Prosecuting Prostitution

"If we are going to say prostitution is illegal, why are so few men prosecuted for it? The answer is because they are powerful, well-connected, and can afford expensive lawyers that can keep their names private. ... becoming 'tough on prostitution' is likely to fail in the same way becoming 'tough on drugs' has."

Source: Kay Steiger

Though I'm not a fan of the sex worker career path, I believe Kay makes an important point. Prosecuting prostitution does very little to address the source of the problems at the root of the success of said industry. 

An Eye For An Eye

The concept of reciprocal justice does not always float my boat, but it sounds perfect here:

Ameneh Bahrami is certain that one day she'll meet someone, fall in love and get married. But when her wedding day comes, her husband won't see her eyes, and she won't see her husband. Bahrami is blind, the victim of an acid attack by a spurned suitor.

If she gets her way, her attacker will suffer the same fate. The 31-year-old Iranian is demanding the ancient punishment of "an eye for an eye," and, in accordance with Islamic law, she wants to blind Majid Movahedi, the man who blinded her.

"I don't want to blind him for revenge," Bahrami said in her parents' Tehran apartment. "I'm doing this to prevent it from happening to someone else."

Bahrami says she first crossed paths with Movahedi in 2002, when they attended the same university.

She was a 24-year-old electronics student. He was 19. She never noticed him until they shared a class. He sat next to her one day and brushed up against her. Bahrami says she knew it wasn't an accident.
. . .
Bahrami said that over the next two years, Movahedi kept harassing her and making threats, even as he asked her to marry him. "He told me he would kill me. He said, 'You have to say yes.' "

On a November afternoon in 2004, Movahedi's threats turned to violence.

That day at 4:30 p.m., Bahrami left the medical engineering company where she worked. As she walked to the bus stop, she remembers sensing someone behind her.

She turned around and was startled to see Movahedi. A moment later came the agonizing pain. Movahedi had thrown something over her. What felt like fire on her face was acid searing through her skin.

"I was just yelling, 'I'm burning! I'm burning! For God's sake, somebody help me!' "

The acid seeped into Bahrami's eyes and streamed down her face and into her mouth. When she covered her face with her hands, streaks of acid ran down her fingers and onto her forearms.
. . .
Bahrami's lawyer, Ali Sarrafi, said Movahedi had never shown any remorse. "He says he did it because he loved her," Sarrafi said.

Attack victims in Iran usually accept "blood money": a fine in lieu of harsh punishment. With no insurance and mounting medical bills, Bahrami could've used the cash, but she said no.

"I told the judge I want an eye for an eye," Bahrami said. "People like him should be made to feel my suffering." Watch how the acid destroyed Bahrami's eyes (includes graphic content) »

Bahrami's demand has outraged some human rights activists. Criticizing acid-attack victims is almost unheard of, but some Internet bloggers have condemned Bahrami's decision.

"We cannot condone such cruel punishment," wrote one blogger. "To willingly inflict the same treatment on a person under court order is a violation of human rights."

Late last year, an Iranian court gave Bahrami what she asked for. It sentenced Movahedi to be blinded with drops of acid in each eye. This month, the courts rejected Movahedi's appeal.

Bahrami's lawyer, Sarrafi, said the sentencing might be carried out in a matter of weeks. He said he doesn't think Bahrami will change her mind. Neither does Bahrami.

"If I don't do this and there is another acid attack, I will never forgive myself for as long as I live," she said.

Bahrami is largely self-sufficient despite not being able to see. She can make a salad, prepare tea and walk up the five flights of stairs that lead to her parents' apartment.

She has undergone more than a dozen surgeries on her badly scarred face, but she says there are many more to come. She can't afford to pay for her medical care, so she's using the Internet to raise money.

She's lost her big brown eyes, but she likes to smile, especially when she imagines her wedding day.

"I always see myself as someone who can see and sometimes see myself in a beautiful wedding gown, and why not?"

HOW was this an act of love? In what world?

I saw a CNN segment on this tragedy while at the gym today, and couldn't help but cry. May Allah (swt) give Ameneh strength, and the beautiful wedding she dreams of. And may he protect us all from deranged, delusional and violent men of this sort.

HOW to Dance in the Rain

It was a busy morning, about 8:30, when an elderly gentleman in his 80's arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He said he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am.

I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound. On exam, it was well healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his sutures and redress his wound.

While taking care of his wound, I asked him if he had another doctor's appointment this morning, as he was in such a hurry.

The gentleman told me no, that he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife. I inquired as to her health.

He told me that she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer's Disease.

As we talked, I asked if she would be upset if he was a bit late.

He replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in five years now.

I was surprised, and asked him, 'And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?'

He smiled as he patted my hand and said,
'She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is.'

I had to hold back tears as he left, I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought, 'that is the kind of love I want in my life.'

True love is neither physical, nor romantic.
True love is an acceptance of all that is,
has been, will be, and will not be.

The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything they have.

'Life isn't about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain.'

On Valentine's Day

"In the Christianization of cultures, ancient celebrations were often replaced by Christian holidays. Some claim that this is the case with Valentine's Day, which falls around the time of the pagan Lupercalia festival. Lupercalia, like many great ancient rituals, included a good old-fashioned goat slaughter. The goat meat was cut into strips, dunked in sacrificial blood and then used to lightly slap women and crops, a ritual that was supposed to make them more fertile. According to legend, single women would then place their names in an urn. Bachelors of the city would draw a name out of the urn and the couple would be paired for the year."

Source/Hijab Flutter: AOK!

Disturbing much?

Never Argue With A Woman (Who Reads)

One morning, a husband returns after several hours of fishing and decides to take a nap. Although not familiar with the lake, his wife decides to take the boat out. She motors out a short distance, drops anchor and settles down to read her book.

Along comes a Game Warden in his boat. He pulls up next to the woman and greets her, "Good morning, Ma'am. What are you doing?"

"Reading a book," she replies (while thinking: "Isn't that obvious?"). "There is no fishing allowed in this area, it's restricted," he informs her. "I'm sorry, officer, but I'm not fishing. I'm reading." "Yes, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start fishing at any moment. I'll have to tow you in and write you up."

"If you do that, I'll have to charge you with sexual assault," says the woman. "But I haven't even touched you," says the Game Warden. "That's true," she replies, "but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start at any moment."

"Have a nice day ma'am," he quickly replies as he leaves.

MORAL: Never argue with a woman who reads. It's likely she can also think.

Spousal Search Strategy

Don't know what to do? Have no idea where to look? Can't overcome the trend of laughable prospects? Well, reality TV has a solution for you! The show I previously blogged about at Muslamics is making progress as it prepares to launch.

CBS is treading into potentially controversial reality TV territory again.

The network has ordered a new series from the producers of "Top Chef" that puts lovelorn singles into arranged marriages.

The show introduces four adults in the 25-45 age range who are eager to get married but have been unsuccessful in their search for a mate. Their friends and family select a spouse for them, and the newly paired couple exchange marital vows. The series follows their marriages.

The rest of the details for the project, whose early working title is "Arranged Marriage," are being kept under wraps.
...
The series order for "Marriage" shows that CBS is not shying away from reality projects that might draw a few pointed editorials in the wake of the network's previous envelope-pushing social experiment, the fall 2007 series "Kid Nation."
"Marriage" also will inevitably draw comparisons to another arranged-marriage reality show, Fox's infamous "Married by America."

The 2003 series drew fire from conservative groups, and one bachelor party scene containing pixelated nudity resulted in the Federal Communications Commission's slapping Fox stations with a $1.18 million fine (which was reduced last month to $91,000).

But CBS' project differs from the earlier show in key ways.

In "Married," couples were paired by viewers voting from home and then sequestered in a hotel to learn more about each other. CBS' "Marriage" presents itself as a documentary series about finding true love, a show that extends the Eastern tradition of an arranged marriage (where friends and family select the mate) into the West.

Another difference is that on "Married," despite the pundit outcry, nobody on the show actually ended up getting hitched. On CBS, couples will really tie the knot.

Source: Yahoo! News

I think I still have the casting call buried somewhere in my old emails. Let me know if you're interested inapplying and would like me to dig it up for you!

My Favorite Dawah Campaign Is Getting News Coverage!

More information on the campaign here: In Love

How not to screw up the stimulus in five easy steps

This week, the Senate will consider a mind-bogglingly large stimulus package - the latest figures put it somewhere in the neighborhood of $900 billion. Here at CREDO, we believe a stimulus package this large is necessary because our economy is in dire straits. But there is a right and a wrong way to stimulate the economy. Join us in asking the Senate not to screw up the stimulus in five easy steps. The Senate needs your help -- so please add your own suggestion when you sign the petition at right.

1. Get rid of a $2 billion provision for "clean coal" plants. Instead, invest this money in green infrastructure and alternative energy development.
2. Invest in infrastructure, not tax cuts. Don't reward businesses that got us into this mess with tax cuts that won't create new jobs in the future.
3. Reinstate the Medicaid Family Planning State Option. Funding state healthcare programs for women will protect jobs of healthcare workers and make sure women living in or on the edge of poverty get the care they need.
4. Include meaningful bankruptcy reform. Bankruptcy judges should regain the ability to restructure mortgages (that is, lower the amount owed and the interest rate, reflecting the lower value of the house) so that borrowers can stay in their homes.
5. Don't give Verizon $1.6 billion in tax cuts without generating a single new job. Money originally earmarked to encourage companies to bring high speed internet to underserved low-income and rural communities has turned into a billion dollar giveaway to big telecom.
   

The stimulus package will never be perfect, nor will it please everyone. However, these five key suggestions can help to make it the kind of package that will truly help our economy and aid those Americans who need it the most.

Source: Credo Action

Sign the Petition: Credo Approved

Raped and Videotaped by U.S. Officials

This is disturbing beyond words:

However, the women's allegations are described in detail in an affidavit by a State Department investigator assigned to the case. In the affidavit, filed in federal court in Washington, the women give similar accounts of being assaulted by a man described as an official of the U.S. Embassy in the Algerian capital. The official is identified in the affidavit as Andrew Warren, an "employee of the U.S. government" assigned to the embassy.
. . .
ABC, quoting unnamed officials, said the women's accounts were backed up by videotapes that were found in the CIA officer's residence. The tapes, apparently secretly made, allegedly show the CIA officer engaged in sex acts with several women, including one of the alleged victims in the case who appears to be in a semiconscious state, the network reported.

Full Story/Source: Washington Post

Tupac said it best, "I wonder why we take from our women? Why we rape our women, do we hate our women? I think it's time to kill for our women. Time to heal our women, be real to our women."

This is Ridiculous

... the nerve of the [Zionist] Israelis never ceases to amaze me:

"Why did they fire rockets? There was no siege against Gaza. Why did they fight us, what did they want? There was never a day of starvation in Gaza."

Really? No siege? No starvation?

The silver lining in the story: Turkey MIGHT soon be joining the cool kids club with Venezuela and Bolivia.

Obama, Take Away the Pain in My Stomach

An open letter to Obama, from an Israeli woman:

One (Amazing) Reason to Get Married

GAZA CITY: There was no party, no celebrations when 22-year-old Aida al-Qaddumi finally got married this week.

There were no regrets either -- she said she was marrying to raise "fighters" and asked only that she might die as a "martyr" in Israel.

Three weeks of a deadly Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip forced postponement of the January 7 wedding, but it did not alter her intentions.

Source: the Times of India

This really puts things in perspective. What are we really looking for in a spouse? What do we really hope to accomplish together? (If not specifically raising fighters, then how about a more general "serving Allah" or "bettering the world" goal?) And what superficial, worldy obstacles are we bowing to, thus undermining our ability to serve Allah?

Time

Whoever said "time heals all wounds," LIED (or was suffering from a really bad case of denial).

One More Reason to Blog: For Palestine

Are you looking for something to do for Palestine? Consider counter-blogging.

[Apartheid] Israel recruits 'army of bloggers' to combat anti-Zionist Web sites

The Immigrant Absorption Ministry announced on Sunday it was setting up an "army of bloggers," to be made up of Israelis who speak a second language, to represent [apartheid] Israel in "anti-Zionist blogs" in English, French, Spanish and German.

The program's first volunteer was Sandrine Pitousi, 31, from Kfar Maimon, situated five kilometers from Gaza. "I heard about the project over the radio and decided to join because I'm living in the middle of the conflict," she said.
. . .
"During the war, we looked for a way to contribute to the effort," the ministry's director general, Erez Halfon, told Haaretz. "We turned to this enormous reservoir of more than a million people with a second mother tongue." Other languages in which bloggers are sought include Russian and Portuguese.
. . .
Within 30 minutes of announcing the program, which was approved by the Foreign Ministry on Sunday, five volunteers were already in touch, Halfon said.

Source: Haaretz

Hijab Flutter: Madina

TOMORROW: 15 Minutes of Your Time to Save Palestinian Lives

Tomorrow, Friday the 16th, has been designated a National Call in Day for Gaza. We need to get key phone lines ringing off the hook, starting tomorrow.

All we need is 15 minutes of your time.

How important is your participation? MPAC reports that <>

Can you imagine that? For every person of conscience who called in solidarity with the Palestinians, the LA Mayor's office heard from 10 people who supported the actions of the murderous state of Israel.

With the death toll now well over 1,000 and hospitals, schools and relief agency headquarters all under unprecedented military attack, 15 minutes is the LEAST we can do.

Please check out the simple instructions included below, and start calling. Then keep calling, AND please spread the word.

----------

Please Circulate Widely!

National Call-In Day for Gaza!

January 16, 2009


We designate Friday, January 16th as National Call-In Day for Gaza. Calling is quick, easy, and effective, and will take about 5-10 minutes. We need to keep the phones ringing non-stop for the duration of the day so that our message CAN NO LONGER BE IGNORED.


Contact in order of importance:


1) Call President-Elect Obama's Transition Team at 202-540-3000.

Ask that President-Elect Obama and his team call for:

1) An immediate cease-fire.

2) An end to the blockade and siege of Gaza.

3) An immediate withdrawal from Gaza.


Be firm and polite and stress the fact that over a thousand people have died and thousands have been injured in Gaza, mainly civilians. This follows months of suffering under a severe blockade that has resulted in shortages of food, fuel and basic medical supplies. When calling, mention (UN Security Council Resolution 1860 that was adopted last week which calls for an immediate ceasefire and unimpeded humanitarian access.


2) Call your Representative at 202-224-3121. Ask how they voted on House Resolution 34 which passed overwhelmingly in the House last Friday, with 390 Representatives voting yes, 5 no, and 22 present. The resolution "recognizes Israel's right to defend itself" and "reaffirms the United States' strong support for Israel."


If your Representative voted "no" or "present" on H.Res. 34, thank them and ask that they cosponsor Rep. Kucinich's upcoming resolution.

(See: http://endtheoccupation.org/downloads/KUCINI_001_xml.pdf)


If your representative voted "yes" on H.Res. 34 state your disagreement with their vote and ask them to co-sponsor the Kucinich resolution.


3) Call your Senators at 202-224-3121 and assert your disagreement with their unanimous vote on Senate Resolution 10 and ask that they introduce a resolution in the Senate that is similar to Rep. Kucinich's resolution in the House.


Please forward this to all your lists and personally contact 10 friends and urge them to make these calls to save lives in Gaza.


Change happens with numbers. That is how Obama became president and that is how we can bring a lasting peace and justice to the Palestinians. As people living in America, we control the discourse and the funding that has resulted in the present massacre in Gaza. Considering the fundamental role that we play in this political situation, our participation is the least we can do.


"The death of children is the death of innocence, and the death of innocence is the downfall of humanity."

– Emine Erdogan, wife of Turkey's Prime Minister, 1/10/09

Commitment Phobia (Or Something) Gone Very Very Wrong

BEIJING - A 107-year-old Chinese woman who was afraid to marry when she was young has decided to look for her first husband and hopes to find a fellow centenarian so they will have something to talk about, a Chinese paper reported.

Wang Guiying is worried she is becoming a burden to her aging nieces and nephews since breaking her leg when she was 102 and had to stop doing chores like washing her clothes.

"I'm already 107 and I still haven't got married," the Chongqing Commercial Times quoted her saying. "What will happen if I don't hurry up and find a husband?"

Source: MSNBC

Hijab Flutter: Zainab

May Allah (swt) protect all of us from such a fate.

House Resolution 34

Remember all of that excitement about finally having Muslims (yes, plural. We celebrated twice.) in Congress?

It seems, Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN) voted YES on House Resolution 34, while Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Min) answered PRESENT per:

House Clerk

The Library of Congress

What is House Resolution 34? According to the bill title, it is "recognizing [apartheid] Israel’s right to defend itself against attacks from Gaza, reaffirming the United States’ strong support for [apartheid] Israel, and supporting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process."

If we couldn't get them to vote against this, aren't they for the most part useless?

Thank You Palestine

This afternoon, a friend emailed me a picture of a Friday afternoon Gaza protest that took place outside the mosque I grew up attending. I recognized some of the faces; uncle figures who had helped raise me. This small San Gabriel mosque and these people are not the type I would ever imagine affiliated with a protest. But subhana'Allah, the modern day genocide in Gaza has given the silent amongst us voices. Everybody is organizing. Everybody is acting. So, thank you Palestine:

Thank you Palestine for setting us free.
Thank you for giving the masses of Arabs a voice.
Thank you for giving the masses of Arabs a will.
Thank you for giving the masses of Arabs a uniting cause.

They were thrown down the well of humiliation,
Just like Josef; to get rid of them
They were pushed one small step at a time
Mow they are so used to it
Now they cannot tell if it was day or night

But you Palestine set them free
There is no darkness like occupation and
there is no light like liberty.

And that is not all!

Even those who were silenced after 9/11 got their voice back.
Thank you for giving Muslims in the US a voice.
Thank you for giving Muslims in the US a will.
Thank you for giving Muslims in the US a uniting cause.

Palestine you have awakened hearts from Caracas to those in a far away sea

Palestine, you have set us free so many times...

So...
When will we set you free.
When ... ?

Source: unknown

We Will Not Go Down

On Why We Will March for Palestine this Weekend:

Perhaps now more than at any other time in recent memory, we must rally and march for Gaza.

We must march for the babies, the children, and the innocent victims of aggression and mass killing.

We must let the people of Gaza, and all of Palestine, know that they are not alone in this time of existential crisis.

We must march to join hundreds of thousands of global citizens who demand an end to this orgy of killing perpetrated by an Israeli war machine that is trained, funded, and supported by American tax dollars.

We must march to uphold the rule of international law over the appetite of colonialism and ethnic cleansing.

We must march to challenge the unconscionable blockade of Gaza, and to denounce the resulting humanitarian crisis that now threatens the lives of more than 1.5 million human beings.

We must march to demonstrate our call for an end to the root cause of this war-namely, the illegal and violent occupation of Palestine itself.

We must march to build momentum to support the long and difficult work that we must all do to change the one-sided and morally bankrupt policies of the United States that give unquestioned support to the actions of a settler state.

And finally - the most important reason of all - we must march to honor the commandment of our own faith tradition to oppose injustice, with our hands, our tongues, and our hearts.

This national solidarity event will not, in itself, bring peace and justice to the people of Gaza. But it is a necessary part of a larger, and longer, strategy for mobilization to end this war, and support the conditions for freedom and justice for the people of Palestine.

Credit: MAS Freedom Foundation

Dua for Gaza

"You are not to sleep, eat or drink until you stop the killing of innocent people in the Gaza Strip."