Foundation or Free fall

An old man sits on a mat in an old house of stone and mud. The candle is set into the floor, and giant shadows are thrown against the while walls. A breeze stirs through a broken window, and the light dances. His dry lips moving, the old man is reciting a Sura, silently— he stops to look into the light.

The flame is Nar, thinks the old man. Nar to the created self, and Nur to the inner heart. Light is the inner truth. And what is the inner truth, how does the soul of humanity perceive it? He begins the fourth Sura. He reads, “O Humanity! Attend to your Lord, Who created you from a single soul and from it created its mate; and from them spread many men and women; and be mindful of Allah, through whom ye demand your mutual rights, and respect the wombs that bore you: for Allah ever watches over you.”

Allah knows best-- but I believe that the reality of this single inner soul is the reason that, as the US Declaration of Independence begins, “All men are created equal”. Indeed, the Qur’an includes both men and women as humanity with essential, inalienable rights. These essential rights should not be considered a commodity in the world markets or subject to the winds of politics. There can be no compulsion in religion without diminishing the benefits earned by each individual soul. All laws must serve and nourish the essential soul, and not destroy it through heavy-handed application.

We know well that terrible abuses that place in nominally Muslim countries, as well as elsewhere. When we prefer to look at the violations of our own rights but not to perceive what takes place in our own house, we remain like angry children instead of responsible adults. We are all called to build, to safeguard, to plan, to reform, to help each other.

Now it seems most political reporting around the world has less introspection than a football match. Do we consider the implications of some of our interpretations? Where is the light? Young people in search of their true nobility go astray. Old leaders brag and swagger. Observing Bush and Sharon, can we be surprised that some in the Muslim world seem suicidal in their humiliation? But many other leaders are just as graceless. And it is most graceless to imagine that intentionally killing unarmed civilians can ever be the work of a hero, or of a true Muslim. Terrorism differs from guerilla action against a military target. A city street, a restaurant, a cafe, a bus is not an appropriate battleground, in Iraq, Israel or Tashkent or anywhere.

How does God see us? When we see the love and compassion the mother has for her children, even among the birds and animals, we may reflect that Allah’s care for us exceeds this without limits. How can we deal with each other with such grievance and envy? Non-Muslims may live such conflicted lives, but why should we? Let us love the crowds around us, even the weak-minded, the broken and the proud. Let us pray for humanity to learn. Let us pray for each other. Listen to your heartbeat—this is a language we have in common. Or do you think this is the sound of a soul-less machine?

The inner conscience can be your Khalifa. But we have much to learn before we can trust our inner voices. Finer not bigger brooms are needed to clean this house, to prepare for an honest friend.

But we are in the world. I would like to draw your attention to some of the flickering shadows on the walls. This carnival outside, this life; Fallujah, domestic politics, media manipulations. Among all these shadows, the human rights of Jose Padilla have been taken away. No trial, only interrogation. Now the Supreme Court will consider his earthly fate, and that of fellow citizen and “enemy noncombatant” Yaser Hamdi. Just two men. Each has long been sitting alone in his prison cell staring at the walls. And these are US citizens. But according to Donald Rumsfeld, no law for them but the “law of war”.

Deborah Pearlstein of Human Rights First, said the administration misrepresented international humanitarian law, “There is nothing in the law of war that says you can hold somebody indefinitely with no rights.” And his mother stated, “That John Walker Lindh. They didn't make him disappear, take away his rights…I guess maybe because his father's a lawyer. He's white, whatever." And his wife says, “I can never find a man like him in this whole world…and I'll stand by him in this ordeal as long as it shall take."

The foundation of the USA cannot be a “legal black hole”. What ever happened to: “All men are created equal?” Also, the foundation of the house of Islam cannot be the flaming pit of terror. We all need to speak out before it is too late.

Brand Name of Power

“All politics are local” is an old expression. And yes, the upcoming elections are clearly affecting US and international political discourse—and other events. Both Kerry and Bush are reluctant to alienate the Jewish vote at this time, as well as their Christian Zionist base—and we see unprecedented support for unilateral Israeli policies, not to mention a shameful tolerance of political assassinations.

I sense a fair amount of anxiety about the coming vote. Many of us still expect that Osama Bin Laden will be suddenly “found” in his spiderhole, popping up like a prairie dog in time to influence the election results. Some fear that the coming election will be manipulated by fixed voting machines, or other forms of fraud large and small.

Others worry about other sinister manipulations of our elections. Bush Advisor Condaleeza Rice is warning the media that terrorists may seek to repeat the Madrid pre-election atrocities to influence the outcome of voting. Some upcoming events that the government sees at risk are: the June Group of Eight meeting; the July Democratic convention in Boston, and the August Republican convention in New York. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge is forming yet another government security task force, stating;“ We are going to increase our vigilance.”

This year the theme of the National Conference of Amnesty International was “Vigilant Justice”; and it was held this year in New York. This past weekend I spoke at the final plenary session, held in Brooklyn only one mile from the infamous MDC detention center. Among the panelists, Sister Shokreia Yaghi spoke about her husband’s many months detained in the MDC Special Housing Unit and the many cruelties that took place there after the attack of 9/11.

It was an appropriate theme for these strange times. Those who love liberty and justice do indeed need to be vigilant! For your attention: the New York State Senate has just passed a bill that would abrogate the Constitution in several ways. According to the ACLU Bill of Rights Defense Committee, this bill would: allow for double jeopardy, ie a defendant could be tried more than once for the same crime; for people to be convicted on the uncorroborated evidence of an accomplice; and would allow convictions based on illegally obtained evidence.

If enacted and signed into law by Governor Pataki, this law wouldn’t just cut corners and create legal loopholes. It would take away fundamental rights in the name of national security, without in fact making us safer. We do need to be better able to protect ourselves, however. Therefore, the ACLU recommends a better anti-terrorism bill currently in the Assembly as both more effective and much less destructive of our civil liberties (see www.nybordc.org).

As I said, politics are local; few of us pay much attention to State Senators, but they have passed this extreme bill that could affect life drastically. It would be much easier to gain access to such local politicians, who are much more accessible than the presidential candidates. Many of us are unhappy with the choices available in that election, but we need to be pragmatic. Personally at this point I plan to hold my nose and vote for Kerry. But I urge us all to consider the importance of educating ourselves on local issues, and reaching out to local officials in a regular way, on behalf of the interests of the entire community. Otherwise, why should they care?

For example, US Senator Charles Schumer is running for re-election. Has he done enough for Muslims? After his paranoia about chaplains and charities, perhaps the proper question is; hasn’t he done enough to us? But if he can learn to trust the community, through reliable relationships, he would be better able to advocate for our needs. I hope this may be possible—this would take work.

Other key elections around the country will affect the voting in Congress. We are in need of men and women who can rise to the occasion at a time of crisis, and not pass foolish laws, support the wrong wars, turn blind eyes to terror when it suits big business or other friends.

Now with Iraq over-run with mercenaries as well as US troops, we see the privatization of war as well as the US and international corrections system. With this approach comes a further lack of accountability. We can only guess (through insurance claims) that over 80 private soldiers have been killed. They are not coordinated or regulated; many are paid very, very well but are put into combat situations; and like the undocumented become a shadow work-force that can be exploited. However the greatest exploitation appears to be of the Iraqi people— billions of dollars for rebuilding schools and services are instead going to these private militia. This is what happens when democracy becomes not a reality but a consumer product, or a brand name for US power.

Brand Name of Power

“All politics are local” is an old expression. And yes, the upcoming elections are clearly affecting US and international political discourse—and other events. Both Kerry and Bush are reluctant to alienate the Jewish vote at this time, as well as their Christian Zionist base—and we see unprecedented support for unilateral Israeli policies, not to mention a shameful tolerance of political assassinations.

I sense a fair amount of anxiety about the coming vote. Many of us still expect that Osama Bin Laden will be suddenly “found” in his spiderhole, popping up like a prairie dog in time to influence the election results. Some fear that the coming election will be manipulated by fixed voting machines, or other forms of fraud large and small.

Others worry about other sinister manipulations of our elections. Bush Advisor Condaleeza Rice is warning the media that terrorists may seek to repeat the Madrid pre-election atrocities to influence the outcome of voting. Some upcoming events that the government sees at risk are: the June Group of Eight meeting; the July Democratic convention in Boston, and the August Republican convention in New York. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge is forming yet another government security task force, stating;“ We are going to increase our vigilance.”

This year the theme of the National Conference of Amnesty International was “Vigilant Justice”; and it was held this year in New York. This past weekend I spoke at the final plenary session, held in Brooklyn only one mile from the infamous MDC detention center. Among the panelists, Sister Shokreia Yaghi spoke about her husband’s many months detained in the MDC Special Housing Unit and the many cruelties that took place there after the attack of 9/11.

It was an appropriate theme for these strange times. Those who love liberty and justice do indeed need to be vigilant! For your attention: the New York State Senate has just passed a bill that would abrogate the Constitution in several ways. According to the ACLU Bill of Rights Defense Committee, this bill would: allow for double jeopardy, ie a defendant could be tried more than once for the same crime; for people to be convicted on the uncorroborated evidence of an accomplice; and would allow convictions based on illegally obtained evidence.

If enacted and signed into law by Governor Pataki, this law wouldn’t just cut corners and create legal loopholes. It would take away fundamental rights in the name of national security, without in fact making us safer. We do need to be better able to protect ourselves, however. Therefore, the ACLU recommends a better anti-terrorism bill currently in the Assembly as both more effective and much less destructive of our civil liberties (see www.nybordc.org).

As I said, politics are local; few of us pay much attention to State Senators, but they have passed this extreme bill that could affect life drastically. It would be much easier to gain access to such local politicians, who are much more accessible than the presidential candidates. Many of us are unhappy with the choices available in that election, but we need to be pragmatic. Personally at this point I plan to hold my nose and vote for Kerry. But I urge us all to consider the importance of educating ourselves on local issues, and reaching out to local officials in a regular way, on behalf of the interests of the entire community. Otherwise, why should they care?

For example, US Senator Charles Schumer is running for re-election. Has he done enough for Muslims? After his paranoia about chaplains and charities, perhaps the proper question is; hasn’t he done enough to us? But if he can learn to trust the community, through reliable relationships, he would be better able to advocate for our needs. I hope this may be possible—this would take work.

Other key elections around the country will affect the voting in Congress. We are in need of men and women who can rise to the occasion at a time of crisis, and not pass foolish laws, support the wrong wars, turn blind eyes to terror when it suits big business or other friends.

Now with Iraq over-run with mercenaries as well as US troops, we see the privatization of war as well as the US and international corrections system. With this approach comes a further lack of accountability. We can only guess (through insurance claims) that over 80 private soldiers have been killed. They are not coordinated or regulated; many are paid very, very well but are put into combat situations; and like the undocumented become a shadow work-force that can be exploited. However the greatest exploitation appears to be of the Iraqi people— billions of dollars for rebuilding schools and services are instead going to these private militia. This is what happens when democracy becomes not a reality but a consumer product, or a brand name for US power.