CENSORSHIP: Setting Limits in a Media-Based Society

I have a confession to make: I LOVE BEYONCE. That’s right, I said it. What do I like about her, let’s see… everything! It’s her sexy dance moves, the upbeat rhythms and witty lyrics to her songs, and her captivating performances that put her on another level of divadom.  I even love the sexy outfits (even though I think they’d much rather be fit for a private bedroom setting). Oh yeah, if I hear a Beyoncé song off in the distance, inside my head I’m shaking and gyrating!

But if you know me even slightly, right now you have the confused look on your face. I often use her specifically as an example of everything us as women should not be. Especially black women. Especially Muslim women. I loathe the Youtube videos of little black girls wearing blonde wigs shaking their little booties to the Beyoncé beat. I detest the notion that it’s okay for parents to let their children idolize these performers who have nothing to offer young girls except self-loathing and premature sexuality.

We have to be careful. While I confess to liking a little Beyoncé while I’m at the gym or cleaning the house, I also have to realize she is not a suitable role model for me or my impressionable two little girls. Ever heard the saying, “garbage in, garbage out.” It’s so true! Playing grotesque music as well as showing inappropriate television programming is detrimental to say the least.

This post is not about bashing Beyoncé, but it is about taking control of the media in our lives. Media is everywhere. Even if you have no television, most likely you have a computer or a smartphone. Youtube.com is one of the most influential media sources in our lives today. For instance, how easy it is to go from watching a religious lecture to a risqué belly dancing contest? Only a couple clicks….

Imagine having a wonderful family who is God-conscience, values education, and practices good morals. Who could ask for anything more? But then one day for dinner you invite over a guest who is extremely attractive and charming, but they are dressed half-naked and cuss and are disrespectful; then they seductively whisper in your children’s ears that everything you have taught them is complete hogwash. Can you imagine a houseguest saying this at your dining-room table, “All I want for my birthday is a BIG BOOTY HO!” sigh… yes those are actual lyrics in a very popular song. How is this different than playing it on the radio or television?

Nowadays, you don’t even need cable to be subjected to sex, drugs, and foul language. There are advertisements for alcohol on the sides of city buses! Bottom line - We have to be proactive. We are in a war against commercialism, consumerism and an over-sexed culture: a culture that tells us being free means getting drunk and being sexually promiscuous: demeaning ourselves though scandalous dress and behavior. We are in a war to save our families and the stakes are high!

Saving ourselves and our families from the negativity will be no easy task. And guess what? No matter what we do – short of building a shack in the woods – we can’t dodge all of it. So what do we do? We medicate. What’s our medication? Spending quality time with our children and spouses, you know, an old fashioned walk around the block or board game. We gotta put good stuff in to get good stuff out. Read a book. Read one that will nourish your mind and your spirit, like these: TheHoly Qur’an, The Autobiography of Malcolm X,  The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergenceof Science and Spirituality by the Dalai Lama.

And one more thing: Don’t underestimate children, they comprehend and are far more aware than we think, even from infancy.

You Should Celebrate Holloween If...

1. You are a Pagan
2. You want to honor Samhain, the Celtic "lord of death"
3.You are interested in entertaining evil spirits who demand a feast and sweets
4. You are certain that if you don't entertain these spirits, they will reak havoc on you for a year to come
5. October 31st is your New Years Eve.
6. You need to thank the sun god for providing a good harvest
7. Sacrificing animals if fun
8. You would like to dress your child up as an animal because you know human spirits live in animals
9. You want to bob for apples to see into the future
10. You just can't stand the fact that ole' drunken Jack will lose his way to a final resting place if you don't carve a scary face in a pumpkin and put a candle in it!

Most people don't believe in any of this nonsense, yet they still celebrate. Why? Because it's fun? Because you don't want your kids to be left out? Educate your family on the real meaning of Holloween and perhaps it won't appear so appealing. Sometimes we choose ignorance over knowledge because we think it is easier, but is it? Perhaps it will be easy to free our minds by corrcting our actions. Say no to Halloween and other ridiculous holidays.

Guidance From the Quran

"When it is said unto them, 'Come to what Allah has revealed, come to the Messenger,' they say, 'Enough for us are the ways we found our fathers following.' What! Even though their fathers were void of knowledge and guidance?" (Qur'an 5:104)

"Has not the time arrived for the believers, that their hearts in all humility should engage in the remembrance of Allah and of the Truth which has been revealed to them? That they should not become like those to whom was given the Book aforetime, but long ages passed over them and their hearts grew hard? For many among them are rebellious transgressors." (Qur'an 57:16)

My Moral Mortality

Death. Dying. Dead. Fatality. Mortality. Grave. Mourning. Moving On.

Okay, I got if of my chest. Whew, That felt pretty good actually. This is a hard subject to talk about, whether it be in a blog, or with friends or even at a place of worship. We all know that death is the inevitable. As a Muslim I understand that "Every soul shall have the taste of death" Holy Quran 3:185. So I sit here in the middle of the night and I contemplate.

Initially, I think about the meaning of death; the moment of death. I ask myself, "How soon will I be forgotten on this Earth? A day? A month? A year? Twenty years? When will I become just a picture from another time buried in someones basement?" I know I am not supposed to be scared of death, but like many others, I struggle with that aspect. I'm just too darn inquisitive! I could keep myself up all night thinking about the Hows, Whys, Whens and Wheres. So instead I just decide to get it all out in these two paragraphs so I can move on to something much more tangible: LIFE.

I think this must be the key. For those of us who believe in an afterlife, we have to constantly consider what we are doing in this life that will affect our fate in the next. Will I be rewarded or punished? However, this is not our only driving force to do good by ourselves, our loved ones, and the society at large. Have you ever asked yourself why all the atheist of the world are not ruthless psycotic serial killers? Well fortunately for the human race, God has hard-wired us to want to do good(whether we accept his favor or not.) There will always be temptation to do bad, but for the overwhelming majority of the human race, WE WANT TO DO GOOD. Have you ever been in a situation when you know you can do something really wrong and get away with it, but you just don't do it? Or if you do act on your michieveous thoughts, you immediately feel a heavy weight of guilt? These are the attributes that makes us human: God's most complex creation.

Where am I going with this? LIVE YOUR LIFE THE BEST YOU CAN RIGHT NOW! Not a person on this earth knows the exact moment when they will breath their last breath, but we all know it's coming . . . sooner for some, later for the rest. We have no choice about of death, but we have the choice to do something good, bad or in between right now. Do something good for a complete sranger, or someone you love dearly. Don't get so overly consumed with the day to day struggles that you are not enjoying your life. Marrige, children, jobs, and worship can become so routine that we are not cherishing those special moments that make life so valuble. Many of life's seasons can be bittersweet: developing an aquired taste is the best advice I can give. Allah knows best!

-Judge Not!

I AM WOMAN

I like to call myself a realistic feminist. First I must give my definition of an unrealistic feminist: A woman who believes that women are equal to men in every way, shape and form and should be treated as such. After giving birth to my daughter, I am left without a doubt that woman and man are NOT created equal: there is no way my husband could have survived childbirth! I mean seriously, our bodies are just built for it- yes even the 1st so-called "pregnant man" (which obviously proves that a woman can call themselves a man, but God can reveal otherwise.)

I think the women's liberation movement was great because the truth is that we live in a misogynist society and sometimes drastic measures have to be taken to acquire civil rights. All I ask, is do not take away my God given right to be a wonderful, powerful, strong, unique WOMAN. It doesn't bother me that my husband has more upper body strength. As I watch the ways in which we interact with our daughter, they are not the same, and I am thankful for that. Women and men have unique qualities to bring to the table- in business, education, marriage, and child-rearing- one not more important than the other. Allah has created us in a dynamic fashion that we may never fully understand, but we can accept. The sooner one accepts and appreciates their attributes , the sooner one will be secure with the mind, body and soul God gave them. THANK GOD FOR WOMAN! . . . AND MAN!

-Judge Not!

Explaining the concept of “ethical relativism”. What is it’s ever increasing impact on the world?

Ethic relativism leaves every culture to it’s own devices when deciding what is the proper code of conduct. Ethics dictates to us what is right and wrong, fueling our decision making processes. Ethic relativism means that no one culture’s ethics are superior to another’s, and forbids people from passing judgment on a culture’s ethics which are dissimilar from their own.

Ethic relativism could be a great asset to intercultural communication. If the simple concept of empathizing with other peoples ethics was widely practiced, global miscommunications could be avoided. This concept teaches us that we can agree to disagree and still coexist. I agree with ethic relativism to an extent, however living in a culturally diverse nation, I can also see the need for some ethic universalism.

This first example that came to my mind was the controversial Prop 8 decision in California banning same-sex marriage. There has been a tremendous backlash from the Gay community onto the Mormon Church because of their advertisements denouncing Gay marriage. In this case, ethic relativism was not practiced because the government handed over the power to the citizens of California to decide over one groups rights. Should the citizens be faulted because they voted according to their own ethics? Ethics is the system we all use to make decisions, so why would this instance be an exception? Many religious people believe gay marriage is sac-religious. The Qur’an teaches Muslims that we cannot force others to come to Islam, and also that we must obey the laws of our land, as long as they do not go against the laws God has written for us in the Holy Qur’an. I think many religious people believe there is a thin line between respecting other people’s lifestyles and condoning those lifestyles. This is why I believe the Gay community’s backlash in this instance was misdirected.

Anyone who advertised either for or against Prop 8 were simply enacting their American right to openly express their point of view. I think the Gay community’s outrage would have been better directed at the government who allowed the decision to be openly voted on, therefore allowing peoples cultures and ethics dictate marital rites for homosexuals. As American citizens, we all agree to live somewhat in a universal ethic system which is laid out by our constitution. Perhaps that is where Prop 8 should have remained- in the judicial system to be decided upon based on our constitution.

-Judge Not!