In a message dated 8/8/2006 11:19:41 A.M.  Central Daylight Time, 
[log in to unmask] writes:

"Can we, for  instance, live as Muslims in a democracy and at 
the same time tolerate  fellow citizens who practice other beliefs, and treat 
as equals and defend  oppressed and dispossessed people everywhere whether or 
not they are  Muslims?"

Brother Sidibeh,

But did you know that the above is  exactly what the Shariah calls for with 
reference to our interactions with  non-muslims? Islam never enjoins anyone to 
do injustice. 

The truth of  the matter is there are oppressors and there are oppressed 
peoples fighting the  yoke of oppression, whether their land was illegally seized 
and used to settle  others on such as is the case with the Palestinians and 
the establishment of the  state of Israel, or whether they are being vilified to 
justify attacks on them  in order to control some valuable assets they have 
such as in the case of Iraq,  Afghanistan and even Iran if a case can be 
manufactured as was done in the case  of Iraq,  and although there is a concerted 
attempt to conveniently  intertwine and blame this on Islam, we must be careful 
to keep the separation  between religion, culture and politics very clear. We 
must also be mindful of  the ongoing propaganda of those who seem to think 
that all of Mankind must  necessarily abide by their cultural and religious 
norms. That to me is the  height of arrogance and condescension

There is Islam and then there are  also cultural and political  issues that 
do not necessarily have anything  to do with Islam although the emphasis is 
definitely to intertwine the two in  order to vilify Islam and thus justify the 
occupation of a people who happen to  be Muslims. . Also, I just wish for once 
that this false allegation that is  being constantly propagated that Muslim 
women are oppressed if they wear a veil  would stop.

The Qur'an says "Laakum Deenukum, Wal ya din" To you your  religion and to me 
mine, and likewise, it also states that Allah (SWT) made man  into different 
colours with different cultures so that we can enjoy each other  and that 
there is no compulsion in religion, and that no one can bear the burden  of 
another. We can inform others about our religion, but  we do not force  anyone to 
become Muslim. We do not even force Muslims to practice this Deen  properly if 
they do not want to.  Everyone is free to do what they like and  worship what 
they like and they will be answerable only to Allah (SWT) when they  go to meet 
him on the day of judgement. 
This fact is well known by those who  attempt to vilify Islam but they 
persist in this lie in order to brainwash the  ignorant.

Other people's struggles to rid themselves of various forms of  injustice and 
oppression imposed upon them must necessarily make sense to us as  victims of 
colonialism and then there is the new quest for World domination by  those 
who see this as a necessity with the resultant ever increasing economic  slavery 
that knows no national, ethnic or race boundaries, just class  boundaries.  

I would also like to add to what Saul said. Not only  are the Israelis amply 
supplied with the latest destructive military gadgets by  the United States 
and Condi Rice is busy traversing the Globe to keep any peace  proposal at bay 
to give time to the Israelis so that they can finish the  massacre of women, 
children and the complete destruction of Lebanon and continue  their carnage in 
the Palestinian territories, but  the propaganda machinery  of the Israeli 
state and her partners in crime is far reaching. 

This is  also why all you ever get in the mainstream media in the U.S is the 
distorted  one sided Israeli viewpoint and never a balanced view or God forbid 
footage of  the injustice they engage in on a daily basis in the Palestinian 
territories and  now Lebanon.  One never sees footage of the carnage in 
Lebanon or the  buldozers leveling homes in the Bantustans they have created for the 
 Palestinians on their own homeland which injustice was orchestrated, aided 
and  abetted by the very people and their allies who are supplying the Isrealis 
with  the weapons of mass destruction while pretending that they are peace 
makers. One  wonders how Condi Rice, the descendant of a people who were 
enslaved by the  people whose agenda she is an emissary for can be party to all 
this.One wonders  indeed. She is an American serving her country but one keeps 
hoping that  somewhere within her, there stirs a conscience and sense of 
solidarity with  oppressed people given her heritage.

These are not wars about Islam  although that battle cry has been used as an 
excuse by the U.S and their allies  in their quest to fulfill other agendas 
while using Islam as a scapegoat  and  the propaganda machinery in it's varied 
forms and various agents for  dispensation are very far reaching.

Jabou Joh  

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