by Raymond Ibrahim*
A recent episode of the popular Arabic show al-Sharia wa al-Haya (Law and Life), which airs weekly on Al Jazeera and features renowned Muslim scholar Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, addressed the important yet little known Muslim concept of taysir (pronounced “tey-seer”).
By Fern Sidman
On July 15th, I had the pleasure of covering the address delivered by Dr. Phyllis Chesler at the 2010 Aspen Counterpoint Summer Symposium. Aspen Counterpoint is an independent project founded by three residents of the Aspen Valley: Alan Altman, M.D., Elaine Sandler, and Judith King. Dr. Chesler could not personally attend the conference in Colorado, but she participated in a live teleconference that was recorded in a Manhattan studio.
by Daniel Pipes*
When news comes of Muslims engaging in violence, the triad of politicians, law enforcement, and media invariably presumes that the perpetrator suffers from some mental or emotional incapacity. (For a quick listing of examples, see my collection at “Sudden Jihad or ‘Inordinate Stress’ at Ft. Hood?“).
by Raymond Ibrahim*
Is it inconsistent for Muslim “holy warriors” to engage in voyeuristic acts of lasciviousness? Because would-be jihadists and martyrs have been known to frequent strip bars — such as the 9/11 hijackers and Major Nidal Hasan, whose “late-night jiggle-joint carousing stands at odds with the picture of a devout Muslim” — many Americans have concluded that such men cannot be “true” Muslims, leading to the ubiquitous conviction that they are “hijacking Islam.”
by Phyllis Chesler
Earlier today, I was lying on my gynecologist’s table in a highly exposed position when suddenly she said: “You’re probably going to think this is very politically incorrect but isn’t it crazy not to profile? I mean, isn’t it clear who’s doing what?”
I immediately shot straight up and engaged this worthy liberal in a very politically incorrect conversation. (No, she had absolutely no idea what I’ve been writing about).
So: Some things are becoming clear and can no longer be denied. Not even by some liberals.
by Phyllis Chesler
One is the 17th son; the other is the 16th son. Neither are the sons of a first wife. One is an engineer; the other was an engineering student. Both have ancestral roots in Yemen. Both are educated and come from wealthy families.
I am talking about Osama bin Laden — the 17th son among 57 children whose father is Yemeni — and the Christmas Day Bomber, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab — the 16th and youngest son, whose mother is Yemeni. Both men were born “shamed,” disadvantaged, because their mothers were not “first,” or high-status wives. Continue reading…
by Michael Rubin*
Announcing the results of his administration’s first policy review on Afghanistan more than eight months ago, President Barack Obama declared, “I want the American people to understand that we have a clear and focused goal: to disrupt, dismantle and defeat al-Qaida in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and to prevent their return to either country in the future.” To achieve those goals, the president explained, “we need a stronger, smarter and comprehensive strategy.” Unfortunately, the strategy Obama announced tonight will not achieve it.
By Barry Rubin
How do we know that the attack at Fort Hood was an act of Islamist terrorism? Simple, Major Nidal Hassan told us so. You’ve seen reports of a long list of things he did and said along these lines. But what’s most amazing of all is this:
Hassan is the first terrorist in history to give an academic lecture explaining why he was about to attack. Yet that still isn’t enough for too many people — including the president of the United States — to understand that the murderous assault at Fort Hood was a Jihad attack.
by Daniel Pipes*
When a Muslim in the West for no apparent reason violently attacks non-Muslims, a predictable argument ensues about motives.
The establishment — law enforcement, politicians, the media, and the academy — stands on one side of this debate, insisting that some kind of oppression caused Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, to kill 13 and wound 38 at Ft. Hood on Nov. 5. It disagrees on the specifics, however, presenting Hasan as the victim alternatively of “racism,” “harassment he had received as a Muslim,” a sense of “not belonging,” “pre-traumatic stress disorder,” “mental problems,” “emotional problems,” “an inordinate amount of stress,” or being deployed to Afghanistan as his “worst nightmare.” Accordingly, a typical newspaper headline reads “Mindset of Rogue Major a Mystery.”
by Steven Shamrak
I recently have received the following message from an Islamo-Fascist (according to the name, tone and manner of correspondence) reader of mine: “Please explain however whether Norman Finkelstein, Israel Shamir, Noam Chomsky, Walt & Mearsheimer, Illan Pappe, Gilad Atzmon or the thousands of other anti-Zionist Jews who are on your ’self-hating-Jew-list’ are also ‘Islamo-fascists’ or ‘Jew haters’?”
By Thomas Drewing
For awhile, I thought the country was going down the tubes. It is easy to think that if you watch any amount of what is called “news ” these days, but is actually just fear-mongering and pandering to whatever “HUGE DANGER!!!” is currently being peddled by the Lame Stream Media. “Oh my God! It got warm outside today! Quick! Give me all your money, so we can SAVE you!” I now believe that we are waking up.
The other evening, I was out with a friend. We were standing outside having a beer on the patio next to the fire — outside because I smoke. It wasn’t a big fire. In fact, it was too small to give off anything close to enough heat. There was a young guy standing there too, and we fell into conversation about the world. He was obviously sure that his vote for Obama was going to fix everything, and was happy to share his 25-year-old deep political and social wisdom.
By Thomas Drewing
In order to lie one has to have some sense of what the truth actually is. Many liberals simply don’t have this capacity. Those that rise as high as politicians are the most self-deluded of all. As a firefighter/EMT, I see this all the time. People who are raised in environments where there is no reward for telling — or even remembering — what actually happened have a different mechanism that occupies the same part of their mind that truth does in a well-raised person.
By Thomas Drewing
I have been doing something politically unordinary since the “Stimulus” Bill became law. My unconventional tactic seems very effective, judging by the reactions that I’ve received from the people who have called me to obtain political contributions. I’m having a bit of fun with it, in that perverse way one sometimes does when things seem bleak, and a little bit of fun can soothe the savage soul. I have deliberately NOT been donating money to Republican organizations.
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