Why they hate us........

How many Muslims has the U.S. killed in the past 30 years?

Tom Friedman had an especially fatuous column in Sunday's New York Times, which is saying something given his well-established capacity for smug self-assurance. According to Friedman, the big challenge we face in the Arab and Islamic world is "the Narrative" -- his patronizing term for Muslim views about America's supposedly negative role in the region. If Muslims weren't so irrational, he thinks, they would recognize that "U.S. foreign policy has been largely dedicated to rescuing Muslims or trying to help free them from tyranny." He concedes that we made a few mistakes here and there (such as at Abu Ghraib), but the real problem is all those anti-American fairy tales that Muslims tell each other to avoid taking responsibility for their own actions.

I heard a different take on this subject at a recent conference on U.S. relations with the Islamic world. In addition to hearing a diverse set of views from different Islamic countries, one of the other participants (a prominent English journalist) put it quite simply. "If the United States wants to improve its image in the Islamic world," he said, "it should stop killing Muslims."

Snip

Contrary to what Friedman thinks, our real problem isn't a fictitious Muslim "narrative" about America's role in the region; it is mostly the actual things we have been doing in recent years. To say that in no way justifies anti-American terrorism or absolves other societies of responsibility for their own mistakes or misdeeds. But the self-righteousness on display in Friedman's op-ed isn't just simplistic; it is actively harmful. Why? Because whitewashing our own misconduct makes it harder for Americans to figure out why their country is so unpopular and makes us less likely to consider different (and more effective) approaches...>>>>

Enough Joe the Plumber;

McClatchy carries one of the realities further in this article I just caught. The subject title above is the beginning of theirs and it finishes with this: here's to Kareem the Soldier

Khan was a 20-year-old soldier from Manahawkin, N.J., who wanted to enlist in the Army from the time he was 10. He was an all-American boy who visited Disney World after he completed his training at Fort Benning, Ga., and made his comrades in Iraq watch "Saving Private Ryan" every week.

Kareem was brought up, as most know, by Colin Powell, on Sunday on Meet The Press. When he started telling how he had seen a picture, a picture of a Mother at her sons grave stone, a gravestone that then told everyone that this was an American 'Goldstar Mother', a 'Goldstar Mother' who had lost her American Soldier Son while he served this Country, America, in it's now Volunteer Military!


This is that picture Powell first saw:





That I know many have seen, but should be shone over and over, as there are others also, because as Powell started to describe the photo you could see this always a Soldier start to choke up but caught himself and continued, and as you read his eyes he continued with true conviction of his feelings about this Country and what it stands for, or should, but has been torn apart from it's beliefs and morality!

"He was an American soldier first," said his father, Feroze Khan. "But he also looked at fighting in this war as fighting for his faith. He was fighting radicalism."

These picture's could have been replaced with many pictures, not only of the soldier but of the 'Goldstar Mother'. Pictures of African-American mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons or daughters! Pictures of Hispanic, legal and illegal, mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons or daughters! Pictures of White European decent mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons or daughters! Pictures of Other Nationalities and Immigrants from many countries around this planet mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons or daughters! Pictures of the tens of thousands of mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons and daughters of all the conflicts, right or wrong, showing all the faces of differing Nationalities, Skin Color, Different Religious Beliefs, Different Political Ideologies, Differing Life Circumstances................................................!

Khan, a child of immigrant parents from Trinidad, was 14 when the Sept. 11 attacks happened. Feroze Khan said he remembered his son watching in stunned silence: "I could tell that inside a lot of things were going through his head."

One Sunday morning, his son sent an instant message: "Hey Dad. Are you there?" Feroze Khan was out, and he saw the message when he returned.

A few hours later, his ex-wife called. Soldiers had knocked on her door in Maryland. Their only child was dead.

Different stories from all mentioned above, but with the same outcome, their son or daughter had died serving their country!

"He was an American," Powell said.

He was a Muslim serving his Country with Honor giving, as his family has, Much More than the greater majority of the Country are willing to give while some of them would slander to an extreme his Religious Beliefs!!

Sparking Real Religious Dialog?

This ought to really raise the ire of condemnation within the Fundamentalist Christian Community,
especially as practiced in the U.S..

Dialog already started

at site of this report, Story of Jesus Through Iranian Eyes

New Movie By Iranian Filmmaker Tells Story of Christianity From Muslim Perspective

You can also view their video report here.

A new movie in Iran depicts the life of Jesus from an Islamic perspective. "The Messiah," which some consider as Iran's answer to Mel Gibson's "Passion of the Christ," won an award at Rome's Religion Today Film Festival, for generating interfaith dialogue. The movie will be adapted into a television series, shown on Iranian TV later this year. Filmmaker Nader Talebzadeh spoke to ABC's Lara Setrakian in Tehran.

The fundamentalist christians I'm speaking of are the ones who have all the answers about what others practice
but don't bother reading about, and especially studying, other religious ideologies.

They'll pick and choose little
snippets, of those ideologies, to fit their desired rethoric.

They do the same within their own personal religious
rethoric, picking the teachings and sins they want to follow in their self constructed lifestyles, throwing out those that clash
with their personal wants and desires, than when guilt finally hits, much more often caught in their own hypocrisy,
they say they are "Born Again, Thus Saved!", simple as that.

"We are talking about the same beautiful man, the same beautiful prophet, the same divine person sent from heaven.
In the Koran, it emphasizes maybe three main points: about the birth, about the fact that he was not the son of God, and then, that he was not crucified.
The rest is [the same] Jesus ... the sermons, and the miracles, and the political situation."

The ones who don't except 'choice' as a womens right, as to what she does if confronted with making that choice and as to her own
religious beliefs, but many wanting their own right to 'choice' as to the number of weapons they might own,
and the full range of the manufactured small arms, no questions asked.
And readily except a societies right to sentence to death those covicted of major crimes.

"The virgin birth was the same. The difference in the Koran, God says Jesus was saved.
Instead of having him hung and crucified, the person who betrayed Jesus was crucified.
This is how the Koran sees it, through the Gospel of Barnabas."

The ones who readily start the drums of Wars of Choice beating, louder and louder, as they raise the rethoric level with
the religious tones of exceptance by 'God' that this is what he/she wants, the choice of! Destroying people and their countries to bring them 'Freedom',
'Democracy', and the 'Righteous View of Their Religion'!

"Yes, two endings. I thought, the Christians, when they see it, it'll be important for them.
{In the Koran} God says, emphatically, he was not crucified. Somebody was crucified in his stead.
In the Gospel of Barnabas, there are explications of this. The majority of {Muslims} say the one who betrayed Jesus {was crucified}."

Also the ones who speak 'Tolerance' but practice 'Intolerance' with a vengence!

"Well, those are not Muslims. They're murderers. First and foremost, they're murderers, and they dress as Muslims.
Today, we have that problem. There is an evil strain in those people. They're, first, evil, and then they find a religion to address that evil,
or to explain it, or as an excuse. But that's a minority that is aggrandized, and it's elaborated — it's constant.
So, when you hear the word "Islam," you get a shock. Every time you hear "Islam," you get a little shock. What we lack is communication."

We were almost finished filming when Mel Gibson started shooting.
I saw the film, and it's the first time the Gospel of John has ever been depicted. It was nice. But it was the wrong story.
In my film, I respect that common belief with all the good intentions the Christians have ... according to what Islam says.
Yet, Jesus, at the night of the last supper, ascends to heaven [without being crucified]. A beautiful man, a beautiful prophet.
Why should he be bloodied that way?

"Many thought this film is a good step for serious inter-religious dialogue.
Many of them liked it — seeing the Koran-based ending. And I was very happy that the practicing Christians were very happy with the film.
I have never found one case among practicing Christians who are offended [by the movie].
American Christians, I respect them very much. I think these Christians, the born-again Christians, especially,
are a very interesting group that Iran is not aware of, because a whole generation of Iranians haven't been able to travel to America.
And those who do move to America, stay in America. So, how to create serious communication, not at the political, but at the religious level?
I thought this would be a shortcut."

If you haven't studied others religious beliefs, especially as to Islam,
go over and read the rest, it's an interesting interview.

And who knows, maybe it might prompt many to
study more about the main religious beliefs of the people in which we waged Wars on and occupy their land,
you might also want to learn more about their, religions, history and beliefs outside of the religious window thats always open.

Remember though, the bible and koran, were written by men about the facts of the prophets, or son of god as is the new testiment, and not
by those worshipped.

You see, anyone following an Extreme Religious Fundamentalists Ideology, are no differant than those of the other Extreme Fundamentalist Religious Ideologies, be they christian, muslim, jewish, {why don't we ever hear about buddhist invading others under an umbrella of 'God' or 'Budda'?}or any other religious ideology!

A Land Called Paradise

News Crawl 2-05-07

Vietnam unveils liberal policy on religion

HANOI - To be religious is now officially welcomed in Vietnam.

Yesterday, the ruling communist regime released a White Paper explaining a new liberal policy towards religion.

It marked the first time the communist government has published a formal document setting forth its stance towards the nation's 20 million religious believers.

For full text of the White Paper on Religion and Religious Policy in Vietnam, click title link


**********

Vietnam Expands Protection for People with HIV

Richard Knox, NPR
Sister Tue Linh and an AIDS orphan at the Mai Hoa AIDS Center in Cu Chi, about an hour outside Ho Chi Minh City.

A garden at the Mai Hoa AIDS Center. Until recently the center was a hospice where homeless people with AIDS died. Now it's a treatment center where nearly all patients return to health.

Morning Edition, February 5, 2007 · Vietnam is embarking on a campaign to end discrimination against people with AIDS and HIV. A new law will give new rights and protections to people with HIV, and the country is expanding the number of people getting treatment for AIDS.
About 6,500 people currently are receiving antiretroviral drugs. That's about one-quarter of the 25,000 Vietnamese that are estimated to need AIDS treatment now.

You Can Read The Rest and Listen To Report At Title Link

**********

New Pentagon Numbers Raise Health Care Worries

All Things Considered, February 4, 2007 · Last month, Harvard professor Linda Bilmes presented a paper at a meeting of social scientists about the cost of treating injured soldiers. She reported that 50,000 American troops had been wounded in Afghanistan and Iraq.
A few days later she got a call from a senior Pentagon official.
"The assistant secretary for Health of the DOD phoned me up asked me where I had found the numbers, and I faxed him his own Web site and that was the last I heard from them," Bilmes says.
Now both the Pentagon and the Department of Veterans Affairs have changed the number of wounded on their Web sites.

You Can Read Report And Listen To At Title Link


**********

The speech that made the U.S hate Saddam

This speech was delivered by Saddam Hussein to the Amman Summitt meeting on Feb. 24, 1990. Present were the heads of state of the key Arab allies of the United States: the president of Egypt and the kings of Jordan and Saudi Arabia. The president of Syria was also present. In its sweeping proposals for Arab unity against U.S.-Israeli domination, it was a blunt challenge to imperialism. It is this speech that was the flash point of the U.S.-U.N. aggression, not the Kuwait crisis which was engineered in response.

You Can Read The Speach At Title Link

'The Faith Club'

Religion and True Religious Teachings have nothing to do with what has been going on in this World. Niether does the use of false religious idelogies Justify the destructive actions of us human's on our fellow human. Man uses religion as one of our means to gaining the most nonreligious goals, power, wealth, control. So let the moderate voices of those who carry and give life to man be heard as they struggle to find their own answers and direction and as they find the Common Ground that has always existed.

What is 'The Faith Club'
Three very intelligent young ladies accidently joining the ranks of 'The Focus Groups' finding the knowledge about each others beliefs and ideologies behind those beliefs, finding common ground and knowledge!

These are the voices that should be heard, not only here but in the other regions of the World, especially the Middle East.

There are already many Moderate Voices within those regions but they are kept silent by the radicalism found on all sides.



Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver, Priscilla Warner: "The Faith Club" on the Diane Rehm NPR Show 12-19-06

Three mothers, one a Muslim, one a Jew, and the other a Christian, search for understanding about their religions.

Ranya Idliby, author

Suzanne Oliver, author

Priscilla Warner, author

Real Audio
Windows Media
If you missed this listen to it now, you might just learn something as they did.

Who Are They:


The Faith Club

ABOUT THE BOOK

“Welcome to the Faith Club. We’re three mothers from three faiths—Islam, Christianity, and Judaism—who got together to write a picture book for our children that would highlight the connections between our religions. But no sooner had we started talking about our beliefs and how to explain them to our children than our differences led to misunderstandings. Our project nearly fell apart.”

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Start A Faith Club

Authors Blog

The Book
The Faith Club: A Muslim, A Christian, A Jew-- Three Women Search for Understanding

There are many other helpful links at their site, once again, The Faith Club

There are a number of people, from all sides, especially in The Middle East, that are talking to each other, interacting with each other, wanting to live peaceful lives. Many of us know many of them as we try and work with them and keep their plight in the forefront, but like them we are now just considered 'Focus Groups' not to be listened to. Trouble is all these 'Focus Groups' have found, Sadly, we're very often Right as to our beliefs and our knowledge, especially when brought together collectively and voiced as one voice. The only way to Strength is in Greater Numbers with a Louder Voice to be heard over the voices of the past Ideologies of Fascism-Refined to modern thought/propaganda, the Extremism of the Radical Right or the Left, the Extremism of the Ideologies of Fundamentalism, the Re-Writing of Religious Ideologies to fit the Minority Groups that Preach Them!

Only by the people coming together can these destructive forces be brought to reign and some sense of stability be brought forward, saving lives and senses!