Ramadan's Pluralism Message

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Ramadan’s
Pluralism Message | Intrafaith and Interfaith goal

By the end of
2020, there will not be a major city in America, and perhaps in the world,
where you will not find people of different faiths, cultures, ethnicities,
races, nationalities and social backgrounds working, eating, praying, playing,
marrying, and doing things together.  This is bound to create conflicts, and thus
we need to prepare ourselves to deal with such eventualities.


The guidance can be found in every religious tradition; all of them were
committed to creating cohesive societies where no one had to live in
apprehension or fear of the other.  

I am pleased to reiterate the Islamic tradition in this essay.  

Quran 49:13 says that God has created us into
different tribes, communities and nations. It was indeed his choice to create
each one of us to be unique with our own thumbprint, eye print, DNA, color and
taste buds. Yet, the whole creation was put together in perfect balance and
harmony (55:7); Planets and plants were programmed to operate with precision
(Q55:5) year after year, and humans were given a free will with the
responsibility to maintain that balance for their own good or perish like the
earlier species through climate changes or conflicts.

 

That brings us to Pluralism which
is defined as, “respecting the otherness of the others and accepting the (God-given)
uniqueness of each one of us.”  You are who
you are, and I am who I am. Q109:6 (Y. Ali), “To you be your Way, and to me mine.”  Your faith is dear to you as mine is to me,  together, we have to live and work on
maintaining that harmony for our good and for the creator’s joy. God’s religion
is peace.

God knew such diversity is bound to create conflict and mess up the delicate
balance, so he encourages us in the same verse 49:13, that the best among you
are the ones who know each other. Indeed, knowledge leads to understanding and
understanding to acceptance and appreciation of the God given uniqueness of
each one of us, and with that conflicts fade and solutions emerge.


Pluralism is not a regulatory system like Secularism, or theocratic governance,
but  your choice to have good manners,
and  a good attitude towards fellow being
as guided by Quran, the Prophet and common sense.

My focus of this essay is application of God’s recommendation “to know each
other” within the fold of Islam and with members of diverse family of faiths.

Within the fold of Islam


A majority of us are saddened with the day to day
events in the Muslim world, calling each other infidels and killing the other in
Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Pakistan and elsewhere.  Quran says killing one person is like killing
the whole humanity.  You are not to kill
a single soul unless it is in self defense. We talk about unity, and spew so
much hate for the other in the same breath; it needs to go as God wants peace.

I am appealing to those Muslims who have the integrity to match their words
with their actions, and pray for the integrity of others who lack it.


During this Ramadan, please make an effort to do your Iftaar (breaking fast) in
every mosque, particularly in the Shia, Sunni, Ahmadiyya and WD Muhammad or at
least seek God’s guidance to remove hate and bias from our hearts for each
other.  Invite each other, not to discuss
differences but to know each other to learn to respect the otherness of others,
and accept each other, so that conflicts fade and solutions emerge.

 Take some fruits and dates if you have a
few dollars or just go there and let the Imam or the volunteers know that you
are from a different tradition and making a sincere effort to be part of the larger
community in every which way you can. 

Over the last four years, I have been to every mosque of every denomination in
the United States, except the Nation of Islam, and the Progressive Muslims.
Insha Allah, I intend to make the trip to Washington DC or New York.  I have chronicled the uniqueness of each tradition
with full respect at RamadanDaily.com.

When you visit your friend’s house, you don’t criticize how they have arranged
their furniture; in fact you may reluctantly praise it, but never put it down.  You don’t dare criticize how their kids keep
their rooms, eat, wear or talk.  For
God’s sake go to other Mosques with the same attitude, the attitude of
pluralism. 

This year, we have 4 Fridays in Ramadan; make an effort to attend at least four
major denominations on each Friday.

Dealing with fellow members of diverse family of
faiths;
 
Prophet Muhammad was called Amin, the trustworthy, truthful, just and
around whom people felt secure. We need to be Amins of the society.  We need to have comfortable working
relationships with everyone from Atheists to Baha’i, Buddhist, Christians,
Hindus, Jains, Jewish, Native Americans, Pagans, Sikh, Wiccan, Zoroastrians and
every one in between including fellow Muslims of different denominations. We
should not be dumbfounded when it comes to the right knowledge about others,
preferably as they express it and not what is dished out to us about them. We
ought to take pride in knowing all of God’s creation expressed in different
faiths and traditions.    


Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) life is a bold example to
live civility, openness and with confidence. 
He had offered a space in his Mosque for the visiting Christians of
Najran to pray after the interfaith dialogue.  Had they prayed, they would have called on
Jesus as son of God and Prophet would not have objected it. The greater value
he taught was to respect the otherness of others. Remember he also had his
signature revised in Hudaybiyyah treaty – From Muhammad (pbuh) Rasool Allah to
Muhammad (pbuh) bin Abdullah.  It was to
respect the otherness of others.  Let’s
follow him and build friendships with people of faiths or no faiths, and become
Amins of the Society.

Together as Muslims, let’s make the world a safe and secure place for every one
of God’s 7 billion to live cohesively. 
Let’s not blame others, but do our share of good in our own Masjids, neighborhoods,
communities and towns on a smaller level.  This is our home.

Please study: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/american-muslim-agenda-a-_b_5528706.html 


Additional Reading:


Politics of Ramadan – http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/guestvoices/2010/08/the_essence_of_ramadan_is_to_become_humble.html

Spirit of Ramadan
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/spirit-of-ramadan_b_939961.html

Ramadan Traditions
http://ramadanexclusive.blogspot.com/2010/09/traditions-of-ramadan.html

Sahri at Masjid Al-Aqsa
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeghouse/sets/72157624809154378/

American Muslim Agenda
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/american-muslim-agenda-a-_b_5528706.html

Ramadan Cohesion –
http://ramadanexclusive.blogspot.com/2011/07/ramadan-cohesion-2011.html

Mike Ghouse is a speaker, author and thinker, and heads the World Muslim Congress, a
think tank committed to nurturing the pluralistic values of Islam, as well as
the Foundation for Pluralism, educating about Pluralism.  | More about Ramadan at  www.RamadanExclusive.com

American Muslim Agenda, a new beginning for Muslim Americans on this 4th day of July

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American Muslim Agenda, a new beginning for
Muslim Americans on this 4th day of July – 1 of 3

Let this 4th day of July 2014 be a historic beginning for
American Muslims, where they will put together a clear agenda to participate and contribute towards the well being of America.

God created an integrated and interconnected world in harmony and
balance, and all he wants from us is to maintain that balance. That is simply
the God’s will.
The World Muslim Congress, a twelve year old think tank, has worked on
presenting an “initial agenda” for Muslims in America based on Quran and Prophet
Muhammad’s (pbuh) guidance. We hope this will spur debates, followed by
discussions and emergence of a Muslim agenda within the framework of American
Agenda.
Due to the length of the plan, it is presented in 3
installments.

You're Dangerous!': Sparks Fly Between 'Hannity' Panel on Radical Islam

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URL – http://nabsites.net/demo/youre-dangerous-sparks-fly-between/

Published at Oped News: http://www.opednews.com/articles/A-response-to-Sean-Hannity-by-Mike-Ghouse-American-Muslims_Anti-islam_Extremism-Extremists_Foreign-Policy-Failure-Iraq-140624-879.html#comment496854

YOUTUBE:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrilgYRauZY

First let me address the myth about Sean Hannity, and application of the Quranic verse “Don’t let your bias make you unjust towards the other” in this situation. Hannity is a defender of freedom and you would appreciate him, when you grasp the full meaning of freedom in its entirety.

In February 2013, Sean had called in 25 individuals for his show that included Representatives Peter King, Louis Goehmert, Ambassador John Bolton and others including me, Mike Ghouse.

In the middle of taping another segment, Sean asked me to join him on the stage, while 23 others were sitting across on the bleachers.  To paraphrase him (short version), “You are the only Muslim friend I know… and today I will do something for you that you have been asking for in the last three years….  from now on I will not use the word “Muslim terrorists” and instead call it  Terrorists among Muslims, would that make you happy? Hell yes!  I gave him a big salute while others cheered on.

Boston Marathon bombing followed in April, CNN camera goes to Peter King, and this is what he said, “96% of Muslims are good people, and it is the 4% we have to worry… That is a 180 Degrees turnaround! The same man had called in to investigate every Muslim and every Mosque a year ago.  That is reasonable change!  Thank you Sean!

Muslims don’t have to love him, but should not hold any bias against him.  I am glad that topic came up today, though we did not elaborate, we touched up on it and here I am, writing about it.  Just wanted to add, that CAIR team was vehemently opposed to my presence on Hannity and we had some fiery words about it, and finally Ibrahim Hooper had apologized to me.   I have defended the need for CAIR, just as there are Jewish, Sikh, Hindu and others have their own CAIRS defending the Civil rights of the respective groups. I will continue to do that despite their attitudes towards me.  They simply do not understand the power of engagement.

Personally, it is a mission accomplished – we place the blame where it belongs; the individuals and not religion.   We (Muslims) cry out loud to “see the change” and it won’t happen unless we engage with people who differ with us.  Mother Teresa had once said, if you want to make peace, go talk with your enemies, indeed Mother, you are right!  Gandhi had said, if you want a change, be a part of it.  Both are my mentors.

Listen to Hannity carefully, he is not against Islam or Muslims, but against the radicals among us, which all of us Muslims (minus radicals) are against but don’t speak up in strong terms on a national or international microphone.

I would venture to say that,   even the stance taken by  Brigitte Gabriel, Pamela Geller and others is not against Muslims, though their language is not palatable,  they are activists and are outraged by lack of demonstrations by Muslims against the radicals, even though they have their own agenda. Unless I find information otherwise, I stand with my take.

The radicals among us are frightening not only to Muslims but to everyone else.  I would go on to say that even Jamie Glazov’s
bias against Islam is not deep rooted, but stems from reading the wrong translations of Quran,
and shamefully, beefed by the false assertions of radical Muslim scholars in the past which do
not contribute to peaceful societies.   As Muslims we have to fix the wrongs of Sharia Law and
understand the Genesis of Sharia law to rebuild cohesive societies where no human has to live in
fear of the other. 

I would rather have many Hannity’s in the world who keep every one on their toes than have sycophants who let the governments and groups become complacent and make mistakes to the detriment of the very public they serve.

This will be my 90th show with Hannity over a period of four years. Please remember, I am from Texas, and slow in responding to the fast pace of Hannity, but yet, I have always made a few points, and with humility I acknowledge that I was a disaster a few times and Hannity had beat me up,  partly due to technical difficulties in the studios and partly my slowness. I will do well face to face with Hannity than via Satellite, where I don’t see any one of them but looking into the camera with no one to see, and when I don’t see them, I don’t get the cue.

I am getting a lot of hate mail since yesterday, and several of them have attacked me on Twitter and their own sites. “I hate this @MikeGhouse ……. @…. ! He spikes my blood pressure! Makes me clean and oil my Rifle! It is a Norinco SKS.” I feel sorry for them for not having the stomach for a different point of view.

Some others have jumped about my support (or lack of denouncement) of ISNA, as if that is the only problem they have, in which case it is not bad. Their charge is based on accusations of co-conspirators, which is not true, as it has been cleared by the courts. ISNA is a good clean organization. However, I do have a gripe with ISNA’s priorities. Twice, I have submitted proposals to give presentations in their annual conference – “How to become a Mayor”, “how to be participants and contributors towards the well being of America”, that ultimately benefits all of us, and “what does it take for us to change”, but it gets run down by their bureaucracy. I understand their priorities are different, but I would place my priority on what Prophet Muhammad taught, the very foundation of Islam; to be the Amins (the Jews, Christians, Pagan and other neighbors called him “Amin” for his truthfulness, kindness, caring and justness)  of the society where he built relations with every one around him, that is how we build cohesive societies that function effectively, indeed that is the purpose of religion, all religions.  Religion should not be barrier to be friends with neighbors.  God emphasizes in the Quran (at least 18 verses) with a tag line – the best among you is the one who cares for my creation, and I know who cared for his neighbors.

I will  however present a national proposal, hopefully in Huffington Post before Ramadan about what we can do, or if Sean wants to do it on his show, I will present the proposal.  I hope they listen, if not, we have to get the grass root movement to pick it up the steam and go on with or without the support of National Muslim organizations. We have to be engaged, and we have to become major contributors towards the safety, security and prosperity of America, we have to do more than our share to be equals.

And now about the sparks

In a live TV show, you don’t get a second chance to say a few words you really
wanted to say, and take back a few words you did not want them in.  All of us could have done better, but the
idea is to express different points of view, and it is up to the public to choose what
they will do with the information.

 Here are a few phrases, rather paraphrases
that got everyone going.  “She (Brigitte
Gabrielle) is as dangerous as the extremist”, “you (Jamie Glazov) are
disgusting” and “You (inference) are an Islamist” and several more….

Tamara Holder said Brigitte Gabrielle is as dangerous as the extremists.  I can fully understand her take, and I have
said a very similar thing to Brigitte a few months ago, “Your ‘statements’ are
dangerous and are a come-on to those terrorist” while our men and women are
serving in the conflict zones we should not be goading them. It negates the
safety efforts of our administration.

It resonates with what I have been writing frequently, “For every
Muslim ass, there is a Christian, Jewish, Hindu or a Buddhist ass, just as
those men at ISIS and Al-Qaida will declare Jihad against us Americans; we have some
among us who would want to do the same. It is a serious issue, but to hype it
up to the Nth degree does not bode well for the safety of fellow Americans.  I stand opposed to any pre-emptive strikes or
going to war.

Jamie Glazov does not
realize that hate is the mother of violence. He attacked Islam instead of the radicals and
that got me going. Tamara called him disgusting and I would reiterate that his
statements were disgusting. What do I wish?
I would wish that he can take out his anti-Islam bias, as it creates animosities, unfortunately if he is joined by others, we Americans sound like hateful people, and we are not. Do his statements contribute towards building bridges? Hell no!
  


Blaming the religion is dumb

I want to assert a thought that very few on the right have had a chance to learn.  Religions and civil societies evolved to build cohesive societies where all the members of the society can function effectively and without fear of each other. Whether it is Zoroaster, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Confucius, Jesus, Muhammad, Nanak or any of the peace makers, their messages was same, most people get that right, and a few don’t.

 Justice is the key component of a society.  When an individual commits a crime or violates others’ rights, both the civil and religious societies have prescribed punishment for him, with a hope that the punishment will act as a deterrent to others. Furthermore, you don’t punish the man’s parents, siblings, spouse and kids, nor do you punish the man’s clergy, Mayor of the town, the people of the town, his nation, his religion or people who follow his religion.

Some men do not understand a thing about religion, they may have studied the same wrong thing over and over again,  and that does not make them an expert, if their language generates fear and hate for the other.  

The reason you blame and punish the individual is to restore trust, harmony and justice.  You don’t blame the religion, and don’t buy the alibis of the criminals. The guy may say Allahu Akbar and kill someone, but that does not mean you have to buy that as an act of religion.  Glazov hangs on to the statements made by some radical Muslims scholars from the past ignoring what Quran says.

Blaming Islam does no good.  You cannot beat, kill, hang, slaughter, shoot or bury religion – it amounts to barking at the wrong tree, it does not produce any result. But punishing the bad guys restores justice and trust in the society, after all religion in an intangible thing and cannot do a thing but provide guidance.  

Can you call Pamela Geller a murderer, and Bill Blasio a rapist?  Because New Yorkers murdered over 1500 people, and raped over 3000 women last year? It would be dumb isn’t it? Blaming Islam or Muslims for the acts of the few is equally dumb.

Caliphate is another conspiracy theory.  First of all, no two Muslims agree on anything. No doubt Islam is one, but its understanding is as different as Christ in different denominations.  There never will be a Caliphate, it is an useless dream of few on the Muslims side and conspiracy of a few on part of non-Muslims.  The Saudi version of Islam, the brotherhood, Taliban and other versions have zero tolerance for each other and the average Muslim who minds his own life taking care of his family and living his own life.  The division within Sunni is steep, let alone the animosity between Sunnis and Shias. The Caliphate is the imaginary product of conspirators.

What we all need to do is talk with each other, lay things out as bluntly as we can and then examine how we can build cohesive societies, where no one has to live in apprehension or fear of the other.  We need to highlight the dimension of pluralism, and we want the world to respect us for our justice, honesty and fairness.

God bless America!


OTHER VIDEOS

Fox’s Tamara Holder Blasts Brigitte Gabriel For Spewing Anti-Muslim
Hatred
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/06/foxs-tamara-holder-blasts-brigitte-gabriel

How
Fox News Has A Conversation About Islam
http://shredoftruth.com/home/how-fox-news-has-a-conversation-about-islam.html

# # # 

 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a
writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work
place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in
Standing up for others
and a book with the same title is coming up. Mike has a strong presence on
national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on
Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to
the Texas Faith Column at Dallas
Morning News; fortnightly at Huffington post; and
several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work
through many links.

Hannity Show – Muslims on March, Jihad against Christians and the west

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MIKE GHOUSE ON THE HANNITY SHOW ON FOX NEWS
Show: “Muslims on March, Jihad against Christians and the west.”
Air time: Friday 10 PM EST

For every Muslim ass, there is a Christian ass, just as those creeps at ISIS
and Al-Qaida will declare Jihad against us, the west, we have some among us who
would want to do the same. It is a serious issue, but to hype it up to the Nth
degree does not bode well.  I stand
opposed to any pre-emptive strikes or going to war.


We don’t have to show off that we are powerful, we are powerful. It is wrong to
egg them on, and have them dig in their heels, kill many of them, destroy them,
is that the way to seek pleasure?  And in
the process, get a few of our own soldiers killed, screw up the economy, pile
up the deficit, spur foreclosures, business shut downs, divorces and bad
morale.

That is downright stupid; I would spend that time and energy in finding
solutions and a dialogue.  No war!  

How can we rely on our intelligence? 

Thank you
mike
Mike Ghouse
(214) 325-1916
text/talk
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a
writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work
place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in
Standing up for others
and a book with the same title is coming up. Mike has a strong presence on
national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on
Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to
the Texas Faith Column at Dallas
Morning News; fortnightly at Huffington post; and
several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work
through many links.  

Atheism making space in Saudi Arabia

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ATHEISTS IN SAUDI ARABIA
URL – http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2014/06/in-cradle-of-islam-growing-number-of.html

God tells in Qur’an, ” … Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error …” [2:256]

This
is Islam’s unambiguous affirmation of freedom of faith, which also
applies to changing of faith. The Qur’an illuminates before the humanity
the two highways [90:10], one of which leads to salvation. Islam is an
invitation to the highway toward salvation, but it is based on

FREEDOM OF CHOICE.

The
role of the Prophet was to explain what it means.  To paraphrase his
quote, you cannot force anyone to believe what they don’t, it has to
come from within and if they can see the value in it.

The sad
part of religion, any religion be it Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism,
Buddhism or the others, a majority of the folks get it, some don’t.  No
one should trample on one’s freedom to eat, drink, wear, or believe what
he wants. There shall be no compulsion.

Indeed, Islam or any
religion thrives where there is freedom. Saudi Arabia can enforce their
extreme rules as the policy of their government but not as Islam. I
cannot call it repugnant, because in the United States we still have the
Death Penalty, and our Congressmen and Senators still make stupid
remarks about women. Had we not had the rule of law, or if we vote in
the conservatives by mistake, we can see them want to emulate Saudi
Arabia when it comes to LGTB, Women’s rights and other rights.

Freedom
of speech, assembly and expression are the way to go, the governments
have to be righteous to feel secure. Indeed, I can safely conclude, 
freedom is directly proportional to how secure the government is, and
Saudi Government (Not Islamic) is not, will crumble within two decades.

Mike Ghouse
Center for Pluralism
www.FoundationforPluralism.com
www.MikeGhouse.net

Studies in
Social, religious, cultural, Gender, Political and work Place Pluralism.
Pluralism is neither a religion nor rule of law, it is merely our attitude of
“Respecting the otherness of others.” and accepting the God-given uniqueness of
each one of the 7.2 Billion of us.

# # #
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/belief/atheism-saudi-arabia-illegal
Caryle Murphy, GlobalPost

 

Atheism explodes in Saudi Arabia, despite state-enforced ban 
Worshippers outside of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia (Credit: Associated Press)

Today, I am proud of America more than 2008, thank your Mr. President for fulfilling the dream of our founding fathers

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Today, I am proud of America
more than I was in 2008; the Senate has confirmed the Gay, Black Judges to the
Supreme Court.   Don’t you mis-read me, like some of you did
when FLOTUS said she was never been proud of America before. We both mean we
are proud of the additional significant milestone of the civilization led by
America.  

Thank you Mr. President for fulfilling the dream of the founding fathers
of this nation, that all Men are created equal.   All it took to bring
about the change of accepting the LGBT community as a normal part of the
society was your daring and bold utterance in September 2013 to support
LGTB marriages. 

Everything gathered momentum from then on, and
even the African Americans who had opposed such unions in California
turned around, the Conservative Preachers did, and the Muslims joined in
too and this Muslims was in the forefront of inclusion of every
American.

And this day, much of the value placed in our constitution
comes true – that all men are created equal. It will be complete when
Hillary becomes the president and a Jewish Gay man  become the
Vice President, a Muslim becomes the Secretary of State and a Hindu,
Atheist, and Native American become Secretaries of defense,  Justice and
Home Land security respectively.
 
Then the 2nd biggest dream of MLK, judge
not by the color of skin gets enhanced with judge not by the faith,
ethnicity or size of the community one represents, but by one’s
ability.  I am proud of America today even more than in 2008 and each
successive day I see an inclusive America.

Mr. President, you made it. Thank you.

I particularly like this paragraph reported in Huffington Post, “The latest
confirmations come as the Senate has been plowing through President Barack Obama’s nominees, and
they reflect the diversity that will remain on the federal judiciary long after
he is gone.

A White House aide said Obama
has appointed more female judges than any other president, breaking the record
previously set by President Bill Clinton. He has also appointed more Hispanic
judges than any other president, breaking the record previously held by
President George W. Bush. Obama has also appointed more Asian-American judges
than all presidents combined and has nominated 12 openly gay federal judges.
Last month, the Senate confirmed the first-ever Native American female federal judge in the
nation’s history.”

Added:
PRECISELY ! I AM SO GLAD YOU SHARED YOUR THOUGHTS
THIS
CELEBRATION IS NOT ABOUT INCLUSION OF RACE AND LGBT, but about our
civilization reaching a new milestone, and achieving a new height where
we do not discriminate any. Just a year ago this was not possible,
thanks to Obama, he paved the way and today 98:0 Senate voted for it,
both Republicans and Democrats. It is going beyond politics, and is
about caring for America.


We should celebrate this indeed, we will reach the peak of our
civilization when a woman becomes our president, a Jewish person becomes
a VP, a Muslim becomes the Secy of State, a Native American becomes
secy of Home land and a Hindu becomes secy of defense… That is when we
become fully civilized nation and no more we will hear from our
conservative brothers and sisters (yes) that “A woman will become
president over my dead body.”

Mike Ghouse committed to building a cohesive America, where every American feels included and no American fears the other.

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2014/06/today-i-am-proud-of-america-more-than.html
# # #

No Arms to Iraq, instead get them to talk.

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NO ARMS TO IRAQ,
INSTEAD GET THEM TO TALK NOW

www.TheGhousediary.com

How naive can we be?
Do the bloody  war mongers believe that
by supplying arms and parking our fleet in the gulf we will scare the ISIS?
Hell, we’ll egg them on, they got nothing to lose.


Obama has been right, and now he needs to go it alone, as he did all along by
voting against Iraq War, pulling our troops and recovering America. Had we
supported him then, we would have not witnessed the disaster. 

No arms to Iraq and no troops, and let our efforts be spent in bringing them to
sit down and talk. Isn’t worth it? Isn’t it better? Let’s not be arrogant
saviors, they can take care of themselves. 

No doubt talk is cheaper than war!
Indeed war is for thrill seekers. 

Mike Ghouse, Americans Together

 Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a
writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work
place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in
Standing up for others
and a book with the same title is coming up. Mike has a strong presence on
national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on
Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to
the Texas Faith Column at Dallas
Morning News; fortnightly at Huffington post; and
several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work
through many links.

Happy Fathers Day

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HAPPY FATHER’S DAY

This morning, I dutifully I dedicated about half an hour to reflect on my
father, and a few minutes to pray and express my gratitude to my late father,
Abdul Rahman.  I am blessed to have a
great Dad, an affectionate and caring father who opened many windows of
knowledge for me.

I live by many examples he left for us to emulate – honor
your promises, what you appear is what you are. He was forgiving, always
inclined to mitigate conflicts and nurture goodwill in my town I grew up – he did
not have a barrier between him and another human being – he was a caring man.  Rarely did I see him get angry and I thanks for
passing on some those genes.  


My 2nd duty of prayers was for my father
figure Everett Blauvelt who passed away last year at 97. He opened to door for
me to come to the United States. He was very caring and very sensitive – and of
course we were friends more than the deferential relationships.

Both the men had great attitudes towards life and I am blessed to emulate them.

I have written several articles about these men, a few of
them are listed here.

1. http://nabsites.net/demo/happy-fathers-day-2/

2. http://nabsites.net/demo/happy-fathers-day-tribute-to-my/
3. http://nabsites.net/demo/fathers-day-gifts-mothers-are-fathers/
4. http://nabsites.net/demo/in-memory-of-dadski-everett-blauve/

5. http://nabsites.net/demo/praying-for-dadski-everett-blauve/

6.  http://nabsites.net/demo/my-name-is-mike-ghouse/

My heart goes out to those who did not have a good relationship with their father but, despite that they survived,  and give that affection to their offspring and service to others.

Mike

Decmocracy alive in Indian Parliament, thanks to Asaduddin Owaisi

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INDIAN DEMOCRACY IS ALIVE – ASADUDDIN OWAISI
http://nabsites.net/demo/decmocracy-alive-in-indian-parliamen/

I
have criticized Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi in the past and will continue to
do so for his approach. However, given that there is no spineful
opposition in our parliament, we need to admire him for being critical
of the government and question them.   We need to have men like
MallikArjun Kharge and Asaduddin Owaisi to question and criticize, it is
a sign of a healthy democracy.  Shehzada and others will probably speak
nothing and do nothing.

As Indians we need to mature, and
appreciate the men and women who question the government. I would say,
the most patriotic Indian would be the one who keeps the government on
its toes, like my friend Sean Hannity. If we don’t keep the government
in the line, they will become what we hated before, and before.

Today at the parliament he spoke up loud and clear.   Vajpayee had done
it, Sushma had done it,  and so they do at the US Congress and Senate
or any democratic system. Even the shouting responses are democratic, as
they do in the UK Parliament. At least chappals were not flying.

As
people, we need to appreciate the men and women who criticize our
governments. I am sure Modi will speak up about it, and I hope and pray
that he values dissent – the foundation of democracy.   

Mike Ghouse
www.MikeGhouse.net

YouTube – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Kmbn_Xu4Go

Asaduddin Owaisi and Shanavas baffle BJP in Lok Sabha

The Milli Gazette Online
Published Online: Jun 12, 2014
YouTube – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Kmbn_Xu4Go

NEW DELHI : Asaduddin Owaisi, President All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul
Muslimeen and M.P. from Hyderabad created uproar in Lok Sabha during his
address. He hit at BJP with his precise points. Even he sarcastically
congratulated Narendra Modi for destroying myth of Muslim vote bank, and
added that “in doing so you have proved there is a Hindu vote bank
which can be consolidated”. Further he said:
 

“I stand here as the son of Ehsan Jafri…
“I stand here as the brother of Ishrat Jahan…
“I stand here as the Uncle of Mohsin Sadiq Sheikh…”I
stand before you as the voice of those poor voiceless people affected
by Gujarat genocide  and I want justice to be done with them.
Owaisi’s remarks regards Babri Masjid and Gujarat riots evoked sharp
reaction from BJP members who were heard shouting “shame on you”.
Unperturbed by the protest, Owaisi noted there are very few Muslim
representatives from BJP in the Lok Sabha. “Where is the inclusiveness?”
he asked and demanded that the Prime Minister make it clear what he
proposed to do for the minorities. He didn’t spare Najma Heptullah for
claiming Muslims are not minorities.
Owaisi added that soon, this Parliament would nominate Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse for Bharat Ratna.
Congress MP from Wayanad M I Shanavas  in his address said despite the
defeat, Congress would rise again. “Congress will never die. Congress
can die only with the nation… Whatever may be your victory, victory is
not all that matters. Hitler had won, Mussolini had won, Stalin had
won, victory will not make all the differences. I tell you in this
august House that the Indian National Congress will come back like a
storm in this House itself,” he said.

http://www.milligazette.com/news/10567-asaduddin-owaisi-and-shanavas-baffle-bjp-in-lok-sabha

Father's day gifts | Mothers are Fathers

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FATHER’S DAY GIFT S | MOTHERS ARE FATHERS
URL – http://nabsites.net/demo/fathers-day-gifts-mothers-are-fathers/
Gone are the times when gifts were a surprise, coming are times where
you list your gift choices on Amazon or some such site – to make it easy
for the loved one’s to order it. Whatever happened to “I
know my father” and “know what he would enjoy”? The surprise factor is
still good! There was a time, when my son and I had exchanged the exact
same gift which we both cherished.

Let me not forget and be
insensitive to those who do not have a father, abusive father or ashamed
to be associated with one. I admire you for being who you are without a
father or a father figure. All of us would find our own balance in one
way or the other, that is the law of life, and I admire you for being
who you are – a good giver, even though you may not have been a
recipient of such love.

God willing, I will write a small
article on father’s day to appreciate my father M. Abdul Rahman and my
father figure Everett A Blauvelt, who have showered tremendous affection
and caring. I hope you would reflect on such blessed figures in your
life – a sense of gratitude seeps in when expressed, and brings serenity
in life.

To rekindle that beautiful connection, of knowing
what your father would like and want, my friend Dr. Amer Suleman floated
a great idea. When his kids asked him what he wants for Father’s day,
he said to them, “the greatest gift would be to speak to me in my
language – Urdu; at least three sentences.” Now the kids can surprise
their fathers in their own language… it takes effort and thought process
to figure out the surprise.

This is also a great idea to keep our Children’s earth green.

MOTHERS ARE FATHERS

I admire all those mothers who have been a great father to their
children, through a variety of life situations. My wife Yasmeen has
been a good father besides a great mother to her daughter Maheen, and I
know a whole lot of other mothers who have raised their children with a
lot of caring and affection – they deserve a big appreciation on
father’s day

Share are your thoughts, together we can create a few good moments in our lives to cherish?

Share are your thoughts, together we can create a few good moments in our lives to cherish?

Mike Ghouse
www.MikeGhouse.net