The MF Husain Controversy: Identity, Intent and the Rise of Militant Fascism American Survivor of Mumbai Attacks Converts to Islam
Greenville resident
Dennis O’Brien, Mumbai Attacks

http://wardoons.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/aaa.jpg?w=398&h=600

quotation

By SEAN O’SULLIVAN
The News Journal

WILMINGTON– After surviving a terrorist attack in Mumbai, India, 10 months ago, when armed men targeted westerners in two five-star hotels, Greenville resident Dennis O’Brien did not turn to hate.

Instead, he sought to understand the root faith the people behind the attacks claimed to practice and discovered it had been twisted by the gunmen.

Eventually, he came to embrace it.

On Sunday, standing before a crowd of thousands, following prayers to mark the end of Ramadan, O’Brien, a Catholic, embraced Islam in a testimony of faith called Shahada, where he publically declared that there was only one God and the Prophet Muhammad is his last messenger and servant.

O’Brien, who heads up the education committee of St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Wilmington, said the move was a surprise, even to him.

But said he was at peace with it.

“Today I feel free of sin,” he said.

After several months of studies and asking questions of Muslim friends and associates, “I feel comfort in Islam,” he said.

O’Brien said he wanted to express solidarity with Muslims, even though extremists who say they practice the faith “tried to kill me.”

Pastor John F. McGinley, of St. Anthony’s, said Sunday he had not heard of O’Brien’s embrace of Islam.

McGinley said he knows O’Brien is inquisitive and has expressed concern about the young men involved in the Mumbai attacks.

He would not say if the declaration of another faith would affect O’Brien’s position at the church, noting he had not spoken to him about Sunday’s events.

“I think this is part of his journey of faith and we can work with that,” McGinley said.

Indeed, while others called it a conversion, O’Brien said he is not abandoning Christianity or Catholicism. He said he would not disgrace his family by disavowing what he was raised to believe and what they believe in.

He said he sees Sunday’s declaration as a continuation or extension of his beliefs, noting how elements of Christianity and Judaism are a part of the Islamic faith.

He said he hopes to continue his work with the Catholic Church, even as he plans to regularly attend weekly Muslim prayers.

Asked what he will say when asked about his faith, he said he will now answer that he is “a student of Islam.”

Easy AdSense by Unreal
He said he did not consider himself to be entirely Muslim. “I’m a work in progress,” he said.

While most Muslims believe Jesus Christ was a great man and a prophet of God, they do not believe he was the son of God as Christians do. O’Brien said he still believes in Christ, that he ascended into heaven and will return one day.

He said he prayed a great deal about the recent move and Saturday was a day of lengthy contemplation.

He said his path to Islam started Nov. 26, 2008, in room 343 of the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower hotel in Mumbai when he heard gunshots.

O’Brien was there with fellow Delawarean C. Rich Diffenderffer, on business.

The two later said skipping dessert that night may have saved their lives.

Instead of remaining in the restaurant, O’Brien retired to his room and Diffenderffer went to the business center.

Minutes later, armed militants stormed the hotel, throwing grenades and spraying bullets.

By the end of the 60-hour assault, at least 170 were dead.

O’Brien said he peered out his door at one point and saw three of the attackers carrying assault rifles, all shouted as they passed.

While O’Brien, a former Marine who served in Vietnam, briefly entertained the notion of leaving his door open and attempting to disarm any gunman who tried to enter his room, he decided to bolt his door and push a couch in front of it.

Later, his room began to fill with smoke and he tried to make a run for it but was turned back by a wall of fire. He was rescued by firefighters with a ladder.

Diffenderffer, who was on the fifth floor, was rescued with a cherry picker.

While O’Brien cites that night as the start of his journey, he said it was not until a month later that he seriously started to consider “joining the Muslim movement” after he read the Koran, the Muslim holy book.

That was followed by about six months of study, and questions.

“I was brought up Christian and taught when someone attacks you, you have to love them,” he said. “What I discovered as I investigated Islam … I became enamored with the faith and the people I met.”

He credited business partner, Ahmad Amer, a Muslim, with guiding him on his current path.

On Sunday, O’Brien was one of the last to leave the room where prayers had been held — the first full Muslim prayer service O’Brien has attended. He was besieged by well-wishers who shook his hand and welcomed him to the community.

As he departed, he said he found Islam to be “a community of men who have integrity and I want to stand with these men of integrity.”

The MF Husain Controversy: Identity, Intent and the Rise of Militant Fascism Liberaloons, Secularoons, and Murtadoons emerging from under their slimy mossy caverns.
========================================================

M.F.Hussai n is a con-artist par excellence...I have tremendous respect for him...Ever since Time Magazine "discovered" him as a filmi-poster painter..the english-medium/rare/well-done have been going gaga over him.

He markets himself well...the shoeless shiaster; the barefoot
brush-man...met him in Dubai recently...Shoe Companies beg him to wear their shoe if only once...has a fleet of every possible racing car one can imagine..even a car which is more expensive than Bugati or Rolls....but he walks barefoot.

I think he is a Gandhi without an agenda ...a noble soul indeed.

Hey America, Come Join The Civilized World! SR:
thanks for posting Gore Vidal's interview.

and I say "Amen" to that...May the United Satans along with its Ibleesi Minions gets dispatched to the Hades of History soon.

"shafaque naheen maghribi uufaque pur, yeh joo-e khoon hai, yeh joo-e khoon hai"......ALLAMA Iqbal

Hey America, Come Join The Civilized World! Gandhi said it best:

Journalist:" Mr.Gandhi, what do you think of the Western Civilization"?

and

Gandhi deadpanned:

"Sure, its a nice idea"

Mahatma Gandhi zindabad

An Hour at Datta Darbar "Ho nik-u naam jo qabroan kee tijarat kar kay
Kya naa poojo gey jo mil jaen sanam pathhar kay"?

................................................ALLAMA IQBAL

tr:

"You've already sullied your name by making the tombs your trade
Would you then have any qualms in worshiping the stone idols"?

Hollywood\'s Reigning King Of Plagiarism sufia ajaz:

Thanks for this shockingly revealing outing of the "genie-us"

Its time that the western nations, whose very existence is due to robbery, exploitation and theft of others efforts, and copyrighting as their own of what others created and discovered, are shattered and their huge self-bloated idols crashed like the Bamian Budhhas.

I thoroughly admire and appreciate your iconoclastic mission. Keep it up..we need you.

A Non-Muslim Appraisal of Islamic Sharia "Merrily, Merrily, the rod of Moses goes into the sea of Galilee; and the bells in Jerusalem are ringing"!...the holy Bible
===========================================================
The Big Question: How do Britain's sharia courts work, and are they a good thing?

By Andy McSmith
"The Independant".. U.K

Tuesday, 30 June 2009


Why are we asking this now?

Civitas, an independent research organisation, has issued a report saying that there are many more sharia courts operating in the United Kingdom than we thought. It was known that there were such courts operating in London, Manchester, Bradford, Birmingham and Nuneaton, but no-one knows how many there are. By examining online fatwa sites, the author calculated that there at least 85, most operating out of mosques, but some located in cafes or Muslim schools across the country.

What is a sharia court?

The Muslim writer Tariq Ramadan lamented that "In the West, the idea of sharia calls up all the darkest images of Islam ... Many Muslim intellectuals do not dare even to refer to the concept for fear of frightening people or arousing suspicion of all their work by the mere mention of the word."

Sharia is linked with another word, "fatwa", which first entered British public's consciousness courtesy of Ayatollah Khomeini's pronouncement that Salman Rushdie should be killed for writing his novel Satanic Verses. Actually, "fatwa" is a traditional word for a sharia legal judgement or opinion and need not have such negative connotations, and in the UK sharia courts are a means of settling marital or financial disputes between Muslims without the expense of going to court.

How was the figure of 85 reached?

A network called the Islamic Sharia Council, run from a converted corner shop in Leyton, operates 13 tribunals in the UK. The Association of Muslim Lawyers runs another three. There are three other formal councils, making 19. But there are other informal councils dotted around the country whose existence can be imputed from online fatwa sites – at least 66, if Civitas is correct, though the fact is that no one knows exactly how many there are.

Are sharia courts legal?

The existence of these courts is controversial, and some rulings recorded on fatwa sites clearly conflict with British law – for instance, that a Muslim woman may not marry a non-Muslim man unless he converts, and if she does, her children should be taken away from her; or that a wife should normally obey a man's summons to have sex; that a divorced wife has no property rights; or that homosexuality should be severely punished.

But if a married couple choose to take their marital problems to a religious leader, or if Muslim businessmen appeal to a cleric to settle a financial dispute, that is their affair, assuming that both parties are there voluntarily. In such cases, the issue is not whether a fatwa issued by a sharia court is against the law but whether it has any force in law.

Why should any British court recognise a fatwa?

In 1996, Parliament passed the Arbitration Act setting out rules under which parties in a dispute have the right to go to an impartial tribunal to get justice without expensive litigation. Muslims lawyers interpreted this as meaning that sharia courts could act as arbitration panels under the Act, they began in 2007, and their decisions are legally binding.

Why did the Church of England back sharia courts?

In February last year, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, caused a storm of protest when he said during an interview on BBC Radio 4, that "certain provisions of sharia are already recognised in our society and under our law." He was accused of advocating a parallel legal system for British Muslims, but Lambeth Palace insisted that he was simply saying that to achieve social cohesion in this country, we should recognise that thousands of Muslims want their affairs settled under sharia law. Five months later, the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Philips, shocked a many people when he backed the Archbishop, saying: "There is no reason why principles of sharia law, or any other religious code, should not be the basis for mediation or other forms of alternative dispute resolution."

Why should Muslims get this special treatment?

One argument is that they are not the only ones. Jewish Beth Din courts have operated in this country for centuries, used mainly by Orthodox Jews, and are recognised under the 1996 Act. Both parties in a case have to be Jews, and have to agree to have their cases heard by the Beth Din court.

What is wrong with sharia courts?

On International Women's Day, in March, there was a huge demonstration in London, backed by feminists, supporters of gay rights and others – including a substantial number of Muslims – who marched under a banner saying: "No sharia and faith-based laws – one law for all." They claimed that the supposedly voluntary nature of the courts is a sham, because many Muslim women are pressured into accepting their rulings, and that sharia courts dispense cheap injustice. Denis MacEoin, author of the Civitas report, argues: "Women are not equal in sharia law, and sharia contains no specific commitment to the best interests of the child that is fundamental to family law in the UK. Under sharia, a male child belongs to the father after the age of seven, regardless of circumstances." The Muslim Council of Britain says that this talk is "scaremongering".

What do the courts' defenders say?

Sheik Sayeed, president of the Leyton-based Islamic Sharia Council told the BBC earlier this year that the majority of the cases they handle are divorce cases, mainly involving women wanting to escape bad or forced marriages. "What we do is, we try to make their guardians, their parents, understand the Islamic position, and also we tell them what is the position of British law on marriage," he said. According to Najma Ebrahim, a former coordinator with the Muslim Women's Helpline, it is vital for some women's religious faith and peace of mind that they get this reassurance from a cleric.

Are there any other aspects of British life where sharia law applies?

It might surprise many people to know that the Treasury enthusiastically supports the spread of sharia-compliant banking, which now has 40,000 customers. Mortgages were a problem for Muslims, because they involve paying interest – until the banks devised sharia-compliant equivalents. These attracted double stamp duty, until the Treasury altered the Stamp Duty Land Tax in 2003 to benefit Muslim homeowners.

Is there any objection to sharia-compliant banks?

It might seem wholly reasonable that banks should devise ways of doing business that do not offend their customers' beliefs – but in the current issue of the conservative magazine Standpoint, the writer Alexander Meleagrou-Hitchens sounds a warning: "It has one effect that is strong and unmistakable: it reinforces the perception of mutual incompatibility between the West and Islam. Muslims and Western governments alike have a duty to weigh this dangerous quality against sharia banking's highly dubious religious and economic credentials."

Should sharia courts play an active role in British society?

Yes

*Everyone, including devout Muslims, should have the right to settle personal disputes in front of the tribunal of their choice

*Many Muslim women feel the need for a cleric's reassurance that they can break a forced marriage

*They give Muslims a facility already available to Orthodox Jews

No

*Sharia law does not recognise women's equality, or gay rights, or religious freedom

*Though participation is supposed to be voluntary, women in particular are likely to be pressured into accepting sharia law

*Sharia courts unnecessarily exacerbate the divisions between Muslim and western societies

Vindictive at Their Best-Pakistan Army #6 Posted by sjunaidn on July 14, 2009 5:02:46 pm
M.R.Kayanai...the genius judge.
Knew how to deliver the message.

But it is not dirty soil...it is the soiled soil..and most by the sons-of-the-soil...the angraiz-kay-ghulaams masquerading as muslims.

Vindictive at Their Best-Pakistan Army To ALL the Filter-tipped Posters....

Carry ON folks , but whenever you feel the urge to tell the Truth in Four-Letters Please use the Words CHOWK for eg:

for Bhos..Ke : say abay CHOWK ke

I was thinking of putting up such a list on an i-log but then thought it would be better if everyone invented their own.

These CHOWKING Cantonment Canines need to be given the respect they deserve..treat them like one.

In the Belly of Time this is an unusual article on CHOWK..and I am glad that it was published. We need more off-beat and informative, FIRST HAND, write-ups like these rather than the intellectuali-tis infested , "Educated" types of crap that gets regurgirated and vomitted out here.

Your article would have appealed even more to me if you had explained the mechanisms e.g which enable these watches to self-wind or how gravity is defied or how or where these delicate parts are perfected. More information about the owners & manufacturers(?) & their family saga would definitely make an interesting reading.

Please reply and continue upon the above theme..whatever you know.

Neruda and Faiz: Great Contemporary Poets http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgvGrqSuYBc

Neruda and Faiz: Great Contemporary Poets Right On Fuzair,

Being an ardent fan of Faiz it is quite a quandry for people like me to agree with his politics. Fateh Muhammad Malik has done a real good job as a critic to tone down the mindless adulation of the poet and the timeless appeal of his poetry.

Amazingly and perplexingly both Iqbal and Faiz are two such poets who are equally loved for their poetry by Jammat-i-Islamis and People's Party types..both love to use them in their oratory.

In conclusion let me say that they are both superbly great both in persona and in poetry....Politics is very unsubstantial and temporal....these guys should be valued above such pettiness. I hope , perhaps being a great person yourself, you'll forgive them for their human frailities.

Science and Enlightenment: East and West anil sahib, riaz sahib

thanks for your input. That is perhaps the most often quoted
aphorism by Einstein used by "spiritualists"..but then there are others by him also which could be used to bolster his "doubts"...best we can say is that they are simply idle musings and should be valued more for their sparks than their wattage. Be it Einstein or anyone they are not so great that they should be taken seriously beyond their domain.

The journey is inside rather than outside ones self. The moment it is expressed & exhibited its mystique is gone.

all the Prime Movers are intangibles, ethereal, spiritual, non-material: words, passions, hurts, love/hate, greed/lust
prejudice/preference, prayers/wishes...etc etc

The Physical motion is simply a manifestation of the above..they are not even movers as such.

hUm sey zamaana khuud hai, zamaanay sey hUm naheeN

Science and Enlightenment: East and West 89:
"...I have said that it is the best imagination of man..."
=========================================================

o r the imagination that it is the best imagination of man

So when did it dawn on you, or was it revealed to you, that you were Man...are you?.....you seem kind of certain about it.

Science and Enlightenment: East and West DM: see!....
The legtrap never fails.

Science and Enlightenment: East and West DM:
I'm perhaps not wrong to be confident enough to say that you
were fortunate enough to never attend toataa-mainaa schools in slavelands. Am I also correct in having learned that you were one of pretty high-up civil servant in Ottawa and now in the consulting business.

So may I ask you in all earnestness what kind of perverted pleasure do you get to engage the types who originate from the OFFENCE-Kaalonies and UNCIVIL-lines of Pakistan.

Unless ofcourse you love to yank their tails and whirl them as a discus thrower would just to hear their chiaaaooN & tiaoooons?

waiting with salivated anticipation