A prominent cleric, Sheikh Youssef al-Qaradawy, said modern science had at last provided evidence that Mecca was the true centre of the Earth; proof, he said, of the greatness of the Muslim "qibla" - the Arabic word for the direction Muslims turn to when they pray.
From his blog which Perfunction read and excerpted so you don't have to!Still I’m disinclined to apologize because I hear the demand for a general apology as a howling mob with an impossibly broad demand, and on top of that I’m not sure what exactly I’d apologize for. The ’68 Convention? The Days of Rage? Bombing the Pentagon? Every one of these can be unpacked and found to be a complicated mix of good and bad choices, noble and low motives.
Even when true, the words are mortifying. They are the end not only of a dream, but of a life. The apology in general is uttered, and suddenly you die.
What do they have to do to get the left to believe them?The messages in words and bombs indicate that al-Qaeda remains determined to fight on the Iraqi front, which Zawahiri once again called “the fortress” of al-Qaeda’s terror campaign and will keep directing resources towards this purpose.
But at the same time, the vocal anger and frustration reveal that al-Qaeda continues to lose allies and ground and that time on the long run is not on its side. Above all it means that those of us determined to fight terrorism must not lose resolve in this critical battle.
Al-Qaeda has made the Iraqi front its physical center of gravity, and so it’s exactly the place where we must fight, and win.
Pajamas Media notes changes in al Qaeda tactics and promises of a push that might corresponding with al Sadr's press on the government make make things rough between now and the election.
DKK
“You have a real choice in this election. Either Democrat would be better than John McCain. And all three of us would be better than George Bush,” Obama said.
In 2006 there was a study done. 36% of owners say they were very happy. If they own a gun, 36% said very happy. 9% were not too happy. Meanwhile those who didn't own guns, only 30% of people without guns were very happy. 16% -- that's double -- were very unhappy. Less than 15% of gun owners spent their time feeling outraged at something that somebody has done. I'm sorry. No, no, no, I'm sorry. 15% less than those who didn't own a gun spend their time worrying about something that somebody had done, something they were pissed off about. Gun owners are happier.
Now, why is that? Self-reliance. Self-reliance. Here's the question. Those in need have to take care of themselves. In 2004 gun owners were 10 percentage points more likely than nongun owners to agree, that those in need have to take care of themselves. So I'm not running to religion. I'm not running to my gun. I have my religion because it makes me a stronger person. It helps me make sense of the world and my place in it and it helps guide me and helps me understand the failures and the successes that I have, to keep them both in check. My gun is my way of protecting myself, my family and my property. It is my right because I'm not going to wait for the police. I'm not going to wait for something. If somebody's in my house and they are trying to hurt my family, I will take care of it unless the police are there. It doesn't make me bitter. It makes me stronger. Those who are bitter are those who feel alone and the Government has abandoned them.
Engler, the former Michigan governor, says that NAFTA is the solution, not the problem. Had the US applied NAFTA to the rest of its trade, our imbalance would have dropped from $155 billion since 2000 to a mere $25 billion.
