Memetik ayat-ayat puitis dalam poster PUISI,

For yonks,
We are lost,
Trapped in our dream,
The time has come...
To revitalise the UMMAH!!!


serta dalam sebuah artikel,

Sepatutnya kita bukannya kena bangun lena lagi ditipu mimpi indah, tetapi sudah pun bangkit subuh, mandi, berus gigi, berwudhu', solat Subuh, adzkar, bersarapan.... dan terus pergi kerja! Orang lain sudah pun pulang kerja dan menikmati hasil usaha mereka... kita masih mengigau... alahai.

dan tajuk Antologi Puisi GKLN, "Al-Andalus Menangis", menyebabkan saya teringatkan dialog dalam sebuah filem:

"Cut the crap please, lets get this thing off the ground!"

...

Recently I found myself again got bitten with indie-film bugs. Check this out:
http://www.outphace.com/df15.html

...

Fahad goes on a mission to Lebanon. He blogs out his travelogue here:
http://missionlebanon.blogspot.com

...

Ramadhan will pay us a visit in less than a week. Let's treat it with the best 'ibadah.

Approaching Ramadan - Imam Zaid Shakir

...

Musim luruh sudah pun kembali. Daun-daun bakal gugur ke bumi. Awan-awan mula meneduhi hari. Hujan 'kan singgah menemani diri, mungkin hari-hari!

Jadi marilah kita selalu berdoa... seperti yang diajarkan sini. Apa lagi?

This 9-minute feature is an acute dramatization that uses a collection of Hollywood clips from 1896-2000, that negatively depict Arabs, to demonstrate how badly the West has been brainwashed through fiction to fear and despise Arabs in real life.

Taken from here.

Well, that's about it. I need to get back to my revision.

...

Alhamdulillah sahabat-sahabat UCD (baru dan lama) dah pun mula kelas. New term.

Akan tiba - RCSI dan DBS.

Modesty gowns for female patients

Spotted on BBC today. A bit old though.

A gown designed for female Muslim patients who wish to preserve their modesty for religious reasons is being introduced to hospitals in Lancashire.

The £12 outfits - made in Yorkshire - cover the entire head, neck and body, leaving just a slot for the eyes. The burqua-style gowns come with trousers, two styles of head-dress and elasticated cuffs to prevent women's arms from being revealed.

They will be available to patients at in Chorley and Preston from November. The gowns were trialled at Royal Preston Hospital and proved so successful that a number of other NHS Trusts have also expressed an interest in offering them.

The gowns have been designed to comply with religious rules

Karen Jacob, linen services manager at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, came up with the idea.

She said: "I noticed a gap in the market and thought that it would be great if there was a gown that helped to preserve a patient's modesty."

The gowns are believed to be a world first - and TrusTECH, the NHS organisation which manages innovation for the North West NHS - has the patent.

It means the market for the gowns among the globe's billion-plus Muslims is immense.

Tim Meadows, customer service manager for Interweave, the West Yorkshire-based firm which makes the garments, believes the demand for the gowns could be huge.

"We think there is a large market out there," he says.

"We hope it will be a success. We have invested a lot of time and money."

What say you?

Seingat saya, hari pertama saya berpuasa di bulan Ramadhan adalah ketika saya masih berada di darjah 1. Hari pertama, rasa teramatlah kebulur. Dari pagi hingga petang bagaikan selamanya.

Bila di sekolah, ramai juga sahabat yang seangkatan, yang turut berlapar. Ada juga yang selalu mengusik - puasa yang yuk balik rumah buka periuk! Kalau dah tak tahan, masa solat asar meneguk air ketika berwudhuk, atau pun curi-curi ke kantin sekolah bila cikgu tiada untuk membeli kuih-muih.

Dalam kelas, cikgu-cikgu akan bertanya, puasa ke tak sebelum memulakan pengajaran. Masih segar lagi dalam fikiran saya - Ustaz Nordin yang selalu peringat semua supaya berpuasa - ia rukun Islam, dapat pahala, Allah suka, tanggungjawab sebagai orang Islam, amalan orang-orang terdahulu yang juga disyarakkan ke atas umat sekarang, serta macam-macam lagi huraian yang dimudahkan supaya kami yang hanyalah 7-8 tahun faham.

Akhirnya pada tahun itu saya hanya berpuasa 10 hari. Itu pun setelah diumpan oleh ayah. Bila tiba Syawal, semua sepupu duduk berkumpul sambil bercerita berapa hari puasa. Kemudian cerita ada upah ke tak. 10 hari berpuasa, saya dapat RM15. Back then, RM15 goes a long way, esp for a kid like me whose world so small! Tak tahu nak beli apa... yeah right - Kit cars like Tamiya, Legos, Enid Blyton's, Siri Hadi, Siri Salma have made its way back then. Akhirnya habis juga duit RM15 tuh.

Tahun-tahun seterusnya, alhamdulillah puasa cukup sehinggalah sekarang...

IMHO, memberi hadiah/upah/umpan is good untuk mendorong budak-budak buat benda baik. Sooner or later they will develop their own conscience - its good to do good deeds. Buat baik dibalas baik. Buat jahat jangan sekali. Dan kena ingat, ada good deeds tuh, ia fardhu dan tak boleh tinggal. Dosa kalau tinggal.

Antara contoh, ketika ke pasar malam bersama-sama. Passkan duit kepada anak, dan suruh dia dermakan kepada OKUs. Lepas itu beli lah aiskrim ke apa. Heh. It works for me, alhamdulillah.

Wallahua'lam.

Guinea ministers lose luxury cars

By Alhassan Sillah
BBC News, Conakry

All Guinea's government ministers and senior officials have had their luxury four-wheel drive vehicles confiscated on the orders of the president.

The politicians can now instead be seen driving small Toyota cars around the capital, Conakry.

The measure is aimed at narrowing the big gap between rich and poor in the West African nation, where most people live below the poverty line.

Some people welcomed the move in the hope it leads to more economic reforms.

Ministers and officials had to return their four-wheel drive cars to government garages on Tuesday.


I only hope the government will take similar decisions on other areas to put things straight
Conakry resident

"What the government has done is very important for the population, as we have been saying that these ministers have been riding in these expensive vehicles while we can't even afford a taxi fare," one man told me.

Another said it was a step in the right direction.

"I only hope the government will take similar decisions on other areas to put things straight," he said.

President Lansana Conte seized power in a bloodless coup in 1984 and has ruled with an iron fist ever since.

There have been two general strikes this year to protest about the high cost of living.

Inflation has hit 30%, and the availability of basic services like water and electricity are at best erratic.

Prices of basic goods, including the staple food rice, continue to soar, and most households can now hardly afford a meal a day.

...

Pick this,

http://www.geocities.com/sajak29/sumbangsih/00030.htm

add this,

Ray's Theme

then you can start creating a slideshow for Hari Pahlawan on Sony Vegas 6 or iMovie. Ya hala!

...

I found this Haiku on Deenport:

Black and white may be // a newspaper but it's not // the Way of Islam...

Gloomy

Our Lord! We have wronged ourselves. If You forgive us not, and bestow not upon us Your Mercy, we shall certainly be of the losers.

Surah Al-A'raf, verse 23.















...

Currently indulging:

http://ummahfilms.blogspot.com/2006/03/home-movie-style-vs-professional-style.html

...

New students are arriving end of this week. I just sighed - was in their shoe nearly 3 years ago.

I pray that they will have a good life here and do not get themselves hurt. Amin.

..

Yesterday I checked my mail, and that was the email of the day.

Dear All,

‘Junior Doctors’ will begin from tonight, Monday, September 4th on RTE One at 9.30pm. The programme, which was filmed in collaboration with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, will follow four interns in St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin. Episode three will feature students going for interviews in RCSI.

For more information, please e-mail communications@rcsi.ie

Kind Regards,
Communications Department.

Well, now we have another series. We had ER on far left, Scrubs on far right, and House, Casualty, Nip/Tuck, UKKL and all sorts medical melodrama with varying level of soap-style twist in between. Some of them are just tosh I think.

Unfortunately I missed the first episode. Will it up on the Torrentspy?

Merdeka

Alhamdulillah, dah 49 tahun usianya. Sama-sama kita mendoakan agar ia terus maju jaya dunia akhirat.

Yang belum lagi selesai, penjajahan budaya. Agama disimpan di dalam almari. hedonisme dirangkul rapi. Itulah suasana malam 31 Ogos.

Fahd Razy dengan karyanya... Tiga Cerpen Mini Malam? Maaf tak berapa ingat tajuknya. Kalau nak baca, kenalah beli dahulu Salju Jabal Musa. Dan baru-baru ini, GKLN pun telah menerbitkan Al-Andalus Menangis...

http://www.e-komuniti.com/esasterawan/1.asp?uid=33
http://gkln.blogspot.com

...

Suasana malam 31 Ogos saban tahun semakin membimbangkan... terutamanya di pusat-pusat bandar. Huh! Bayangkan kalau disergah Izrail ketika itu...

Saya fikir, golongan yang ingat hendaklah turun ke ground zero pada malam 31 Ogos dengan menyertai trip-trip atau xpdc dakwah, sudah ramai pihak yang menganjurkan, Pemuda PAS, PERKID, etc etc, atau pun ikutlah program-program yang diadakan di masjid, seperti di Masjid KLCC. Didik diri mengenal apa itu hedonisme dalam erti kata sebenar. Supaya hati takkan terdetik - eh best juga ya macam tu...


//Foto tahun lepas. Ustaz Masridzi, Ustaz ex-Ali Setan (Azmil Mustafa), dan Ridhuan Tee Abdullah.


//Foto tahun lepas. Rasanya sama saja ramainya tahun ini di taman KLCC, atau barangkali lebih meriah!


//Been there, done that - ishh bad connotation

Tiada faedahnya duduk menunggu countdown melainkan buang masa, duit parking, duit LRT, duit minyak dan menambah dosa. Kalau bawa anak-anak lagilah, bertambah selesa duduk dalam lembah loklak. Lebih baik duduk di rumah tidur awal, supaya esok boleh bangkit, subuh jemaah, dan terus ke Dataran Merdeka untuk menonton parade dengan anak-anak dan adik-adik.

Alternatif malam 31 Ogos...

Untuk malam merdeka, kalau bertenaga bolehlah ke xpdc dan trip-trip turun padang. Kalau tak larat, bolehlah duduk rumah solat sunat hajat ka... baca doa, mohon supaya negara makmur dunia akhirat.

Cari vcd-vcd sejarah seperti Leftenan Adnan, Bukit Kepong, Darah Satria dan banyak lagilah. Lebih santai sedikit dari menelaah buku teks sejarah sekolah.

Tidur awal untuk menyaksikan perarakan kebangsaan di pagi esoknya. Sekurang-kurangnya boleh kenal anggota-anggota badan kerajaan - dari FRU in full gear (active demos participants, beware) hinggalah ke Kastam Di Raja. Juga boleh melihat kereta kebal, kereta perisai, meriam, pelancar roket berganda, trak dan jip. Janganlah ignorant sangat.

Jadi sahabat-sahabat sekalian, janganlah jadi orang yang lupa. Bersamalah dengan orang yang sentiasa mengingatkan.

Malam 31 Ogos di Kuala Lumpur dihiasi seloka asmara 'uda dan dara'
http://www.harakahdaily.net/v06/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4039&Itemid=1

Irish media laid siege on Irish Muslim?

With an 'analysis' of the Quran presented to the public in a blatantly misleading way (Allah knows what their intentions are, but I can say to bs the masses), I can say Irish newspapers - yes, Irish Independent and Sunday Tribune, have laid their siege over Irish muslims.

I guess it is time to buy newspaper rather than depending on those free tabloids off the street everyday.

Sample this from Irish Independent:

To quote the Koran: unbelievers are enemies, and Jews the sons of pigs

Sunday August 27th 2006

EXPRESSING concern that moderate Muslims, instead of protesting about the radicals in their midst, are blaming US and British foreign policy for terrorist plots is not Islamophobia, nor is it an attack on the principles and beliefs of Islam.

It's a way of saying we are worried and that many of the things we see Muslims do around the world alarm and disturb us. We Irish are better at bashing one another than we are at hurting other people, and I'm sure Muslim Irishmen and women appreciate that.

All we want to do is talk things over. So far, however, moderate Muslims throughout the West have only wanted to talk about their sense of victimhood, and many seem to have gone into a state of denial about the ways in which the Islamic belief system can lead some people to espouse extremist views.

This needs to change. Just after the recent bomb plot in the UK was uncovered, a UK Muslim community leader was quoted as saying: "The reason young people are attracted to extremists is because . . . they are ignorant of what the Koran really says."

I don't doubt for a moment that his motive in saying this was sincere, but his statement encapsulates the problem with radical Islam better than he intended.

Here's the dilemma for moderate Muslims: the Koran really does say Muslims are to fight jihad until unbelief is destroyed, it really does say they should not make friends with unbelievers, it really does describe the Jews as the sons of apes and pigs. And to this day, mainstream Islam has not developed a form of interpretation that allows verses like these to be understood as relevant to the seventh century, but not to the 21st.

These are precisely the verses, backed up by Prophetic Traditions, which radicals use to lure young Muslims into terrorism.

Moderate Muslims - and there are many of them - have a responsibility to find a way past thisproblem.

We can offer advice, but we can't do it for them.

There is a long-standing convention in the interpretation of the Koran that early, tolerant verses can be abrogated by later, less tolerant ones. Thus, a verse revealed at the time Muhammad lived in Mecca (before he started to wage jihad) may be considered to have been rendered invalid by a verse from his Medinan period (when he fought battles and sent the first Muslim armies out on their campaigns of conquest).

In other words, the moderates don't have a leg to stand on if they try to argue this with the radicals. Not only that, but the radicals will often back up a jihad verse with traditions from the Prophet, which are sometimes more extreme. Nobody debates this publicly. No Muslim can challenge a single word of the Koran. To do so would be the ultimate blasphemy. It is the absolute word of God and unchangeable. Every attempt that has been made during the last century, not to challenge but simply to reinterpret the divine text has been met by imprisonment and the threat of execution.

The moderates simply dare not say that the verses condemning unbelievers or calling for a jihad against them are invalid. The radicals approach young Muslims who want to know what the Koran says, and there it is in black and white: "O Prophet! Urge the believers to slaughter . . . " (8:65) or, "Slay the polytheists wherever you find them!" (9:5) and so on through about 164 verses, every one of which is of later date than the ones preaching tolerance.

This is not going to go away. It has already been a problem for over a century, though it is now much more critical than ever. Non-Muslims really can do very little to change things. But I think it's time we did offer help to tolerant Muslims to take a long hard look at this problem.

Christian and Jewish scholars have struggled with this sort of problem for a long time now, and have achieved some great results.

If our Muslim friends would be willing to listen to their experiences and to learn from them, they could see off the radicals and help the next generation of believersto put jihad into the dustbin ofhistory.

It's a great challenge, but one we can all rise to together.

Daniel Easterman is the pseudonym of a Belfast-born former lecturer in Arabic,

Persian and Islamic Studies,

and he is also the author of numerous books and articles on these subjects

Daniel Easterman

Let me tell you something. People like him is the so-called 'non-conformist', 'bias-free', pseudo-intellectual, 'just' and the 'expert' on Islam. He or she is the only and may only the source about Islam. Somewhat a 'tailored' version. Subhanallah!

And this what the Irish newspaper and media are looking for.

What's next? Systematic cleansing of Irish Muslims? Maybe not, but it could be happening in near future.

...

Mata semakin kuyu melihatkan jam di dinding - 3.15 pagi! Letih dan penat dari baru pulang.

Hai, lepas ini, apa-apa camping, gathering Muslims semua jadi perhimpunan terrorists!

Lebih dahsyat lagi, entah-entah Ramadan nanti, no more doa qunut masa terawih. Pak Imam kena ancam. Sebab nanti mendoakan terrorists!

...

Surah Al-Qalam ada cerita menarik dari ayat 17-33. Jom baca...

Wallahua'lam.

Tukar lagu

Assalamualaikum.

Lama tak login, sampai tak terperasan yang telah terwipe out the whole template. Patut putih saja.

...

Teringat belasan tahun dulu, ketika kaset-kaset My Little Yellow Bus dimainkan tiap kali berjalan jauh. Sampai terngiang-ngiang. Cuma sekarang dah jumpa versi untuk muslim. Alternatif. Versi asal adalah lagu popular "Three blind mice".

Three good boys,
Three good boys,
See how they pray,
See how they pray.

They pray together in a very straight line;
And follow the Imam in perfect time;
They're three good boys.

Three good boys,
Three good boys,
See how they pray,
See how they pray.

They listen and pray without any noise and
Think about Allah and not their toys;
They're three good boys,
Three good boys.

Ibu bapalah yang menentukan macam mana nak bentuk anak. Ke mana tak tumpah kuah kalau tak ke nasi. Jadi kalau mak ayah kurang ambil berat, dihantarnya ke tadika montessori, kristian atau yang tak islamik. Menyanyilah "Joy To World, The Lord Has Come...." sambil si guru memainkan organ, sedangkan semasa kanak-kanaklah patutnya dididik supaya selalu berdoa, suka kisah-kisah nabi dan rasul, adab-adab dan sebagainya.

Salah didik, bila dewasa jadi puak-puak liberal, sekular dan free thinker. Silap-silap murtad terus, seperti yang hangat sekarang di tanah air. Na'uzibillah. Ingat, nanti kita akan ditanya kelak oleh Allah. Mereka pun boleh jadi backup bila kita duduk dalam kubur nanti.

Alhamdulillah semakin ramai ibu bapa yang faham... lama dah bercambah kesedaran, sampai ada yang tak muat tadika-tadika islam seperti PASTI, TASKA ABIM dan banyak lagi, untuk menampung penambahan bilangan kanak-kanak yang mendaftar dari tahun ke tahun.

Jadi bolehlah hantarkan mereka ke tadika islam sementara waktu dan tempat masih ada. PASTI, TASKA ABIM, dan banyak lagi. Jauh sikit pun tak apa, asalkan mereka selamat...

Nursery rhymes for kids
British Muslim Song
Permainan, Lagu & Puisi Kanak-kanak

Lain-lain sumber bolehlah google sendiri. Saya pun tak tercari.

Wallahua'lam.

Haru biru di sini dan di tanah air

Ireland 'a fundamentalist haven'

Ireland has become "a haven for fundamentalism", one of the country's leading Muslim leaders has warned.

Sheikh Dr Shaheed Satardien said there was an "ocean of extremism" spreading among Muslims throughout Ireland.

"Irish Muslim leaders are failing our young people who are embracing fundamentalism," he told the Sunday Tribune newspaper.

Leading Northern Ireland Muslim Abdul Al Jibouri said terrorism went totally against the beliefs of Islam.

"It is very hurtful when people start talking about Islam and Muslim terrorists," he told BBC Radio Ulster's Sunday Sequence programme.

"I have lived in Northern Ireland for many years and we had so many terrorists, but nobody said 'Catholic terrorists' or 'Protestant terrorists'."

He added: "Islam does not encourage people to go and blow people up - this is based on fundamentalists and the way they interpret the Koran.

"Terrorism and active terrorism is totally against Islam and I would be the first person to condemn it."

Read the rest...

Heck, Supreme Muslim Council of Ireland? Never heard of that. I suppose it is just a joke or something.

FYI, I hope it will enlighten all of us a bit.

Assalamualaikum

I pray this finds you all in the best of health and eemaan insha'Allah

Satardien, as I am sure you all have been following, is becoming more dangerous. The media are giving him too much time to talk rubbish. He needs to be discredited immediately. I even got a call today from Newstalk 106 and just questioned his credentials as someone who knows what is going on in the Muslim community.

One of Satardien's main points is lack of leadership, umbrella groups, etc and he is pushing his Supreme Muslim Council as the main body. I have drafted a quick letter below which I think would be a good idea to get around that. If ICCI, IFI, FOSIS, MAI, Cork Islamic Society, Limerick and all the other mosques and ISOCs can put their name to this letter, we can try and shut him up because who does he represent then?

Please check letter, call me for any amendments and if everyoen is agreed, can we try and get this in Irish Times for Wednesday? Means, really getting all signatures by tomorrow 12pm. Names plus organisation and position. Please forward to other mosques, organisations.

Please keep me in your duas

Fahad Ansari
(local chap from Galway, now based in London working for Islamic Human Rights Commission)

---attached letter---

Dear Editor:

The views of Dr Shaheed Satardien that there is an "ocean of extremism" spreading among Muslims throughout Ireland must be deeply questioned.

The Muslim community in Ireland has always enjoyed a very cordial relationship with the wider Irish society. Mosques such as the Islamic Cultural Centre in Clonskeagh and the Islamic Foundation Ireland have always opened their doors and invited the public in to explain the true teachings of Islam. Muslim youth societies throughout Ireland, such as the Federation of Student Islamic Societies in Ireland, have contributed significantly in the efforts to build bridges with the wider society organising joint fundraising events for local, national and international charities. Only this year, the Muslim Youth Society in NUIG was nominated for a Metro Eireann MAMA award for its excellent work over the past few years.

That Muslim youth are becoming more politicised is something that should be welcomed, not feared. By engaging in the political process and understanding how the system works, they will use the system to further their beliefs. At a time when more and more Irish youth are becoming disillusioned with the political process, we should welcome that some young Irish men and women are becoming increasingly aware of the process.

Therefore, it comes as a shock to hear Dr Satardien scaremongering that young Irish Muslims are turning to extremism, particularly after visiting the countries of their parents. We ask upon what evidence does Dr Satardien base these allegations apart from mere speculation and conjecture.

Dr Satardien speaks on behalf of the Supreme Muslim Council of Ireland, a self-lauding body established recently by individuals with no grassroots support within the Muslim community. We question who has given Dr Satardien or the Supreme Muslim Council a mandate to speak on our behalf and we ask that the media investigate his qualifications before portraying him as a "one of Ireland's most senior Islamic clerics." Scaremongerers like him are not what Ireland needs.

Yours,
Print-your-name-here

...


Tika melayari Utusan dan Berita Hairan, terdetik hati pula untuk mendalami FFM terkini yang hangat dengan isu menghina bahasa kebangsaan di khalayak penonton-penonton di studio, apatah lagi di seluruh yang duduk mengikuti FFM dari rumah - dahlah secara langsung... ishh ishh. Lagi haru, filem itu pula yang menang.... aisemen.

Setahu sayalah, tiada siapa yang pernah membuat gimik sarkas sedemikian rupa. Sungguhpun banyak lagi orang-orang kenamaan dan penting di tanah air yang taklah sefasih mana berbahasa melayu, tapi tidak pula sesuka hati berseloroh - 'Saya rasa seperti orang bodoh kalau saya bercakap dalam bahasa Melayu'.

Mungkin si dia cuba berjenaka riang, malangnya jenaka tidak menjadi. Bahkan, menikam gegendang telinga sesiapa saja yang mendengarnya termasuk pak menteri yang menjadi tetamu pada malam FFM tersebut. Alahai...

Ada laju saja menyelarnya sebagai kurang ajar dan biadap. Tak reti bahasa. Memang patut. Seeloknya orang yang tidak tahu beradab, duduk diam-diam saja. Bila bibir mula bergerak hendak berkata-kata, wajib berfikir dahulu apa-apa yang hendak diutarakan. Cakap lepas, bawa lebih banyak dari mudarat dari faedah, bukankah begitu?

Alahai... dia baru saja berusia 20 tahun. Masih banyak yang perlu dipelajari. Termasuklah cara-cara beradab.

Lagi satu, bila baca coretan-coretan orang tentang filem Gubra, ada yang kritik filem ikut ilmu filem. Tapi jika filem tersebut memang dah menyuburi benda-benda terlarang, relevankah ilmu filem? Kalau akar dah lari, usah berharap yang lainnya tulus mulus!

...

Steadicam memang menjulingkan mata... rasa nak beli / buat satu!

http://www.tiffen.com/userimages/steadicam_merlin_demo_med.mov

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~johnny/steadycam

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~johnny/steadycam/girl3.mov


...

Walaupun sudah ada gencatan senjata, saya fikir ia tidak akan bertahan lama. Bukannya saya sokong perang ke apa, cuma bila melihatkan rekod-rekod tentera Zionis yang sememang tidak bersih. Allah dan nabi kita dah sebut dulu-dulu lagi. Jadi, memang tak boleh percaya. Askar UN? Merely pawns. I bet the another puppet will be installed there. Same old same old.

Sekarang risau mengenangkan sahabat-sahabat di sana. Masih adakah mereka?

Saya doakan agar hospital yang pernah kami lawati dahulu di Tripoli - sampaikan ada 3-4 tingkat di bawah tanah untuk perlindungan, masih teguh walaupun bom-bom menghujani bumi Lubnan. Amin.

Saya doakan agar sahabat yang menumpangkan kami dari tapak FIMA Summer Camp ke kota Tripoli masih bernafas. Juga rakan-rakan di IMAL, yang barangkali sudah pun mula mengatur langkah untuk misi bantuan kecemasan. Amin.

Ya Allah selamatkanlah... Amin.

...

Copy dan paste dari sini.

Rules for reporting on the war

Rule #1. The “who started it?” rule. It is always the Arabs who attack first, and always Israel that retaliates in self defense. The current Israeli assault on Gaza is attributed to the capture (called a kidnapping) of corporal Gilad Shalit, by a group of Palestinians who tunnelled under the border and attacked an Israeli watchtower. But the day before Shalit’s capture, Israeli forces crossed into Gaza and captured (that’s captured, not kidnapped) a Palestinian doctor and his brother. Israel has kidnapped 64 Hamas members, including cabinet ministers, mayors and legislators. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Rule #2. The terrorism rule. When Arabs kill Israelis, it’s called terrorism.

Rule #3. The self defense rule. When Israelis kill Arabs, it’s called self defense.

Rule # 4. The reaction of the international community rule. When Israel kills too many civilians all at once, the West calls for restraint. Israel pledges it will take care to limit civilian casualties, then goes about its merry way, blasting apart civilians, blaming the deaths on the militants. “We had to take out the civilians. They were in the way. But we didn’t mean to.”

Rule # 5. The kidnapping rule. Palestinians do not have the right to capture Israeli soldiers, not even a limited number, not even one or two.

Rule # 6. The war on terrorism rule. Israel has the right to capture as many Arabs as it wants. There is no limit. Israel doesn’t kidnap Arabs, it arrests them. This creates the impression of legality, and that Israel is simply carrying out a police action. Legitimate authority arrests “suspects” and “terrorists.” Criminals kidnap.

Rule # 7. The David vs. Goliath rule. When you say Israel, never say “supported by the US and Britain.”

Rule # 8. The destablizer rule. When you say Hezbollah, always add “supported by Iran and Syria.” Iran and Syria are a “destabilizing” force in the region, in the same manner Venezuela is a destabilizing force in Latin America. They resist the hegemony of the US and its subalterns. That’s why they’re destabilizing.

Rule # 9. Things we don’t mention rule. Don’t mention the occupied territories, ignored UN resolutions, or violations of the Geneva Conventions.

Rule # 10. Amplify the voice of the Israelis and minimize the voice of the Arabs. Let Israelis speak out as much as possible, so they can explain rules one through nine.

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Two freebies for today. Right click and save link/file as...

http://www.gundala.com/kopratasakekasih.mp3

http://www.gundala.com/gelombangkeadilan.mp3

Propaganda

http://www.aish.com/movies/haaretz/Lebanon.asp

I feel like punching my own flat panel screen.

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A Girl called Terrorism

Little girl covered in dust
pulled from the rubble,
as limp and lifeless
as the doll you played with yesterday,
now mangled and bleeding,
you do not know who killed you
or why you were killed.
And even though I know
that you died shahid
and that your spirit
is in the Garden,
where one day you will be reunited
with the ones you loved,
with the ones who loved you,
dwelling there in peace for ever,
in the mean time I pray:
may Allah curse the ones
who helped to kill you
– the ones
who financed the bomb,
who made the bomb,
who transported the bomb,
who loaded the bomb,
who fired the bomb,
that killed you
and especially the cowards
who say that they were only
making war on terrorism.
– and may Allah give victory to the mu'minun.

Hajj Ahmad Thomson

Post 7-7 Syndrome - God Save the Deen

A close friend of mine wrote this article. Lengthy. He has a point though. Hmmm... things have gone quite shaky here, and even more back home. You just need to keep your eyes wide open...

Post 7-7 Syndrome - God Save the Deen

Fahad Ansari

Just over ten years ago, British Muslims flooded into Bosnia to assist the local Muslim population fight for their survival against the Serbs who were carrying out a genocide sanctioned by the silence of a watching world. The jihad brought together Muslims from all walks of life who were simply not prepared to stand by and allow their fellow Muslims to be butchered out of existence. Those who could not travel to fight helped in other ways such as fund-raising, public awareness events and demonstrations. This collective effort by British Muslims was only part of the global Muslim effort to protect the Bosnian Muslims which was instrumental in ending the genocide. Western intervention came very late and only after it was apparent that that the Bosnian Muslims were gaining the upper hand. Former US President Bill Clinton himself writes in his autobiography that it was only the fear of the establishment of an Islamic state in the heart of Europe which prompted Western intervention.

Just over a decade on, the plight of Muslims has escalated on a monumental scale. On an international level, Muslims continue to be subjected to barbaric oppression in places like Chechnya and Kashmir. Palestine has entered her 59^th year of occupation. Afghanistan and Iraq have joined her. Tens of thousands of innocent Muslims continue to languish without charge in Guantanamo Bay, Bagram airbase, Abu Ghraib, Diego Garcia and ghost prisons throughout the world. Not much change then in terms of the nature of the threat we face.

What has changed however is the attitude of Muslims in the West.

Since the events of 9-11, there has been a relentless campaign launched to reform Islam to transform it into something more palatable to Western society. The vision is a secular and cultural Islam at peace with the world through her submission to her oppressors rather than to Allah; an Islam devoid of jihad, shari’ah and khilafah – the very things we are commanded by Allah to implement in order to establish Allah’s deen on this earth. Detailed studies such as that of the RAND Corporation in the US outline the means towards achieving this goal. A 2003 report by RAND entitled Civil Democratic Islam categorises Muslims into four categories: fundamentalists, traditionalists, modernists and secularists. Its recommendations include

- financially supporting and promoting the modernists and their viewpoints

- supporting the traditionalists against the fundamentalists

- promoting Sufism

- challenging the fundamentalists’ interpretation of Islam, revealing their links to jihad groups, demonstrating their inability to rule, portraying them as terrorists and encouraging journalists to dig up dirt on them

- encouraging division among the fundamentalists

- selectively supporting the secularists and discouraging the secularist alliance with anti-US forces on such grounds as nationalism and leftist ideology

A joint Home Office and Foreign Office document from 2004, Young Muslims and Extremism, indicated that a similar strategy was at play in Britain. Codenamed ‘Operation Contest’, the document speaks of measures through which government endorsements could be used to promote certain elements within the Muslim community such as supporting “moderate” Islamic media outlets, promoting Muslim organisations, individuals and forums that are seen as government friendly, and encouraging “moderate” Muslims to challenge the “extremists”.

One is not surprised by such intricate plots by our enemies. They have been taking place in vain for over 1400 years. The sheep should not look to the wolf for protection. What is more concerning is the change in attitude of the shephards of the Ummah, those entrusted with our guidance and protection, our own Muslim leaders and imams. It seems that the events of 9-11, and more recently 7-7, have paralysed these people and forced them to implement the RAND and Operation Contest recommendations in record time. The very groups and individuals named in the latter document are those we see today at the forefront of this attempt to reform Islam.

Individuals who for years rallied the masses to stand up for justice and support mujahideen groups around the world have suddenly not only become embarrassingly silent but have found themselves condemning armed jihad, portraying mujahideen as terrorists and extremists who follow a distorted version of Islam. Our greatest error has been our silence while the world and these individuals have equated martyrdom operations in Palestine and other occupied lands with acts of terrorism in London, operations which are completely different in nature; one is legitimate resistance against a brutal military occupation, the latter is blatant terrorism. Equating the two only betrays our brothers and sisters who have no other option but to fight or face extermination.

Post 7-7 syndrome has also infected imams who themselves took part in violent international jihad in places like Afghanistan against the Soviets and in Kashmir against Indian occupation, and who now call on Muslims to abandon this noble path and to focus instead on integration. The illness has also spread to popular speakers from Islamic Movements who today criticize Islamist parties and governance by shari’ah and instead promote a reformation within Islam. Even student and youth movements which consistently campaigned for Palestine and Iraq have suddenly lost their tongues in a bid to be seen as “moderate”.

Much of this has occurred in the context of the Radical Middle Way Project, a speakers tour funded by the Foreign Office through the Home Office with the objective of fighting extremism or in other words, pacifying Muslims. One example of how this Project is being used to turn people away from struggling for justice will suffice. A few months ago, a sister I know, who is very active in campaigning against injustices at home and abroad, was bought tickets by her friends to attend three lectures by a leading speaker of the Radical Middle Way Project. Her friend told her they believed she was becoming too “extreme”. I would describe this sister as many things – active, passionate, radical – but extreme, hardly. If it’s because of her belief in jihad, shari’ah and khilafah that she is extreme, then the vast majority of Muslims are extremists, and I will proudly add my name to that list.

Shockingly, while the government has repeatedly harped on about the need for British Imams, it is funding this roadshow of scholars flown in from places as diverse as US, Canada, Yemen and Mauritania. One should not question the intention of the scholars themselves but it does seem that they have allowed themselves to become pawns of the government, being manipulated by it to complete its agenda. The roadshow has served as a platform to bash so-called Wahhabi groups in the most cynical manner, as we begin to divide ourselves even more upon the lines our enemies have drawn for us. In doing so, these speakers ironically take on the very characteristics they so vehemently attack.

Running alongside all this has been the pop-nasheed culture, which sister Yvonne Ridley has already spoken volumes about so I will not delve too deeply. Suffice it to say that the culture is symbolic of the inferiority complex we suffer, wishing to be more Roman than the Romans themselves, entertaining ourselves for the sake of entertainment. The end result of all this has been a dilution of the deen of Allah, a weak and pacified Islam willing to accept the status quo in which Muslims are oppressed and subjugated; an Islam in which Muslims are content to sing and sway the night away to nasheeds, to concentrate on bettering their life in the West and to condemn the actions of their brothers and sisters who courageously resist occupation and oppression with whatever they have. Even making dua for them now has become a crime – how long before we are told by our imams not to even pray for the mujahideen?

One of the greatest military general the world has known, Salahudeen Ayubi, the liberator of al-Quds, was once asked why he didn’t smile. He answered back that how could he smile while he knowing that Masjid al-Aqsa, remained under Crusader occupation. How far removed are we from this attitude today. England’s performance in the World Cup and David Beckham’s resignation draw more tears from our eyes than the daily butchering of our brothers and sisters. Had this attitude been present 10 years ago, Bosnia and its people would have been completely exterminated.

In all this darkness, there is a bright light. For you see, one of the characteristics of Islam is that the more you push it down, the higher it rises. Muslims in Britain are now being stopped and searched, raided, arrested and humiliated and shot in a fraction of the manner their brothers and sisters around the world are treated. This has developed a real sense of empathy with the plight of the Ummah. A rapidly increasing number of Muslim youth are now realising that no matter how hard they compromise their deen to blend in with the wider society, when things go sour, they will be treated with suspicion. This is not scaremongering but realism. The more the government condemns concepts of shari’ah, khilafah and jihad, the more Muslims are willing to dedicate their lives to establishing these things. The more Muslims are arrested, the more Muslims align themselves with the terror suspects. A recent Times poll stated that the percentage equivalent of 400,000 Muslims in Britain supported violent jihad around the world. One can only attribute this surprisingly low percentage to a fear of being labeled “extremist”. It must be understood that this violent jihad is something noble, a just war against injustice and tyranny, of no threat whatsoever to British society and something not only justified but encouraged by international law. Violent jihad in Palestine, Iraq, Chechnya, Kashmir and elsewhere is not equivalent to the events of 7-7 which have been absolutely condemned by all.

As an antidote to post-7-7 syndrome, British Muslims themselves organized their own roadshow (Roles and Responsibilities of Muslims in Britain) earlier this year in which scholars, community leaders and activists who have grassroots support in their communities spoke. This wasn’t about foreign imams telling British Muslims how to behave in Britain; this was about British imams, born, raised and resident in this country, speaking to British Muslims. Despite the record turn-outs for the tour, no support or even sign of recognition was forthcoming from the government as in addition to condemning terrorism, Muslims were told not to forget about Palestine, to continue to be active and to stand up for justice, irrespective of the consequences. The masses heard the message and are sure to spread it.

Slowly but steadily, more and more Muslims are waking up with the realisation that it is not terrorism or extremism that is being targeted but Islam itself. Our enemies will continue to attempt to divide us and to reform Islam as they have done throughout the centuries. But we must always bear in mind our Lord’s words that “they plot, but Allah also plotteth; and Allah is the best of plotters” (Surah al-Anfal; 30)

God save the Deen.

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Akhir-akhir ini, bumi yang pernah kujejak dibantai... I reckon I have to open up that book (From Beirut to Jerusalem) to get the 'feel'.

SN Abdullah Hussain, dah pun siap karyanya yang terbaru - Dan Malam, Apabila Ia Berlalu. Imam, telah menghilang entah ke mana, biasalah karya elok sudah pasti direbut orang. Takpa, boleh beli lagi.... Jika tak dek embargo, mungkin akhir bulan ini dua-dua boleh tiba di sini. Have patience bro.

Hmmm... learnt a new sifir quite a while ago. If you love, then you must pray/du'a. Then let Allah decides. Of course it has to be rigged with utmost effort... Alhamdulillah, yup, it makes a perfect sense to me. Each and everytime it bounces in your mind, then you ought, to pray... for steadfastness, vigilance, victory, perserverance, etc etc and in the best of health and iman to our dear Rasulullah, the ulamas, ayah dan ibu and the list goes as it suits you. Errr... what I am talking about? I think I'm not getting enough sleep...