Fort Hood

Rumsfeld would like to comment on the tragic Fort Hood shootings.  Our society seems to have a love affair with political correctness.  On the surface this seems harmless, but if it prevents army or intelligence personnel from digging deeper into a potential domestic threat, than political correctness can actually be very detrimental.   This appears to be the case with the Fort Hood shooter.  Red flags were seemingly ignored due to a fear of appearing to single out a Muslim member of the military.  Not good.

In addition, Rumsfled sympathizes with the plight American Muslims face when their loyalty, intentions and religion constantly come under scrutiny. Rumsfeld is not Muslim but Catholic and although not exactly the same, would like to make a comparison.  I admit that I resent, am annoyed with and even hated the circumstances surrounding questionable activities of some priests in the Catholic Church.  The Church and its personnel are still under heavy scrutiny due to the actions of a few and I just wish it would go away.  However, I do realize that the actions of a few unfortunately have brought this upon the entire Church.  And like certain mosques or Islamic practitioners, the Catholic Church must be transparent in its attempt to ‘clean house’.  I feel that some Muslims become somewhat defensive when motives are questioned.  However, by being more forthcoming and even speaking out against extremism, some of these perceived fears may be reduced. 

On a lighter note, Rumsfeld fell asleep during Men who talk to Goats. 

Israr Ahmed – Obligations to the Qur’an

Rumsfeld would like to put out a disclaimer that although, I do not visit my local synagogue, mosque or church every week, I do consider myself to be a religious person.  That being said, I don’t know how original Israr Ahmed’s thoughts are on obligations to the Qur’an and I also am unsure as to how literal they should be taken.  It seems to me that alot of what Ahmed is stating should be self evident and expected of any religious person, especially the points about living out the teaching in daily life and conveying its message to others.  I mean, what truly is the purpose of reading and understanding religious doctrine, if you are not going to pursue it. 

I believe the greater point that Ahmed is making and something that many religious people are guilty of is simply going through the ‘religious motions’.  It is easy to mindlessly recite and memorize prayer and attend even daily services. The difficult part is bringing religion to bear in daily life.

God Bless religion and God Bless America.

RE: Mozaffar’s question regarding the media

Emir Mozaffar, you are correct in asserting that the  media’s only true responsibility is to make its parent company as much money as possible.  This is why we have lunatics such as Keith Oberann, Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity entertaining us on a nightly basis.  However, these media outlets have to be aware that if they continue to offer biased, invalid coverage, they lose credibility as a news source.  Theoretically they will then lose viewership and eventually money.   Media moguls are well aware of this fact and that is why the outrageous ‘news’ reporters are often times mixed in with the true news coverage.  It can only be assumed that the American public would rather be entertained than informed.   Rumsfeld does not have much faith in the American public. 

Rumsfeld would also like to take the time to congratulate Firebird on figuring out how to blog.  The system is actually quite easy to use once you experience it a couple times.

God Bless America!

RE: To Many

RE:  Concerned with public education – Yes, as I mentioned in an earlier posts, I hadn’t heard of any of these scholars until I took this class.  And it would seem that these people are and have been very influential to society even beyond the Muslim World.  I wish they would have been incorporated at some point into my education.  However, I also think its fair to say that the same can be said for the educational systems in most other parts of the world.  We are taught to view the world through the eyes of our own culture.

Re:  To career fair and response to career fair.  I’m sure that I am going to catch some heat for this, but I think that the immediate response by the non-Muslim segment of the American public was if not justifiable, certainly understandable.   Of course, not all terrorists are Muslim or of Middle Eastern descent, but the 9/11 hijackers certainly were.  I think it was a natural reaction by a nervous population that resulted in the misunderstandings that we saw.  You are correct though, it is the responsibility of the media  to be informative and take the lead in dispelling the ridiculous notions that ‘muslims are not americans’ and that the words muslim/terrorist/Islam are interchangeable.

Rumsfeld is also aware that our professor’s name is Omer Mozaffar and not Emir Mozaffar.  I was simply acknowledging Omer Mozaffar’s intellectual superiority.

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MOZAFFAR – Mozaffar asks Rumseld and others what the responsibilities are of the media.  Mozaffar would assert that the media itself is not beholden to any responsibilities.  Ideally it would be or should be, but in a free society, the media is whatever the producers make it to be.  I’m saying, it’s a business that will sell whatever people will buy.  Any thoughts.

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MOZAFFAR –

Iqbal

Rumsfeld is wondering where all the other bloggers are.  Did I miss something?  I realize that the class is no longer considered reading and writing intensive but hopefully it soon becomes blogging intensive. 

That being said, I spent alot of time this week reading Mir’s biography of Muhammad Iqbal.  This guy is pretty well rounded.  He has studied in both the Middle East and Europe while earning more degrees than Rumsfeld cares to count.  I also am really struck by Iqbal’s appreciation for his teachers/mentors.  Both Mir Hasan and Sir Thomas Arnold had a profound impact on the way in which Iqbal came to view the world.  Rumsfeld is a little upset however, that Iqbal came to write in such a intense, difficult word-laden and dense fashion.  Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam was quite the read.

On a final serious note, Iqbal is the latest in a series of Islamic scholars that Rumsfeld simply has not heard of prior to taking Emir Mozaffar’s class.  It is interesting to see how educational institutions present material through specific lenses while ignoring many other ‘lenses’.

Al-Banna and Afghanistan (in no particular order)

Rumsfeld wonders how well the monarchs and autocrats of the Middle East felt about Al-Banna’s recommendations.  How dare this peasant attempt to tell the all-powerful rulers how to govern.  What makes his version of political Islam any better than ours?  It is very likely that Al-Banna was quickly viewed as a radical and a threat to be taken very seriously.  The stinging implied criticism coming from the writings is impossible to ignore.  Although the ruling class in the Middle East publicly supported Pan-Arabism or the concept of one Arab state, most of them really viewed this concept as a threat to their stability. 

Rumsfeld would also like to comment on the current situation in Afghanistan.  Will Mr. Obama double down? fold? or simply hold the line.  As a former war-monger, I’d prefer more men, more tanks, and yes more money spent.  However, I do believe that perhaps a scaled back approach, utilizing quick response units, predator drones and concentrating on the AfPak border is what ultimately will be decided.