Whose awful idea was it to host Euro 2012 in Ukraine anyway?

By Donal Blaney

I had to blink heavily when I read this morning that the British government has elected to boycott the group stages of Euro 2012 because of Ukraine's selective justice regime and continued concerns over racism, homophobia and violence that players, their families and fans alike all seem to have.

Three cheers for the FA and for Number 10 for proving they have spines after all!

The Putinist regime in Kiev has successfully jailed the leader of the opposition, Yulia Tymoshenko, in a manner eerily reminiscent of the show trials so beloved by Stalin. It took far too long but Western European leaders have finally begun to apply pressure to Ukraine's leaders. Britain may not have been the first to show true courage in standing up to Moscow's puppets in Kiev (the Germans deserve that accolade) but this belated decision is most welcome.

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Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2156421/Euro-2012-Whose-awful-idea-host-Euro-2012-Ukraine-anyway.html#ixzz1xIn5MG1A

Muslims' anger as London Olympics clash with Ramadan

The 2012 London Olympics have been plunged into controversy by the discovery that the Games will clash with Ramadan, the most holy month in the Islamic calendar.

The clash will put Muslim athletes at a disadvantage as they will be expected to fast from sunrise to sunset for the entire duration of the Games.

In 2012, Ramadan will take place from July 21 to August 20, while the Olympics run from July 27 to August 12.

An anticipated 3,000 Muslim competitors are expected to be affected.

About a quarter of the 11,099 athletes who took part in the 2004 Athens Olympics came from countries with predominantly Muslim populations.

Because the Muslim calendar is based on a lunar cycle, the ninth month of Ramadan - which runs from the appearance of one new crescent moon to the next - gets earlier by around 11 days each year.

The clash will be a huge embarrassment for Lord Coe, Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell, and London Mayor Ken Livingstone, who have been keen to ensure the Games involve all Britain's ethnic communities.

Massoud Shadjareh, chairman of the London-based Islamic Human Rights Commission, said: "They would not have organised this at Christmas. It is equally stupid to organise it at Ramadan.

"It shows a complete lack of awareness and sensitivity.

"This is going to disadvantage the athletes and alienate the Asian communities by saying they don't matter.

"It's not only going to affect the participants it's going to affect all the people who want to watch the Games.

"They won't want to travel during Ramadan and they won't want to watch sport. It's a spiritual time."

Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra, an imam on the Muslim Council of Great Britain, said: "I'm sure the athletes will seek advice from their scholars.

"They are obviously going to be at a disadvantage because other competitors will be drinking and keeping up their energy levels.

"But they are athletes and I am sure they will train their bodies to cope with this.

"A Muslim might feel it would have been nice to avoid this month but life doesn't stop for Muslims during Ramadan even though they are fasting.

"The best thing for a Muslim is to continue his or her life as normal. This is the real test."

The British Olympic Association is now planning a meeting with the organisers of London 2012 to discuss how the timing will affect UK Muslim athletes.

And Muslim countries such as Turkey are calling for the date to be changed.

Togay Bayalti, president of the National Olympic Committee of Turkey, said: "This will be difficult for Muslim athletes.

"They don't have to observe Ramadan if they are doing sport and travelling but they will have to decide whether it is important to them.

"It would be nice for the friendship of the Games if they had chosen a different date."

The International Olympics Committee insisted the Games take place some time between July 15 to August 31, giving more than a week either side of Ramadan.

IOC spokeswoman Giselle Davies said: "We give a window to the five bid cities. The host city selects the dates within that window.

"The Games bring together virtually every religion and creed. How to deal with religious clashes is up to the athletes."

Joanna Manning Cooper, spokeswoman for London 2012, said: "We did know about it when we submitted our bid and we have always believed we could find ways to accommodate it.

"We had lots of things to consider when we submitted our dates, including the fact that transport will be less crowded in the summer holiday.

"We also need 70,000 volunteers and this is the best time to find them.

"We are working with the Muslim Council of Great Britain to find ways to accommodate Ramadan during the London Games."

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-410439/Muslims-anger-London-Oly…

The words that come out of your mouth belong to a language, unless your banging your keyboard in desperation, now, thats just universally understood! LANGUAGES. Yes, that has been a topic that has occupied some, not all, of our conversations on Tribune. We all speak different languages and there are approximately 6909 languages that are currently spoken worldwide and Mandarin tops the league board! So, how many languages can you speak, read, write or understand? What is your favourite language and why? If you were given the opportunity to learn a new language, which one would you choose? Imagine everyone spoke the same language? That would make our world a less interesting place, for sure!

Just wondering if anyone actually stays awake after fajr. In my area, fajr is prayed at 4.00am and i normally crawl back into bed and wake up at 8ish. But I read an article about increasing productivty if you stay awake after Fajr and it really inspired me to do so, but at 5am i couldn't stay awake!!

So who here stays awake after Fajr and how do you stay awake?????

Btw- this is the article that i read, and it is amazing!!The whole website has some pretty amazing tips and really really cute animations!

http://www.productivemuslim.com/7-tips-on-how-to-stay-up-after-fajr/

you wont be missed.

You can marry at any age in Islam 

[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuEw23erAk8]

Boiy, Mubarak's received his well earned life sentence!

His time was finally over. I think that was the best decision the court must've made in its history! Lets hope it sends out a clear message to his sons and his followers! Bless the victims and their relatives for celebrating through setting off fire crackers! 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18306126

Polygamy in Islam: The women victims of multiple marriage

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-berkshire-18252958

'It's bigamy but the police won't prosecute because there would be thousands of cases' Annemarie Hutchinson

I didn't really think it was common in the UK! Why do men continue to mistreat woman?

Women in their early 40s should be given access to IVF on the NHS, draft guidelines for England and Wales recommend.

NICE says the current age limit of 39 should be raised to 42 for women who have no other chance of conceiving.

The draft, which updates 2004 guidance, suggests other new groups who should be eligible for treatment.

They include same-sex couples and people facing cancer treatment who wish to preserve their fertility

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-18143587