BBC: Few issues divide the Europeans as much as Turkey.Mark Alexander
Divisions are becoming ever more apparent as the European Union nears the moment of truth in relations with its biggest and poorest applicant country, which also happens to be Muslim. Turkish bid exposes EU rifts
Friday, November 10, 2006
Mark Alexander
"I have read a lot of books on the issue of Islam and by no means consider my self totally across it. As is the case with most subjects, it has the capacity to glaze the eyes if you let it. This book though is a breezy and comprehensive easy read. You can pick it up and put it down at will and not lose the plot. The introduction of Mark Alexander's easy to read reality check, The Dawning of a New Dark Age is Wake Up, West! It is compelling reading." - Jim Ball
"The book I wish I could have written myself!" - Norman Caswallon
"Mark, I have you to thank for two nights in a row of very little sleep! I have just finished reading your book. Awesome, but very worrying. I have been researching Islam for years now and your book is the latest. I feel that your book is probably the most amazing, and by far the most frank and to-the-point book about this very real and massive problem at hand. From one page to the other I thought about people in my street, my town and my country who are blissfully unaware of the impending peril." - Liberty Lover
”Recently, I took a competitive exam that would enable me to be a candidate for permanent hire. The odds of passing this writing test are around 15%. The vast preponderance of people who pass are people fresh out of college and lawyers. We were told we cannot study for this exam. We were told that either one has the ability or one does not. I refused to accept those myths. I quickly realized that my style would not pass that exam. I went through books of short essays and one book stood out above the rest: Mark Alexander's. His simple, no-frills writing style, his eloquence, worked like a charm! Before the exam, I examined Mark Alexander's sentence style for one hundred hours. Mark's style made the rules of grammar come alive! I have to give credit to Mark Alexander for this. Going into the test, I knew I had to produce a first rate essay, and I did. My boss has noted the drastic improvements in my writing style. He even asked me if I had taken a brush-up course at the local University!” - Beakerkin
A MUST READ for Americans who do not understand the forces behind the attacks by Islamic terrorists on Western civilization. Mark Alexander bases his analysis on extensive research in Islamic literature, passages from the Koran, and his own experience gained from living and working in the Middle East. Mark's book is beautifully and powerfully written and is eminently readable.MUST READ for Americans who do not understand the forces behind the attacks by Islamic terrorists on Western civilization. Mark Alexander bases his analysis on extensive research in Islamic literature, passages from the Koran, and his own experience gained from living and working in the Middle East. Mark's book is beautifully and powerfully written and is eminently readable." - Anonymous
Single best book to start to learn truth about Islam - George M.
"The author has deep insight and personal knowledge of the Islamic faith - knowledge upon which he bases his evidence and expresses his clear views and insights. The book is clearly written, and it makes fascinating reading.The warnings to the West are skilfully stated. I found it difficult to put the book down!" - Anon. UK
Great Insight Great Read: "Mark Alexander has perfect insight into the issues facing the free world from Islam. Anyone who wants to understand the roots of terrorism will want to read Mark's book. It is short, readable and to the point." - George, University Professor
"Mark has written a very readable book here. He states clearly what Islam is all about, and he shows why this religion and political system is likley to be a problem for the West. Definitely a good read. I highly recommend this book." - EL
Great Read: "Mark Alexander is 'right on target.' His book is not only beautifully written, but is perfect for those who want a clear, straightforward understanding of Islam and its ambitious goal to make the whole world Islamic (and/or to destroy the infidels who refuse to convert). Mark's book is a 'great read,' an 'easy read' and a 'fascinating read' - I commend it to you highly." - D. K., Academic
Excellent!"This book is excellent. It really explains the danger that Islam poses to the West. It's a great read. I recommend it ." - Anonymous
Buy the book around the world here:
BUY eBOOK
BUY BOOK @ AMAZON
BUY BOOK @ B&N
BUY BOOK - BLACKWELL (US)
BUY BOOK - BLACKWELL (UK)
BUY BOOK @ POWELLS
BUY BOOK @ THE TELEGRAPH BOOKSHOP
BUY BOOK @ TESCO
BUY BOOK - AUSTRALIA
BUY BOOK - DENMARK
BUY BOOK - FINLAND
BUY BOOK - HONG KONG
BUY BOOK - N.Z.
BUY BOOK - JAPAN
BUY BOOK - SWEDEN
BUY BOOK - SWITZERLAND
FORBES BOOK CLUB
GUARDIAN BOOK CLUB
PLAY - Free Delivery (£'s)
PLAY - Free Delivery (€'s)
... then watch this video of Keith Ellison, the US's first Muslim congressman, on the night of his victory:
With thanks to Always On Watch for alerting me to this video.
Mark Alexander
1,600 suspects under surveillance
30 plots to kill, maim, damage
200 terror groups or networks
THE TIMES: Hundreds of young British Muslims are being radicalised, groomed and set on a path to mass murder, the head of MI5 said yesterday.Mark Alexander
In a stark public warning, Dame Eliza ManninghamBuller, the Director-General of MI5, revealed that the Security Service’s caseload had risen by 80 per cent since January and now involved about 30 “Priority 1” plots.
It has identified 200 terrorist networks involving at least 1,600 people, many under the direct control of al-Qaeda leaders in Pakistan.
“More and more people are moving from passive sympathy towards active terrorism through being radicalised or indoctrinated by friends, families, in organised training events here and overseas,” she said. “Young teenagers are being groomed to be suicide bombers.” More Britons are turning to terror, says MI5 director by Michael Evans
But th editorial misses the main point. It's Islam, stupid! The al-Qaeda challenge
WATCH VIDEO: MI5 boss spells out UK threat
Thursday, November 09, 2006
The rueful President Bush
Photo courtesy of the BBC
BBC: US President George W Bush has appealed to members of the US Congress to rise above party differences, after heavy Republican losses in mid-term polls. Bush drive to heal partisan splitMark Alexander
Photo courtesy of Google Images
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Democratic voters were last night pressing for the impeachment of President George W Bush for his conduct over the Iraq war.Mark Alexander
With the Democrats preparing to control both houses of Congress, they have extensive powers to investigate the president, including the appointment of a special counsel.
Many Democrats are keen to press home their new-found advantage by investigating the president's conduct in the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and any role he may have played in exposing the identity of the CIA agent Valerie Plame.
Mr Bush may not know it, but "his presidency is now over" said Terry McAuliffe, the former Democratic Party chairman, who promised that Mr Bush would be held accountable for "the colossal failure in Iraq that has set our foreign policy back by 50 years". Cock-a-hoop Democrats clamour to impeach Bush by Alex Massie
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Democrats have now taken control of both chambers of congress, the American media reported late last night. Democrats take control of both chambers of Congress by Sally Peck
Bush's hell starts today by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
THE TIMES: Turkey was told yesterday to open its ports and airports to Cypriot traffic within the next month or face the suspension of talks to join the European Union.Mark Alexander
The ultimatum from the European Commission — the first delivered to a potential EU country — solicited a promise to speed up domestic reforms, but the Turkish Prime Minister insisted that the Cyprus issue could be solved only by Greece and Greek Cypriots. “Don’t expect us to open our ports and airports until the isolation of the Turkish Cypriot state is lifted,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
Suspension of accession talks would damage relations between Turkey and the EU. Opposition to Turkish membership in Germany and France would make restarting the process difficult if stalled. Ultimatum may end Turkey EU hope from Rory Watson and Suna Erdem
NEUE ZÜRCHER ZEITUNG: In dem am Mittwoch veröffentlichten Fortschrittsbericht übt die Europäische Kommission harte Kritik am EU-Beitritts-Kandidaten Türkei. Vor allem moniert sie den lahmenden Reformprozess. Für Ankara kommt die Brüsseler Beurteilung einer eigentlichen Ohrfeige gleich. Doch damit nicht genug: Die Regierung Erdogan muss mit der Suspendierung der Beitrittsverhandlungen rechnen, wenn die Türkei bis Ende Jahr das sogenannte Ankara- Protokoll nicht ratifiziert haben wird. Darin hatte sich das Land noch vor Aufnahme der formellen Beitrittsgespräche vor gut einem Jahr verpflichtet, die Zollunion mit der EU auch auf die zehn neuen EU-Mitgliedstaaten, also auch auf Zypern, auszudehnen. Die Türkei weigert sich zurzeit noch, dieser Verpflichtung nachzukommen und ihre Häfen für Schiffe und Flugzeuge aus Zypern zu öffnen. Verkorkste EU-Beitritts-VerhandlungenMark Alexander
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
On the day of the mid-term elections in the States, it seems fitting to profile one of the world's recent great leaders: Margaret Thatcher. The then president of France, President François Mitterand once said of her: "She has the eyes of Caligula, and the lips of Marilyn Monroe."
Photo courtesy of Google Images
TIME: She's called the iron lady, but to me there has never seemed anything iron about Margaret Thatcher, a remarkable woman and one of the greatest politicians of the modern age. I've had the pleasure to meet her many times over the past 17 years, since the fall of communism. She has always been kind and a good listener. Margaret Thatcher: Her political philosophy provided a model for postcommunist countries by VÁCLAV KLAUSMark Alexander
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Jews and Muslims in Jerusalem have found common ground in their fierce opposition to a gay rights rally due to be held in the city this week.Mark Alexander
Leaders from both faiths have united to denounce the parade, which has prompted nights of street protest by ultra-orthodox Jews, who regard homosexuality as an "abomination", and death threats against those taking part. Jews and Muslims unite against homosexuals
In support of free speech
Is gay marriage a threat to marriage? by Steve Chapman
Watch video here: Row over Israeli gay pride
Is a gay who opposes same-sex marriage a hypocrit? by Dennis Prager
Vatican asks Israel to ban Jerusalem gay pride parade
Monday, November 06, 2006
DAILY TELEGRAPH: Tony Blair has joined other EU countries in asking Iraq not to execute Saddam Hussein.Mark Alexander
Mr Blair said the conviction of the former Iraqi leader was a reminder of his regime’s “barbaric brutality”.
He told his monthly press conference in Downing Street that the Government was “against the death penalty, whether it is Saddam Hussein or anybody else”. Blair opposes execution of Saddam
BBC: Morocco's state airline Royal Air Maroc has banned its staff praying at their offices and headquarters.Mark Alexander
The company says that in the past its workers have abused the privilege of praying, by taking too much time away from their desks and their customers.
But the airline's workers as well as Islamist politicians say it is part of a crackdown on their religious freedom. Moroccan airline bans prayer time
"Anywhere in the world where there are two peoples and two religions there is conflict. What we have seen in Cyprus is that since they have that model, there is no terror. There is security." - Avigdor LiebermanMark Alexander
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR: Less than a week after being appointed to the Israeli cabinet, ultra-nationalist Avigdor Lieberman called for Israel to become "as much as possible" an all-Jewish country without an Arab minority. Israeli cabinet minister calls for Arab-free Israel by Tom Regan
BBC: German Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned that Turkey's EU bid will be in serious trouble if Ankara does not open its ports and airports to Cyprus.Mark Alexander
Mrs Merkel, whose government assumes the EU presidency in January, called on Turkey to "do all it can to prevent such a complicated situation arising". Merkel warns Turkey over Cyprus
Turks cool towards 'unfaithful' Europe
Analysis: Turkey and the EU Drift Apart
THE INDEPENDENT: So America's one-time ally has been sentenced to death for war crimes he committed when he was Washington's best friend in the Arab world. America knew all about his atrocities and even supplied the gas - along with the British, of course - yet there we were yesterday declaring it to be, in the White House's words, another "great day for Iraq". That's what Tony Blair announced when Saddam Hussein was pulled from his hole in the ground on 13 December 2003. And now we're going to string him up, and it's another great day.Mark Alexander
Of course, it couldn't happen to a better man. Nor a worse. It couldn't be a more just verdict - nor a more hypocritical one. It's difficult to think of a more suitable monster for the gallows, preferably dispatched by his executioner, the equally monstrous hangman of Abu Ghraib prison, Abu Widad, who would strike his victims on the head with an axe if they dared to condemn the leader of the Iraqi Socialist Baath Party before he hanged them. But Abu Widad was himself hanged at Abu Ghraib in 1985 after accepting a bribe to put a reprieved prisoner to death instead of the condemned man. But we can't mention Abu Ghraib these days because we have followed Saddam's trail of shame into the very same institution. And so by hanging this awful man, we hope - don't we? - to look better than him, to remind Iraqis that life is better now than it was under Saddam. Robert Fisk: This was a guilty verdict on America as well
Europe calls for death penalty to be commuted
Bush hopes verdict will boost election campaign
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: It is wrong to take pleasure in the approaching death of any human being, and therefore we do not celebrate the fact that – barring an exceedingly unlikely turn of events – Saddam Hussein will soon be dangling from a hangman's rope. But we recognise the justice of yesterday's death sentence by the court in Baghdad, and we also welcome the fact that this guilty defendant will be denied the firing squad reserved for those to whom a shred of honour still attaches. A hangman's noose is all Saddam deserves
Sunday, November 05, 2006
BBC: A month after ex-foreign secretary Jack Straw suggested that Muslim women who wear veils over their face can make community relations harder, what do people within the Muslim community in the UK think of his remarks?Mark Alexander
Jack Straw's comments on veils have been good news for the owner of The Hijab Centre in the MP's constituency of Blackburn.
Nadeem Siddiqui tells me he is selling more veils than he did before his local MP made his controversial remarks. How veil remarks reinforced its support
THE SUNDAY TIMES: IN SUSSEX they celebrated England throwing off Catholicism with traditional bonfire night gusto yesterday by blasting effigies of the Pope to smithereens. In Rome, meanwhile, a Catholic member of the British royal family married a fellow papist as if the 16th-century break with the Vatican was ancient history.Mark Alexander
The marriage of Lord Nicholas Windsor, youngest child of the Duke and Duchess of Kent, to Paola Doimi de Frankopan is thought to be the first British royal marriage to take place at the Vatican since the Reformation. It was blessed by the Queen, who has written to the couple paying tribute to their shared devoutness. After 500 years, a royal wedding in the Vatican by Christopher Morgan
Photo courtesy of the BBC
BBC: Katharine Jefferts Schori has taken office as the first female leader anywhere in the Anglican denomination.Mark Alexander
Bishop Jefferts Schori, 52, became the presiding bishop and primate of the US Episcopal Church at an investiture service in Washington DC.
She was selected in June to lead the 2.3m-strong Church after narrowly winning a vote.
The choice has proven controversial as most other Anglican Churches around the world do not allow women to be bishops. Woman bishop takes over Church
Watch Video of snippets from ceremony in National Cathedral in Washington here: Church first for woman bishop
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH (AU): PRESSURE is growing on Pope Benedict XVI to use a trip to Turkey this month to rebuild badly strained ties between the Vatican and the Muslim world.Mark Alexander
Two new developments last week – a shooting incident at the Italian consulate in Istanbul and news that Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan would not meet him during his visit – have given an added edge to the visit from November 28 to December 1. Pressure on Pope to rebuild ties with Islam
Photo courtesy of the BBC
THE SUNDAY TIMES: THE Church of England’s only Asian bishop, whose father converted from Islam, has criticised many Muslims for their “dual psychology”, in which they desire both “victimhood and domination”.Mark Alexander
In the most outspoken critique of Muslims by a church leader, Michael Nazir-Ali, the Bishop of Rochester, said that because of this view it would never be possible to satisfy all their demands.
“Their complaint often boils down to the position that it is always right to intervene when Muslims are victims, as in Bosnia or Kosovo, and always wrong when the Muslims are the oppressors or terrorists, as with the Taliban or in Iraq,” said Nazir-Ali.
“Given the world view that has given rise to such grievances, there can never be sufficient appeasement and new demands will continue to be made.” Bishop attacks 'victim' Muslims by Christopher Morgan
Bishop attacks 'Muslim hypocrisy'
Saturday, November 04, 2006
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE: ANKARA, Turkey: Thousands of pro-secular, nationalist Turks marched in the capital Saturday, vowing to defend the secular regime against Islamization and urging the government not to make too many concessions in order to gain European Union membership.Mark Alexander
Some 12,000 people from more than 100 pro-secular associations waved Turkish flags as they marched to the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, in a show of loyalty to secularism.
"Turkey is secular and it will remain secular," they chanted during a march broadcast live on some TV channels. 12,000 pro-secular Turks march against radical Islam, urge against making concessions to EU
Italian Foreign Minister runs scared of culture clash with Islam
BBC: Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused the EU of placing new obstacles on Turkey's bid to enter the bloc.
"Don't ask us for things that aren't part of the programme," he said, adding that the EU should be "honest and sincere" in its approach.
He was responding to a draft European Commission report, due to be released next week, that raises fresh doubts about Turkey's bid to join the EU. Turkish PM regrets EU 'obstacles'
Watch 'Obstacles' to Turkey's EU bid
Friday, November 03, 2006
Have you noticed that we never hear any good, light-hearted music these days. Nor do we get 'entertaining' films. Everything has become so, so HEAVY! The more influence Islam will have over the West, the WORSE it will get. For now, just for a change, click here to understand what life used to be like: Smokey Robinson
PS: I make nothing from this. I bring this music to you so that you do not forget what life used to be like: Light-hearted and happy! Why don't YOU add a link to the music of your choice. Let's have a jam session!
Mark Alexander
BBC: British National Party leader Nick Griffin told a crowd that Islam was a "wicked, vicious faith" a court heard.Mark Alexander
Mr Griffin, 47, from mid-Wales, is charged with using words or behaviour intended to stir up racial hatred in Keighley, West Yorkshire, in 2004.
BNP activist Mark Collett, 25, of Leicestershire, also faces four similar charges at Leeds Crown Court.
The charges arose out of speeches filmed by BBC journalist Jason Gwynne for a documentary on the party.
The jury heard Mr Griffin, of Llanerfyl, Powys, urged the gathering to vote BNP to ensure "the British people really realise the evil of what these people have done to our country". BNP leader 'said Islam is wicked'
Vor diesem Kloster in Erfurt hat sich Weisselberg verbrannt
Photo dank der Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: 03. November 2006Mark Alexander
Auf der Pressekonferenz am Mittwoch nachmittag zeigen sich Bischof Axel Noack aus Magdeburg und der Kurator des Augustinerklosters in Erfurt, Lothar Schmelz, ratlos. Was sollen sie, die selbst noch erschüttert sind, zur Selbstverbrennung des Pfarrers Roland Weisselberg am Reformationstag vor dem Erfurter Augustinerkloster sagen? Die Erfurter Pröpstin Elfriede Begrich, die mit Verspätung zur Pressekonferenz kommt, macht den Bischof wohl noch ratloser. Denn sie berichtet, daß sie bis eben mit der Witwe gesprochen habe und mit ihr einig sei, das Motiv des Pfarrers offenzulegen, um Spekulationen vorzubeugen. Roland Weisselberg sei es mit seinem Selbstmord „um die Ausbreitung des Islam und die Haltung der Kirchen dazu gegangen. Das war immer sein Anliegen.“ Seit drei Jahren habe er darum gebeten, sich des Themas anzunehmen. Es sei „das große Thema, das uns bewegt für die nächsten Jahre“. Weisselberg habe in Briefen dazu aufgefordert, „das Problem ernster zu nehmen“. Es sei für ihn „wirklich ein Dauerthema gewesen“. Die Kirche, sagt die Pröpstin, habe sich zwar damit beschäftigt, „aber nicht so exzentrisch“. „Nicht aus Angst, sondern aus Protest“ Von Claus Peter Müller, Alfons Kaiser und Raoul Löbbert
Photo courtesy of the BBC
BBC: The Prince of Wales has called for tolerance between all religions as he continues his tour of Pakistan.Mark Alexander
Accompanied by the Duchess of Cornwall, his trip to Lahore took in a mosque, a Sikh temple and a cathedral.
The prince called on community leaders of all faiths to have the "courage" to encourage mutual understanding and tackle religious intolerance.
BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt says the prince is passionate about improving inter-faith dialogue. Charles urges inter-faith respect
M & C NEWS: TALLAHASSEE, FL, United States (UPI) -- Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has strongly condemned a county commissioner and his wife for their calling Islam a 'hateful, frightening religion.' Jeb Bush denounces anti-Islam statementMark Alexander
Thursday, November 02, 2006
THE BRUSSELS JOURNAL: Europe’s current problems are entirely self-inflicted. This does not mean, however, that the result will be less catastrophic. By subverting the roots of its own Judeo-Christian culture – a process that started with the French Enlightenment (as opposed to the Scottish Enlightenment, which was not anti-religious) – a religious and cultural vacuum was created at the heart of European civilization. The collapse of faith in its own values has, not surprisingly, led to a demographic collapse because a civilization that no longer believes in its own future also rejects procreation. Today, a new religion and culture is supplanting the old one. There is little one can do about it, but hope for a miracle. The Closing Civilization of Europe by Paul BelienMark Alexander
BBC: Some 1,500 migrants arrived to live in the UK every day in 2005, according to official estimates.Mark Alexander
Government figures suggest 185,000 more people came to live in the UK than emigrated in 2005 - making the population grow by 500 a day.
The total for those arriving was lower than 2004's record, but continues a trend of high levels of migration.
While the number of arriving Eastern European workers grew, the numbers of people leaving the UK has also risen.
In total, 565,000 people arrived in the UK in 2005 saying they intended to stay for at least a year. At the same time, 380,000 people left - 1,000 people a day - more than half of whom were British citizens. 1,500 migrants arrive in UK daily
Watch video: UK takes 1,500 migrants a day
Outline of the problem [facing the UK]
What is it with these people? Don't they ever wear anything except black? Why do they always have to be so morbid? Black veils, black turbans, black abayas, black, black, black. Everywhere you look, they're dressed in black! Psychiatrists! Please get on their case. This has got to be indicative of something. I think I know what it is: It's a morbid outlook and a love of death and the so-called afterlife. But a more scientific opinion would be more than welcome.Photo courtesy of the BBC
BBC: Teaching assistant Aishah Azmi has no regrets about the huge controversy stirred by her refusal to take off her veil during lessons.Mark Alexander
She is small in stature, but big on principle.
The Cardiff-born support teacher is unfazed by the national - and international - attention paid to her refusal to take off her veil when working with male colleagues.
The 23-year-old, married mother-of-one knows she could defuse the row by backing down, but will she?
"No" is her polite but firm reply. The woman at centre of veil case
SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: For almost half a century, Turkey has been pursuing European Union membership. With negotiations now started though, enthusiasm is waning. And the influence of Islam is on the rise.Mark Alexander
At first glance, the "Sah Inn Suite" Hotel in Alanya looks no different from the average sunny resort along the Turkish Mediterranean coast: a bulky construction with a honeycomb of balconies, looking out over a generous swimming pool surrounded by parasols and lounge chairs. But, in fact, only men are allowed to take a refreshing plunge into these shimmering blue waters. Women vacationers at the Sah-Hotel swim in a strictly isolated pool for women. And what about a cold beer? Forget it. There is no alcohol here; instead, a mosque offers communion with God. Less Europe, More Islam
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: 01. November 2006Mark Alexander
Der evangelische Pfarrer, der sich in Erfurt am Reformationstag selbst anzündete und tötete, hat den Suizid begangen, um ein Zeichen zu setzen gegen die Ausbreitung des Islam in Deutschland. Bevor er sich anzündete, rief er in Anspielung auf den Pfarrer Oskar Brüsewitz die Worte: „Jesus und Oskar!“
Das bestätigten Bischof Axel Noack aus Magdeburg und die Erfurter Pröpstin Elfriede Begrich am Mittwoch nachmittag in Erfurt. Begrich sagte, seit mehreren Jahren habe den Mann der angeblich wachsende Einfluß des Islam umgetrieben. Pfarrer verbrennt sich aus Angst vor dem Islam
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE: BERLIN: A retired Protestant minister died Wednesday of burns after setting himself on fire, apparently to express his concern over the spread of Islam, a church official said. Retired minister dies after setting himself on fire over Islam, church official says
Retired pastor burns himself in Islam protest
THE GLOBE AND MAIL: TEHRAN — Iran's Culture Ministry on Thursday dismissed criticism of its competition of cartoons on the Holocaust and lauded it as an expression of hatred against oppressors, while the Israeli Foreign Ministry, echoing widespread international condemnation, deplored that Tehran had joined the “obscene chorus” of denial.Mark Alexander
Iran awarded a Moroccan artist late Wednesday the top prize in an exhibition of cartoons against the Holocaust, saying it wanted to emphasize that Palestinians were the indirect victims of the Nazi's killing of six million Jews in Europe during the Second World War.
“Palestinians have been victim of a deceptive history by Zionists,” Iran's Culture Minister Hossein Saffar Harandi was quoted as saying by the Kayhan conservative daily on Thursday.
“The cartoonists expressed their hate against oppressors and their love toward [Palestinian] victims in their works,” the Culture Minister said.
Israel, where many Holocaust survivors immigrated to, expressed its dismay at such hatred. Iran dismisses criticism of Holocaust cartoon contest by NASSER KARIMI
Photo courtesy of the BBC
BBC: UK Muslims should obey British law as well as accepting the obligations of citizenship, the former president of Iran has urged.Mark Alexander
Mohammad Khatami, during a three-day visit to Britain, told BBC News the UK was right to fear radicalism.
But it had added to the problem by getting involved in Iraq, he said. Obey UK law, Iran ex-leader urges
BBC: The former president of Iran, Mohammad Khatami, has branded US attempts to impose Western-style democracy in the Middle East as "a great joke".
Mr Khatami was critical of the US-led military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq, which he said had led to more Muslims supporting al-Qaeda.
In a wide-ranging interview with the BBC, Mr Khatami, said he was committed to fighting extremism around the world. Khatami labels US policy 'a joke'
Audio Interview: Khatami: US policy is a joke
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
ZAMAN ONLINE: Following the cartoon crisis and Pope Benedict XVI’s offensive remarks on Islam, many European state-owned TV channels have launched new initiatives to disseminate more information on Islam.Mark Alexander
Inspired by the TV programs on Islam broadcast by state-sponsored TV channels in France, the Netherlands and Denmark, Germany and Belgium are also now considering starting programs of the same kind.
The lack of accurate information on Muslims, which became clearer following the cartoon crisis, and the pope’s contentious remarks, has led some European countries to introduce TV programs on Islam and its fundamental precepts. It is already expected that the Islamic programs, which will be prepared in the native language of the country, will contribute to social cohabitation. European Television Hosts more Programs on Islam
This award to the former President of Iran disgraces Scotland’s oldest universityMark Alexander
THE TIMES: WE MUST thank the University of St Andrews for that rare opportunity — the chance to employ with a straight face the cliché “it’s like Caligula appointing his horse as consul”. How so? Because Scotland’s oldest university has decided to award an honorary doctorate of law to former President Khatami of Iran “in recognition of his efforts to encourage interfaith dialogue”.
I kid you not. No less a person than Sir Menzies Campbell, the university’s Chancellor, will bestow the accolade on the acceptable face of violent, arbitrary clerical rule. It will come to be seen as one of the most shameful days in the university’s history — on a par with the honorary degrees granted by the University of Edinburgh to Robert Mugabe, of Zimbabwe, or the Central London Polytechnic to Elena Ceaucescu, of Romania. They, too, were once fashionable items among the appeasing classes, of which Sir Menzies is the contemporary personification. The dishonouring of St Andrews by Dean Godson
THE SUNDAY TIMES: STUDENT leaders are organising a mass protest over St Andrews University’s decision to award an honorary degree to a former Iranian president who praised Hezbollah.
Muhammad Khatami is to be made an honorary doctor of laws by Sir Menzies Campbell, the Liberal Democrat leader who is also the university’s chancellor.
Khatami will open the university’s Institute for Iranian Studies, which will house 12,000 books donated by Sadegh Kharazi, Iran’s former ambassador to France. The collection of Iranian texts, the largest of its kind in Europe, is estimated to be worth more than £100,000. Fury as St Andrews honours Hezbollah backer by Mark Macaskill and Abul Taher
BBC: The former president of Iran, Mohammad Khatami, has begun a visit to the UK by calling for dialogue between civilisations to prevent religious wars. He is the most senior Iranian figure to visit the UK since the Islamic revolution in 1979. Mixed reception for Iran's ex-president
BLOOMBERG: London Police have concluded there is insufficient evidence to pursue a criminal investigation against Iran's former president Mohammad Khatami, after two exiled Iranians said they were tortured by his government.
The Metropolitan Police service received a letter last week referring to alleged acts of torture in the Islamic Republic in 1999. Torture committed anywhere in the world is a criminal offence under British law, according to section 134 of the Criminal Justice Act. London Police Dismiss Accusations Against Iran's Khatami by Caroline Alexander
BBC: A court in the Turkish city of Istanbul has acquitted a 92-year-old academic of charges of insulting Muslim women and inciting religious hatred.Mark Alexander
Archaeologist Muazzez Ilmiye Cig was prosecuted over a book in which she linked the wearing of headscarves with ancient Sumerian sexual rites. Turkey court clears archaeologist
THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION: According to the latest polls, by spring 2007 the president of France could well be Nicolas Sarkozy, the man who The Washington Post described as “not your everyday French politician.” For a start, the current French Interior Minister and leader of the UMP conservative party is pro-American. He understands that the war on terrorism is the world’s fight and not one America should have to bear alone. He grasps the nature of the threat facing Continental Europe from Muslim extremism and favors fighting terrorism head-on and without apology. His worldview is not one that ends in the Michelin-starred restaurants of Paris. Further, he is vocally enthusiastic about the Anglo-Saxon economic model and keen to shake up the statist, government-centered French economy with a hefty dose of innovation and entrepreneurialism. So if Nicolas Sarkozy does become president next year, what exactly will it mean for U.S. interests? Regime Change in Paris: How Nicolas Sarkozy Could Reinvigorate U.S.-French Relations by Sally McNamaraMark Alexander
Monday, October 30, 2006
THE TELEGRAPH: Riot police reinforcements were deployed in Marseille last night after the latest outbreak of urban violence in France left a young woman in a critical condition with life-threatening burns.Mark Alexander
President Jacques Chirac expressed his horror at the attack hours after the 26-year-old woman and three others were ambushed by rioting teenagers while travelling on a bus in the southern port city.
The assailants – said by some witnesses to be as young as 15 – forced the vehicle's doors open, spilled flammable liquid inside, and set it alight.
There were similar attacks in major cities across the country at the weekend, just hours after the passing of the anniversary of the rioting and car-burning that brought terror to urban areas last year. Chirac's horror as woman burnt in riot
La violence tourne au drame à Marseille
In Marseille haben die Anschläge eine neue Dimension erreicht
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Ayaan Hirsi Ali lives under a death threat for daring to challenge the Islamic patriarchy and says the West must support women like her if it wants to spread freedomMark Alexander
Ideas can be dangerous. I have learnt that the hard way. But I know that when it comes to freedom and human rights these precious ideas, so valued in the West, are worth fighting for. As a young Muslim woman, born in Somalia, I abandoned my family to avoid an arranged marriage to a distant cousin and fled to Holland. I was just 23 and I had no idea back then that my refusal to submit to a traditional Muslim woman’s life would come to dominate my whole career.
So for me, the debate that is raging about the veil, particularly the niqab, which covers most of the woman’s face save for the eyes, goes to the very heart of the matter of liberty for Islamic women. Not just freedom for its own sake, but from a life of repression, subordination and violence.
Muslim women are the key to change
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Five years have now passed since 9/11, but we are no closer now to winning the “War on Terror” than we were on day one after the ruthless and cruel tragedy on that sunny September day in New York.
There are some very good reasons for this. One of them is the determination of Western leaders not to identify and name the enemy. Without identifying and naming the enemy - Islam in this case - then no significant achievements can be made in the war in which we are engaged.
With each passing day, we are able to read stories of appeasement of the enemy. Indeed, our political élite is going out of its way to make Muslims feel at home in the West, out of its way to make excuses for Muslims, out of its way to apologize for Muslims, out of its way to inform the electorate that Islam is a ‘religion of peace’ and love. In fact, President Bush bends over backwards to appease Muslims in America and throughout the world. Just look at the Iftaar banquets held in the White House for prominent Muslims in the States and from throughout the Islamic world. And read the statements that Bush has recently made on the occasions of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr:
"I send greetings to the many Muslims observing Ramadan in America and around the world.Then there’s this message sent to Muslims on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr:
Ramadan is the holiest time of the Muslim year and an important holiday when Muslims take time for prayer, fasting, and personal sacrifice. According to Islamic teachings, this month represents when God delivered His word to the prophet Muhammad in the form of the Qur'an. Ramadan is also an opportunity to gather with friends and family and show thanks for God's blessings through works of charity.
Ramadan and the upcoming holiday seasons are a good time to remember the common values that bind us together. Our society is enriched by our Muslim citizens whose commitment to faith reminds us of the gift of religious freedom in our country.
Laura and I send our best wishes for a blessed Ramadan. Ramadan Mubarak." - GEORGE W. BUSH
October 20, 2006By now, it should be becoming increasingly obvious to all thinking people that there is something going on behind the scenes. There is more to this than meets the eye. It is becoming increasingly obvious that Western leaders are in cahoots with Muslims, especially Gulf Arabs who have the petrodollars which Western governments are so determined to get back into Western economies, and perhaps also into their pockets!
"I send greetings to Muslims in the United States and around the world celebrating Eid al-Fitr.
Islam is a great faith that has transcended racial and ethnic divisions and brought hope and comfort to many people. Throughout Ramadan, Muslims have fasted to focus their minds on faith and to direct their hearts to charity. Eid al-Fitr marks the completion of this holy month with the Festival of Breaking the Fast. During this joyous celebration, Muslims thank God for his guidance and blessings by gathering with family and friends, sharing traditional foods, and showing compassion to those in need.
America is strengthened by the countless contributions of our Muslim citizens, and we value our ties with Muslim nations throughout the world. For people of all faiths, Eid al-Fitr is an opportunity to reflect on the values we share and the friendships that bind all who trace their faith back to God's call to Abraham.
Laura and I send our best wishes for a joyous Eid and for health, happiness, and prosperity in the year ahead. Eid Mubarak.
GEORGE W. BUSH"
For those petrodollars, there are no limits to the depths to which our leaders will sink. No price is too high for the likes of Blair and Bush. The Saudi royal family have become like ‘brothers’ to them. The money must be rolling in!
Only today, I read on Jihad Watch that Georgetown University is in receipt of $20 million from Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal. Muslims, especially rich ones, are buying influence everywhere in the West.
Then we have CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, backing Keith Ellison as a Democratic representative who could well become the first Muslim in Congress. The backing money for the funding can surely also be traced back to Saudi Arabia. And so it goes on, both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
I think we are deluding ourselves if we continue to think that this problem is one merely of ignorance on the part of our political representatives. It must be obvious to all of us by now that there is something quite sinister going on at the top! As I have said so many times before, rich Muslim Arabs are buying up our businesses, and they are funding Islamic schools and Islamic propagation centres too. In addition, tens of millions of dollars are being spent on proseltyzing literature for the purpose of daw’ah.
This, it would now seem, is not a problem of ignorance; rather, it is a problem of the enormous amounts of money changing hands at the very top of our societies. Isn’t it true to say that too many people at the top of Western political and business life are making far too much money from rich Muslim Arabs even to contemplate changing course?
Depressing as it is to think about this, it must be faced. I stated in my book, The Dawning of a New Dark Age, that régime change in Saudi Arabia might be a blessing in disguise for the West. I stand firm behind my idea.
The way things are going with the powers that be here in the West, and the way that the House of Saud has successfully bought influence in the States and the United Kingdom, and in many other Western countries besides, then it is difficult to see how, in the long term, Western civilization can survive. This is an onslaught of colossal proportions. Our leaders are certainly not going to stop this scramble for the petrodollar. To me, it seems that our only hope is for a new world order.
Osama bin Laden objects to American and Western influence in Saudi Arabia in particular, and in the Arab world in general. In fact, it is one of his main gripes. Don’t we object to the increasing influence of Islam in Western countries too? Are his objectives and ours that different? Aren’t they opposite sides of the same coin? Would it, perhaps, be true to say that were Osama bin Laden to manage to bring about régime change in Saudi Arabia that we would also have a chance of saving Western civilization from the onslaught of Islam? And wouldn’t it be the irony of ironies if the very man we despise so much were to bring about the conditions necessary for the survival of the West?
Is Osama bin Laden our only hope of change at the top, I wonder? And are his objectives really so terrible for the West? If our leaders won’t change, then maybe Osama bin Laden is the one to force change upon them. For indeed, were there to be the kind of Saudi Arabia that he envisions, we would surely know who our real enemies are.
©Mark Alexander*
*All rights reserved
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
HUMAN EVENTS: It is necessary once in a while to clear the decks on a given issue, to discard the accumulated rhetoric and concepts and start afresh. As we enter the sixth year of the War on Terror, such a fresh start is desperately needed.Mark Alexander
Today’s statesmen and commentators —left, right, and center—have so far demonstrated themselves incapable of bringing clarity to the world situation. To them, the world today appears hopelessly complicated: wars in Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan and Somalia; Iran in pursuit of atomic weapons; unrest in the streets of Europe; terrorism worldwide. The problem is that the modern political view of the world is now being confronted with something that does not fit into its theoretical framework, something that is fundamentally not modern: the return of Islam to the world stage. Islam's Growth Requires New Thinking by Greogory Davis
How appropriate is it for the President of the United States of America to send Eid greetings to Muslims throughout the world when Muslims are the very people who are trying to destroy our civilization, and when Muslims are the very people who NEVER return the compliment at Christmas?
October 20, 2006Mark Alexander
"I send greetings to Muslims in the United States and around the world celebrating Eid al-Fitr.
Islam is a great faith that has transcended racial and ethnic divisions and brought hope and comfort to many people. Throughout Ramadan, Muslims have fasted to focus their minds on faith and to direct their hearts to charity. Eid al-Fitr marks the completion of this holy month with the Festival of Breaking the Fast. During this joyous celebration, Muslims thank God for his guidance and blessings by gathering with family and friends, sharing traditional foods, and showing compassion to those in need.
America is strengthened by the countless contributions of our Muslim citizens, and we value our ties with Muslim nations throughout the world. For people of all faiths, Eid al-Fitr is an opportunity to reflect on the values we share and the friendships that bind all who trace their faith back to God's call to Abraham.
Laura and I send our best wishes for a joyous Eid and for health, happiness, and prosperity in the year ahead. Eid Mubarak.
GEORGE W. BUSH"
Presidential Message: Eid al-Fitr
Image courtesy of Google Images
BBC: The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has widened its investigation into corruption allegations at UK defence giant BAE Systems.Mark Alexander
Together with Ministry of Defence Police, the SFO raided three business addresses and a home earlier this week.
The SFO said the raids were not related to existing inquiries into BAE defence contracts in Romania and Saudi Arabia.
It is already investigating claims that BAE made secret payments to cement arms deals with those countries. Probe into BAE arms deals widens
Riddle of sheik's £100m secret fund
Arms firm's £60m slush fund
Saudi bomb victim's torture ordeal - and Britain's silence
Monday, October 23, 2006
Photo courtesy of the BBC
BBC: An Italian politician will be given police protection following comments she made about the Islamic veil on television.Mark Alexander
The MP, Daniela Santanche, from the right wing National Alliance, said the veil was not required by the Koran.
She was labelled an infidel by an imam appearing on the same programme and there are now fears for her safety.
Daniela Santanche recently published a critical book on living conditions for Muslim women called Woman Denied. Protection for Italy veil row MP
Certainly, we people who do not adhere to the faith of Islam fear its spread in the free world. And rightly so. Unfortunately, we are being led by craven politicians who either do not understand Islam, are making too much money from the oil-rich Gulf, or are simply too craven to face the threat head-on. The result is there for all too see: Islam is growing apace in the West, and nobody has the courage to do anything about it.
Bush and Blair's ridiculous policy of trying to bring democracy to Iraq is coming to a sad end. They have busied themselves on a mission which was destined to end in failure, while all the while we are losing our democracy at home. I have consistently stated that to try and bring democracy to the Middle East is a grave error of policy and judgment. One cannot bring democracy to a people who are semi-literate (the illiteracy rate in the Arab world is very high), and further, one cannot bring democracy to a part of the world where the 'religion' of Islam prevails. Islam, as I have said so many times before, is totally and utterly incompatible with the Western notion of liberal democracy.
Islam neither understands nor allows the separation of politics and religion. In Islam the mosque and state are ONE. Moreover, in Islam, all power rests with Allah, and filters down to the people via his vice-gerents here on earth, and then filters down further to the people. In democracy, all power rests with the people and filters up to the leader(s). This circle cannot be squared, however much anyone tries.
Instead of trying to bring democracy to the Middle East, where in any case it is considered a Western concept of government to be viewed with suspicion by all good Muslims, it would have been far better and far more prudent for Bush and Blair to have expended their energy ensuring that democracy at home remained safe for future generations.
This has not been done; and this is why we are in the mess we are in vis-à-vis the growing strength of Islam here in the West.
©Mark Alexander
JOKE OF THE WEEK: In a Eid message, Saudi Arabia's king and crown prince urged Muslims to follow Prophet Mohammad's "message of love, forgiveness, mercy, unity and goodness."
WASHINGTON POST: RIYADH (Reuters) - A prominent Saudi cleric said on Monday that Pope Benedict's controversial remarks on Islam came from vexation at the spread of the Muslim faith. Saudi cleric says West fearful of spread of Islam
MIDDLE EAST TIMES: MECCA, Saudi Arabia -- Fear of the spread of Islam in non-Muslim countries motivates attacks on Muslims in the West, the imam of Islam's holiest shrine told worshipers celebrating Eid Al Fitr feast Monday.Mark Alexander
"Did you wonder why this issue is raised every now and then?" Sheikh Saleh Bin Humaid, who also heads the Saudi-appointed Shura (consultative) Council, asked at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, western Saudi Arabia.
He was referring to controversial remarks by Pope Benedict XVI last month in which he cited a fourteenth-century Christian emperor who said that Islam's Prophet Mohammed had brought the world "evil and inhuman" practices "such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached."
The issue "was raised only because the hearts of observers among the adversaries are filled with resentment over the spread of this faith and its overcoming of all borders, barriers, and blocks in all eras and under all circumstances," Bin Humaid said. Non-Muslims fear expansion of Islam, says Mecca imam
Photo courtesy of The Telegraph
THE TELEGRAPH: Britain's first Muslim comedian is being sent to India by the British Council to make jokes about the veil.Mark Alexander
The aim of the trip by Shazia Mirza, which is expected to cost about £2,000, is to show that Britain is a free and civilised society and to build bridges with Muslims.
Miss Mirza, 30, has been told she can make jokes about the burkha but has been advised "not to upset Muslims in India".
Miss Mirza came to prominence immediately after September 11 when audiences were unsure how to react to her introduction. Wearing a hejab, she would say: "My name's Shazia Mirza — at least, that's what it says on my pilot's licence."
News of her trip came as politicians backed an appeal yesterday to end the "polarising" row over Muslim veils after the head of Britain's race relations watchdog warned that it could trigger race riots. Comic is sent abroad to joke about the veil
Sunday, October 22, 2006
THE SUNDAY TIMES: THE head of Britain’s race relations watchdog has warned there will be “fire” on the streets unless growing racial tensions can be resolved.Mark Alexander
Trevor Phillips, chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality, says divisions created by the recent row about Muslim women wearing the veil risk becoming “the trigger for the grim spiral that produced riots in the north of England five years ago. Only this time the conflict could be much worse”.
In what will be seen as his swansong before he becomes head of the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights, Phillips says: “All the recent evidence shows that we are, as a society, becoming more socially polarised by race and faith . . . In many of our cities things cannot get any worse.”
His warning is made in an article in The Sunday Times today about the need for a “civilised” debate on race. He paints a picture of a society whose institutions appear to be helpless in the face of mounting racial conflict. Race boss warns of ‘fire’ on streets
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)