President Ford: A Footnote

As former President Gerald Ford, a good man and a decent president, is laid to rest, his would-be assassins are still in prison.

Should you care to follow up on the progress (or lack thereof) of Lynette Squeaky Fromme and Sara Jane Moore, here it is:

Once notorious, now footnotes
The two women who tried to assassinate Ford have come to embody an era’s extremism.

John M. Glionna and Larry Gordon (LA Times)

They are joined in a strange sisterhood by a pair of unhinged acts: In the autumn of 1975, 17 days apart, each tried to assassinate President Ford, who died this week at age 93.

Today, Lynette Alice “Squeaky” Fromme and Sara Jane Moore are serving life sentences in federal prisons in Texas and California, respectively. The once headline-grabbing names have become historical footnotes embodying the extremism of a tumultuous era.

Three decades ago, Fromme was a red-haired flower child from Santa Monica, a Charles Manson handmaiden who gouged an X in her forehead in devotion to the mastermind of the Tate-LaBianca murders.

Moore was an accountant, divorced numerous times and a mother of four. Of her attempt on Ford’s life, she said, “There comes a point where the only way you can make a statement is to pick up a gun…”

Saddam Hussein: Goodbye and Good Night

Could it be that Saddam Hussein was rushed to the gallows without being tried for his most heinous crimes because his former allies and handlers did not want their own crimes and poor judgment exposed?

And why was it so important to execute this monstrous man on one of the holiest days of the year? The Eid started Saturday for Sunnis; the Shia were set to start the Eid on Sunday. Was the choice of Saturday for Hussein’s execution date just another way to humiliate the Sunni minority and show them who’s boss? It worked. The myth of Iraqi unity is on its deathbed, and the grave is being prepared by its own government.

This was a guilty verdict on America as well

Robert Fisk (The Independent)

So America’s one-time ally has been sentenced to death for war crimes he committed when he was Washington’s best friend in the Arab world. America knew all about his atrocities and even supplied the gas – along with the British, of course – yet there we were yesterday declaring it to be, in the White House’s words, another “great day for Iraq”. That’s what Tony Blair announced when Saddam Hussein was pulled from his hole in the ground on 13 December 2003. And now we’re going to string him up, and it’s another great day.

Of course, it couldn’t happen to a better man. Nor a worse. It couldn’t be a more just verdict – nor a more hypocritical one…

…The odd thing is that Iraq is now swamped with mass murderers, guilty of rape and massacre and throat-slitting and torture in the years since our “liberation” of Iraq. Many of them work for the Iraqi government we are currently supporting, democratically elected, of course. And these war criminals, in some cases, are paid by us, through the ministries we set up under this democratic government. And they will not be tried. Or hanged. That is the extent of our cynicism. And our shame. Have ever justice and hypocrisy been so obscenely joined?

See also:

TALKING POINTS ON THE EXECUTION OF SADDAM HUSSEIN

Phyllis Bennis (Z Net)

The fact that the first confirmation, for almost an hour, came only from the U.S.-backed propaganda station al-Hurra, indicates again that the U.S., not the Iraqi government, is still calling the shots around the trial and execution. (U.S. and some British outlets were running headlines saying “Arabic language media reporting SH’s execution…” as if al-Hurra was a legitimate independent news outlet.)

Zimbabwe: Poised to Shut Down Opposition Press

Mugabe, President of Zimbabwe, has discovered a practical solution to the age old problem of bad press: declare that the newspaper publisher is not a citizen, then take possession of the presses and shut them down. Part One of the plan is in play: the newspaper publisher, Trevor Ncube, has had his citizenship removed. He is appealing the decision in the courts. If he loses, his newspaper will be shut down. Ncube claims to be confident that the courts will uphold his rights. Based on recent events in Zimbabwe, I’m not so sure about that.

Mugabe attempts to close last remaining newspaper opponents

Andrew Meldrum in Johannesburg

(The Guardian)

Robert Mugabe’s government has moved to close Zimbabwe’s remaining independent press by stripping newspaper owner Trevor Ncube of his citizenship.

The action against the publisher comes as Mr Mugabe, 82 and president for 26 years, pushes for an extension to his term of office by a further two years. Frustrated by unprecedented resistance from within his Zanu-PF party, he appears to be trying to silence all of his critics…

…Zimbabwe’s strict media laws require newspapers to be owned by Zimbabwean citizens. If the Mugabe government succeeds in withdrawing Mr Ncube’s citizenship, it is expected to swiftly close his two papers, which are staunch critics of Mr Mugabe’s policies…

Columbia University: Hosts Former Israeli Soldier, Founder of Breaking the Silence

I Witness the Israel Lobby in Action

(The New York Observer)

A few weeks back at Columbia, I watched with amazement as the former Israeli soldier Yehuda Shaul, who started the group Breaking the Silence, gave his presentation on the horrors of the occupation to about 75 students in a darkened hall. My amazement had to do with the fact that Shaul’s visit was sponsored by a largely-Jewish group at Columbia—Pro-Israel Progressives—and was attended by members of the Hillel chapter at the school. Kudos to them.

After Shaul’s speech, representing “my comrades and not just myself,” he was bombarded by hostile questions from Israel supporters in the audience. Shaul handled them with strength and ease. (Q. “Do you know of a counterpart organization where Palestinians question their moral decisions?” A. “I really don’t care—I am an Israeli who has to raise his children in Israel…”)

See also the web site of “Breaking the Silence”:

Israeli Soldiers Talk About the Occupied Territories

India: Former Hindu Employer Sponsored Haj Expenses

Members of this Hindu family, a mother and son, actually disputed who would get the privilege of sponsoring the cost of Mahboob Hasan’s Haj expenses. Their generosity enabled Hasan to perform the Haj without exhausting his life savings.

A Brahmin Who Sent a Muslim for Haj

Siraj Wahab (Arab News)

Mahboob Hasan’s true story may seem to be an exception for those unfamiliar with the inter-faith traditions of India. To others who are acutely aware of the horrific communal riots of Gujarat in western India, in which Muslims were burned alive by Hindus, it will certainly come as a surprise.

Hasan from Aurangabad in India’s Maharashtra state is one of the millions of pilgrims standing shoulder-to-shoulder as Muslims here on the plains of Arafat where Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) delivered his last sermon. The standing of the pilgrims in Arafat is the climax of Haj.

Hasan was able to stand here yesterday thanks to the sponsorship of a caring family back home — a family of Brahmins…

Eid Al Adha

To all my brothers and sisters in Islam, Eid Mubarak!

May your Eid celebrations be joyous and filled with the love of family and friends.

Those who believe and do good, for them are gardens of bliss to abide therein.

Qur’an, 31:8,9

Pakistan: Amended Hudood Ordinances Discriminate Against Women and the Poor

Sex and the state

Rafia Zakaria (HinduOnNet)

The euphoria surrounding Pakistan’s new law on “protection of women” ignores the fact that the Hudood laws are still intact.

Bush: First Frat Boy Loves Flatulence Jokes

Will Stinky Cut The Big One?

Sheila Samples (PEJ.org)

…In his Aug. 20 U.S. News & World Report “Washington Whispers” under the heading “Animal House in the West Wing,” Paul Bedard wrote that Bush not only loves to cuss, but “… the first frat boy loves flatulence jokes…can’t get enough of fart jokes. He’s also known to cut a few for laughs, especially when greeting new young aides…”

Bedard also told the Boston Herald’s Margery Eagan that he’s heard about Bush’s full-salute “Austin Greeting” when new aides arrive. “He likes to gas a couple, and then bring the aide in and see what the kid’s face looks like.” Eagan, who admitted she was grossed out, commented, “Naturally, the aide can’t accuse the President or grimace or hold his nose. This dilemma apparently drives the presidential funny bone wild.”

Most of us stopped laughing at Bush’s coarse antics long ago. The boastful sound and fury of hot air blasting from both ends of this crude, immature thug as he rips one windy flatulent speech after another while saying absolutely nothing is not only vulgar, but is indescribably evil. The stench of Bush’s lies mingles with and hovers over the growing mounds of mangled and broken bodies of innocent men, women and children in Iraq and Afghanistan — swirls around coffins laden with American service members sneaked back in-country with no fanfare…

The US News & World Report Article referred to is here:

Washington Whispers

Paul Bedard (US News and World Report)

Sunday, August 20, 2006

Animal House in the West Wing

He loves to cuss, gets a jolly when a mountain biker wipes out trying to keep up with him, and now we’re learning that the first frat boy loves flatulence jokes. A top insider let that slip when explaining why President Bush is paranoid around women, always worried about his behavior. But he’s still a funny, earthy guy who, for example, can’t get enough of fart jokes. He’s also known to cut a few for laughs, especially when greeting new young aides, but forget about getting people to gas about that.

Germany: Group Protests Against Proposed Mosque

The Muslims seeking to build the mosque in East Germany are actually Ahmadiyya. In Pakistan in particular, they are persecuted and their government IDs state that they are not Muslim. Thus, they are banned by Saudi Arabia from performing the Haj. They are hoping for tolerance from their German neighbors.

The Ahmadiyya are not violent or radical. This group is living in Germany and just want a place to pray.

The Muslims Are Coming!

Michael Scott Moore and Jochen-Martin Gutsch (Der Spiegel International)

A citizens’ group in Berlin turned out this week for a candlelight vigil to protest plans for a new mosque in their neighborhood. It will be the first to be built in the former East Berlin, where almost no Muslims live — but no one can quite explain why it shouldn’t be there.

A member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community in Berlin stands in front of a sign that reads, “There is no God but Allah.” The community has just won approval for a new mosque in an eastern district of the German capital.

At the end of a rundown suburban street lined with bare trees and flaking apartment facades, a small group of people hold candles or colored Glo-sticks. A few hold signs — “Democracy yes! Caliphate no!” — and some carry German flags…

Australia: School Study on Compatibility of Muslim, Australian Values; Promotion of Religious Tolerance

Well, religious tolerance is being touted as the intent, anyway. Smells fishy to me though.

Schools eye Muslim dress

Cath Hart (The Australian)

The Howard Government is to roll out a pilot program in schools in Muslim areas of western Sydney that will address the compatibility of Islamic and Australian values and the wearing of religious attire, including headscarves.

…[S]ome Islamic community leaders said they were concerned that some of the material being developed for the pilot could create negative sentiment about Muslim students wearing headscarves and other religious attire…

The material developed for the pilot must also “identify a series of challenges faced by Muslims and non-Muslims in schools, i.e. the compatibility of Islamic values with Australian values and cultures … gender relation issues and cultural/religious attire,” the request for tender said.

Islamic Friendship Association spokesman Keysar Trad, who is based in the Lakemba area, said he was concerned that debate about religious attire would be reignited as a result of the pilot.

“I am worried that this could result in greater fears rather than something constructive or positive — the last thing we need is to reinvent the wheel when it comes to religious attire in schools…”

Florida: Muslim Woman Intending to Visit Son is Strip Searched, Jailed, Deported

US government apologizes for strip search of Muslim woman

(Associated Press via International Herald Tribune)

The U.S. Homeland Security Department apologized to a Muslim woman who was detained at Tampa International Airport in April and strip searched at a county jail.

Safana Jawad, 45, a Spanish citizen who was born in Iraq, was detained on April 11 because of a suspected tie to a suspicious person, authorities said. Jawad was taken to jail, strip searched and held for two days before being deported to England.

Jawad filed a complaint and the agency apologized on Dec. 8.

“On behalf of the Department of Homeland Security, I offer you my sincere apology for having to undergo a strip search,” wrote Timothy J. Keefer, acting chief counsel for the department’s Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties…

Strip searched, jailed for two days and deported. Hmmph. At least she got a letter. Oh, and she was never told the identity of the “suspicious” person with whom she is allegedly associated.

See also:

Muslim traveller mistreated in Pinellas County Jail

Sheela Raman (St. Petersburg Times)

Malaysia: Polygamy Survey Commissioned

Malaysian Activists to Study Polygamy

Sean Yoong (Associated Press via LA Times)

Opponents of polygamy in Muslim-majority Malaysia said Thursday they will conduct a rare survey in an attempt to prove the practice throws families into emotional and economic turmoil.

Researchers hope to interview 6,000 members of polygamous households over the next 10 months in what could be the most comprehensive survey ever conducted on polygamy in a Muslim society, said Zainah Anwar, director of Sisters In Islam, a Malaysian women’s rights group…

Islam allows a man to have up to four wives. The practice of polygamy has sparked debate in Malaysia… because activists say some polygamous husbands neglect their responsibilities to wives and children.

… Researchers plan to ask polygamous families a wide range of questions, including how their expenditure for clothes and other necessities is affected when the man marries another wife, and whether existing wives and children are forced to make financial sacrifices.

The survey will cover other everyday dilemmas, including how husbands divide their time among multiple wives, celebrate holidays and choose which wife to take to social functions. It will also consider whether current laws sufficiently safeguard wives from mistreatment…

Survey results are expected to be published early in 2008.

Afghanistan: I try not to make a fuss because of the children…

Afghan women suffer daily violence

(BBC News)

Five years ago, after the fall of the Taleban, Afghanistan’s new government pledged swift action to improve the lives of women.

But a recent report by the international women’s organisation Womankind Worldwide said millions of Afghan women and girls continue to face discrimination and violence in their day-to-day lives…

“…My husband beats me whenever he feels like it,” a young mother of three from Kabul told the BBC.

“Once he broke my arm, then my legs. Now he’s broken my arm again. I try not to make a fuss because of the children.”

Hamayra Daqiq, a policewoman in Kabul, says women like this turn up at the city’s central police station every day looking for help…

Bulgaria: Muslims Counting on EU Tolerance

Bulgarian Muslims wonder what EU entry holds

Tsvetelia Ilieva (Reuters Canada)

Bulgaria will be the only EU state where Muslims — 12 percent of its 7.8 million people — are not recent immigrants but a centuries-old local community. Mostly ethnic Turkish descendants of the Ottoman Empire’s reach into Europe, they live beside Christians in a culture known as “komshuluk,” or neighbourly relations.

Recently, however, two Muslim girls were prohibited from wearing headscarves to a state school in the town of Smolyan — Bulgaria’s first glimpse of an issue that has raised tensions between Christians and Muslims in western Europe.

…Unlike neighbouring former Yugoslavia, Bulgaria avoided clashes between Orthodox Christians and Muslims after the fall of Communism despite a 1984-85 “revival process,” launched by Soviet-backed dictator Todor Zhivkov to assimilate Muslims…

India: All Female Hospital Has Wide Popularity

Indian Muslim women at ease in female-only hospital

(Reuters via AlertNet)

Hundreds of impoverished Muslim women are flocking to India’s only all-female hospital in the eastern city of Kolkata to seek advice on family planning, preventing HIV/AIDS and other ailments.

Conservative Muslim women are more comfortable discussing these issues in a female-only environment, doctors and patients at the Mission Hospital said on Friday…