George H.W. Bush's Heart Doctor Shot, Killed

Dr. Mark Hausknecht, a cardiologist who treated former President George H.W. Bush, was killed in a bicycle-to-bicycle drive-by shooting near Texas Medical Center in Houston, authorities said.

Houston after Hurricane Harvey - Fault Lines

The US' hurricane season was one of the most active in history, destroying lives and leaving victims homeless.

In August 2017, one trillion gallons of water fell on the Houston area over a four-day period - by far the most rainfall in US history. More than 70 people died, and thousands of people lost their homes.

Hurricane Harvey hit everyone in the area. But now that the water has receded, will there be an equal recovery?

A month after Harvey hit - after the media moved on to new stories - Fault Lines travelled to Houston, Texas - which is one of the most diverse but segregated cities in the US - to see if the storm will deepen the city's social and economic divide.

Into the Deluge

Hurricane Harvey: The Devastation and What Comes Next »

Houston and South Asia Flooding, Free Speech, Brexit, Game of Thrones

Hurricane Harvey: Flooding to Continue in Houston

The Trump Administration is asking Congress for nearly $8bn as an initial down payment for victims of Tropical Storm Harvey.

The White House says it will request additional funding later this month. Meanwhile, more Houston residents were allowed to return to their homes on Friday, to begin the emotional and difficult task of trying to assess Harvey's damage.

Al Jazeera’s Shihab Rattansi reports from Port Arthur.

Hurricane Harvey: The Aftermath - BBC Newsnight

Gabriel Gatehouse reports from Houston on the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

The Debate: After Harvey, Are Record-breaking Storms the New Normal?

Tropical Storm Harvey: 'There's Water Up to Your Shoulder'

The storm has hurled record rainfall at Houston, forcing thousands to flee their homes and testing flood-control systems to their limits. Parts of the city area saw more than 22in (55cm) of rain in a 24-hour period to Sunday evening; too much for the bayous to handle, too much for roads to remain passable and threatening to overwhelm emergency teams

Guardian LIVE

Joel Osteen on Homosexuality

In an interview on CNN's "Piers Morgan Tonight," Joel Osteen, the pastor of mammoth Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, toes a fundamentalist, homophobic line on the interpretation of the Bible.

Muslim Group Seeks to Educate Houstonians on Islamic Law
HOUSTON CHRONICLE: The way supporters of the conservative group Texas Eagle Forum see it, a growing number of U.S. Muslims are practicing "stealthy jihad," secretly trying to impose their religious doctrine on Americans and form a parallel judicial system, one that could force women to wear burkas or even condone honor killings.

Sharia, the legal, moral and religious underpinning of Islam, is "a threat to America," said the Eagle Forum's former president, Pat Carlson, who is running for state representative in Fort Worth.

With the help of a neoconservative Washington, D.C., think tank, which spearheaded similar efforts in more than 20 states across the country, the group last year pushed legislation in Texas banning the recognition of foreign law in state courts, with its proponents decrying Sharia's "creeping influence."

It didn't pass, but some lawmakers consider the issue important enough to take up before the Legislature convenes in January. Last week, South Dakota's governor signed a bill aimed at preventing courts from applying Islamic law. » | Lomi Kriel | Tuesday, March 20, 2012

USA/Islam: America’s Islamic Madrasas
INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC NEWS AGENCY: HOUSTON - Watching his son sitting in his classroom decorated by cartoon characters, projects and artworks, Syed Shahzad, whose 13-year-old son Shayan attends Houston’s largest Islamic school, was very proud of the level his son reached in memorizing Qur’an and Islam’s true teachings, Houston Chronicle reported.

“I’m blessed with this kid,” said Syed, Shayan’s father, who moved to the US from Pakistan when he was 12. ”At his age, I didn’t know anything.

Shahzad, from Richmond, was one of the few parents who preferred to send their kids to Madrasah Islamia, or Islamic school, to memorize the Holy Qur’an.

Enrolling his son Shayan, a straight-A student, at the madrasa two years ago, the father was proud of his brilliant son who has managed to memorize more than half of the Qur’an, a best way for Syed to keep Qur’an from loss.

“This is something nobody can take away from you,” said Shahzad.

“Even if the Quran gets lost, you still have it in your heart.”

At their school, the largest and oldest in Houston, students are also taught about prophets such as Moses, Jesus and Muhammad as well as respecting their classmates and help others.

“Our children should have some sort of knowledge of Islam, of who they are, where their roots come from,” said Shahzad.

“It’s important for every kid, whatever religion, whatever culture.” » | IINA | Saturday, June 04, 2011 (3 Rajab)

Texan Sheriff Gives His Staff a Lesson on How to Be a Good Dhimmi
HOUSTON CHRONICLE: Reacting to the latest controversy about his office in recent months, Sheriff Tommy Thomas on Monday apologized in person to a local Muslim group for insensitive e-mails sent by members of his staff.

Monday's appearance before the Islamic Society of Greater Houston was Thomas' second apology in recent days over staff e-mails that surfaced in media reports last week, including one message from a top commander that mocks Islam's core tenets.

"I think we've opened some lines of communication that certainly may not have existed before," Thomas said of the meeting. "We will have a continuing dialogue." Harris Sheriff Apologizes to Muslims for Offensive e-Mails; He meets with Islamic Society members, vows to discipline deputy >>> By Matt Stiles and Rosanna Ruiz ©Houston Chronicle | June 30, 2008

The Dawning of a New Dark Age – Dust Jacket Hardcover, direct from the publishers (US) >>>
The Dawning of a New Dark Age – Paperback, direct from the publishers (US) >>>