Who is Tariq Ramadan? Tariq Ramadan is an individual who attracts both criticism and appreciation from Muslims and non-Muslims alike. For some, he is looked upon as the forefront amongst modern Islamic thinkers, while for others, he is considered a dangerous man. Whatever the case may be, Tariq Ramadan has become renown for his independant views, forceful arguments and debating skills.
Named by Time Magazine as one of the 100 most important innovators of the 21st century, Dr. Ramadan represents a new generation of Islamic reformers.
So is all this controversy surrounding him really warranted? Well, you be the judge. Check out his interview with George Stoumboulopoulos of The Hour.
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Yusuf Islam says….
Browsing through Yusuf Islam’s website, I came across a really nice quote and thought I would share it with you all:
“I don’t think that God sent us prophets and books to fight about these books and these prophets. But they were telling us, actually, how to live together. If we ignore those teachings…whichever faith you belong…then I think we’ll be finding ourselves in an even deeper mess”
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What’s in a Name?
A name that we hear alot these days is Barack Hussein Obama. Who is Barack Obama? He is a junior U.S. Senator from Illinois, who despite his young age, and relative inexperience in the senate, may run in the next presidential election. Rumor has it that he may very well be the first black american president.
Contrary to what you might think, recent discussions about him have nothing to do with him potentially being the first black president. Rather, it all has to do with his name.
Believe it or not, there have been numerous online and radio discussions regarding this issue.
As the media would like to emphasize, Barack’s middle name is Hussein, a popular middle eastern name that means, the handsome one. However, for some, this is a cause for grave concern. As one individual puts it “is America ready to elect a president with the name Hussein? Oh the irony” Is this really ironic? Not in the very least.
For others, it’s not really the middle name they have an issue with, but rather his last name; Obama…sounds way too much like Osama.
I kid you not, this is actually a huge problem for some of the American people. So how exactly does this affect his capability as a politician? Well your guess is as good as mine.
Personally I find the whole uproar about his name a non-issue. After all, isn’t a rose by any other name, still a rose?
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Credibility at Stake?
A little disagreement has ensued over the mention of Hizb-ut-Tahrir in Mamoon Chowdry’s article titled “The Fruit We Bear On Being Judged By What We Do.”
In his opinion piece, Chowdry states: Today those that seem to wave the flag of Islam the most, and should ‘Allahu Akbar’ the loudest, are so often those who do so whilst advocating the slaughter of innocents.
Osama Bin Laden. Ayman al-Zawahiri. Hizb ut-Tahrir. Al-Muhajiroun.
Following the publication of this article, a reader sent in a comment stating, “Contrary to what Mamoon Chowdry has insinuated, Hizb-ut-Tahrir ideologically supports non-violent means in overthrowing dictators of Muslim countries and for the re-establishment of the Caliphate…(the reason) they are banned is because they want to re-establish the Caliphate, which is the GREATEST threat to Western Imperialists.” He also went on to state “maybe, instead of parroting groups/individuals that are banned/negatively portrayed by the oh so truthful Bush-Blair duo, writers should do proper research; their credibility-and that of the magazine is at stake.”
So naturally, this prompted me to do a little research and present to you my findings.
What is Hizb-ut-Tahrir?
Hizb-ut-Tahrir is a global Islamic political party that was established in 1953 under the leadership of its founder – the scholar, political thinker and judge in the Court of Appeals in al-Quds (Jerusalem), Taqiuddin an-Nabhan.
In the Muslim world, Hizb ut-Tahrir works at all levels of society to bring the Muslims back to living an Islamic way of life under the shade of hte Khilafah (Caliphate) State following an exclusively political method.
Hizb ut-Tahrir adopts the methodology employed by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) when he established the first Islamic State in Madinah. The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) limited his struggle for the establishment of the Islamic State to intellectual and political work. He established this Islamic state without resorting to violence. He worked to mobilise public opinion in favour of Islam and endeavoured to sway the political and intellectual elites of the time.
Despite the persecution and boycott of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and the early Muslims, they never resorted to violence.
The party is therefore proactive in disseminating the Islamic intellectual and political thoughts widely in Muslim societies so as to challenge the existing status quo that exists there. Continue reading ‘Credibility at Stake?’
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And the Winner is……
This year’s Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Dr. Muhammad Yunus, a microfinance banker and economist from Bangladesh. When this was announced, the headlines read: Economist awarded Nobel Peace Prize, or Nobel Prize awarded to economist from Bangladesh, but nowhere did it mention that he is a Muslim.
Yeah you could say “well his name is a clear giveaway to that fact,” but think of the impact this headline would have had: Muslim Economist Awarded Nobel Peace Prize.
When a Muslim achieves something great, it does not seem necessary to mention the fact that he is a Muslim, and if it is mentioned, it is downplayed somewhat. By the same token, when a Muslim is responsible for something negative, well then that’s the first thing that is pointed out.
Unfair? Definitely…but then again, nobody ever said the world was fair.
What to do about this predicament? I wish I had the answers. All I know is that we have to work that much harder to make sure that all information presented is accurate and fair.
I know I know, easier said than done.
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Opening weekend…
After many months of hard work and numerous setbacks, we finally launched our site this past weekend. I have to say it was a great experience! I learned a lot and made lots of great contacts.
I remember when I first undertook this project, I thought I would have the site up and running within a month tops. I didn’t realize all the work that would be required to have my vision materialized, but alhamdulilah it all worked out 
Thanks so much to everyone who took the time to send me their feedbacks and for their support. It was all very much appreciated.
Until the next blog…..
-sk
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A funny story…well kind of…
For today’s blog posting, I thought I’d share a little anecdote with you….
A couple of months ago, I was at a dinner party with some friends. During the course of the evening one of the other dinner guests came up to me and asked me if I’d like a drink. Before I could even answer the question, one of my friends intercepted and said “she doesn’t drink, she’s Muslim.” I guess it took him a while to realize that I really don’t drink, because he came back a couple of more times asking me the same question.
The End
No, I’m only joking with you…there’s more to the story Continue reading ‘A funny story…well kind of…’
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To Drink or Not to Drink
Ok, so we all know that drinking alcohol is prohibited in Islam. Whether you choose to drink or not to drink is your own perogative, I’m not here to judge. What I would like to discuss however, is the issue of drinking in order to fit in or to get ahead in the corporate world.
I’ve met quite a few corporate people who share the similar opinion, that in order to climb up the corporate ladder one must indulge in a little bit of alcohol. I’ve been told by some finance people that taking a client out to a bar or a restaurant for some drinks makes it easier to close a deal; I’ve been told that when attending these networking parties, if you don’t drink, sometimes it makes it all that harder to fit in; and finally I’ve been told “when you’re out with the partners and CEOs of a company and they offer you a drink, you just can’t say no.” Continue reading ‘To Drink or Not to Drink’
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This was circulated by the Montreal Muslim News a while ago. I thought this was really good, so I thought to share it with you all…
My Take on Fundamentalists and Fundamentalism – Yahya Abdul Rahman
Fundamentalism has nothing to do with religion.
In fact, one does not have to believe in God or any religion to be a fundamentalist.
Fundamentalism is a mindset or a particular way a person interprets what they see around them, and in turn determines their course of action.
Fundamentalists tend to to be rigid and will not accept any other interpretation of how things are other than their own.
They adhere to a set of principles – sometimes codified in a book or articulated by some charismatic leader – and they refuse to waiver from those principles even if they have been proven wrong.
In fact, they are never wrong, and that is why they are called fundamentalists in the first place.
Everyone else is wrong, stupid or an agent for some other vested interest and, as a result, they – the non fundamentalists – cannot see the true reality.
Underscore THE true reality.
Fundamentalists build a wall of virtue around themselves and they are the only true purists.
Everyone else is tainted. Continue reading ‘Fundamentalists and Fundamentalism’
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We have to start somewhere…
Hmmm, only a couple of more days before the official launch of ParadigmCafe, and I have yet to post a single blog! I guess this is what happens when you procrastinate and think that you have all the time in the world.
Oh well…lesson learned and time to move on. By the way, for those of you who tend to procrastinate every now and then, we have a great article in our lifestyle section featuring advice from life coach Mr. B, on how to overcome this bad habit.
Actually I should rephrase that last sentence: We WILL have a great article from our all-knowing, in-house expert once he gets the information to me. So Greg, when will I be getting your words of wisdom?
Anyhow, I am beat…so I guess this is what will constitute my first blog…not too exciting, but it’s a good start
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