This is NOT my America!

"It is a sad day, when you need to leave the United States of America in order to be 'free'." - Abdallah Al-Arian (Sami's eldest son)  

"It is sad really.  My mother is a Palestinian refugee.  My father is a Palestinian refugee.  And now, the United States of America is making us (their children) refugees too." - Sami Al-Arian's daughter

I don't want to live in an America that falsely accuses people of being terrorists and then AFTER years in prison, a lengthy trial, and NOT GUILTY verdicts on 51 counts of BS charges the government will not let him go.  He is still in prison!  ALMOST FIVE YEARS IN PRISON FOR NOTHING!  

An America where Habeous Corpus is suspended.

An America where the Patriot Act is an excuse to rip away our civil rights one by one.

An America where the government abuses its power via "Executive Decision."

An America where we wrongfully imprison innocent people.

An America where we actually hold "political prisoners."

An America where there are NO RIGHTS, NO FREEDOMS that are guaranteed!

An America where you are "... with us or against us."

THIS IS NOT MY AMERICA!

I am a statistic!  I am one of the 8,000 people that the FBI contacted "requesting" an interview post 9/11.  Of those 8,000 Arab-Americans and Muslim-Americans that were rounded up like cattle, stripped of our rights, American citizens or not, by the FBI, CIA, NSA, etc. NOT ONE OF US has been convicted of any crime, much less convicted of a terrorist act!  NOT ONE!  

And as painful as that experience was for me, I am one of the "lucky" ones.  I am not Sami Al-Arian.  While the government maybe taping my phone conversations and maybe even tagging my e-mails or even this blog ... I am NOT Sami Al-Arian.  My anger here banks on sheer rage!  Bush has turned America into the MOST HATED COUNTRY IN THE WORLD!

Which country has:

-Nuclear Weapons?

-Nuclear Reactor Programs?

-Military forces occupying foreign lands?

-Political prisoners for years without being formally charged with any crimes?

-Political prisoners taken to countries with no extradition treaties and no laws against torture?

-A government who spies on its own citizens? 

-A government who suspends the rights of its own people to "protect" them?

-A government who violates international laws?

-A government who violates the 4th Geneva convention?  Iran?  North Korea?  The entire "Axis of Evil?"  NOPE!  THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!!!!

Bush has turned this country into those countries we're allegedly fighting because of a conflict in our "ways of life" and for "freedom."  Ironic isn't it?  Not only is this 1984 because our government lies to us and strips us dowto protect us from ourselves, spy on us, and dehumanize others - but this is 1984 because we've become the very thing we "hate."

Our government is terrorizing its own citizens by using the "fear factor" to make us think we need to give up our civil liberties in order to be safe.  The American government has become "Big Brother."  We can stop it ... we have to stop it!  Raise your voice ... write Congress and ask them to free Sami Al-Arian!

Read about this remarkable man and his amazing family and his BS case .... 

http://www.freesamialarian.com

And read about the documentary made about his case and the fact that this man should be FREE!  He is innocent!  He was found innocent by a jury of his "peers."  A Palestinian, Muslim was found not guilty by a majority WHITE and non-Muslim jury POST 9/11 in America on ALL 51 counts and yet, he still sits in prison because he refuses to lie and give the government ammunition to wrongly accuse others!  This man is a hero!

http://www.usavsalarian.com

Be active in your world!  Make America realize its potential!  Make America great again .... SAY SOMETHING, WRITE SOMETHING, BECOME POLITICALLY ACTIVE.  Stop being a sheep.  Stop being a follower.  Start having some sort of say in your country!  "Stop bitching, start a REVOLUTION!"

Friendship is Everything

"Friendship takes many years to establish; so do not fall out with a friend over a single disagreement."

-Sadi, "Gulistan"

From "366 Readings From Islam," translated by Robert Van der Weyer. Copyright 2000. All rights reserved. 

Sound advice, no?  God created us as rational, and yet emotional beings.  We need companionship.  We need friends and partners.  We get angry with one another from time to time, but it is not worth the years of memories to walk away over a little disagreement that can be talked out logically.

If we could all master this on an individual level, there would be no need for lawsuits, for courts, for divorce, for war.  We have to learn to rise above our emotions and remember the bigger picture - the reason why we are all here.  Perspective is everything!

Give each other the benefit of the doubt.  Strive to understand one another.  Long to love one another.  Forgiveness is, truly, next to Godliness.

When God Closes a Door, Somewhere He Opens a Window

I don't know who came up with the, now cliche, phrase "When God closes a door, somewhere He opens a window," but I have been thinking a lot about "missed opportunities" and "missing opportunities" in the future. 

My wheels began turning after a conversation with one of my best friends.  Do the decisions we make, on this path called life, alter our course forever?  If we choose to be associated with a person, does that keep us from meeting new people?  Does committing to something, regardless of whether it is a right decision or a wrong decision, "close doors" in our future?

When people are uneasy or going through a trying time in life, and they have some knowledge of God or a higher power, it is my experience that they tend to react in one of two ways.  They either get closer to God or they go far, far in the other direction.  With the latter option, it is almost as if we're holding a personal protest to God's will.  I suppose that is "arrogant" but it seems to be the way humans react from time to time.

I have done both and I'm sure that throughout life, I will struggle with that "yin and yang" reaction to faith and matters of the heart and soul in general.

My friend, really got me thinking though.  So, this time, I turned towards God to see if I could find an answer.  I found ... something:

Do not be upset at the good things you miss, and do not be overjoyed at the good things you receive.  God does not love those who are arrogant and boastful; He does not love those who are stingy, and encourage others to be stingy also.  Those who ignore these words, should remember that God alone is self-reliant, and God alone is worthy of praise.

- Qur'an (57:23-24)

Muslims, not unlike other faiths, have this concept of "God's will."  We say "insha'Allah" which is Arabic for "God willing" all the time.  With this concept though, there is another cliche, "It is written" or "maktoob" in Arabic.

So, are our lives already mapped out for us or do we have free will?  I asked an imam, if the day we die is written why bother to be careful with life?  His response was, "Do not throw yourself in the ocean and then, when you drown, say 'it was written.'"

Well, that makes it clear as mud, doesn't it?  It seems that while we have some notion of free will, it is combined with the fact that God knows what our choices will be and what path we will choose to be on, even before we do.  So, is that why when a door closes, a window is opened somewhere for our escape?  Either to a new path or to get back on track to our original path?

Who knows?  Personally, while I am usually the "dreamer" and yet, somehow maintain being a "realist" I prefer to think our choices in life open doors.  If I choose to be a friend to one person, doesn't that lead to meeting their circle of friends?  And after introductions don't you, usually, end up being friends or at least acquaintances with one of two of them?  And so forth and so on?

Even if a door "closes" and that window is open somewhere ... you crawl out of it and cross on to the other side and that leads to a whole new set of doors.  Is that not life?  Take chances, take risks, learn from your successes, and learn from your failures ... life, hopefully, without regrets.

If you stand on the sidelines and "play things safe" where are the rewards?  If you never try anything and never commit to anything, doors might not close, but then again, you never opened any!  How is that living life to the fullest?

"Do not be upset at the good things you miss, ..."

If you're happy with what you have and where you are in life ... why would you think you are missing anything important?  Perhaps you think you're missing something good, but God lead you away from it because it would have been bad for you?

"...and do not be overjoyed at the good things you receive."  

How many times in life did you find yourself "overjoyed" about something and then, with the gift of hindsight, realize that it was not the right move for you?  Over the past year and a half or so, this seems to be the story of my life!  

Being human means we are fallible.  We are emotional beings and those things weigh on our state of mind and state of mind is everything when it comes to making decisions in life.  I truly believe we actually learn more from our failures than our successes, so it is my goal to pay attention, to be humble and have humility.

If I see something I want, I'm going to go for it and pray for God's guidance.  I will open doors in my path, knowing they will lead to another set of doors, and another, and another ... for infinity.  Life is a twisted, wind-y, sometimes scary, road.  Who says we can't back-track?  Open more than one door at once?  

I attempt, in my life, to use the word of God as guidelines to life.  While I have faith in the Lord, I also must have faith in myself.  I pray that my decisions make me happier and that they give me all I want, need, and deserve in this life.  I pray that my decisions effect others, that I have the privilege of touching, in a positive way and that by knowing me they are better for it.

I pray that doors never stop being presented to me and that when I choose to open one, it doesn't close ... perhaps it just remains open as I continue to walk through the maze of the other doors I open throughout my life; but by staying open, I can always go back "home."

Jesus (PBUH) in Islam ... Part 1 of ?

"I heard the Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) narrate the story of another Prophet, Jesus (PBUH), before him, whose people beat him and cause him to bleed.  Even as he wiped the blood off his face he said, "Lord, forgive them for they know not what they do!"

- Reported by Nayeem bin Mas'ud, Shaih al-Bukhari

Does this come to a surprise to most non-Muslims, that Jesus (PBUH) is recognized as a Prophet and Messenger of Islam?  In my personal experience, the answer is an astounding and deafening, YES!

If we compare the stories (as an outline) of the Prophet Jesus (PBUH) from the Bible of today and the Qur'an, there are a remarkable number of similarities.  Here are a few:

Jesus (PBUH):

- The son of the Virgin Mary

- By the grace and permission of God, cured leprosy, blindness, general illness and raised the dead

- Preached the word of God in an effort to remind people of the right path and return them to the ways and laws of Moses (PBUH)

- Spent time in the desert, being tested by the devil

- Had disciples (though the Qur'an is not specific as to how many)

- Was betrayed by one disciple (though the Qur'an doesn't name him)

- Was beaten and battered

- Faced a trial or a court

- Was "sentenced"

- Is the Messiah

- He shall return (the second coming)

- He will make his first prayer in Jerusalem upon his return and rid the world of the anti-Christ

Sound familiar?  The Qur'an even gives Jesus (PBUH) the miracles of speaking as an infant to defend his mother Mary's honor and the only prophet to know of his purpose on Earth at birth (other prophets received their "calls" later in life).

Muslims and Christians differ on the subject of crucifixion and the idea of a "Trinity" (though not all sects of Christianity have this concept).  The Islamic view is that God rose Jesus (PBUH) to heaven to "sit on the right hand of God" (as both the Bible and the Qur'an state) before the crucifixion and while a man, who resembled Christ, took his place on the cross.

If you read the Gospel of Barnabas, he states that the "face of Jesus (PBUH) turned into that of Judas" on the cross.  Interesting, no?  From my perspective, it makes more sense, given that in the Gospel of Luke the man on the cross says, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"  Why would Jesus (PBUH) say that of his Lord if it was all part of the plan for him to die in place of our sins?  Or, if Jesus (PBUH) is a part of God (as the trinity represents) why would he talk to himself?

Perhaps, I'm taking a very literal view of the Gospels, but these statements never agreed with me from a logical perspective.

I would love to turn this into a "discussion" ... if anyone can offer me some clarity, I would appreciate it.  Again, I feel that through education we achieve understanding and even, if in the end we do not agree with one another, at the very least we can tolerate one another's beliefs.

We are not as different as those who have the megaphones of the world would like us to believe.  Jesus (PBUH) is an extraordinary man, who is actually mentioned by name in the Qur'an to that of Mohamed (PBUH) at a ratio of 26:1!  Another surprise, no?

As always, I write with the purest of intentions.  Should there be any faults here, they are my own and do not reflect Islam or God's word.

Spread Peace, Love, & Understanding

We're all struggling to find a level of understanding (it seems) in a post 9/11 world.  It helps, I think, to spread positive things (love vs. hate - tolerance vs. difference) and this was light and its sentiment was appreciated by me, so I thought I would share it. 

For most of you, I am the "token" Arab-American or Muslim friend you've got.  I have tried to be open to questions and honest with answers and I have tried to live a good life, to be a good person, to be a good Muslim, and to be a good human being.  

I can only hope that by simply KNOWING me, you've learned that the actions of a few extremists do NOT speak for the 1.5 BILLION Muslims worldwide and more importantly do NOT represent the religion of Islam.  Any mistakes I make in life are my own.  They do not represent God and they do not reflect upon Islam.  I am human.  I do screw up from time to time!  =) 

We need to get away from focusing on the differences between us and start to realize that what we have in common (culturally, religiously, etc) is far greater.  Help me, please, by educating those that do not have access to anything other than bombardment of negative (and in my opinion, one-sided) news coverage.

Education = Understanding

Please help me pass it on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbcmPe0z3Sc

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did and I hope that if you ever have a question, as a friend, you'd be comfortable enough to come and ask me.  I promise to do the best I can to answer.