Articles of Interest 5/5/07
Muslim Astronaut issues -
Malaysia held a forum for Islamic scholars in April 2006 to discuss problems Muslim space travelers might face, such as pinpointing the Saudi holy city of Mecca, which Muslims are expected face when they pray five times a day
The guideline booklet, published this month, says the direction should be determined “according to the capability” of the astronaut.
Those in space during the holy fasting month of Ramadan — when Muslims are required to go without food or water from sunrise to sunset — can choose to fast then or to make up for it when they return, the booklet says.
The first Malaysian astronaut’s stint will likely overlap with Ramadan, which starts in mid-September this year. [More...]
- Dinesh D’souza: “Let Turkey be Muslim, even if Ataturk spins in his grave” … Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) is a religious figure in Turkey and one can be jailed for critisizing him
The curent ruling party, although sometimes described as Islamist, is more accurately described as traditional Muslim. It has presided over a period of unprecedented economic growth, has integrated Turkey into the world economy, has courted European Union membership, has made Istanbul into what Newsweek terms “one of the world’s coolest cities,” and has softened Ataturk’s militant secularism without introducing either sharia or discrimination against non-Muslims [More...]
The entire issue seems to be that the perspective President’s wife wears a headscarf. Here are some pictures of Ataturk himself with his wife of the time, Latife Usakligil (Hanim):
Filed under: Changing World
Those pictures are a catalclysm
Those pictures are telling indeed, but they are not going to change anyones mind in Turkey who already oppose hijab. I know many pro-secular turks and they are more die hard “european” than most real europeans as far as I see it. A few pics of ataturk with a hijabi wifey won’t shake things up a bit.
fairuzamizna:
No I don’t expect it to shake things up at all. That man has near god-like status amongst Turkish secularists and it seems that they would see that having a President whose wife wears a headscarf is not as evil since Ataturk himself once had a wife that wore a headscarf.
[...] Tariq Nelson has uncovered some pictures of Ataturk with his wife, in guess what, a full-blown hijab! What [...]
Atatürk’s wife’s hijab
Various Muslim blogs have published pictures of the reprobate founder of the Turkish republic and his wife, wearing the standard hijab that his followers in modern Turkey want to ban - see Tariq Nelson, Austrolabe, Muslim Matters, which has the…
Also note that Ataturk was an Ottoman Army officer and his own headgear, the fez as seen in the pictures was customary and sometimes ceremonially mandatory as a part of the uniform. These pics may be from his earlier years when everyone basically wore fezes and headscarves.
In any case, one of my professors is studying the AK Party in depth and from he relates to me, they truly believe that democratizing, modernizing, and most interesting, joining the EU are more Islamically important than some mythical Caliphate and old fiqh / law books. Also interesting is that they are running an interest based economy and doing quite well at it, so I’ll second the description of them as a party of Muslims and not an Islamist party. I hope that takes the wind out of the Islamists around the world who think that the AK Party will establish a Caliphate out of Turkey.
I do not think there are many Muslims in the world who are hoping that the AK Party will establish a caliphate, at least not any I have talked to. “Modernizing” is up to debate as to what that means, whose idea of modernity, do Muslims get a voice in the concept of modernization our are we to 100% accept the edicts of Harvard and Oxford? Having been in Turkey, I think there economy is over-hyped, it isn’t that great, but it is better than its Arab neighbors ( which isn’t saying a whole lot). Joining the EU is also something that isn’t cut and dry, there are perfectly rational arguments for not joining the EU and this just doesn’t apply to Turkey and Muslims.
With Turk secularists, the smallest sign of being religious is a sign of a return of the Ottomans. to them you can only be a muslim on your tongue and there must be no action to back it up at all. Many in the AK would be seen as Faasiqs by some in say Saudi Arabia
“Many in the AK would be seen as Faasiqs by some in say Saudi Arabia”
Yes, especially as it takes one to know one.
Before I say anything let me direct everyone toward three books of interest concerning Turkey, Ottoman history and their ideals of modernization. 1. A Peace to End All Peace- David Fromkin 2. The Ottoman Centuries: The Rise and Fall of the Turkish Empire- Lord Kinross 3. Ottoman Empire and Islamic Tradition- Norman Itzkowitz. These three books do a good job of conveying factual occurrences.
One thing that bothers me about the protests of the secularists is that they haven’t really outlined just what they think the Islamists will change. I personally do not use the terms ‘Islamist’ but for the sake of time and understannding, I feel it is necessary to do so. The secularists seem to overlook the fact that women who choose to wear the hijab actually have less democratic rights than those who don’t wear hijab but the secularists attempt to slide by this using weak arguments. The secularists also long to enjoy a more Euro-centric (ideologically and culturally between France and Britain) lifestyle but refuse to acknowledge that the Islamists have moved Turkey closer to joining the European Union, which it should rightly be a part of. While the EU is playing a cat and mouse game with Turkey, the secularists need to understand that by undermining the democratic process, they will cause Turkey to forgo EU membership and at the same time give credence to the assertion that Turkey is not a Muslim country by Arab-Muslim standards. In effect the secularists may very well do what they are projecting that the Islamists will do, that is, isolate Turkey.
Umar,
>>do Muslims get a voice in the concept of modernization
Only when we participate in it! Otherwise, no we do not and we have not because we shunned modernization as religious people and the ones who did take it up did so out of an inferiority complex towards the West and simply imitated instead of contributing to what modernity is. Its not too late because in cultural matters, nothing is static or “decided upon for all time”. I think that at the local level in Turkey and a little bit for the rest of us, AK is contributing tremendously to what it means to be a participating AND practicing Muslim in today’s world.
Charles thanks for the book recommendations. I’m going to see if my local library has any of them.
Depuis plus de 500 ans, les règles et les théories d’un vieux sheikh arabe, et les interprétations abusives de générations de prêtres crasseux et ignares ont fixé, en Turquie, tous les détails de la loi civile et criminelle. Elles ont réglé la forme de la constitution, les moindres faits et gestes de la vie de chaque citoyen, sa nourriture, ses heures de veille et de sommeil, la coupe de ses vêtements, ce qu’il apprend à l’école, ses coutumes, ses habitudes et jusqu’à ses pensées les plus intimes. L’islam, cette théologie absurde d’un bédouin immoral, est un cadavre putréfié qui empoisonne nos vies.” Kemal Attaturk ( 1922)
Let me just translate that last sentence; ” Islam, the absurd theology of an immoral Bedouin, is a putrid carcass that poisons our lives”. - Kemal Ataturk (1922)
Turkish loony secularists and militarists are too hypocritical to see the irony here. So too are neocon slimeballs like Omarg with his laughable spin(”earlier pics”?!) and the bnp reject john palpablinski and his conspiracy theories(argued with on another blog that we don’t get enough “antioxidants” because we don’t drink red wine, and ran off like a wounded mongrel when asked for the data to back up his fantasy).
Ataturk died from a combination of cirrhosis and syphilis yet the few idiots left in Turkey still worship the yahudi munafiq. Their time is up and the majority of Turks have no interest in euro-fascist secular militarism.
Chill, we all know what happened the last few times you needlessly tangled with me. You should know that Ataturk also banned the Fez which he was wearing in most of the above pictures, so obviously the pics date from before his laws that both fezes and scarves were prohibited. Simple logic, simple enough even for you to grasp…
>>the majority of Turks have no interest in euro-fascist secular militarism.
That may or may not be the case, but they have not asked you to speak for them…as usual.
Oh I know exactly what happened when I kicked your behind all the place at altmuslim, omar…you went crying to Shahid Amanullah. You neocon hypocrites break down so easily. Its pretty laughable how you attempt to spin Ataturd’s hypocrisy. But of course he was a munafiq.
>That may or may not be the case, but they have not asked you to speak for them…as usual.
Well they elected a guy who does speak for them didn’t they? Now that I think about it, I don’t recall them asking a supporter of army gang rapists either…
Hi there.
Well done! Fantastic! Find pictures of Latife Usakligil before it was *possible* for a woman to appear unveiled in public and then state that this was what she wanted. My grandmother, who was pretty much LU’s contemporary, was also veiled. Then she tore it off. Because it became possible to do so.
Congratulations on such disingenuity. But, unfortunately for you, the 70-odd million Turks who know LU rather better than you, may find this reasoning risible, just as the idea that my gram was a closet fundamentalist would seem weak to me.
Kim
Then she tore it off. Because it became possible to do so.
Or was it made against the law?
I really need to look into why secular Turks hate Islam so much.
@ Kim
If Ataturk was “infallible” and he should not be critisized as is according to Turkish law, then was he right or wrong in what he did in marrying a wife that wore a headscarf?
Do you agree Ataturk’s statement against Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and Islam that John Palubiski posted above? If so, is that something a Muslim would say? If not, then why is Ataturk “infallible”?
Your granny was a weak willed non-entity, Kim. Things have changed now, most Turkish woman wear the head scarf now, welcome to the most-Ataturd(the yahudi munafiq was not “infallible” enough to ward of syphilis and cirrhosis) Turkey. You secular fascists must really be insecure, petty and childish to go crazy over how they choose to dress.
I have no idea how pointing out historical accuracies meant that I supported Ataturk’s actions. Of course, the irony is that, and some AK party members my freind has interviewed agree with me, that however much Ataturk screwed with Islam, at least Turkey was not colonized like the weak Arab societies were and today Turkey is not the basket cases that most Arab countries are outside of the Persian Gulf. God works in mysterious ways. The Muslims in AK are an interesting group: they practice islam, like hijab, but run the most successful interest based economy in the Middle East and are the strongest advocates in Turkey for joining the European Union. Also, because of the way Turkish election laws are, AK which only got 34% of the popular vote, got the parliament seats that smaller parties would have earned if they got more than 10% of the vote. That’s the only reason AK got 65% of the seats. So, however much I like AK, the reality is that only 1/3 of Turks voted for them: nice but certainly nowhere near a majority! Once you get your head out of the hospital’s garbage dump and learn something about Turkey you would know that, and then maybe you can stop your insecurity-based name calling of other people, including Turkish women whom you seem to fear so much just because they don’t wear hijab. Can’t you prescribe some estrogen for yourself?
Calling Shahed a hypocrite will get you nowhere. But, if you want to have some sort of imaginary flamewar, you’re going to have it all by yourself…
DrM you kind of come across as an ass who has no idea what you’re talking about. You just spout random stuff you would like to be true rather than actual facts. Come to think of it that’s very much what Bush does. Considering you’re not Turkish maybe it would be best if you stopped acting like some kind of all knowing expert on all things Turkish and who and what the Turkish people want running their country.
You’ve got it wrong as usual omar. I called you a hypocrite, not Shahed Amanullah. Just like you when ran away like a coward with your tail between your legs when asked to define the “islamists” you pepper all your silly posts with. In fact you created a different log in and yet still managed to shoot yourself in the foot. You also seem to suffer from poor english comprehension(not common amongst in playstation weekend “warriors” aka baby killing rapists), I don’t have a problem with in Turks, hijabi or otherwise, but with secular fascists and kemalist militarists who hate Islam. Its ironic you sing praises(replete with historical inaccuracies) about the sick man of Europe, yet are tight lipped about the oppression of the Kurds who aren’t even allowed to speak their own language in Turkey….the same kurds for whom seem to support the invasion of Iraq. Out of crocadile tears o neocon munafiq? Which freeway off ramp do you normally hang out with your card board sign? I need the unskilled labor for some yeard work.
Oh and anon aka kim, nice try but no cigar. Your suffer from the handicap as do all fascists and reich wingers, you confuse criticism of government with hatred of country. Or rather you conflate the two to dismiss and slander the opposition. Just like Bush and your kemalist generals. Stop worshipping the Sabbetain munafiq Ataturd and realize that Turkey is bigger then him.
Ummm I’m not quite sure what you’re talking about DrM but my name is not Kim. Ask Tariq to check the IP addresses if you’d like. I think there are medications available for people suffering from obsessive paranoia problems like yourself btw
I’m sorry anon, its just that all you fascist kemalist clowns sound the same. Why are you so scared of Turkish woman wearing head scarves? A tad bit paranoid, are we? Time for your halperidol perscription refill.
When one visits Turkey something immediately becomes obvious; those in the eastern areas of the country look central Asian whereas those in the western part European. The racial divide is quite sharp.
Most of the pro-secular demonstrations occur in the western areas of the country; the large cities such as Constaninople and just recently Smyrna.
These “Turkish” secularists, just to judge by their appearance, are obviously the descendants of enslaved Greeks, Serbs, Armenians, Macedonians, Bulgarinas etc. This “phenotype” is concentrated in all the former centres of Orthodox religious authority. So what we’re actually witnessing is a kind of *revenge of Byzance* wherein the forcibly islamised descendants of the region’s Orthodox Christains push back the Ottomans under the banner of secularism rather than religion.
The hated for Islam and sharia we see in these enormous and growing demonstrations is, then, merely the re-emerging collective unconcious of Turkey’s Orthodox Christian heritage.
Let’s face it, this was inevitable owing to their INVOLUNTARY adherance to Islam, and so the Kemalism, which closed Hagia Sohpia as a mosque, is but the opening salvo.
It is also worth noting that it is in precisely these regions of the country where one finds the greatest number of converts (reverts?) to Christianity.
Yawn…yet another deluded christo-fascist rant from john babinski(argued with me on another blog that we don’t get enough “antioxidants” because we don’t drink red wine, and ran off like a wounded mongrel when asked for the clinical data to back up his fantasy).
Have a nice glass of wine Dr M and stop being such a loser! Whilst you sip it ponder the revolt of the “Devshirm” we’re presently witnessing in Turkey. Did you happen to notice just how fair-skinned and blond so many of them are? You’d swear they were all from Belgrade, wouldn’t you?
That’s what ultimately happens when you steal European children from their parents, mutilate their genitalia and force them to recite prayers they don’t want to recite. The Turkish demos are really just the descendants of the Devshirm kicking the filthy Sultan in the head, but doing so under the banner of secularism rather than Christianity.
Works for me!
Note the posters trashing Islamism; the demos are SO replete with anti-islamist slogans it makes those Danish cartoons look tame.
One question Dr M; why is it that the tenors of progressive secularism all live in Western Turkey whereas the Islamists goons are supported by the backward Turkomen of Eastern Anatolia?
Oh please whiskey-boy…you’re really beginning to bore me now. You inbred racists always type the most fantastic paranoid nonsense. Back to the AA meetings for you.
You are good at projecting your fantasies on other people, a legend in your own mind you are - small mind, hard heart, totally bereft of any honesty. In the meantime stop trying to be something you are not, you are not given to an ounce of sound reasoning, and cling to a joke of a worldview. You are a cog in a bankrupt system, and the only time you will awaken at this point is when you face the last challenge in life (if then).
The BNP racist poster’s theory of a western (European) and eastern (Turco-Mongol) divide in Turkey do not have much credibility. Erdogan’s ancestry is originally Georgian and he is in essence a 6′4 European man. He is a religious Muslim whereas Ahmet Sezer a fanatical secularist is recognizably Turkic in his features. Also some of the Greek villages in the black sea area of Turkey are well known for their piety. Many Turks in the east are descendants of Islamized Armenians and are religious, whereas many Alevis are descendants of Turkmens and are diehard secularists.
As for the pro-CHP Ataput (Ataturk is called Ataput, “father of idol” by many Turks) posters here they are opposed to pluralism and democracy and still believe in an old outdated North-Korea style view of a mono-ethnic, centralized and authoritarian society. We are living in the global village and their backwards and obscurantist ideas are dying now in Turkey and the AK are getting stronger and stronger.