London Muslims

Most of my regular readers will know one of my real passions in life is football and QPR. That's why like most football fans yesterday I was closely watching the drama as the transfer window closed with QPR making two further very shrewd signings in strikers Tommy Smith from Portsmouth and Derby's Rob Hulse. In my opinion job done, we now with Neil Warnock have a squad that should at the end of the season be challenging along with Cardiff for automatic promotion notwithstanding our current slightly flattering position at the top of the League.

Despite the dark years of administration and the manager merry go round etc one of the joys of supporting QPR recently has been watching the outstanding Muslim Moroccan genius Adel Taarabt. The talent Adel has in my opinion will make him a true legend at QPR along the likes of Stan Bowles and Les Ferdinand so long as he stays injury free and remains with us.

Adel as a devout Muslim recently highlighted the importance of his faith particularly during Ramadhan when he fasts although he understandably breaks the fast on match days and makes up for lost days after Ramadhan. What has been pleasing about Adel's approach to Islam and Ramadhan has been the reaction of QPR manager Neil Warnock who not only allows Adel the opportunity to manage his own training but also has provided Adel with the flexibility to inform Warnock of any further requirements in terms of rest if needed. The QPR and Neil Warnock approach to diversity and understanding is to be contrasted with "the special one" who made some crass remarks when Sully Muntari was fasting.

LM wrote about the importance of Muslim players in the Premiership and I believe with the growing importance of Muslims on and off the pitch along with growing Muslim support particularly in London for their respective teams the need for authorities to ensure Football is adequately compliant with the faith requirements of Muslims is increasingly and urgently addressed.

Following the Ground Zero mosque controversy American Muslims leaders are belatedly increasing their efforts to unite the community and push for greater political engagement.

While the effort is to be welcomed LM cannot hide my disappointment that it has taken such a controversy for American Muslims to realise without an active and aggressive political strategy Muslims will always be on the back foot. However, the importance of politics is but one piece in a more intricate jigsaw puzzle. The role of an online strategy as some of the videos I have been posting here and here indicate is also equally crucial in conveying a point of view that avoids the hostile Murdoch Media along with a greater role for Inter Faith dialogue. While a section of American Jews like the vicious Pamela Gellar, Rabbis and Abraham Foxman have played their part in attacking Muslims this is not the view of all American Jews. Finally, America unlike most of Europe has a major advantage by having Muslim role models in Sport like Muhammad Ali and rap like Buster Rhymes who should be used to provide credibility on the Muslim street to these laudable efforts in uniting the community.

I do hope the lesson of the American Muslim experience is taken up here in the UK. Ground Zero has shown that the most eloquent defenders of American Muslims have largely been non Muslims like Glen Greenwald. We as a UK Muslim community need to proactively up our efforts for unity and greater political engagement along with Inter Faith dialogue to avoid a similar American predicament.

There are some countries and politicians who seem to have a knack for putting there foot in it whatever they do.

Colonel Gaddafi is on his travels again to Italy which is always an interesting situation given Italy's colonial legacy in Libya and has urged Italian models along with Europe more generally to revert to Islam.

LM has no problem with any Muslim extolling the virtues of Islam and good dawah but my hunch is due to the colonial legacy and with the Vatican in close proximity, Gaddafi who is no idiot despite the western portrayal of him is actually intentionally being provocative with three women reverting. The Colonel has a colourful past and is no scholar so what really lies behind his desire to lock himself away in a room with 500 beautiful Italian models is anybody's guess although Berlusconi must certainly be wondering why he never thought of the idea.

The House of Saud are at it again. Not content with banning us mere non Saudi Muslims from being buried in Mecca/Media they have now set their sights on Moroccan Women.
Nesrine Malik highlights how the corrupt Saudi Mafia many of whom indulge in the Saudi Sex Tourism trade have taken it upon themselves to ban Moroccan women of a certain age from the Umrah because of an implicit accusation that Moroccan women engage in prostitution. This from a county who engage in child marriage, hammer nails into domestic maids, kill their domestic slaves, whose embassies are involved in people trafficking etc etc.
Let's be clear this ban on our sisters from Morocco is about the inability of some Saudi men to keep their trousers on rather than the disgraceful slur not just on Moroccans but potentially any Muslim sister around the world. The Muslim world should be outraged.

Alex Reid the Cage fighter and hubby to Jordan is taking Islamic lessons although the report does not indicate he is doing this with regard to reverting.
Apparently Reid has a particular interest in faith although somehow I'm struggling to picture him sitting down and discussing religion with his Mrs.

LM felt a bit lonely in what appeared a single handed desire to raise the profile of Halal travel.

That's why I am glad the issue is gathering more coverage in the mainstream press with this excellent article in the Guardian. I do hope Muslims here in the UK and internationally really take responsible ownership regarding how they spend their money and pursue a halal holiday.

A Gallup poll has both good and bad news for President Obama when it comes to his latest opinion poll ratings.

With Obama taking a significant hit on the stimulus package and healthcare reforms the good news is amongst American Muslims and Jews his favourable ratings remain steadily high with 78% of Muslims and 61% of Jews approving of Obama's job performance.

However, the bad news is Muslims and Jews make up just 2% each of America's total population.

London Muslim posted an article some time ago about the Israelite nature of Canada's PM Stephen Harper and how he proudly extolls the virtues of his beloved Israeli state.

The purpose of the article was to plead with Canada's Muslims to please wake from your political sleepwalking and become active in Politics in order to democratically defeat politicians who intend you and your fellow Muslims harm.

With the latest news of a Canadian Muslim terror cell being arrested for planning an atrocity my plea seems to be falling on deaf ears. If the consequences of their intended actions weren't so serious one would have to laugh at the ignorance of these Canadian Muslim muppets. How can any Muslim believe that an injustice will defeat an injustice. LM has to say I have family in Toronto and their blissful ignorance of the need for political engagement is astonishing. I know it gets cold in Canada and Muslims don't seem best served by their Imams but surely you can do better.

The growing hate towards Muslims as a result of the Ground Zero Mosque debate most recently typified by the attack on the New York Muslim cabbie has belatedly started a growing response against the hate mongers who promote the poison.

Michael Daly writes an excellent article on two leading right wing hate mongers in the US Newt Gingrich and Rush Limbaugh although I would also highlight Pamela Geller.

Angelina Jolie was in Bosnia recently to discuss with officials the shooting of a new movie which from the script seems to be about a serb soldier falling in love with a Bosnian Muslim girl.

Although Jolie is set to direct the movie one would have thought her playing the role of the Bosnian Muslim girl would provide the tragic conflict where Bosnian Muslims suffered a holocaust at the hands of genocidal Christian Serb and Croat crusaders a greater profile.

News today is dominated by a report from the Royal Services Institute claiming up to 800 violent Muslim radicals are set to unleash a wave of terror when released from jail. In other words a white man in a suit working for a "think-tank" who is a "security expert" reckons there is a problem with Muslim lags.

I reckon we are all in the wrong game here, clearly working for a self serving think tank and calling yourself a security expert is what gets the headlines. Why is Michael Clarke an expert on Muslims anymore than I am expert on Gardening. The RUSI whose President is a Freemason are run by Neo Cons including James Arbuthnot and with their links to the Spooks and military security industrial complex are simply scaremongering in an era of economic austerity prior to the spending review in order to maintain the budgets of their friends which will never be the story because independent journalism has given way to pursuing the interests of those who control the purse strings. I'm not surprised that 2012 which I've already called a security jamboree gets a mention, that should help the RUSI's friends in the Met maintain the "security budget". After all would Theresa May cut a police budget with this report published despite 2012 being held in Ramadhan when even the nuttiest of Muslim muppets would not consider causing an outrage.

The story in my opinion is more generally about all prisoners and the prospect of re offending from nail bombers who dislike gays and Nazis who dislike Muslims through to Muslim fruitcakes who believe the way to overcome injustice is through injustice.

Think tanks are frankly glorified self serving wonks who scare the jeepers out of mainstream society then coincidentally establish large research revenue streams to work on solutions (the new world order) to artificial problems they have intentionally created. One would think there would be more critical analysis rather than a passive acceptance of yet another sexed up document but then perhaps I expect too much in this climate when Muslims sadly are currently fair game and who better to pick on than Muslim prisoners.