting 5. Doesn't re-tell the same joke too many times 6. Is in good enough shape to get off couch on weekends 7. Usually wears matching socks and fresh underwear 8. Appreciates a good TV dinner 9. Remembers your name on occasion 10. Shaves some weekends ================================ What Women Want in a Man, Revised List (age 62) 1. Doesn't scare small children 2. Remembers where bathroom is 3. Doesn't require much money for upkeep 4. Only snores lightly when asleep 5. Remembers why he's laughing 6. Is in good enough shape to stand up by himself 7. Usually wears some clothes 8. Likes soft foods 9. Remembers where he left his teeth 10. Remembers that it's the weekend ================================ What Women Want in a Man, Revised List (age 72) 1. Breathing 2. Doesn't miss the toilet.
  16. A couple of women were playing golf one sunny Saturday morning. The first of the twosome teed off and watched in horror as her ball headed directly toward a foursome of men playing the next hole. The ball hit one of the men and he immediately clasped his hands together at his crotch, fell to the ground and proceeded to roll around in obvious agony. The woman rushed down to the man and immediately began to apologize. "Please allow me to help. I'm a physical therapist and I know I could relieve your pain if you'd allow me," she told him earnestly. "Ummph, oooh, noooo... I'll be fine in a few minutes", he replied breathlessly as he remained in the fetal position still clasping his hands together at his crotch. But she persisted, and he finally allowed her to help him. She gently took his hands away and laid them to the side, she loosened his pants, and put her hands inside. She began to massage his privates. She then asked him, "How does that feel?" He replied still in agony, "It feels great, but it doesn't do a thing for my thumb. It still hurts like hell!"
  17. Three men were standing in line to get into heaven one day. Apparently it had been a pretty busy day, though, so Peter had to tell the first one, "Heaven's getting pretty close to full today, and I've been asked to admit only people who have had particularly horrible deaths.So what's your story?" So the first man replies: "Well, for a while I've suspected my wife has been cheating on me, so today I came home early to try to catch her red-handed.As I came into my 25th floor apartment, I could tell something was wrong, but all my searching around didn't reveal where this other guy could have been hiding. Finally, I went out to the balcony, and sure enough, there was this man hanging off the railing, 25 floors above ground! By now I was really mad, so I started beating on him and kicking him, but wouldn't you know it, he wouldn't fall off. So finally I went back into my apartment and got a hammer and starting hammering on his fingers. Of course, he couldn't stand that for long, so he let go and fell -- but even after 25 stories, he fell into the bushes, stunned but okay. I couldn't stand it anymore, so I ran into the kitchen, grabbed the fridge and threw it over the edge where it landed on him, killing him instantly. But all the stress and anger got to me, and I had a heart attack and died there on the balcony." "That sounds like a pretty bad day to me," said Peter, and let the man in. The second man comes up and Peter explains to him about heaven being full, and again asks for his story. "It's been a very strange day. You see, I live on the 26th floor of my apartment building, and every morning I do my exercises out on my balcony. Well, this morning I must have slipped or something, because I fell over the edge. But I got lucky, and caught the railing of the balcony on the floor below me. I knew I couldn't hang on for very long, when suddenly this man burst out onto the balcony. I thought for sure I was saved, when he started beating on me and kicking me. I held on the best I could until he ran into the apartment and grabbed a hammer and started pounding on my hands. Finally I just let go, but again I got lucky and fell into the bushes below, stunned but all right. Just when I was thinking I was going to be okay, this refrigerator comes falling out of the sky and crushes me instantly, and now I'm here." Once again, Peter had to concede that that sounded like a pretty horrible death. The third man came to the front of the line, and again the whole process was repeated. Peter explained that heaven was full and asked for his story. "Picture this," says the third man, "I'm hiding naked inside a refrigerator..."
  18. A farmer goes out one day and buys a brand new stud rooster for his chicken coop. The rooster struts over to the old rooster and says, 'OK, old fart, time to retire.' The old rooster replies,' come on, you can't handle ALL these chickens. Look what it's done to me. Can't you just let me have the two old hens over in the corner?' The young rooster says, 'Beat it! You're washed up and I'm taking over.' The old rooster says 'I'll tell you what, young stud, I'll race you around the farmhouse. Whoever wins gets exclusive domain over the entire chicken coop.' The young rooster laughs, 'You know you don't stand a chance old man, so just to be fair, I'll give you a head start. 'The old rooster takes off running. About 15 seconds later the young rooster takes off after him. They round the front of the farmhouse and the young rooster has closed the gap. He's already about 5 inches behind the old rooster and gaining fast. The farmer, meanwhile, is sitting on the front porch when he sees the roosters running by. He grabs up his shotgun and BOOM!, he blows the young rooster to bits. The farmer sadly shakes his head, 'Damn,...third gay rooster I bought this month.'
  19. A married couple went to the hospital to have their baby delivered. Upon arrival the doctor said that he had invented a machine that would transfer a portion of the labor pain to the father. He asked if they were willing to try it out. They were both very much in favor of it. The doctor set the knob at 10% for starters, explaining that even 10% was probably more pain than the father had ever experienced before. But as the labor progressed, the husband felt fine, so he asked the doctor to bump the machine up a notch. The doctor then adjusted the machine to 20%. The doctor checked the husband's blood pressure and pulse and was amazed at how well he was doing. At 50% the husband was still holding up fine, since this was obviously helping out his wife he encouraged the doctor to transfer all of the pain. The wife delivered a healthy baby with virtually no pain. She and her husband were absolutely thrilled. Everything was great until they got home and found the mailman dead on their porch.
  20. Originally posted by ijabo: do i have to have surgery I bet some women wish they could have surgey to get it back. Once it's gone, it's gone. It's a beautiful rare feminine quality. Brash and noisy too common and played out. Shyness is a powerful weapon, you just need the users manual to put it to good use.
  21. It's long, but please take the time and read it through. The Dream of Anti-Islam Forces by Dr. M. Amir Ali, Ph.D. Introduction. It is a dream of anti-Islam forces to get rid of Islam from the face of the earth but they know the impossibility of their dream coming true. Therefore, they have resigned themselves to live with Islam but a modified one in the mold of Christianity, a religion of a few private rituals. Anti-Islam forces want to redefine Islam and they want Muslims to accept it. They have been working on this project for the last three centuries with a lot of success. Their last three centuries of persistent efforts has given rise to pseudo-Islamic cults, new sects, sects redefined, and corrupted orders within Islam. It is not a secret that various anti-Islam forces are working in tandem and in coordination with each other to remove the Islam of the Qur'an and Sunnah from people's lives around the world. They will tolerate a ritualistic Islam in the mold of Christianity but not real Islam. The question may be asked, "who are these anti-Islam forces?" This author has written an article on this topic; for a detailed discussion, see "ISLAM IN AMERICA: ROUGH ROAD AHEAD", published in the MESSAGE INTERNATIONAL, February 2000. A brief introduction is given below. Anti-Islam forces may be divided into three groups: (a) Secular Fundamentalists, (b) Zionists and Hindu Fundamentalists, and © Christian Fundamentalists. All three work together, support each other in full cooperation, and each group has its own area of work delineated. All three groups put together constitute only under 4% of the American population or under 10 million individuals. However, these people enjoy tremendous power and sway over the people. Over 96% of the people are ignorant believers and followers of anti-Islam forces. It is possible to break the bond between anti-Islam leaders and their ignorant followers through massive education by the Muslims. Anti-Islam leaders come with titles like Dr., Rev., Prof., etc., which carry an air of authority when they speak. However, when they speak they give informed individuals the impression that they, perhaps, have their doctorates and specialties in bigotry and demagoguery. A few examples of these hate-mongers include, Dr. Robert Morey, Dr. Anis Shorroush, Rev. Pat Robertson, Rev. Billy Graham, Prof. Sam Huntington, Prof. Daniel Pipes and many others. Secular Fundamentalists are those intellectuals who see religion as irrelevant in peoples' lives but they tolerate religion if people have private beliefs in some kind of God or gods. Some of these people may have some loose belief in some kind of god or gods but they do not see its relevance in the social, economic, and political lives of the people; these may even include the clergy. They are particularly against Islam because they perceive that this religion tries to become an established system of life competing with secularism. Naturally, secularists try to destroy Islam completely; they have an agenda. Secular Fundamentalists is the largest of the three anti-Islam forces and the most powerful because its proponents include politicians, media people, businessmen, professors, teachers and a section of the common folk in the West. These are the people who are running governments, UNO and its branches, banks, multi-national corporations, think-tanks, universities, school systems, charitable foundations, and much more. They control almost the entire wealth of the planet earth. But Allah is more powerful. Secularists use academically-oriented tools to create hate of Islam. These are the generals of the anti-Islam war. These bigots and demagogues are found among professors, specialists, gurus, academicians of universities, and other think-tanks. It should be understood that not every Secular Fundamentalist is an Islam hater but a majority among them are, overtly or covertly. Islam haters use the academic media of research papers, educational material, publication of books, publication of articles in professional journals, and magazines. Thus, they influence the top echelon of the society. Zionists and Hindu Fundamentalists fear Islam for their own protection. They perceive that the expansion of Islam will destroy their ideologies and their political domains. These are pragmatists and their reasoning for carrying out anti-Islam activities may be summed up as the following: 1. The more Islam and Muslims are demonized, the better the Zionists and Hindus look. Dehumanizing and demonizing Muslims has its own rewards. It gives them the legitimacy to kill Muslims, bulldoze their property, oppress them, and arrest and torture Muslim activists. How often it is that one learns of the killing of a rat as news in the newspaper or TV news program. However, the killing of Muslims makes no news, let alone, the headlines. Whereas, when a single Zionist or a Hindu is hurt or killed by a Muslim it makes resounding headlines in the West. Palestinians in their own land, Muslims in Kashmir, and Chechens in Chechnya are suffering but the powerful West has become mute and blind to their sufferings. To add insult to injury, they emphatically label Muslims as being "terrorists". A stark contrast to Western policy toward Muslims is evident in the case where East Timuris, a Christian and animist minority in Indonesia, burned mosques, killed dozens of Muslims, and marched in the streets. The West stood up in their support and forced their independence upon Indonesia. The Western double standard at play is obvious in that the Palestinians, Kashmiris, and Mindanao Muslims have been demanding their independence for decades and West calls them "terrorists" and helps their oppressors. In October 2000 over 100 Arab youths were killed by the Israelis using American taxpayer-paid guns. A large percentage of the murdered Arabs were teen-age children but no one is questioning Israel or blaming Israelis. When two Israeli-trained assassins who were sent to kill Arab leaders were caught and subsequently killed, it made headlines all over the world. Trained assassins are "peacemakers" and children ages 6 to 16 are "terrorists". Only the ignorant will buy this kind of distortion and there are many in the U.S. due to myopia, laziness, indifference, laxity, and complacency of the Muslim masses and their leaders, particularly those Muslims living in the West. Muslims living in the West have tools and power available to them to change the situation forever and reverse the environment from anti-Islam to pro-Islam. 2. Israeli and Hindu Fundamentalists dehumanize Muslims and portray them as being brute terrorists while the actual perpetrators of terror, namely, the CIA, Israel, and India receive financial, military, technological, and espionage aid from the U.S. administration and Congress. Reportedly, Israel receives from the U.S. government over six billion dollars annually in aid. That is a $1,500 reward granted annually from the American taxpayers for every Jewish male, female, and child living in Israel. This is the reward for colonizing Palestinian land and displacing Palestinian people. The cycle of repression of Muslims is strengthened using American help in the form of guns, tanks, helicopter gunships, missiles, espionage training, intelligence information, and generous economic aid. Muslims living in the U.S. can change this policy through their involvement in the political process; surely, there will be a lot of resistance against the Muslim entry but Muslims have to fight it out and cut out their niche in the American government and exert their influence. There are many success stories of Muslim empowerment at the local level when they became active, for example, in Santa Clara, CA, Bridgeview, IL, Morton Grove, IL, Brooklyn, NY, and the senatorial race in New Jersey in addition to others. Muslims living in those areas were able to turn the tide from anti-Islam to neutrality or pro-Islam. The isolationism proposed by some ignorant Muslims is a recipe for a slow suicide and is in effect a request to be subjected to the same fate that Muslims suffered in Spain, Bosnia, Chechnya, and Kosova. As a result of Muslim involvement, Congressman Tom Campbell (Republican, CA) presented a bill in Congress to stop all forms of aid to Israel; the bill was supported by only 12 congressmen but it was a first attempt. If Muslims become active in American politics, the day when Tom Campbell's bill is passed will not be far. 3. The Zionists and Hindus fear the increasing population of Muslims in the U.S. They see that with the increasing Muslim population, Muslims will eventually become politically and economically a factor and that scares them the most. Zionist influence in America is drawn from Jewish involvement in the political process through giving money, time, and talent for politicians. It is estimated that for every dollar American Jews spend on politicians, Israel receives over one thousand dollars from the U.S. government. This process yielded them, not only money for Israel, but opportunities of becoming politicians themselves. Now, Jews are in the government and running the government at local and national levels enjoying influence beyond their proportion in population (under two percent). Jewish involvement in the political process has changed their position, that is, from the most hated people around the 1900s to the most powerful people in the year 2000. Actually, it took Jews in America less than sixty years (two generations) of hard work to accumulate the power they have. These anti-Islam forces are working as hard as possible to keep the growth of the Muslim population in America in check and certainly, Muslim political participation in check. They are already spreading rumors that Muslim political participation is outright dangerous and should not be encouraged. This group uses the media and entertainment industry to create hate of Islam and Muslims. There are some Muslim groups, like Hizb At-Tahrir, Tanzeem-e Islami, Tablighi Jamaat, and others who have come out actively against Muslim political participation thereby fulfilling the dream of anti-Islam forces. It is strange, what happened to the commonsense, intellect, and wisdom of our sincere brothers? In their naïveté, they are becoming enemies of Islam despite their love and sincerity for the deen of Allah. Although their sincerity and love of Allah is unquestionable, they are nonetheless positioning themselves right into the opportunistic hands of anti-Islam forces. 3. Christian Fundamentalists see Islam as a world competitor in winning the hearts and minds of the people around the world for their respective religions. The conversion (reversion) rate to Islam is abhorrent and terrifying for them. In addition, Christian Fundamentalists are more Zionists than the Jews of America. This group works at the gutter level creating lies and deception against Islam and Muslims and selling it to the masses directly. They create hate of Islam and Muslims and work so that Bosnia-like situations are created and the holocaust of Muslims takes place right here in America. Their goal is to remove Islam from the West, which includes the Americas and Europe, and they fight Islam in the Muslim-majority countries as well. These are the foot soldiers of the anti-Islam movement. The Christian Fundamentalists attack Islamic aqeedah, practices, history, and civilizations; they distort everything Islamic and misrepresent it to their listeners and readers. These people use Christian TV and radio, publish books for common people, as well as brochures, tracks, and pamphlets. Furthermore, their leaders with the title "Dr." appear live in churches and deliver talks filled with bigotry against Islam and Muslims. While Muslims are ignorant of these activities and oblivious to whatever is going on around them, by the time they find the results, it will be too late to do anything about it. It will be Bosnia right here in America. Those Muslims who are against reaching out to the non-Muslim population are fulfilling the dreams of anti-Islam forces. Again, this author finds Tablighi Jamaat is openly guilty of opposing the reaching out to non-Muslims. This author has experienced a lot of antipathy from these people during his travels from New York to California for the purpose of mobilizing the Muslim population to perform outreach work. Muslims themselves contribute to islamophobia but this is not due to spite for Islam but rather to their own ignorance of Islam but this is not the topic of this paper. This author has written an article on this topic that is unpublished but privately circulated. The solution to the problem of anti-Islam forces is the education of Muslims and American masses about Islam and Muslims and thus pulling the rug from under the feet of the anti-Islam forces, that is, denying them an audience who would believe them. The Muslim mission is like a bicycle that has two wheels. A monocycle is incapable of going very far or fast enough. One wheel of the bicycle is the education and reform of the Muslims and the other wheel is outreach to the non-Muslims, both tasks must be done simultaneously. The policy of the Tablighi Jamaat, which consists of going on a monocycle, has no evidence in the Qur'an or the Sunnah. They will be able to contribute many sheep to the herd but will not contribute to bringing out leaders who will lead the Muslim Ummah, restore dignity to Islam and Muslims, and establish the rule of Allah in this earthly life. The Dreams: Anti-Islam forces would love to see a modified Islam that would include the following: 1. Removal of Jihad from Islamic teachings . This is the scariest part of Islamic teachings that a fighter is a ghazi or shaheed; it is win-win situation for a Muslim mujahid. The West is willing to support any kind of Islam that does not have Jihad in the meaning of qital in its theology. A mushrik values two things most, his life and his property, the things that a true Muslim cares the least about in the Way of Allah. Remind yourself of the Hadith of wahn, the disease that will destroy Muslims and will render them subjects of their enemies. They welcome Qadiyanis, Tablighi Jamaat, Sufis, and similar other groups. These Muslim groups, by their opposition or silence about Jihad in the meaning of qital, are fulfilling the dream of the enemies of Islam. Qital is a part of Islam but it is relevant only in its place and time; it is not for everywhere nor for every time there is opposition to Islam. Muslims have a duty to attempt and exhaust all peaceful means before resorting to qital. On the other hand, those who incite to qital for every Muslim problem are also fulfilling the dreams of their enemies because this gives them an opportunity to project Islam as advocating terrorism and war. 2. Removal of politics as a part of Islam . There are two things under this topic: (a) Separation of politics and "religion", which is the fundamental dogma of secularism, and (b) discouraging Muslims from political participation in the West, which is a wish and a dream so that Muslims do not gain power and do not disturb the power of the Zionists and Christian Fundamentalists. The separation of politics from religion is rooted in the brutal rule of the Catholic Church over Europe lasting over one thousand years in the name of religion. Secularists see Islam in the mold of Catholicism, which is foolishness on their part and those Muslims who support them. Political participation of Muslims in America is hated by anti-Islam forces because this will change the status quo and Muslims will begin to gain political power in the U.S. They love the movements of Qadiyanis, Tablighi Jamaat, Sufis, Hizb At-Tahrir, Tanzeem-e-Islami, and similar groups who agree with the enemies of Islam in maintaining the status quo through their opposition to political participation. These groups (anti-political participation Muslims) make the dreams of the anti-Islam forces come true. If Muslims become active in politics in an organized manner the power of the Zionists and Christian Fundamentalists will dissipate in time and Muslims may gain the position of dictating their policies domestically as well as globally. Please do not tell me that allowing the enemies of Islam to realize their dreams against Islam is part of the teachings of the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet(S). The absence of Muslims from politics leaves the field wide open for the enemies of Islam to work freely without any resistance and obstruction. 3. Removal of Islamic Economics . Here again there are two things: (a) Separation of economics of the country from religion, in this case Islamic teachings, and (b) Preclusion of the Muslim establishment of economic institutions based on Islamic economics. It terrifies these people that the Muslims should become successful in their economic endeavors because that will be the end of the capitalist economy which supports the exploitation of the weak and the ignorant and greed is a virtue. An interest-based economy is un-Islamic whereas a capitalist economy is interest-based. Capitalism is rooted on the exploitation of the needs and ignorance of the people. Islam makes it Haram. In addition, trading in alcoholic liquors, swine products, gambling, and prostitution are Haram in Islam. Islamic economics will demolish the entire structure built upon capitalism. Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis are fulfilling the dreams of anti-Islam forces by adopting silence in this area and that is not the Sunnah of the Prophet(S). Anti-Islam forces would like to see either the Muslims casting away the principle of Islamic economics or adopting silence as the above- mentioned Muslim groups have done. 4. Modified Muslim social life . Anti-Islam Forces would like to see that Muslims drop Hijab and objections to the free mixing of genders. They would love to see that Muslims begin dancing the way it is done in the Western culture and adopted by many eastern societies, including some westernized "Muslims". They hate to see educated Muslim women wearing hijab and staying away from westernized social parties. On the other hand, they love to ridicule those Muslim women who are closeted in their homes and, if they go out at all, they wear complete covering (burqa or abaiya or chador). Rejecters of Hadith is the group that has adopted a western-style social life and this pleases the West. On the other hand, Tablighi Jamaat has become extremely oppressive of their women by denying them the opportunities of education and intellectual growth. Tablighis even preclude their women from going to the masajid and listening to the speeches of their own scholars. They do not understand that the first five or six years of a child shape his/her personality, this is the period he/she spends with the mother. The mother is the first teacher of a child and builds up the personality of that child. An oppressed, ignorant, frustrated, and angry mother is going to become selfish, living day by day for the security of her food and shelter till her last day comes. This kind of mother is going to raise a child in her mold: selfish, angry, frustrated, ignorant, and with no ambition for excellence or a vision for himself, his family, or his people. Conversely, a mother who is educated, Islamically informed in the Qur'an and Sunnah, happy, and a visionary with leadership qualities, will raise children who are educated, happy, and visionary leaders. For a thousand years, Muslims have oppressed their women, kept them ignorant, and suppressed and as a result, we have raised a whole Ummah that is selfish, ignorant of Islam, mediocre in their profession, short-sighted, devoid of vision for their people, and lacking in leadership qualities. The whole Muslim world is ruled by such selfish brutes who are able to become brute dictators with the help of the West but cannot lead because their ignorant mothers did not train them for such tasks. Tablighi Jamaat and the likes of them want to maintain this sorry state of affairs for the Muslim Ummah and are happy with keeping the reins of world power in the hands of anti-Islam forces. No wonder these people can obtain visas to any country in the West whereas many good Muslims are black-listed or quietly denied entry and if they enter somehow, they are arrested and jailed under one pretext or another. 5. Opposition to Outreach to non-Muslims . Da'wah to non-Muslims is a duty of all Muslims because this promotes and propagates Islam. Anti-Islam forces hate this activity of Muslims most because the spread of Islam and any rise in the influence of Muslims is contrary to their wishes and designs. Anti-Islam forces love Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis who do not reach out to the non-Muslims to convey the message. Naturally, the members of these Muslim groups are able to obtain visas easily to countries all over the world. By opposing or adopting silence against Da'wat ila-Allah to non-Muslims is fulfilling the dreams of anti-Islam forces. Hizb At-Tahrir is quite vocal in their slogan of "Khilafa is the solution" but they have no workable plan to bring it about, not even in the Muslim-majority countries. I would like to see their plan to establish Khilafa in places where Muslims are living as 2% of the population such as in the United States. The West is not the place for raising emotional slogans of "Khilafa is the solution" and hyping up a few young people with fiery speeches. If their speeches are for establishing Khilafa in one or more of the Muslim-majority countries, they should go to those target countries and work there. All these people do is create more problems and obstacles for those who have plans to bring about a change in the West, as much as is possible, without any bloodshed. 6. Stop forbidding evil . Islamic teaching is Amr bil-ma'roof wa nahi 'an al-munkar meaning enjoining good and forbidding evil. Forbidding evil is, in essence, reminding people to abstain from their evil deeds, which they may take as criticism. From a secular point of view, evil must be defined by law; whatever is divinely defined as evil is not necessarily an evil. For example, drinking liquors, gambling, fornication, and homosexuality are acceptable norms in the West and they should not be labeled as "evil". From the western point of view, Tablighi Jamaat is a wonderful group of Muslims because they have taken out nahi ‘an al-munkar and replaced it with sukoot 'an al-munkar meaning silence about evil. Tablighi Jamaat is fulfilling the dreams of anti-Islam forces. In the secular culture, all evils that are not defined by law as crimes are wonderful, creative acts. Nudity is creativity, pornography is creativity, homosexuality is an alternate life-style, adultery is consensual adult creativity, and now here comes another imaginative act, incest is creativity. Tablighi Jamaat prefers to adopt silence on all these matters rather than reminding the society about these evils and work to remove them from the society. The Muslims of Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis are wonderful, moderate Muslims loved by Daniel Pipes and Sam Huntington. 7. Stop studying and living by the Qur'an and Sunnah . It is becoming common knowledge among informed Westerners that those Muslims who study Qur'an and Sunnah and try to live by them are catalysts of change within the Muslim Ummah. Such people earn the wrath of the West, they are awarded titles such as Wahabi and Fundamentalist extremists, and are the targets against whom the West subsidizes movements. This author has heard many times from Sufi leaders that the goal of their lives is to fight to remove "Wahabism", a non-existent ghost. Sufis do not work for the goal of their lives as being that of earning the pleasure of Allah but rather gain the pleasure and good graces of the enemies of Allah through their fight against Wahabism. The term "Wahabism" was coined by the British in the 1820s to destroy the reform movement of the Shahidayn in India through sowing hate and dissension within the Muslim Ummah and in this the British were very successful. The people who call mankind to the Qur'an and Sunnah are bringing meaningful change in the Muslim societies worldwide and this upsets the West. The true revival of Islam among the Muslims is possible only through the Qur'an and Sunnah. Only rote recitation of the Qur'an rather than studying keeps Muslims tame. Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis are fulfilling the dreams of the West from within by discouraging study of the Qur'an and Sunnah. The West would love to see Muslims blindly follow a leader who does not call people to study the Qur'an and Sunnah but follow him blindly. According to Tablighi Jamaat and Sufis, asking proof from the Qur'an and Sunnah is a taboo. Such religious leaders can be bought and sold to the highest bidder thus controlling people becomes easier. People who are ignorant and follow like sheep in a herd are much easier to control than those who seek knowledge from the Qur'an and Sunnah rather than hearsay opinions. With respect to Muslim-majority countries, the West has the following dreams in addition to the above-mentioned points. Israeli Resolution. In the early 1970s the government of Israel passed a resolution to keep all Arab (Muslim-majority) countries, singly or any combination thereof, weaker than the State of Israel. This resolution was adopted by the Democratic Party in total and a slightly weaker version was adopted by the Republicans. It is obvious that these American political parties have joined the enemies of Islam and Muslims and they are pursuing the following strategies. 8. Educational and technological backwardness and mediocrity. It is the earnest hope of the West that Muslims not become educated or technologically advanced but remain mediocre in their work and professions. Research and development and excellence should remain within the circle of non-Muslim people. Muslims should only be consumers of development and production of the non-Muslim world. Fortunately for the West, there are Muslim groups that promote mediocrity, consumerism, and staying in the masajid as much as possible - the West loves it. The West is trying to keep Muslim-majority countries in the column of net importers of consumer-finished products and exporters of raw material so that they remain dependent upon industrially advanced non-Muslim countries for finished products and purchasers of raw material. The West is trying as much as possible to keep Muslim societies backward in education, technology, and industrial products whether heavy industry or consumer products. As long back as 1973 when King Faisal stopped selling oil to the U.S., Henry Kissinger reportedly told Saudis that they may drink oil when they get hungry because the U.S. would not sell them wheat. The U.S. government wants to keep every Muslim-majority country at bay with that kind of threat. Muslims cannot change such ****** policies of the U.S. government until they get involved and rise upward through the ladder of power. Get involved and gain influence. Muslims need not beg but demand and dictate after removing anti-Islam forces from the position of power. It can be done and it should be done. For the Muslims, the rise to power in America is not going to be a bed of roses. 9. Denying military technology . The West would not mind if Muslim majority countries have a police force with a few sticks and guns to kill their own people and to keep them as herds of sheep who stay in line and remain loyal to the puppets of the West. The peace process between the Israelis and Palestinians showed their real intent. The deal was that the Palestinian police would be given a few simple guns to keep the Palestinian population under control and for use against their own people. A credible force of defense against an enemy is not allowed for any Muslim-majority country. When Iraq developed a credible force, it was bombed to the stone age. The West has been conspiring with Israel, India, and Russia to bomb Pakistan to the stone age, as soon as possible. India and Israel can develop nuclear bombs but the same technology is denied to Pakistan and Iraq. Israel, India, and China can develop their own missiles and airplanes but Pakistan and Iran are not to develop these technologies. Those who oppose Muslim participation in American politics want the status quo, that is, keeping Muslim countries weak and maintaining the hegemony of the West, Israel, Russia, and India over Muslim- majority countries. Only through involvement will Muslims be able to change the policies of the West. Muslims should have the vision of becoming the government of the West and pursue it with tunnel vision. 10. Globalization . This is the tool, which is being sold to Muslim countries to stunt Muslim culture and replace it with western culture. Dr. S.M. Kureshi of Pakistan has written a book under the title, "WESTERN FUNDAMENTALISM IN ACTION"; it is worth reading. It appears that "globalization" was developed to stunt the resurgence of true Islam and the rising aspirations of Muslims to regain their past glory of being the world power to which others would have to reckon with. Globalization includes maintaining the hegemony of the West in all areas of life, particularly, cultural hegemony. Some Islamic movements are trying to remove the bad influences of the Western culture and replace them with true Islamic norms, lost gradually under the colonial rule of Europe. The West is using all tools available to her to implement globalization. Unless Muslims reach the policy-making chambers, they will have no control over such hazardous movements. Those Muslims who oppose Muslim involvement in U.S. politics essentially want to give free rein to the West in their implementation of globalization. For whom are these people working in their ignorance? Are they working for Islam or anti-Islam forces? You decide! During the last fifty years two persons were most influential in the formulation of American foreign policy. During the Eisenhower era, John Foster Dulles, then Secretary of State, formulated the policy that was Capitalism-centered; it was anti-Communism and anti-Islam. When it was suggested to him to work with Islamic movements to destroy Communism, he rejected the idea saying that Communism was a daughter of the West whereas Islam was an alien. During the Nixon era, Henry Kissinger, an immigrant Jew from Europe, maneuvered himself into the position of Secretary of State. Kissinger's policy was Zionism and Israel-centered and, naturally, it was anti-Islam, anti-Muslim and anti-Arab. Perhaps, it was Kissinger who inspired Israel to pass the resolution of keeping the Arab (Muslim) world weaker than Israel so that American political parties could adopt in their planks. He developed or contributed to the policy of dividing the world into regions of influence (hegemony) with the U.S. on top, like on the top of a totem pole. He chose Israel to be the masters of the Middle East, from Morocco to Iran. India was chosen to be the master of South Asian countries and Japan was selected to rule over the Far East. He chose the Republic of South Africa (then a white, racist regime and an ally of Israel) to be the master of sub-Sahara Africa. The same policy is being followed by the U.S. government and Europe in the year 2000. Kissinger engineered the implementation of Dulles' plan of breaking Pakistan into two pieces. Kissinger planned further break of Pakistan into four pieces and his policy is being followed by the successive U.S. governments. Muslims must get into the power and put a stop to such anti-Muslim policies. Globalization is the extension of the same old policies of Dulles and Kissinger. Only through involvement, will the Muslims be able to change these corrupt and racist policies. In conclusion, it is an earnest appeal to our beloved brothers in Islam who associate themselves with Tablighi Jamaat, Hizb At-Tahrir, and those who agree with these parties to re-examine their policies and strategies. The founders of these movements were sincere and good people but their policies and strategies were developed during the colonial period. Had they been living in our time, traveled in the West, this author is sure that they would have changed. They would have never agreed to fulfill the dreams of anti-Islam forces the way their perceived followers are intent on doing. Besides, many of these policy and strategy issues are not a matter of Shari'ah but rather a matter of Ijtehad. Let us work together to change the world by bringing justice and equity as we have learned it from the Qur'an and the Sunnah.