Month: July 2011

NOTES FROM THE IIIT CONFERENCE ON IFTAA AND FATWA IN THE MUSLIM WORLD AND THE WEST: THE CHALLENGES OF AUTHORITY, LEGITIMACY AND RELEVANCE #2 [This is the second in a series of my notes on the International Institute of Islamic Thought conference on iftaa and fatwa held in Herndon, VA. These notes are raw material…

The FBI has been recommending some of the same disinformation pieces that pushed Norwegian terrorism suspect Anders Behring Breivik over the edge to its own agents: FBI Recommended ‘Complete Idiot’s Guide,’ Anti-Muslim Books to New Agents (Talking Points Memo) Your tax dollars at work: Israelis destroy agricultural land and rough up and detain five Israelis…

A new definition of khutzba, the vandal suing his victim: “Israel is suing a group of Bedouin in the Negev desert for the costs of demolishing their village each time they rebuild it”: Israel Sues Bedouin for $500,000 in Eviction Costs (BBC) “Supporters evoked the Arab Spring … as a fitting backdrop for an endorsement…

In a manifesto describing himself as a Christian Knight Templar “operating as a jury, judge and executioner on behalf of all free Europeans,” the murderer of Norwegian children expresses his support for apartheid Israel while condemning the U.S. for letting in too many Jews: Muslim-hating Killer Expresses Divergent Views About Jews and Israel (al-Arabiya) “The…

The Norwegian terrorist (who now claims that “he has ‘two more cells’ working with him”) is “a 32-year-old who contends he is waging a Christian crusade against multiculturalism in Europe, believes the killings were ‘gruesome’ but ‘necessary,’ … to preserve a Christian Europe” from Muslim immigration: In Diary, Norwegian ‘Crusader’ Details Months of Preparation for…

Is the long-time Kashimiri lobbyist the victim of the cross-fire in the strained relationship between the U.S. and Pakistan? Kashmiris Respond to Arrest of Alleged Secret Agent in Washington (Christian Science Monitor) In Mecca, Rais Bhuiyan realized that if he could forgive the man who murdered two others and tried to murder him then  “we…

The “army will announce a date for the elections by the end of next month,” and underlines its hold on power by banning foreign election monitors: Egypt Says No to Foreign Election Monitors (San Francisco Chronicle) After the Bin Ladin assassination,  the views of “”political liberals and moderates … shifted to become more like those…

Contrary to popular opinion, “‘Islam-bashing’ proved a strikingly poor campaign tactic” in 2010 and in most cases, “candidates who focused on illusory Muslim ‘threats,’ tied ordinary American Muslims to terrorists and radicals, or characterized mosques as halls of triumph (and prayer in them as indoctrination) went down to defeat” … How Muslim-bashing Loses Elections (Asia…