Today, as I sat drinking my coffee in the atrium at Yonge and Dundas, an evidently homeless man came and sat down beside me on the same bench. I say evidently because of his disheveled and unkempt appearance; torn and faded blue jeans slipping down from his waist with an oversized black windbreaker showing signs of having been thrown on and never zipped up even once by its owner all winter.
As he approached the bench, he asked me if he could sit beside me, throwing in a couple of sentences before his question which I did not catch. I answered that he could. He sat down beside me and proceeded to pull out and eat a muffin from a paper bag in his pocket. Then he began.
As people walked by, he yelled things after them which made sense grammatically speaking, but not so when put in context. “You need a lawyer to walk that way,” I believe he said to one.
Anyway, as he finished his muffin, he crumpled the bag up and tossed it at a garbage can. He missed. So he got up, picked up the bag, and put it in the trash.
Although he proceeded to walk over to the railing and point and scream at an invisible person in the concourse below, his previous action had really changed the way I felt about him. The so called “outcast” of society, a homeless man probably involved in some type of substance abuse and viewed as insane, had shown some degree of social consciousness and responsibility.
In a societal standard yet to be recognized, it seems more befitting to consider those who act without a thought towards social responsibility and cohesiveness as the outcasts, or as ‘insane’. For as long as that man sat on the bench, I sat with him. When he left, I left. I wonder how many others had sat with him before, and how many had left immediately. Perhaps if we try to look beyond the illness, if we seek character, we may have a better notion of what it means to be socially responsible.
The Syrian nation is one of several Middle Eastern countries that have risen against their governments by organizing waves of pro-democracy demonstrations. However, prolonged protests in Syria have proven to be the most broadcasted and publicized of the Arab spring, because of the nation’s dire political and social circumstances as a result of the civil war. Civilian uprisings have been met with a steadfast violence from Syrian authorities. Following the culmination of countless innocent civilian injury and death, a number of recent foreign policy measures have been pursued to address the critical humanitarian situation in cities like Homs.
The following article provides a timeline of the most recent and major updates from the crisis in Syria.
February 5th Russia and China (permanent members of the UN Security Council) used their veto powers to shoot down a UN resolution which if passed, would have allowed for international intervention for the removal of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad from the forefront of the civil war. The utilization of Russia and China’s dual veto, combined with the UN’s failure to form a consensus on the issue was seen by many as a tool of empowerment for Syrian authorities to continue their tirade against protesters.
March 27th The much anticipated 6-Point Peace Plan by UN Arab League envoy, Kofi Annan, was released. Proposed by Annan and welcomed by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the Peace Plan originally intended to promote a ceasefire in Syria. With an approval from members of the UN Security Council, the proposal included practical measures for the withdrawal of Syrian troops, a stop to all violence and fighting, the release of unjustly imprisoned individuals, and allowing the population’s right to peaceful protest and right to press for freedom. This also included bringing relief aid to victims of the violence, and creating a legitimate basis through which the Syrians could voice their grievances.
April ceasefire A nervous first day of the much anticipated ceasefire is in effect. Although the original deadline was missed, a ceasefire was finally implemented by Syrian authorities on the morning of April 12th. Violence and fighting has reportedly subsided, with some Syrians now able to leave their residence for the first time, and children returning to school. In an effort to maintain his peace-plan, UN-Arab League Envoy Annan has urged the UNSC’s 15-member body to demand for a pullback of troops and the removal of heavy weaponry. According to witnesses, this has failed to happen.
Current situation (as of mid-April 2012) After 13 months of fighting and the heaviest shelling reported in the city of Homs, the UN estimates that more than 9,000 civilians have been killed. This estimate is rising every day, since unconventional methods of attack utilized against protesters have mostly included tanks, machine guns, and snipers.
Sources
"Syrian ceasefire brings uneasy calm." Guardian. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/12/syrian-ceasefire-brings-uneasy-calm?newsfeed=true>.
"Russia keeping Assad in power." Irish Examiner. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. <http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/world/russia-keeping-assad-in-power-546968.html>.
"Syria unrest: timeline." Telegraph. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9199323/Syria-unrest-timeline.html>.
An article published in one of the leading publishing websites, DevoDigest.com, talked about the fitness benefits of ‘Kinetic, a concept of in-door group sport activity : “This will give people an ideal avenue to exercise in their home, as people do not put off things that they find entertaining.”
Other medical reports show that the increased obesity rate is linked to either a busy lifestyle, extreme weather conditions or expensive sports equipment, which make hand-free gaming devices such as the ‘Kinetic’ an optimal solution. For example the XBOX Kinetic allows a person to exercise in front of his or her television through trusted sports programs designed in collaboration with video games developers and professional athletes and coaches. After scanning your body, Kinetic will view an image on the screen of yourself virtually. The game will ask for your weight, age and it will calculate the calories burnt during the game activity.
Kinetic demonstrates how video games have evolved and help people stay in shape and become amateur athletes from the comfort of their own living rooms. If we look at Microsoft, sports was not related to technology. However, the company adopted that cause not only to promote its leading role as an organization, but also a good corporate social citizen who helps in inspiring people to an effective and healthy lifestyle.
Le jeune Mustafa Hosny présente une nouvelle émission s’institule « Ommar El Ard », l’émission parle de certains concepts comme : le courage, l’ambition, l’estime de soi… Et dans chaque épisode, Mustafa Hosny prend une personne célèbre comme exemple sur le concept traité. L’épisode du vendredi dernier avait comme thème « le leadership » et la personne exemple était le président turc Mr. Recep Teyyib Erdogan, connu par son leadership et sa forte personnalité. En suivant cet épisode, je me suis rappelé que lors d’un débat au Forum économique mondial à Davos en Suisse (2009) , le président turc Mr Recep Teyyib Erdogan a quitté ce débat suite à l’intervention du président israélien, Shimon Peres, sur l’offensive menée par son pays dans la bande de Gaza et qui a fait plus de 1 330 morts palestiniens. Cet acte courageux a été très significatif, et a rendu ce président plus célèbre et aimé dans le monde arabo-musulman, donc le choix de cette personne et l’a qualifié comme leader n’était pas du hasard. Dans un autre épisode qui traite la détermination et la persévérance, il a pris comme exemple Steve Jobs, Le co-fondateur d'Apple qui a changé le monde et s'est hissé au rang des plus grands inventeurs américains. En somme, je vous invite vivement à suivre cette émission qui évoque de très bons sujets et qui nous donnent l’espoir pour améliorer de plus en plus notre vie.
“And it may be that you dislike something while it is good for you; and it may be that you love something while it is bad for you. And Allah knows while you do not know” (Quran 2:216).
How many times have we read this verse in the Quran or heard it in a Khutbah offered at our local Mosque? Many times I’m sure. But how many times have we embraced and accepted the truth of this verse in our daily lives?
Think about it for a second. How many times have we given something our absolute best because it seemed like the best option for us, be it admission to a certain university or a particular job that we’ve always wanted. However, because of certain circumstances, which may be out of our control, we failed to attain our goal. What do we do then? Instead of saying Alhumdulila and putting our trust in Allah’s decree, we begin to point fingers at people, objects, and circumstances in disappointment and regret. We are in the absolute belief that what we wanted for ourselves was the best. While we forget that a believer is gifted with a state, in which everything that befalls him or her, be it a blessing or calamity is for their betterment.
Being humans we are ignorant and unaware of all that which Allah knows. Our example is that of a little child who insists that he does not want to go to the dentist because of the temporary pain caused by fillings and injections. When the mother forcefully takes the child to the dentist, the child sees the mother as an obstacle to his happiness. However, the mother only puts her child through the pain because the mother is aware that this little and temporary discomfort is better for her child than a possibly larger complication that can be avoided. At this point the child is completely unaware of the benefits of the pain, however as the child grows older, the benefits are far more comprehensible.
So when I constantly read and hear of disappointment and regret despite the claim of having the purest of intentions, I think to myself: No. We won’t have regrets. It’s His decree, and he’s planned better for us than we are capable of even conceiving. He’s All-Knowing, All-Wise. We are not. So despite desire, attempt, struggle, hope, and trust we failed to attain our fantasy. But we won’t have regrets. I see the glimpse of a sun after a rainfall, and it doesn’t seem to be dimmer, but only brighter than before the downpour. Our hands are empty to receive even more of the richest of blessings after our trial, and in Allah we put our trust.
The Canadian government states that it takes 1.6 cents to actually produce each penny and so this is the reason that they recently announced they are getting rid of the penny from Canada’s coin system. By eliminating the penny the government will save around 11 million yearly (who thought pennies could be so expensive eh!). This means the end of the penny; however this will take a few years. Starting in the fall the government will ask businesses to collect all of their pennies and return them to financial institutions where the pennies will be melted and the metal content will be recycled. As a result of the elimination of the penny, the government hopes that the demand for other coins will increase. You might be thinking “But will prices move up as a result of the elimination of the penny?” Well, the 2012 Budget states that businesses will apply rounding for cash transitions. It states that prices will be rounded in a fair manner (Let’s hope so!). It’s kind of sad to think that there will be no more pennies. I mean admit it, you never really cared about the penny. But here is something you should think about- What are we going to throw into foundations from now on?
In an interview with Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Arfa Karim said, “If you want to do something big in
your life, you must remember that shyness is only the mind. If you think shy, you act shy. If you think
confident, you act confident.”
The young computer prodigy lived her life in this way, as she was only nine when she became Pakistan’s
youngest Microsoft Certified Professional.
In her short life, Arfa received a lot of national and international recognition for her computer skills.
A year after being named MCP, she was presented the Fatimah Jinnah Gold Medal for Science and
Technology along with the Salaam Pakistan Youth Award.
Arfa was also the youngest recipient of the President’s Award for Pride of Performance, which is usually
given to people that show excellence in their fields over a long period of time.
In 2006, she was invited by Microsoft to attend a Tech-Ed Developers conference. Among the 5000
developers at the conference, Arfa was the only Pakistani.
After she fell sick, Bill Gates set up a panel of international doctors to stay in touch with her local doctors
for her treatment. Gates also offered to cover her treatment expenses.
Despite everyone’s efforts, Arfa passed away on January 14 at the age of 16.
After her death, Chief Minister of Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif renamed Lahore's Software Technology
Park, an information technology hub, to Arfa Software Technology Park in her honour.
May Allah subhana wa ta’allaa grant her Jannah and may He give her family patience in their time of
suffering, ameen.
This 1995 ‘If you let me play’ Nike commercial shows girls from a variety of different backgrounds, race and socio-economic statuses in various physical activity settings. Nike’s commercial suggests an idea of empowering girls through sports. Nike’s ‘Just Do It’ swoosh, which appears at the end of this ad, is recognised globally but for some this symbolises a paradox of unfair labour practices (poor working condition and wages)and worker’s oppression in third world countries like China and Pakistan to make the branded sport products. Surprisingly, the majority of workers in these countries are women and children who tell the other side of the story of this ideal global image portrayed by Nike as a social saviour. Nike’s ‘If you let me play…’ campaign implies that tween girls have to be granted permission (as if in a victimised position) and seek approval to play sports. This ‘cause-related marketing’ (Lucas 150) allows companies like Nike to gain public support by addressing the issue of gender inequality and inequity in sports to promote its brand. It questions the fact whether Nike should be granted credit for its motives in increasing female sports participation by identifying future benefits to a girl from playing, in comparison to a desire in creating a consumer demand for its product in a market which was previously mainly male-dominated. The commercial “If you let me play…” described in “Nike’s Commercial Solution” article by Lucas recognises that such a marketing strategy mainly targets adult audiences (including parents) who have the financial power to fulfill the appeals presented by young girls in this ad (150).
What is hidden behind the picture and discussed at length by Stabile is Nike’s mode of mass-production and the quantitative research on minimum wages paid to its cheap labour in places like China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam (197). Stabile elaborates on the paradox in the commercial in very explicit terms:
..Female consumers of Nike products can only find Nike's ads progressive insofar as its largely female labor force (not to mention its masculinist corporate culture) remains out of sight. For instance, one can believe that Nike's "If you let me play sports" ad signifies a commitment to women's liberation and empowerment, as long as the Vietnamese women who make Nike shoes, working 12-hour days for a wage of between $2.10 and $2.40 a day, are kept off the screen (199).
Stabile lays emphasis on harsh realities that are usually kept out of public sight and urges the public to be more politically aware of the propaganda behind the marketing techniques (200).
To look further into this issue, in a “qualitative storytelling inquiry research design” (12), Boje and Khan’s study focused on “women soccer ball stitchers” (11, 12) in the region of Sialkot, Pakistan. Although this phenomenon of brand story-telling through ‘entrepreneurial activity’ (Boje and Khan 10) is idealised by media to portray Nike as a saviour of third world countries, Boje and Khan found the following:
Estimates of the number of stitchers employed in Sialkot's soccer ball manufacturing cluster varied from a low of just over 30,000 (International Monitoring Association for Child Labour [IMAC] 2003) to a high of 65,000. The great majority of children helped their parents at home, who were in turn paid for the number of soccer balls rather than hours worked-an ILO estimate placing the number of children at approximately 15,000. Most of these balls were stitched in homes (mostly in the 1,600 odd villages surrounding Sialkot) (11, 12).
Investigation of labour rights showed that an endless cycle of production and consumerism resulted in serious offenses inflicted upon women and children employed in sweat-shops or cottage industries in places like Sialkot, Pakistan. The details of unfair employment practices were explained in Boje and Khan’s study which quotes the feelings of a women stitcher:
Wages are poor. We have children. [We] Work hard to earn bread. We get money on time [from subcontractor] sometimes. Ten years [I have been] stitching. If I protest, there are 1000 people willing to stitch. [Subcontractor will] say fine. You do not want to work, [I will] give it to others (19).
A helpless statement by an employee like the one quoted above, who receives the minimum wage just above the poverty line, clearly shows the lack of power and rights to cause a dramatic change in a culturally-woven working environment.
De nos jours, la religion contribue à l’apprentissage de l’éthique. Elle nous guide dans nos choix et nos opinions par rapport au monde. Elle nous apprend à agir vis-à-vis de nos prochains et nous montrent le chemin à prendre pour respecter les voies de Dieu. Ces voies se font dans l’amour et dans la paix, en cultivant l’art de compatir, de pardonner et de se repentir de nos erreurs. La société ne reflète pas cela; aujourd’hui des peuples se tuent et persécutent, des hommes se haïssent au nom de la religion. Serait-elle à la base de l’injustice dans le monde?
La religion a toujours joué un rôle majeur dans tous les conflits car, souvent les acteurs principaux de ces duels ce sont servis de la religion pour entrainer le peuple à aller se battre. La guerre sainte, les attaques terroristes, les deux guerres mondiales sont tous des conflits entre des nations défendant des idées basées sur la religion. Tous les jours, des innocents meurent, des enfants souffrent, des femmes sont maltraitées, et des soldats torturés. Tout cela parce qu’il y a un groupe de dirigeants qui refusent d’écouter les cris en larme de leur peuple et de ceux qui réclament la justice.
La guerre est a la base, des affrontements entre deux groupes ayant des idéologies contraires; et ces idées souvent basées sur des croyances. Des nations contre des nations se font la guerre, pour des raisons inéquitables, à la recherche de biens et pour des désirs personnels. La religion nous apprend qu’il est important de reconnaitre les torts qu’on commet aux autres pour changer soit même et changer le monde autour de soit; car ce qu’ils oublient c’est qu’il y a plus à gagner dans la joie et le sourire d’un enfant que ses cris de tristesse et de pleurs.
La repentance s’est transformé dans la société, il n’est plus présent comme auparavant. Se repentir est devenu un combat continuel en nous et vers nos prochains. La repentance de nos pêchés est le seul moyen qui puisse nous rapprocher de Dieu. Dieu nous invite à pardonner nos frères comme ils nous pardonnent nos pêchés, car il est écrit dans la Bible « Aimez vos ennemis et priez pour ceux qui vous persécutent.»Mathieu 5. 44.
Dieu nous aime inconditionnellement et nous invite à faire pareil vis-à-vis de nos frères. Pardonnons nous nos erreurs les uns les autres; et apprenons nous a nous réconcilier avec nos frères et entre nations
Hamilton, ON- On Thursday March 15th, 2012 I was quickly whisked away to an underground recording studio, late in the night at 9pm, during the Q and A session of a Dr. Ingrid Mattison lecture. During this time I was interrogated and asked some hard hitting questions about my ties to Keeping it Halal by Anas Khan who insisted that this was not an interrogation. In my twenty minutes in custody, ten of which was actual recording time I tried to keep my cool. In the end however I pleaded guilty, but was released due to my cooperation in revealing the names and location of some of my accomplices.
The full show (19.03.2012) and more Salaam Shows recording can be found at http://cfmu.msumcmaster.ca/ >Programming > Monday Morning File.
Also, a special thanks to all the people behind the Salam Show for hosting me.
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