Independent Online Edition > How Islamic inventors changed the world

Posted on March 19th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Misc. News.

Independent Online Edition:   How Islamic inventors changed the world
naamloos.JPG From coffee to cheques and the three-course meal, the Muslim world has given us many innovations that we take for granted in daily life. As a new exhibition opens, Paul Vallely nominates 20 of the most influential- and identifies the men of genius behind them. A nice article to read but a little more discussion would be helpful. Not all of the inventors in the Muslim world were Muslim, some were Christian and Jews just as in the European world Muslim scientists played an important role. Furthermore it would be more interesting I think to explore the chain of inventions, show how for example inventions from the Chinese trickled down into the Muslim world, were reproduced and changed there and then went to other places (and maybe back again). Also if we call them Muslim inventors then there should be a link made with the Islamic traditions. This is probably not so difficult certainly during a particular time but back then and now the life of Muslims does not only depend on Islam. Also other matters such as politics, competition and so on matter. We can find much of these considerations on the weblog of the exhibition for example about windmills (yes I’m Dutch…) and toothbrushes (have to go to the dentist tomorrow). (more…)

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Independent Online Edition > How Islamic inventors changed the world

Posted on March 19th, 2007 by .
Categories: Misc. News.

Independent Online Edition:   How Islamic inventors changed the world
naamloos.JPG From coffee to cheques and the three-course meal, the Muslim world has given us many innovations that we take for granted in daily life. As a new exhibition opens, Paul Vallely nominates 20 of the most influential- and identifies the men of genius behind them. A nice article to read but a little more discussion would be helpful. Not all of the inventors in the Muslim world were Muslim, some were Christian and Jews just as in the European world Muslim scientists played an important role. Furthermore it would be more interesting I think to explore the chain of inventions, show how for example inventions from the Chinese trickled down into the Muslim world, were reproduced and changed there and then went to other places (and maybe back again). Also if we call them Muslim inventors then there should be a link made with the Islamic traditions. This is probably not so difficult certainly during a particular time but back then and now the life of Muslims does not only depend on Islam. Also other matters such as politics, competition and so on matter. We can find much of these considerations on the weblog of the exhibition for example about windmills (yes I’m Dutch…) and toothbrushes (have to go to the dentist tomorrow). (more…)

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Protected: Planet – Monument Van Gogh eindelijk onthuld

Posted on March 18th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: International Terrorism, Murder on theo Van Gogh and related issues, Religious and Political Radicalization.

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Muslim women & Google

Posted on March 18th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Blogosphere, Gender, Kinship & Marriage Issues.

Ok do the following
1) Go to Google

2) Then to images

3) Then type: muslim women (only that, without ‘the’) and press search
4) Or just click here: muslim women

5) And then tell me what you see at the first page

6) And tell me what that means.

I will get back to this later.

(re-published, because of some layout issues due to the new theme, old comments:) (more…)

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Muslim women & Google

Posted on March 18th, 2007 by .
Categories: Blogosphere, Gender, Kinship & Marriage Issues.

Ok do the following
1) Go to Google

2) Then to images

3) Then type: muslim women (only that, without ‘the’) and press search
4) Or just click here: muslim women

5) And then tell me what you see at the first page

6) And tell me what that means.

I will get back to this later.

(re-published, because of some layout issues due to the new theme, old comments:) (more…)

0 comments.

Protected: Cabaret.nl: Amar & Ewout en Etienne – Statement van het vrije woord

Posted on March 15th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Misc. News.

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Muslim women & Google

Posted on March 15th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Blogosphere, Some personal considerations.

Ok do the following
1) Go to Google

2) Then to images

3) Then type: muslim women (only that, without ‘the’) and press search
4) Or just click here: muslim women

5) And then tell me what you see at the first page

6) And tell me what that means.

I will get back to this later.

6 comments.

Muslim women & Google

Posted on March 15th, 2007 by .
Categories: Blogosphere, Some personal considerations.

Ok do the following
1) Go to Google

2) Then to images

3) Then type: muslim women (only that, without ‘the’) and press search
4) Or just click here: muslim women

5) And then tell me what you see at the first page

6) And tell me what that means.

I will get back to this later.

6 comments.

Protected: Trouw, deVerdieping| religie_filosofie – Verbod op godslastering kan maar beter afgeschaft

Posted on March 15th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Multiculti Issues, Murder on theo Van Gogh and related issues, Religion Other.

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Protected: Trouw, deVerdieping| religie_filosofie – Verbod op godslastering kan maar beter afgeschaft

Posted on March 15th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Multiculti Issues, Murder on theo Van Gogh and related issues, Religion Other.

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New case of terrorism in Morocco

Posted on March 15th, 2007 by .
Categories: International Terrorism, Morocco.

A man with explosives hidden on his body blew himself up in an Internet cafe after the owners prevented him from looking at terror Web sites, the Interior Ministry said Monday.

The man was killed and four people were injured in the Sunday night blast in a Casablanca slum, said ministry spokesman Abderrahman Achour. One of the wounded was the dead man’s companion, who was hospitalized with burns and a throat injury.Both men were carrying explosives. But officials believe the cybercafe may not have been their target and that the explosion was an accident. The dead man was identified as Abdelftah Raidi, who was convicted of suspected terror links and sentenced to five years in prison before being pardoned in 2005, Achour told The Associated Press. Raidi, a Casablanca native in his early 20s, was unemployed, he said. Raidi’s injured companion was identified as Yusuf Khoudri, from the same Casablanca neighborhood, Achour said.

The news agency reported that two men entered the cafe at 10 p.m. Sunday seeking access to terrorist sites, but the owner’s son refused. A scuffle broke out, and the owner called for help before Raidi’s explosives went off, Kacemi was quoted as saying by MAP. Khoudri then fled, dropping an explosives belt on his way out, the official said. He was arrested about an hour later.

Khoudri was taken to Mohamed V Hospital in Casablanca, where he underwent an operation on his throat, the ministry spokesman said. Police questioning was limited because of his injury.

Moroccan officials are investigating if this was an act of (attempted) suicide terrorism but other officials seem already sure it is an act of terrorism. Morocco has been on a high alert since the series of bomb attacks in Algeria recently and the formation of the Algerian Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, formerly known as the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC). This change might be an attempt as to gather more recruts for Algeria but can also seen as an attempt of the GSPC to present itself as the only true representer of Al Qaeda and widening its range of activities. An imporant part of Morocco’s war against terror is also aimed at chasing down perpetrators of the Madrid attacks; one of whom is recently arrested.

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AD.nl – Schotels kunnen wel weg

Posted on March 14th, 2007 by .
Categories: Gouda Issues.

AD.nl – 24 uur per dag actueel nieuws /
Schotels kunnen wel weg
Door RUUD F. WITTE

GOUDA – De schotelantennes die vele balkons in met name Oosterwei sieren, kunnen worden verwijderd.

In Nederland hebben zo?n 800.000 huishoudens een schotelantenne.
De meest gewilde Marokkaanse tv-zender, RTM, wordt vanaf juni doorgegeven in het digitale pakket van de nieuwe kabelaanbieder in Gouda en omgeving, CAIW.

De zender krijgt een plekje in het pakket van de Westlandse kabelaanbieder, op verzoek van de woningcorporaties in Gouda. Die zochten een alternatief voor de vele schotels in de stad en vooral in het oostelijke stadsdeel.

RTM is slechts één van de vele nieuwe zenders op het kabelnet in Gouda. CAIW geeft ook Discovery Channel en Eurosport door, twee veel gevraagde kanalen. (more…)

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Profiling and the war against terror

Posted on March 13th, 2007 by .
Categories: International Terrorism, Multiculti Issues, Religious and Political Radicalization.

Declaring that airport screeners shouldn’t be hampered by “political correctness,” House Homeland Security Chairman Peter King has endorsed requiring people of “Middle Eastern and South Asian” descent to undergo additional security checks because of their ethnicity and religion.

Discussing the recent revelation of an alleged plot in England to blow up U.S.-bound airliners, the Seaford Republican said yesterday that, “if the threat is coming from a particular group, I can understand why it would make sense to single them out for further questioning.”

King, who has said that all Muslims aren’t terrorists but that all recent terrorists are Muslim, favors an ethnic and religious profiling scheme that would include foreign and American-born travelers. “I would give the investigators and screeners a lot of discretion as to where it ends,” he said.

Despite King’s endorsement of such a process, it is a technique that has been widely dismissed as a legitimate law enforcement tool. A recent article in the Washington Post makes clear how difficult this profiling is with the example of a Moroccan-Dutch woman arrested because of alledgedly helping her husband with his (also alledged) terrorist plans:

(more…)

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Protected: The Muslim News – Group warns Germany, Austria of attacks

Posted on March 12th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: International Terrorism, Religious and Political Radicalization.

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LOVER, Tijdschrift over feminisme, cultuur en wetenschap – ‘Ik laat me niet voorschrijven hoe ik de Koran moet interpreteren’

Posted on March 12th, 2007 by .
Categories: Gender, Kinship & Marriage Issues, Internal Debates.

In LOVER, Tijdschrift over feminisme, cultuur en wetenschap, een interview met Asma Barlas door Piek Knijff.

‘Ik laat me niet voorschrijven hoe ik de Koran moet interpreteren’
Asma Barlas over islamitische emancipatie
door Piek Knijff

‘Als er niets vrouwonvriendelijks in de Koran staat, hoe kan de profeet dit dan voorstaan?’ Volgens Asma Barlas, auteur van ‘Believing Women’ in Islam: Unreading Partriarchal Interpretations of the Qu’ran, kent de islam als een van de weinige religies gendergelijkheid als uitgangspunt.
Een opmerkelijk standpunt in deze tijden van hevige islamkritiek.

In 2002 publiceerde Asma Barlas, professor in de Politicologie aan het New Yorkse Ithaca College, het boek ‘Believing Women’ in Islam: Unreading Patriarchal Interpretations of the Qur’an. Hierin beschrijft Barlas haar zoektocht naar gendergelijkheid in de islam. Die begon ongeveer drieëntwintig jaar geleden, vlak voordat Barlas haar vaderland Pakistan verliet. Tijdens de scheiding van haar man kwam Barlas erachter dat er grote verschillen waren tussen de rechten van mannen en vrouwen. Uitvoerders van de wet beriepen zich op de islam als rechtvaardigingsbron voor deze ongelijkheid. Barlas zelf ervoer de islam niet als discriminerend en begon de Koran nauwkeurig te bestuderen. Ze werd toen geconfronteerd met het grote verschil tussen de boodschap van de Koran en wat moslimgemeenschappen doen uit naam van de islam.
(more…)

1 comment.

Bend it like Azzy?

Posted on March 9th, 2007 by .
Categories: Gender, Kinship & Marriage Issues, Young Muslims, Youth culture (as a practice).

On Sabbah’s Blog an interesting article about Asmahan Mansour: a Muslim girl (r)ejected from football because of her hijab despite being allowed everywhere else she played (news that also reached the Netherlands). The decision is supported by the FIFA based on Law 4 which makes quite clear that

must not use equipment or wear anything that is dangerous to himself or another player (including any kind of jewellery).

It is therefore a little strange that the FIFA website does include several photo’s of girls with headscarves playing football:

25_10_2005_iran_futsal_3.jpg 25_10_2005_iran_futsal_1.jpg

If in any case a headscarf might indeed be dangerous, I have the perfect solution for Asmahan, the officials and the FIFA: the capsters: elegant, safe and sportslike. Oh and Dutch so for football that’s always good.

1 comment.

'Stille Kracht' en de machtige illusie van de vrije wil

Posted on March 7th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Gender, Kinship & Marriage Issues, Misc. News, Youth culture (as a practice).

Stille Kracht, een prachtige roman van Louis Couperus, waarin verteld wordt over een reeks mysterieuze gebeurtenissen op Java die door de plaatselijke inwoners worden toegeschreven aan ‘de stille kracht’; een Indisch mysterie dat tot uitdrukking komt in de natuur en de mens en dat het idee tart dat de mens zelfbeschikking heeft. Dit is thema van deze entry: vrije wil, opgelegde schoonheidsidealen en sluiering. (more…)

1 comment.

‘Stille Kracht’ en de machtige illusie van de vrije wil

Posted on March 7th, 2007 by .
Categories: Gender, Kinship & Marriage Issues, Misc. News, Youth culture (as a practice).

Stille Kracht, een prachtige roman van Louis Couperus, waarin verteld wordt over een reeks mysterieuze gebeurtenissen op Java die door de plaatselijke inwoners worden toegeschreven aan ‘de stille kracht’; een Indisch mysterie dat tot uitdrukking komt in de natuur en de mens en dat het idee tart dat de mens zelfbeschikking heeft. Dit is thema van deze entry: vrije wil, opgelegde schoonheidsidealen en sluiering. (more…)

1 comment.

Protected: Trouw, deVerdieping| religie_filosofie – islam in duitsland / ’Geloofsafval is vrij maar bloedlink’

Posted on March 7th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Internal Debates, Misc. News.

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Protected: Trouw, deVerdieping| religie_filosofie – islam in duitsland / ’Geloofsafval is vrij maar bloedlink’

Posted on March 7th, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Internal Debates, Misc. News.

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Sister in spirit: Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s “Infidel” KA Dilday – openDemocracy

Posted on March 7th, 2007 by .
Categories: Gender, Kinship & Marriage Issues.

Sister in spirit: Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s “Infidel” KA Dilday – openDemocracy
KA Dilday

The Somali-Dutch dissident’s critique of Islam resonates with KA Dilday’s experience of fundamentalist Christianity in the American south. But their distance lies also in the journey beyond.

KA Dilday worked on the New York Times opinion page until autumn 2005, when she began a writing fellowship with the Institute of Current World Affairs. During the period of the fellowship, she is travelling between north Africa and France.

When I read Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s Infidel, I felt a sense of recognition and realised why she is so unyielding in her quest to attack Islam head on and in her steadfast insistence that there is no place for tolerance of religious fundamentalism within a nation based on enlightenment principles. Even worse than a sheep, she was a lemming – being led to chattel marriage and a likely early death by Islam. If she, a strong-willed intelligent woman took so long to find her way out of what she’d been taught, what hope do weaker people have? But the paternalism that she bestows on her former religious kin in Europe, those she feels may not find their way out unless they have no other choice, doesn’t seem the right way either.

(more…)

1 comment.

Ongewenste nationaliteiten /5: raciale nationaliteiten?

Posted on March 7th, 2007 by .
Categories: Misc. News, Some personal considerations.

In de vorige entry gaat het onder andere om de achtergelaten vrouwen in Marokko. De positie van achtergelaten vrouwen zou vooral versterkt kunnen worden wanneer zij makkelijker toelating tot Nederland krijgen en minder lang een afhankelijke verblijfsstatus krijgen. Dit is nu drie jaar en gedurende die tijd zijn zij afhankelijk van hun man voor hun verblijfstitel. Dit lijkt me een zeer ongezonde situatie voor de emancipatie van vrouwen hier. Dit betekent dat we dus ook naar de Nederlandse situatie moeten kijken. Dit geldt ook voor dubbele nationaliteiten. Al eerder heb ik gesteld dat kinderen van Marokkaanse ouders automatisch als Marokkaans geregistreerd staan. Dit geldt ook voor kinderen van gemengde ouders. Hier is geen protest tegen mogelijk en deze praktijk is natuurlijk bizar. Hiermee wordt nationaliteit namelijk zo goed als gelijkgesteld aan ras zoals we dat kenden uit de rassenwetten in de VS met de zogenaamde ‘one-drop rule‘:

Waarbij een Nederlandse moeder wel een Marokkaans kind kan hebben, maar een Marokkaanse moeder geen Nederlands kind.’

Met andere woorden, ook Nederland mag de hand eigen boezem steken. Inderdaad, ouders moeten zelf mogen beslissen.

2 comments.

Ongewenste nationaliteiten /4: De voordelen van dubbele loyaliteiten

Posted on March 7th, 2007 by .
Categories: Multiculti Issues, Some personal considerations.

Het debat over dubbele nationaliteiten en loyaliteiten richt zich vooral op de nadelen daarvan. In het geval van Arib zou haar werk slecht zijn voor de inburgering in Nederland, Albayrak zou als (Turkse) vreemdeling in een loyaliteitsconflict terechtkomen als ze moet beslissen over de toelating van (Turkse) vreemdelingen en dergelijke loyaliteiten zouden helemaal een probleem zijn als Nederland in oorlog zou raken met Marokko of Turkije (wat overigens vrijwel iedereen afdoet als een fictie).

Toch is het hebben van meerdere loyaliteiten ook een groot voordeel voor een samenlevingsverband of dat nu een stam, stad of staat is. Juist in het geval wanneer er oorlog optreedt. Het voorbeeld van de Yanomamo laat dat goed zien.

Afbeelding:  Yanomamo Social Distance: Social Distance and Intergroup Relationships Among the Yanomamo

Het antropologische principe dat er aan ten grondslag is dit:

Groups and group relations can best understood from the perspective of gradations of social distance

(more…)

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Ongewenste nationaliteiten / 3 Khadija Arib

Posted on March 4th, 2007 by .
Categories: Multiculti Issues, Some personal considerations.

Na de ophef over Aboutaleb en Albayrak is er nu het nodige te doen over PvdA-kamerlid Arib. Volgens de Wereldomroep is zij lid van een commissie (CCDH) die de Marokkaanse identiteit van Marokkanen in het buitenland moet bewaken en verstevigen. Ook moet de commissie hooggeplaatste Marokkanen in onder meer Nederland werven voor een nog op te richten Hoge Raad.

De commissie richt zich op het volgende:

It also aims to establish a rigorous diagnosis of the reality about Moroccan migration so that the composition of the future Council, its mission and operating mode could be tuned to the complex nature and dynamics of today’s migratory phenomena and could meet two strategic aims: first to defend the interests of Moroccan communities resident abroad and second increase their contribution to the democratic development of the country.

(more…)

1 comment.

Protected: Elsevier.nl – Cultuur & Televisie – Schrijfster El Bezaz opnieuw bedreigd

Posted on March 2nd, 2007 by martijn.
Categories: Misc. News.

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