February 2008

His name is Ahmad al-Safawi. He’s an Egyptian, and we have successfully brainwashed him into joining the monstrosity affectionately known as the blogosphere. Head over to his blog and give him a warm welcome!

I expect we’ll disagree on numerous things but we’ll certainly have fun doing it. Right Ahmad?

“No, the Eskimos did! No wait, you started it first! Aaarrgghhh!”

I almost died with laughter when I saw this cartoon. Hilarious and pure genius! Can’t we all just get along? Why not?

Come on Danes and Jews, we promise to stop but only if you do so first. Cool? Seriously, because if you don’t, I’m telling the UN. Oh and I’m also going to boycott Wikipedia (which is controlled by Zionist CrUSAders in case you didn’t know).

This is a very, very important and serious issue. Forget everything else. Even Kawthar agrees.

Interesting points of view.

Like I said, the 2008 Olympics are already tainted. Plus, China’s “no strings attached” investment policy isn’t exactly nice. It benefits African governments but does no real favors to the people themselves. We Africans should investment serious time and effort in understanding China’s intentions towards our continent.

Due to Africa’s lack of understanding of the character and real intentions of China, its relationship with the emerging Asian giant remains largely unbalanced and unfavourable to the interests of the African people.

Right on.

Here’s the news in case you don’t know what I’m talking about. Read the whole thing (translated from Arabic to English by the wonderful Amira of GlobalVoicesOnline). I’m highlighting in bold the phrases which I think are ridiculous:

… To the attention of Maktoob’s administrators and the blogging community,

The Arab Bloggers Union has been following with great sorrow the emergence of some offensive blogs

… And because we believe that Maktoob is a pure Arab blogging site, those registered on it should adhere to our ethics and values

… and because the Arab Bloggers Union is a home for every blogger and a line of defense for the rights of bloggers and their opinions, supporting the freedom of belief and opinion, and differences which are constructive, we urge Maktoob to delete any blog which exceeds the limits of opinion and belief by trespassing on God, the Prophets, religions, religious books, morality and values.

I love how they say “Maktoob is a pure Arab blogging site” and then “the Arab Bloggers Union is a home for every blogger”.

First of all, who formed and selected the leadership of this so-called Arab Bloggers “Union”? Were they even elected? My guess is they did the usual: got a bunch of people together, put a gigantic, seemingly glamorous title on their foreheads and started dictating orders as if they represent those who didn’t even choose them.

Secondly, can’t they elaborate more on what exactly constitutes exceeding the “limits of opinion and belief”. Who gets to decide that? Did they bring people together to democratically agree on what the phrase specifically means? It can mean anything.

Maktoob has the right to offer their services and blogging platform based on whatever term of conditions they want whether we like them or not. Fine. However it’s not fine when a so-called Arab Bloggers Union fool themselves into believing they represent us when they just don’t.

I may be generalizing but I’ve come across discussions in the blogosphere in which some Muslims accuse their critics of being Islamophobic and on the other hand, some Jews accuse their critics of being anti-Semitic when in fact those specific critics (whose views I’m very familiar with) are neither the former nor latter.

In such cases, I find that those labels and accusations are simply hurled to silence the other. In a post-9/11 world it has become rather fashionable for too many Muslims to scream “Islamophobia” instead of dealing with the issues head-on. I am not in favor of that attitude.

That being said, of course there are certainly cases in which matters are very evident and can’t be left to mere interpretation. I, like many of you I’m sure, have come across critics who are indeed passionately hateful towards Jews and venomously hostile towards Muslims, and I can’t help but notice that in many ways “anti-Semitism” and “Islamophobia” are two different sides of the very same coin.

Plain White T’s - Hey there Delilah Khalilah. Enjoy!

So true. Although I must say I have greatly improved.

Have a good one people! And don’t get too excited. You might end up being caught by the religious police.

Ahahahahaha! It’s true!

Check out AK’s post for more. Like I said, the coming Beijing 2008 Olympic Games are already too tainted.

Seriously, let’s move the games to Taiwan.

Remember Hanan al-Turk’s cute hangout spot? Well now she has more to say:

She said she doesn’t allow unveiled women into her salon because she would be aiding them to sin: “Unveiled women coming out of my beauty center will arouse men and I can’t be part of that.”

It’s one thing when chauvinist bearded men blame a raped a women for getting raped because she was dressed up in sexy clothes. However, it’s another thing completely when a woman gets brainwashed with that kind of garbage and agrees with it. Next week she’ll probably tell us she’s also a feminist.

Excuse me while I go and bang my head on a wall.

(hat-tip: Sandmonkey)

Ah, I love blogging.

Telling me I can’t talk to so and so will just make me even more curious. And so here we are, living in the wonderful age of people-powered new media, interacting and reading each others’ words.

Hell, at one point I was even corresponding with an American soldier based in Iraq. Being able to talk to her directly was enjoyable and simply fascinating.

10 years from now, we’ll probably have Star Trek holograms and virtual reality instead of written comments.

There are fears he might be being tortured. Wonderful huh? A guy so polite and peaceful rots in jail for simply wanting to see his country progress, while bearded intolerant idiots who preach hate and violence are freely allowed to do what they do best.

Let’s celebrate.

Awww… how touching. He must be learning that trick from Hillary’s advisers.

February 06, 2008 (KHARTOUM) — Sudan’s top military official broke down in tears at the opening of a conference by the ‘martyr’s organization’.

Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein recounted the sacrifices of martyrs since the 1989 coup that brought President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir to power.

Martyrs huh? You mean the friends and relatives you dragged out of their families’ homes and shipped off to die for some “holy” cause preached by the beloved al-Turabi right?

Raaaight. Because if the cause was so holy like Turabi kept telling us it was, you’d have all sent your own children to die for it instead. Ops, oh, no wait but you didn’t!

And hey didn’t Turabi recently declare that the so-called jihad against our fellow countrymen the kuffar in the South wasn’t a rightful one? Yeah, he did. So if the jihad wasn’t rightful, then doesn’t that invalidate the “martyrs” status given to those who died? Please help me here because I don’t know where you’re going with this.

Hold up, they’re martyrs not because the war was holy, but because many were young and forced to fight a war they wanted no part in.

You know, why not just recheck things with Turabi himself - the greatest Sudanese politician that has ever lived.

“They [martyrs] have perished while fighting for a cause and defending values” Hussein told the attendees at the conference.

What cause? Ah, yes, the one that helps you guys stay in power. The one that was meant to keep the Southern Sudanese rightless.

Hussein was addressing the top leaders in the departments making up the ‘martyr’s organization’. The latter was formed in 1992 at the height of the civil war between the north and south.

The organization was established to serve the families of fallen soldiers as well as veterans.

I support the organization’s purpose heartily. Unfortunately it’s the families of those who died that end up paying the heavy price.

“How would our situation be if one the martyrs’ families complained to the God almighty against us because we have not fulfilled our obligation towards their wives and children?” Hussein said before sobbing.

How pious. Okay, wipe those tears and let’s stop wasting time. Come on, let’s go janjaweed. We’ve got some ethnic cleansing to do in Darfur.

Yaay to Islamists and supremacist Arabs!