Knowing, Doing, Becoming

by The Humble I shared with thanks

Q. As Muslims, what should our stance be on racism or racial discrimination, and should we be supporting social justice movements like Black Lives Matter (BLM)? And isn’t all of this support for BLM privileging justice for black people over others, especially when we Muslims realise the increasing Islamophobia and injustices being perpetrated against our fellow Muslim brothers and sisters around the globe?

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A. At the outset, let me be clear about how I intend to engage these concerns. And that is by rooting them in mainstream teachings of Islam so as to address the issue of racism in a manner that might be meaningful in a British context, and recognised as being Islamic in a Muslim one. I have divided the response into five parts: [i] Islam & racism; [ii] modernity & racism; [iii] Britain & racism; [iv] Muslims & racism; and [v] BLM & racism.

I. ISLAM & RACISM

Although the following verse is not speaking of the modern social construct of racism per se, it is speaking to the pre-modern concept of groupings of people related by significant common descent; in terms of location, language, history and culture. Thus we read in the Holy Qur’an: O mankind! We have created you from a male and female, and then made you nations and tribes that you might know one another. Truly, the noblest of you in the sight of God is he who is the most pious. God is indeed Knowing, Aware. [Q.49:13]

Muslim Americans assert solidarity with Black Lives Matter

Continue reading “On British Muslims and Racism: Do Black Lives Matter?”

Fossil gas subsidies within EU Just Transition Fund set to lock-in emissions

16 September 2020 

The allowance for fossil gas subsidies within the EU’s Just Transition Fund will lock-in polluting emissions over the coming decades, a coalition of European NGOs has warned. 

Fossil fuel burning leaps to new record.

The European Parliament voted to allow the inclusion yesterday and Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe stressed that it is not in line with earlier statements from the electoral body. 

The Parliament has previously called for the phase out of fossil fuel subsidies.

In January, within its resolution on a European Green Deal, the European Parliament said it “insists on a rapid phase-out of direct and indirect fossil fuel subsidies by 2020” across the EU and for each of the 27 Member States. 

Just last week the European Parliament’s Environment Committee endorsed a greenhouse emissions reduction target of 60 per cent for the bloc by the end of the decade.

Continue reading “Fossil gas subsidies within EU Just Transition Fund set to lock-in emissions”

Leaked docs expose massive Syria fake news operation waged by US controlled States and media

Ben Norton·Information WarsMediaSyriaUK·September 23, 2020

A trove of leaked documents exposes the propaganda network.

Western government-funded intelligence cutouts>

• trained Syrian opposition leaders
• planted stories in media outlets from BBC to Al Jazeera, and
• ran a cadre of journalists.

By Ben Norton

Leaked documents show how UK government contractors developed an advanced infrastructure of propaganda to stimulate support in the West for Syria’s political and armed opposition.

Virtually every aspect of the Syrian opposition was cultivated and marketed by Western government-backed public relations firms, from their political narratives to their branding, from what they said to where they said it.

The leaked files reveal how Western intelligence cutouts played the media like a fiddle, carefully crafting English- and Arabic-language media coverage of the war on Syria to churn out a constant stream of pro-opposition coverage….

continues further down/

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Anonymous OP report

”Op. HMG Trojan Horse: From Integrity Initiative To Covert Ops Around The Globe. Part 1: Taming Syria Ittps://freenet.space/read-blog/275_op-hmg-trojan-horse-from-integrity-initiative-to-covert-ops-around-the-globe-par.html”

”Greetings! We are Anonymous.

Citizens of the United Kingdom! This message is for you. Back in 2018 we exposed Integrity Initiative, a criminal network of influencers working across entire Europe under the guidance from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Yet, Her Majesty’s Government failed to draw any conclusions. Law-abiding British taxpayers continue to sponsor dozens of military crimes committed all over the world and veiled by the government’s lies. Today we release the result of teamwork of the Anonymous legion from all corners of the world. We have all got united in an effort to show that the FCO and HMG special services are not simply rats’ nests but truly criminal organisations while the government officials who sanction their work are accomplices.

Only small particles of information about covert operations of British intelligence in Syria have leaked into the Media until today. Well, here and now we reveal a detailed map of their presence in that country since 2011. We have everything: from criminal programmes and tenders to bidders’ complete proposals.……………. ”Anon OP report continues here

Continue reading “Anonymous Leaks docs on pro Jihadi fake news ops waged in Syria by US controlled States and Media”

”At the moment the future is up for grabs, but can only be seized with a strategy capable of winning the allegiance of the broader public and stunting the growth of a now-toddling fascism”.

by Shamus Cooke ON COUNTERPUNCH shared with thanks. Illustrations added.

The Politics of Portland’s Protests

Portland entered the 100th straight day of protests connected to the Black Lives Matter movement this month, and finally Portland’s mayor joined hands with the governor to solve the crisis. Not by taking action to address the widely-shared grievances against law enforcement, but to deliver a movement deathblow aimed at protestors.

The quietly coordinated move allowed Oregon State Troopers to be federally deputized, essentially making them Trump’s Troopers. Such a bold move by Oregon’s liberal executives—in arguably one of the bluest states in the country—is comparable to treason.

Oregon State Troopers are back..Federally Deputized in Portland

Weeks earlier, when thousands of protestors confronted Trump’s feds at the ‘Battle of Portland’, the mayor and governor won much public acclaim by decrying Trump’s tactics. And when a “ceasefire” was negotiated between Oregon’s politicians and the president, the public wasn’t told of a key provision— the bait and switch that substituted Trump’s feds for Oregon’s federally deputized state troopers.

Continue reading “Politics of Portland’s Protests: Crucial Battles Against barbaric Trumpism affect Elections”

Farmers from the Brazilian Reforma Agraria Popular distributed about six tons of food to indigenous peoples during the pandemic. Photo credit: Vinícius Braga/Fotos Publicas (CC BY 3.0) How indigenous peoples resist COVID-19 in South America

In Latin America, indigenous people are at higher risk of COVID-19 infection due to lack of data and historical political neglect, according to indigenous communities and human rights organizations.

Malnutrition, anemia, and obesity rates are high and resources to build nearby hospitals are low. In Bolivia, for example, the Bolivian Center for Legal Studies and Social Research (CEJIS for its initials in Spanish) also warned about the risk of the “ethnocide” of indigenous groups in the context of COVID-19. Similar concerns have spread throughout the continent.

This map outlines all indigenous territories in the South American Amazon and highlights communities featured in this story. The shapes were created by Global Voices based on a database compiled by Amazonia Socioambiental, filtered using QGIS and edited on Photoshop and Illustrator.

Continue reading “How Indigenous Peoples are resisting COVID-19 in South America”

Old World Garden Farms

Gardening, Cooking & DIY Living

There is no better way to get ready to power up your garden next year than by building a great fall compost pile now. And with so many incredible materials at the ready throughout autumn, it couldn’t be easier!

Having ready-made compost in the spring is the key to getting vegetable plants and flowers off to a fast start. Compost really is the perfect all-purpose fertilizer.

It provides a balanced set of nutrients to plants, all while adding valuable structure to your soil. That structure aids in retaining moisture, helping plant’s roots to grow quick and strong.

Continue reading “How To Create An Incredible Fall Compost Pile Now To Power Next Year’s Garden!”