HEE Hee. I think this is the best scan yet. I hope it looks good!
Friday, September 23, 2005
Journal Entry
BREAKING NEWS: HYPOCRACY IN THE MIDDLE EAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I just received this news, and it has absolutely enraged me. Note: The majority of this article, entry, whatever you wish to call it, shall be speculation, as I have very slight documentation on the subject. I encourage and would strongly appreciate anyone stepping forward with whatever they believe to be the firm, solid truth.
24 heures, 20 septembre 2005, p 3: IRAK: Des chars britanniques ont abattu les murs de la prison centrale de Bassorah, dans le sud de l’Irak, pour libérer deux Britanniques, présentés comme des agents secrets écroués pour avoir tiré sur des policiers irakiens. Cette opération a entrainé l’évasion de 150 prisonniers irakiens (AP).
From this very brief (I can’t say article) passage in yesterday’s 24 heures and some few minutes of limited conversation with my mother, I have amassed in my mind a multitude of horrific images that can not wait to be written down. This is why I am not doing my homework, which should be top priority right now, as I have a French vocabulary test tomorrow. On that very pretext of “homework” (well, that and soccer practice…) has it been that for the past few days I have neglected to watch the news (and to perform those yoga stretches which I so solemnly swore to myself to do, when I discovered them on TV at 6:30 A.M. every morning). But, this information is terribly arbitrary and insignificant now, as I am currently performing the action that is necessary if democracy and freedom are to carry on. It is now, by my computer’s clock, 6:43 PM, Eastern Time, and it is the 21st of September, 2005 AD.
I am practically lost for words to describe my emotions right now as I senselessly pound this keyboard as fast as I can (which isn’t really fast at all—oh, how I wish I had done some more of that Mavis Beacon!) with trembling fingers and a swirling head. I have to get this down. It is my duty, and I must!
I neglected to keep the article in which I first saw that ugly thing. At the time, I didn’t consider this neglect; it was a newsworthy item: both shocking and depressing, as is the custom, or perhaps necessity, with such things. I figured it would probably be all over the place and everybody would be talking about the disgrace, and the Bush Empire would come crumbling down. Not so. I have a vague memory of what the year was, but if I strain my mind I can vaguely recall that it was perhaps Spring, an it was perhaps two years ago. That would make it 2003. No, sorry, 2004. No… it must have been earlier than that, before that devastating second election… Ah well, memory has failed, and the documentation, for all I know, is non-existent. All this makes the analogy I was going to (and now will) make all the more shocking: We are living in 1984. (Perhaps literally as well, as the estimate of the birth date of Christ is way off what it should have been.)
This letter must be getting awfully convoluted and confusing. The only excuse I have is that I can not help it in the condition that I am now in. I slightly regret not doing this on paper, in my diary, for instance, where I am far less likely to alter it in any way later on. I plan on making good copies, final drafts, etc., of this, but the original must remain intact… Why? Because the emotion in it is just far too much to be thrown away. This being said, this is far too important to be kept in something so private and personal as a journal or diary, as it must be announced to the world.
What I have to say is, in my opinion, of a significance far more compromising than the prisoner abuse scandal, than the WMD’s, than any of that. What I have to say is horrific, incomprehensible, absolutely beyond humane law, barbaric, atrocious, YOU NAME IT!
What I have to say is this: WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO? Someone, PLEASE, answer me!!! How could anyone be so evil? Every time I hear or read something of this nature, I think nothing can surpass its vileness. Again and again I am mistaken. Again and again, Satan never ceases to astound me. Again and again, it’s the same dirty gunk all over the place. WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO?
But most importantly: what does it all mean? This is something we can never be sure of, but I intend to go as far as I possibly can for the truth. That luscious oasis that awaits me after many long days’ journey through treachery, hypocrisy, outright LIES: truth.
To restate after this longwinded detour: British tanks ran through the central prison of Basra, in the south of Iraq, to liberate two Britons, presented as secret agents arrested for having fired on Iraqi police. This operation has resulted in the escape of 150 Iraqi prisoners. This is the result of my poor translation of the above French text. Mind you, this passage would have hardly succeeded in holding my attention for more than a minute if I had merely stumbled upon it. As it happened, we (that is, my eleven-year-old brother, my mother, and I) were watching the six-o’clock BBC World News on PBS, when something vague about a burning tank came on. My mother lowered the volume on the TV set to tell us what I shall call the “BREAKING NEWS”, because it shatters my heart and all my previous (mis?)conceptions about reality. (Technically, it is not breaking news at all, because in the information age, yesterday’s news is old news).
That news which she gave us was her own little version of what I have above stated in two languages, accompanied by some explanations and perceptions of her own. My perceptions, I will attempt to convey here, if my wandering mind will allow me to do so. (Alas, nearly an hour has gone by, and I have not even begun to lay out the meat of what I have to say. Perhaps a short break shall do the trick?...)
It is now 7:36 PM, Eastern Time, by my computer’s clock, although my radio clock disagrees with a seven minute delay. But time is relative, and therefore irrelevant. I have taken a small pause, but I am as full of emotion as ever. My mind is in a state of tortured throbbing. Why this is so difficult for me, I do not know. Today was a day full of thinking and philosophizing, and perhaps I am tired, but something inside me is urging me to go on. Obviously, though, I am speechless! I am also beginning to feel that all this meandering is going to leave my reader in a tangled, thorny mess, so I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause him.
But to return to my point, that is to say, that George Orwell’s prediction is, (if it has not arrived,) knocking on our doorstep. WE MUST ASSERT OUR INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE RIGHTS TO THE FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS. A catastrophe is looming overhead, and we are the unsuspecting sheep under the watchful eye of an ever present “Big Brother”. Who is this “Big Brother”? I am sure that this comment is inviting outrage and curses from some of our more conservative friends down south, but I am determined to put it down: GEORGE W. BUSH. Of course, this post has been occupied by several hundred, perhaps several thousand others, but this is the current “Leader of the Free World”, if you will. Simply put: “His job is not to wield power but to draw attention away from it.” Big Brother is held up by several of his close, wealthy friends, his father’s money, et cetera, et cetera. These friends of his make a lot of terrible decisions, and he usually goes along with them, as there is usually something in it for him and some of the companies he owns. In short, they WALK ALL OVER US. We, the people, have to make a stand for ourselves. POWER TO THE PEOPLE!
Now, then, I must go into the reasons why this particular item of news has so acutely upset me, as that is the reason for my wanting to write all this. Whether I will get into it, I do not know, but with God’s superior aid, I will try my best.
Let us get into the heart of the matter. Imagine this: two Iraqi insurgents randomly shooting at passing civilians. You are Iraqi police. You arrest the two men. You take them to prison. You interrogate them; they say they are British. You are informed by British government/military that what they say is true, and ordered to release them. You refuse (who the hell wouldn’t, right? After all, they were disrupting the peace.) In response, British military drive a tank through the prison wall, scattering 150 potential menaces into the population, in order to retrieve two. (As I said, this may be a distortion of the facts, but, while I wait for the facts, this is all I have to work with.)
To describe this all, “Outrageous” is an understatement. First of all, if British and American troops are in Iraq to protect its civilians (which they are not—something I have known since before the war, but also something which, I assume, the vast majority of people fails to grasp, as they have shown little or no response to it) why would they unleash 150 drooling hounds upon that very population? Normally, two Britons in the hands of the Iraqis would mean little or nothing. (let us remember the hostage crisis in Iran several years ago… I don’t recall America exerting any direct physical force upon the Iranian government for that. More recently, we have heard the pleas of several hostages taken by Al Qaieda or the Taliban. None of their countries did anything for them!) So why is this case any different? Well, certainly, if you were governing a country, you wouldn’t be too pleased if a couple of your subordinates, a few rungs down the ladder of our hierarchical society, were caught red handed in the act of shooting innocent civilians, or keepers of the peace, would you? Of course, not! (And with good reason, as this would result in scandal, and here I’ll refer back to those incriminating photos of American soldiers inflicting psychological abuse upon Iraqi prisoners.) Enough said! But I must go on. You’d want the affair covered, wouldn’t you? You’d have to hide any strand of evidence of such a thing, wouldn’t you? You would have to deny that any orders were given for such an execution, convince the British (secret agents?) that they were inherently evil and that they committed a brash act contrary to regulation… anything to keep them from spilling the beans!
That is to say, this act was plotted at a higher level than that of the minds of these two “Iraqi insurgents”. Something very fishy is going on. Strictly hypothetically, this is perhaps something going on at a very vast range and on a very high scale. Imagine hundreds of bearded British and Americans, dressed as Iraqis, for the sole purpose of causing havoc and instability. WAR. To go back to what Orwell predicted, the world needs it. Big Brother needs it, to remain in power. Yes, American troops are in Iraq in order to train the Iraqi police forces, in order to maintain order… This is what they want you to believe, when in reality, it is quite the other way around.
I am quite tired now—my computer tells me it is 8:40 PM, Eastern Time, and I have not yet begun to do my homework. I impatiently await further information, in order to complete my story. (I am afraid of delving too far into the imaginative, wild side of my brain, which is likely to come up with all sorts of horrendous fiction in its efforts to conciliate itself.) In the meantime, I take with a grain of salt all information handed to me. I try to use my God-given sense to try to make sense of what is going on around me. I attempt to pry open every heavily safeguarded, secret book that I stumble upon. I screw up my face and stare hard at every puzzle that arises before me. I strive—for the truth.
I just received this news, and it has absolutely enraged me. Note: The majority of this article, entry, whatever you wish to call it, shall be speculation, as I have very slight documentation on the subject. I encourage and would strongly appreciate anyone stepping forward with whatever they believe to be the firm, solid truth.
24 heures, 20 septembre 2005, p 3: IRAK: Des chars britanniques ont abattu les murs de la prison centrale de Bassorah, dans le sud de l’Irak, pour libérer deux Britanniques, présentés comme des agents secrets écroués pour avoir tiré sur des policiers irakiens. Cette opération a entrainé l’évasion de 150 prisonniers irakiens (AP).
From this very brief (I can’t say article) passage in yesterday’s 24 heures and some few minutes of limited conversation with my mother, I have amassed in my mind a multitude of horrific images that can not wait to be written down. This is why I am not doing my homework, which should be top priority right now, as I have a French vocabulary test tomorrow. On that very pretext of “homework” (well, that and soccer practice…) has it been that for the past few days I have neglected to watch the news (and to perform those yoga stretches which I so solemnly swore to myself to do, when I discovered them on TV at 6:30 A.M. every morning). But, this information is terribly arbitrary and insignificant now, as I am currently performing the action that is necessary if democracy and freedom are to carry on. It is now, by my computer’s clock, 6:43 PM, Eastern Time, and it is the 21st of September, 2005 AD.
I am practically lost for words to describe my emotions right now as I senselessly pound this keyboard as fast as I can (which isn’t really fast at all—oh, how I wish I had done some more of that Mavis Beacon!) with trembling fingers and a swirling head. I have to get this down. It is my duty, and I must!
I neglected to keep the article in which I first saw that ugly thing. At the time, I didn’t consider this neglect; it was a newsworthy item: both shocking and depressing, as is the custom, or perhaps necessity, with such things. I figured it would probably be all over the place and everybody would be talking about the disgrace, and the Bush Empire would come crumbling down. Not so. I have a vague memory of what the year was, but if I strain my mind I can vaguely recall that it was perhaps Spring, an it was perhaps two years ago. That would make it 2003. No, sorry, 2004. No… it must have been earlier than that, before that devastating second election… Ah well, memory has failed, and the documentation, for all I know, is non-existent. All this makes the analogy I was going to (and now will) make all the more shocking: We are living in 1984. (Perhaps literally as well, as the estimate of the birth date of Christ is way off what it should have been.)
This letter must be getting awfully convoluted and confusing. The only excuse I have is that I can not help it in the condition that I am now in. I slightly regret not doing this on paper, in my diary, for instance, where I am far less likely to alter it in any way later on. I plan on making good copies, final drafts, etc., of this, but the original must remain intact… Why? Because the emotion in it is just far too much to be thrown away. This being said, this is far too important to be kept in something so private and personal as a journal or diary, as it must be announced to the world.
What I have to say is, in my opinion, of a significance far more compromising than the prisoner abuse scandal, than the WMD’s, than any of that. What I have to say is horrific, incomprehensible, absolutely beyond humane law, barbaric, atrocious, YOU NAME IT!
What I have to say is this: WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO? Someone, PLEASE, answer me!!! How could anyone be so evil? Every time I hear or read something of this nature, I think nothing can surpass its vileness. Again and again I am mistaken. Again and again, Satan never ceases to astound me. Again and again, it’s the same dirty gunk all over the place. WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO?
But most importantly: what does it all mean? This is something we can never be sure of, but I intend to go as far as I possibly can for the truth. That luscious oasis that awaits me after many long days’ journey through treachery, hypocrisy, outright LIES: truth.
To restate after this longwinded detour: British tanks ran through the central prison of Basra, in the south of Iraq, to liberate two Britons, presented as secret agents arrested for having fired on Iraqi police. This operation has resulted in the escape of 150 Iraqi prisoners. This is the result of my poor translation of the above French text. Mind you, this passage would have hardly succeeded in holding my attention for more than a minute if I had merely stumbled upon it. As it happened, we (that is, my eleven-year-old brother, my mother, and I) were watching the six-o’clock BBC World News on PBS, when something vague about a burning tank came on. My mother lowered the volume on the TV set to tell us what I shall call the “BREAKING NEWS”, because it shatters my heart and all my previous (mis?)conceptions about reality. (Technically, it is not breaking news at all, because in the information age, yesterday’s news is old news).
That news which she gave us was her own little version of what I have above stated in two languages, accompanied by some explanations and perceptions of her own. My perceptions, I will attempt to convey here, if my wandering mind will allow me to do so. (Alas, nearly an hour has gone by, and I have not even begun to lay out the meat of what I have to say. Perhaps a short break shall do the trick?...)
It is now 7:36 PM, Eastern Time, by my computer’s clock, although my radio clock disagrees with a seven minute delay. But time is relative, and therefore irrelevant. I have taken a small pause, but I am as full of emotion as ever. My mind is in a state of tortured throbbing. Why this is so difficult for me, I do not know. Today was a day full of thinking and philosophizing, and perhaps I am tired, but something inside me is urging me to go on. Obviously, though, I am speechless! I am also beginning to feel that all this meandering is going to leave my reader in a tangled, thorny mess, so I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause him.
But to return to my point, that is to say, that George Orwell’s prediction is, (if it has not arrived,) knocking on our doorstep. WE MUST ASSERT OUR INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE RIGHTS TO THE FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS. A catastrophe is looming overhead, and we are the unsuspecting sheep under the watchful eye of an ever present “Big Brother”. Who is this “Big Brother”? I am sure that this comment is inviting outrage and curses from some of our more conservative friends down south, but I am determined to put it down: GEORGE W. BUSH. Of course, this post has been occupied by several hundred, perhaps several thousand others, but this is the current “Leader of the Free World”, if you will. Simply put: “His job is not to wield power but to draw attention away from it.” Big Brother is held up by several of his close, wealthy friends, his father’s money, et cetera, et cetera. These friends of his make a lot of terrible decisions, and he usually goes along with them, as there is usually something in it for him and some of the companies he owns. In short, they WALK ALL OVER US. We, the people, have to make a stand for ourselves. POWER TO THE PEOPLE!
Now, then, I must go into the reasons why this particular item of news has so acutely upset me, as that is the reason for my wanting to write all this. Whether I will get into it, I do not know, but with God’s superior aid, I will try my best.
Let us get into the heart of the matter. Imagine this: two Iraqi insurgents randomly shooting at passing civilians. You are Iraqi police. You arrest the two men. You take them to prison. You interrogate them; they say they are British. You are informed by British government/military that what they say is true, and ordered to release them. You refuse (who the hell wouldn’t, right? After all, they were disrupting the peace.) In response, British military drive a tank through the prison wall, scattering 150 potential menaces into the population, in order to retrieve two. (As I said, this may be a distortion of the facts, but, while I wait for the facts, this is all I have to work with.)
To describe this all, “Outrageous” is an understatement. First of all, if British and American troops are in Iraq to protect its civilians (which they are not—something I have known since before the war, but also something which, I assume, the vast majority of people fails to grasp, as they have shown little or no response to it) why would they unleash 150 drooling hounds upon that very population? Normally, two Britons in the hands of the Iraqis would mean little or nothing. (let us remember the hostage crisis in Iran several years ago… I don’t recall America exerting any direct physical force upon the Iranian government for that. More recently, we have heard the pleas of several hostages taken by Al Qaieda or the Taliban. None of their countries did anything for them!) So why is this case any different? Well, certainly, if you were governing a country, you wouldn’t be too pleased if a couple of your subordinates, a few rungs down the ladder of our hierarchical society, were caught red handed in the act of shooting innocent civilians, or keepers of the peace, would you? Of course, not! (And with good reason, as this would result in scandal, and here I’ll refer back to those incriminating photos of American soldiers inflicting psychological abuse upon Iraqi prisoners.) Enough said! But I must go on. You’d want the affair covered, wouldn’t you? You’d have to hide any strand of evidence of such a thing, wouldn’t you? You would have to deny that any orders were given for such an execution, convince the British (secret agents?) that they were inherently evil and that they committed a brash act contrary to regulation… anything to keep them from spilling the beans!
That is to say, this act was plotted at a higher level than that of the minds of these two “Iraqi insurgents”. Something very fishy is going on. Strictly hypothetically, this is perhaps something going on at a very vast range and on a very high scale. Imagine hundreds of bearded British and Americans, dressed as Iraqis, for the sole purpose of causing havoc and instability. WAR. To go back to what Orwell predicted, the world needs it. Big Brother needs it, to remain in power. Yes, American troops are in Iraq in order to train the Iraqi police forces, in order to maintain order… This is what they want you to believe, when in reality, it is quite the other way around.
I am quite tired now—my computer tells me it is 8:40 PM, Eastern Time, and I have not yet begun to do my homework. I impatiently await further information, in order to complete my story. (I am afraid of delving too far into the imaginative, wild side of my brain, which is likely to come up with all sorts of horrendous fiction in its efforts to conciliate itself.) In the meantime, I take with a grain of salt all information handed to me. I try to use my God-given sense to try to make sense of what is going on around me. I attempt to pry open every heavily safeguarded, secret book that I stumble upon. I screw up my face and stare hard at every puzzle that arises before me. I strive—for the truth.
Thursday, September 01, 2005
I'm Ba-ack...
It's been a long time since I've posted anything, my apologies. During the summer I didn't have anything to say, and no access to a scanner besides. Hopefully, I will soon. The comments have encouraged me; I guess a just takes some time to get a few. If anyone has any tips as to how to get more visitors, I'm all ears. Blah, Blah, Blah
Here is a link to my art page in elfwood:
Link
Here is a link to my art page in elfwood:
Link
Thursday, June 16, 2005
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
Monday, June 06, 2005
Essay: The benefits of Hijab
In recent years, women who wear the traditional Islamic veil or headscarf, or who, in a more general sense, observe “hijab”, have been displayed by western media as “oppressed” or “maltreated” by their religion and/or by their men. Those who maintain this misconception, this prejudice, have absolutely no ground to stand on; nevertheless, the belief is widespread throughout the western world, and has caused observant Muslim women much grief and distress. The truth is, the observation of hijab gives women more liberty and freedom of expression, unlike its nonobservance, (that is, dressing in a conspicuous, revealing fashion) which is not only disrespectful to society, but also demeaning to the woman.
The concept of hijab is nothing new; it had been put into practice long before the time of the prophet Muhammad: images of the Virgin Mary repeatedly depict her with a garment over the head. In fact, most pious women mentioned in the scriptures are represented so. And it is not only Muslims who practice it today: Christian nuns, as well as Orthodox Jewish women, all make use of some sort of a head covering.
But look closer, and you will notice that it is not just the head that is covered: such women wear loose clothing covering the majority of the body, excluding the face and hands. This manner of dress is often accompanied by faithful devotion and righteous values. Though the individual costumes may be different, they all stem from the same philosophy: to protect the woman from unwanted physical attention that would distract her from her goals, and so to allow her the highest possible degree of spiritual and mental growth. So if the custom is so widely spread, why is it that only Muslim women are being singled out as “oppressed”? The Qur’an indicates that hijab is to be worn to prevent women from encountering discomfort:
“O prophet, tell your wives and daughters and the believing women to draw their outer garments around them (when they go out or are among men). That is better in order that they may be known (to be Muslims) and not annoyed…” (Qur’an 33:59) [1]
The truly oppressed women are those who have succumbed to western pop culture: those who, in having become obsessed with their physical image, are constantly attempting to impress those around them—and most importantly, men—by whatever means they can, including resorting to drastic measures to change the shape of their bodies. These women have no self-identity: they are all simply clones of a popularized generic form, one that is supposedly the most attractive to men, and that, by this virtue, will bring them the most success.
Interestingly enough, the western world, although economically and technologically advanced, has, in general, a very low degree of success in the fundamental arts of marriage and raising families. Half of all marriages in America end in divorce, and yet no one has attempted to get to the root of the problem. The problem is a lack of faithfulness on the part of both husband and wife. Adultery is normalized by the media, and flamboyant women make it all the more accessible. In other words, reckless dressing generates reckless behavior. A woman who dresses in tight-fitting or transparent garments that reveal the shape of her body is looking for trouble, and usually finds it. But this type of dress is encouraged and commended in western culture; so much so, in fact, that even otherwise conservative women have become engrossed in this image that unavoidably leads to destructive behavior.
The solution to this problem is that both men and women dress moderately and modestly, so as to decrease the possibility of ____ acts.
The Qur’an has recommended this in the following verse:
Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that will make for greater purity for them; and Allah is well aquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; and that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what must ordinarily appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands… (Qur’an 24:30-31)[2]
Notice that the verse, as with all Qur’anic verses, addresses both women and men, and does not ____ one over the other. Despite this, Islam has systematically been accused of discriminating against women. Quite ironically, the biblic verses that promote the veiling of women describe these lasts as inferior beings:
But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. Every man praying or prophesying having his head covered, dishonoreth his head. But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoreth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels. (Corintians 11 [3-10])[3]
[1] Quoted in “Hijab”, by Mary C. Ali, www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/humanrelations/womeninislam/whatishijab.html
[2] Ibid.
[3] quoted from “Women, Islam, and Hijab”, by Kim Parker, http://www.english.emory.edu/Bahri/Veil.html
The concept of hijab is nothing new; it had been put into practice long before the time of the prophet Muhammad: images of the Virgin Mary repeatedly depict her with a garment over the head. In fact, most pious women mentioned in the scriptures are represented so. And it is not only Muslims who practice it today: Christian nuns, as well as Orthodox Jewish women, all make use of some sort of a head covering.
But look closer, and you will notice that it is not just the head that is covered: such women wear loose clothing covering the majority of the body, excluding the face and hands. This manner of dress is often accompanied by faithful devotion and righteous values. Though the individual costumes may be different, they all stem from the same philosophy: to protect the woman from unwanted physical attention that would distract her from her goals, and so to allow her the highest possible degree of spiritual and mental growth. So if the custom is so widely spread, why is it that only Muslim women are being singled out as “oppressed”? The Qur’an indicates that hijab is to be worn to prevent women from encountering discomfort:
“O prophet, tell your wives and daughters and the believing women to draw their outer garments around them (when they go out or are among men). That is better in order that they may be known (to be Muslims) and not annoyed…” (Qur’an 33:59) [1]
The truly oppressed women are those who have succumbed to western pop culture: those who, in having become obsessed with their physical image, are constantly attempting to impress those around them—and most importantly, men—by whatever means they can, including resorting to drastic measures to change the shape of their bodies. These women have no self-identity: they are all simply clones of a popularized generic form, one that is supposedly the most attractive to men, and that, by this virtue, will bring them the most success.
Interestingly enough, the western world, although economically and technologically advanced, has, in general, a very low degree of success in the fundamental arts of marriage and raising families. Half of all marriages in America end in divorce, and yet no one has attempted to get to the root of the problem. The problem is a lack of faithfulness on the part of both husband and wife. Adultery is normalized by the media, and flamboyant women make it all the more accessible. In other words, reckless dressing generates reckless behavior. A woman who dresses in tight-fitting or transparent garments that reveal the shape of her body is looking for trouble, and usually finds it. But this type of dress is encouraged and commended in western culture; so much so, in fact, that even otherwise conservative women have become engrossed in this image that unavoidably leads to destructive behavior.
The solution to this problem is that both men and women dress moderately and modestly, so as to decrease the possibility of ____ acts.
The Qur’an has recommended this in the following verse:
Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that will make for greater purity for them; and Allah is well aquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; and that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what must ordinarily appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands… (Qur’an 24:30-31)[2]
Notice that the verse, as with all Qur’anic verses, addresses both women and men, and does not ____ one over the other. Despite this, Islam has systematically been accused of discriminating against women. Quite ironically, the biblic verses that promote the veiling of women describe these lasts as inferior beings:
But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. Every man praying or prophesying having his head covered, dishonoreth his head. But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoreth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels. (Corintians 11 [3-10])[3]
[1] Quoted in “Hijab”, by Mary C. Ali, www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/humanrelations/womeninislam/whatishijab.html
[2] Ibid.
[3] quoted from “Women, Islam, and Hijab”, by Kim Parker, http://www.english.emory.edu/Bahri/Veil.html
Monday, May 30, 2005
Hey Eugene! You may have an orange cat, but I have a blue one! (Does that mean our pet's are complementary?) :) !
Don't believe me? Check it out for yourself!
http://petpages.neopets.com/cutecatluvie
Don't believe me? Check it out for yourself!
http://petpages.neopets.com/cutecatluvie
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Friday, May 20, 2005
Thursday, May 19, 2005
a poem
I was kindof under a trance when I wrote this one, so don't ask! I wouldn't mind comments on it though... I'm trying to figure out what it means myself...
Winter of my Life
As I look yonder, there is shadow in the distance
that so entirely separates me from my childhood.
and all I can see is mist,
and fog,
and tears,
lacy dewdrops that hang on spiders’ silken webs,
and icy frost on the windowpanes,
that makes the snowy world outside
look
almost like a dream.
And as I sit here by the fire,
in my worn old creaky rocking-chair,
with my long gray beard,
and my long gray hair,
and my weary bones,
I feel a shiver go down my spine,
almost as old as the rocking-chair itself,
that noisily complains,
groaning like a sick old man,
as I rock
with my eyelids closed,
painting a picture in my head,
of old forgotten days.
The cat purrs on my lap,
her soft gray fur is silk:
ashen like the fireplace,
like the smoke that billows,
up through the chimney
and gets lost in the night
so lonely and dark.
The angry wind howls
through the cracks in the walls
so much like the cracks in my face
that long dark years have carved
with cold vengeful hands
almost as if to say:
You have taken away the happy child
of Spring and Summer,
who chased dandelion fluff,
and picked daisies
and caught fireflies
and watched cottony, puffy clouds
sail across the sky.
How they have suffered,
Spring and Summer,
from your heartless, senseless
act
of careless cruelty!
O Dark Embittered Soul,
you shall surely taste
the Wrath
of Winter!
Jack Frost has come,
knocking at the door,
sneaking through the cracks
of the walls and of the floor,
and into my heart.
Into this deep and depressed
Winter of my life
that kills all hope
with dreadful, malicious schemes.
Because I have allowed the innocent child
to pass away
in the cold and dark
Reality
that has come to pass.
Mona
As I look yonder, there is shadow in the distance
that so entirely separates me from my childhood.
and all I can see is mist,
and fog,
and tears,
lacy dewdrops that hang on spiders’ silken webs,
and icy frost on the windowpanes,
that makes the snowy world outside
look
almost like a dream.
And as I sit here by the fire,
in my worn old creaky rocking-chair,
with my long gray beard,
and my long gray hair,
and my weary bones,
I feel a shiver go down my spine,
almost as old as the rocking-chair itself,
that noisily complains,
groaning like a sick old man,
as I rock
with my eyelids closed,
painting a picture in my head,
of old forgotten days.
The cat purrs on my lap,
her soft gray fur is silk:
ashen like the fireplace,
like the smoke that billows,
up through the chimney
and gets lost in the night
so lonely and dark.
The angry wind howls
through the cracks in the walls
so much like the cracks in my face
that long dark years have carved
with cold vengeful hands
almost as if to say:
You have taken away the happy child
of Spring and Summer,
who chased dandelion fluff,
and picked daisies
and caught fireflies
and watched cottony, puffy clouds
sail across the sky.
How they have suffered,
Spring and Summer,
from your heartless, senseless
act
of careless cruelty!
O Dark Embittered Soul,
you shall surely taste
the Wrath
of Winter!
Jack Frost has come,
knocking at the door,
sneaking through the cracks
of the walls and of the floor,
and into my heart.
Into this deep and depressed
Winter of my life
that kills all hope
with dreadful, malicious schemes.
Because I have allowed the innocent child
to pass away
in the cold and dark
Reality
that has come to pass.
Mona
Friday, May 13, 2005
He who Grieves
This is a sonnet I have written and that will be published this summer. The anthology is called Dragonfly Summer and contains selected works submitted by youth from across Canada.
He who Grieves
From this old weary world I look away,
And on to better places far, far off,
And wonder what has caused us so to sway,
Upon our tilting axis and aloft.
The only home we know became corrupt,
When Cain killed brother Abel long ago.
And Cain kills Abel yet again each day;
Forgets the love that once he used to know.
And though we blame it all on the first man,
Or say his woman Eve brought us this fate,
We know ’twas we who turned away and ran;
Oh God, how in the wrong we are of late!
Beshrew the heart that dared to pass the blame;
Spare he who grieves, and we should do the same.
(This drawing is not necessarily related to the poem, but it expresses the theme well, so I decided to put add it to this post instead of creating a new one. Sept 23, 2005)
He who Grieves
From this old weary world I look away,
And on to better places far, far off,
And wonder what has caused us so to sway,
Upon our tilting axis and aloft.
The only home we know became corrupt,
When Cain killed brother Abel long ago.
And Cain kills Abel yet again each day;
Forgets the love that once he used to know.
And though we blame it all on the first man,
Or say his woman Eve brought us this fate,
We know ’twas we who turned away and ran;
Oh God, how in the wrong we are of late!
Beshrew the heart that dared to pass the blame;
Spare he who grieves, and we should do the same.
(This drawing is not necessarily related to the poem, but it expresses the theme well, so I decided to put add it to this post instead of creating a new one. Sept 23, 2005)
On the Existence of God.
December 30, 2006: I just reread this and realized how short and incomplete it is. Please take into consideration that for the speech, I was under a strict time limit. There is a lot more to all of this, and I am willing to discuss it with anyone who wishes to.
This is a speech I recently wrote for my school's annual public speaking competition. I won first prize there and went on to the EMSB school board competition, where I placed second. I'm posting it because I'd like to have some feedback and discuss the issues with intelligent people...
Is there a God? Honorable judges, respected teachers, and fellow students, this question has puzzled humanity for centuries. Now, with the numerous advances science has made, the general public has been led to believe that "creation theory" is no longer valid, and hence, that God does not exist. Is this truly the case? I believe that science has not only not disproved the existence of God, but that there is substantial evidence that actually supports His existence.
The Big Bang theory states that the universe exploded into being from an infinitely small dot of infinitely strong gravitational force. But how can anything be infinitely small? Even the smallest atom is, by definition, infinitely larger than anything infinitely small. Since the atom is obviously not infinitely large, the only way this can be possible is for that dot to be equivalent to zero. Did the entire universe appear out of absolute nothingness? How can you get something out of nothing? It is illogical. The non-theistic version of the Big Bang theory, then, is nothing short of ridiculous. There must have been some infinite source to start it all.
Let’s move on to the Theory of Evolution. In passing, let us remember that Charles Darwin was not an atheist, but a deeply religious man. He never proposed anything against God or religion. The church sprung to conclusions without even considering the validity of his work, or understanding it.
If evolution theory explains the variety of life forms on Earth, can we not say the process of evolution is the means used by God to create that variety?
According to one scientist:
"If one wishes to believe that the universe and everything in it were created by a supreme being, there is nothing in the theory of evolution to contradict that."
Another issue I am compelled to address is that of "Evil and the God of Good". The atheists say, "If a Good God exists, how is it that there is so much evil in the world?" But, "If God were Good, would he force us to always do what he deemed good? " "Free will" is what defines us as human beings. Animals behave in a way natural to their species. We humans can "behave" any way we want. Freedom is a far greater gift than perpetual "good". Do we challenge God for giving us this liberty?
The existence of evil, and of evil acts, is necessary as a direct consequence of the existence of good and of good acts. Thus, evil exists, not because "God does not exist", but because of the necessity of "The absence of good", just as cold and darkness are defined respectively as "the absence of heat" and "the absence of light".
Einstein once said, "The most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible." In truth, our universe is so fine-tuned that the notion of the nonexistence of intelligent design is, itself, incomprehensible. And for those to whom this is still not apparent, I have one last statement: Things are rarely, if ever, the way they superficially seem to the naked eye.
Thank you.
This is a speech I recently wrote for my school's annual public speaking competition. I won first prize there and went on to the EMSB school board competition, where I placed second. I'm posting it because I'd like to have some feedback and discuss the issues with intelligent people...
Is there a God? Honorable judges, respected teachers, and fellow students, this question has puzzled humanity for centuries. Now, with the numerous advances science has made, the general public has been led to believe that "creation theory" is no longer valid, and hence, that God does not exist. Is this truly the case? I believe that science has not only not disproved the existence of God, but that there is substantial evidence that actually supports His existence.
The Big Bang theory states that the universe exploded into being from an infinitely small dot of infinitely strong gravitational force. But how can anything be infinitely small? Even the smallest atom is, by definition, infinitely larger than anything infinitely small. Since the atom is obviously not infinitely large, the only way this can be possible is for that dot to be equivalent to zero. Did the entire universe appear out of absolute nothingness? How can you get something out of nothing? It is illogical. The non-theistic version of the Big Bang theory, then, is nothing short of ridiculous. There must have been some infinite source to start it all.
Let’s move on to the Theory of Evolution. In passing, let us remember that Charles Darwin was not an atheist, but a deeply religious man. He never proposed anything against God or religion. The church sprung to conclusions without even considering the validity of his work, or understanding it.
If evolution theory explains the variety of life forms on Earth, can we not say the process of evolution is the means used by God to create that variety?
According to one scientist:
"If one wishes to believe that the universe and everything in it were created by a supreme being, there is nothing in the theory of evolution to contradict that."
Another issue I am compelled to address is that of "Evil and the God of Good". The atheists say, "If a Good God exists, how is it that there is so much evil in the world?" But, "If God were Good, would he force us to always do what he deemed good? " "Free will" is what defines us as human beings. Animals behave in a way natural to their species. We humans can "behave" any way we want. Freedom is a far greater gift than perpetual "good". Do we challenge God for giving us this liberty?
The existence of evil, and of evil acts, is necessary as a direct consequence of the existence of good and of good acts. Thus, evil exists, not because "God does not exist", but because of the necessity of "The absence of good", just as cold and darkness are defined respectively as "the absence of heat" and "the absence of light".
Einstein once said, "The most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible." In truth, our universe is so fine-tuned that the notion of the nonexistence of intelligent design is, itself, incomprehensible. And for those to whom this is still not apparent, I have one last statement: Things are rarely, if ever, the way they superficially seem to the naked eye.
Thank you.
Hello.
This is my first message in my first Blog. Just Trying to figure out how this thing works. If I get feedback, it will be most appreciated.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
