News Flash: Rally Against Fundraising
I’m not going to bother giving a commentary. 
I wish I was there though! To think I’m a news reporter, and I completely MISSED THIS EVENT! Drives me nuts, lol. I would have loved to take my iPhone out and record the protesters. I’m not angry at all. I’m actually glad! Why? Because I got to read into other people’s comments and views, and saw that we are moving towards a peaceful and coexistent future. The VAST majority of Muslims and non-Muslims were sympathetic to Muslims. I only saw one or two hating comments, which were instantly run down by sincere folks. Yay for America! And people – DO NOT LOSE HOPE! This is just a small minority.
Obviously I was disturbed by the video, but hey, what can ya do? I’m just spreading the word, showing you guys the facts. You guys can very well choose whichever side you believe is right! We’ve been given that freedom. Though, I’m not gonna lie. Watching this video gave me a laugh! I couldn’t understand half the words of the protesters, but I’m sure most of you would agree when I said that their voices sounded much like the braying of a donkey. lol. But again, I’m not saying that out of anger.
HOWEVER, I was searching for other videos regarding the issue and I’ll post some of my favorite comments from YouTube:
1. “She said I don’t care if u think? I’m crazy! Bitch crazy would be a compliment!”
- tribe1
2. “I sent councilwoman Pauly an email, if anyone else wants? to: dpauly@villapark.org”
- blionsalvividas
3. “I find it incredible when conservative christian right supporters condemn Islam, for several reasons:
a) You worship the same God.
b) Muslims mostly adhere to the very morality that you’re trying to enforce in the USA, yet? are failing to do miserably. You complain about liberal social values, and then shun Islam? How stupid are you?”
- H21esc
4. “One Nation under God, not Allah.
I am sorry, but Allah is actually the Arabic word? for God. =.=”
- davidchak
5. “i’ve never laughed so hard at a video. part of me wishes i knew, and tagged along with, a muslim who went to that. (though i’m in a different state) seems like a fun, worthwhile argument 
no really it would? be an interesting medium for discourse.”
- morthim
6. “there were kids there.
there are? kids walking through, while they yell “do you beat your wife? do you molest your children?”
they are not human anymore. they just lost all the shreds of their morality.”
- OceanAcross
7. “These people are an organized and highly vocal MINORTIY.? Meaning this does not necessarily reflect the views of most Americans. This is hate pure and simple. A gross misuse of their first amendment rights.”
- JamesMacIB
Fashion Rant | Skinny Jeans
By: Raakin Hossain
Islam does not dictate our dress code. Rather, it enhances our fashion according to our high esteem as Muslims and in preservation of our dignity. As Muslims, we fail to express this pride in our faith. We can observe this simply through our everyday closet.
I’m just like the next kid, a proud American-born citizen. I’ve attended the public education system and assimilated within the youthful society as do most boys and girls. I’m well aware of my surroundings and accustoms of my peers. Yet, it pains me to observe the unpleasant sight of my Muslim brothers limping in these so-called “skinnies”. You may ask, what are “skinnies”? These are tight fit jeans that expose every vein from your waist down to your ankles.
I vividly remember my first encounter with a brother captivated by these “skinnies”. We were at the mosque and I warmly invited him to sit next to me on the plush carpets. In response, he politely refused. This puzzled me for a few seconds until I realized he was bound by tight fit pants which would most probably tear in the rear end if he were to do as much as to bend down.
Concentrating further on these “skinnies”, they are also called “stovepipes”, “cigarette pants” and “drainpipes”. These are all just euphemism for what I like to call highly immodest and constricting garments. Subtract the modesty issue, why would someone even wish to be bound in such a manner?
As for me, I enjoy my virgin fashion. I call it “virgin fashion” because it has not been raped by the peer pressure others succumb to in society. It is only one’s insecurity of their position in the social hierarchy that would lead them to commit such acts of fashion prostitution.
Historically speaking, fashion has taken quite a few swerves. In the late 1990s, baggy and saggy jeans were the buzz. Within a decade, the drastic changes swept society to skintight jeans.
It’s called shamelessness.
Charles Darwin, the famous naturalist, described shame to be an act that causes “blushing” or a “lowered head”. That evidently does not occur nowadays. Rather, we tend to bulge our eyes and crane our heads an extra mile to devour the modern fashion.
I can only agree with the man who wrote “Fashion Law: If the shoe fits, it’s ugly.” That’s what it seems like nowadays. Anything that is befitting of a human being, society alienates it.
So how can we defend ourselves from such demeaning and vulnerable practices? The solution is simple. We can create our own trends. Modesty is not, and should not be, distasteful or debasing. Rather, it should only enumerate our internal and external beauty as not only Muslims, but as the human race.
The Inner Circle
Just for the record, I don’t intend to hate on any of my friends. I suppose it’s just my ranting section and hope to exchange some wise words of advice with my readers. I’ve got miles more than anyone else to exceed. It’s just my belief that sharing personal experiences makes it easy for the brain to process and is a little more entertaining.
With that said, here goes my next post:
“A leader’s potential is determined by the people closest to him.”
Speaking for myself, I find most people associated with me to fall in the category of “acquaintances.” Maybe three people maximum – outside of my immediate family – would actually be considered “friends.” At first, this would depress me. It seemed like most people had their own “groupies” and I would remain with but a hand-countable amount of close-knit individuals.
But at the end of the day, it’s about quality, not quantity. If you can even find ONE “good” friend, then that’s all that is necessary. A friend isn’t someone who agrees with everything you say or not necessarily someone who has similar interests, even though that does help a friendship. It’s someone who accepts you for who you are and has compassion despite any disagreements.
And here are two examples:
- I was once on my way to a restaurant with a couple friends – me being the driver. On the way there, one of my long-time acquaintances kept nagging from the back seat, “Hold the wheel with one hand man,” “who goes 40 on a 35mph speed limit?”, and similar taunts. These words are really unnecessary and not at all friend-like.
- Yet on the other extreme, I tell one friend about my intentions of waking up at 5:30am each day. Immediately, this friend responds with encouraging words and offers to wake up at the same time for mutual motivation. For the following month, we texted each other every morning to start our day at the crack of dawn. <— That’s what you would want to look for in a true friend.
You’ll meet all kinds of people in this world, no one better or worse than the next. We live and we learn, we learn and we grow. You can’t isolate yourself and you’re not desperate for friends either. The most you can do is be the best person you can possibly be and if people are smart enough, they’ll want to be your friend. The number one point to understand, speaking to myself first, is that everyone has their good and bad sides. If we bring out the good side of that person and overlook the not-so-good, we can derive a good lesson for ourselves and release a positive energy in the environment.
Friendships | Be Mine
Friendship
By: Raakin Hossain
I’ve always moved from school to school and never really had an opportunity to bond with any individual like some people do. Especially as the holiday season creeps upon us at the global level, everyone shares their plans on having family and friendship reunions. It makes me wonder to what extent these relationships truly reach and what it means to be a friend and whether or not these relationships truly exist. For starters, I’m sure it’s more than just clicking that “Accept Friendship” button on Facebook. I asked a few friends and classmates their opinion on the matter.
“I do believe friends exists. Friends can help you when you are struggling with life stresses such as school or family. Furthermore, friends are there to prevent you (or at least try to) from making idiotic decisions that could potentially threaten your life. A friend is like an adviser, only that adviser cares about your personal well-being.”
- Trevor Mills, 15.
“A friend is a person someone can rely on. A person that when i need, will be there for you. A person who you can count on to help you through the bad and good times. Someone who wont let you down for materialistic things, who will put you above all else (besides family). a person to care for, and cares for you.”
- Michael Guerrero, 16.
Taken from the whiteboard in my bedroom using an iTouch
“It’s when you care for someone more than you should and you put up with their crap because being with them makes you happy. Everyone has crap. If you’re willing to put up with someone’s, that means you’re their friend.”
- Mustafa Mustafa, 18.
“People you will miss. People who you would be willing to sacrifice something for. It’s someone you can have lot of fun with buy will also listen intently when you need someone to talk to. And you can be truthful and tell them “your outfit is ugly today.” And it’s someone you can act naturally around and not feel like you don’t have to be something you’re not.”
- Gina Horiuci, 18.
“I believe they do exist. A friend is a kind of abstract concept. It’s someone you share a bond with, have shared life experiences with, someone who you would risk something for whether it be life and limb or something less.”
- Basil Huffman, 27.
In the common dictionary definition, we are able to classify all our acquaintances as “friends.” Any decent individual would make an attempt to assist you in “your time of need.” As fellow citizens, neighbors, or whatever relationship, we make sacrifices for each other, small or large.
However, people perceive friends to be something beyond that level. We have expectations from our friends, mainly that they’ll stand by our side no matter which Hitler-figure knocks on our door.
Sure, you can rely on a friend to hand you notes for a couple classes you missed. You can even ask to sleepover at their house a couple days, maybe even a few weeks, until you’re able to stand up on your own two feet. For the most part, a friend is someone whom you’ve broken the ice at an uncommon level.
As children, we’re able to form friendships much easier since we all have a common interest: nothing. Our voice begins to evolve and we also have abnormal growth spurts, our personal opinions begin to appear. The scope of our friendship criteria become narrower and narrower with age. Those childhood friends become either once-upon-a-time or just someone we slap on a “hey, wassup” every few months on their Facebook walls for memory’s sake.
Then the factors of time and personal interests appear. Friendships are based on individualistic needs, whether you admit it or not. Very rarely, if ever, will you find an altruistic person in its truest meaning. In reality, you can’t expect a friend to put you above their own spouse and children.
Most importantly, I believe in God and prayer. I also believe in secret benefactors, caring souls, generous individuals, and righteous people in general. We seek to attribute these characteristics in our own “friends.” But a friendship is meant to be mutual. To form a sincere relationship, both parties are required to make equal or similar sacrifices.
But then again, if you limit your expectations and take all necessary precautions, perhaps you can have friendships. Friends are like flowers. If you pick them, they’ll rot in due time. The beauty is meant to be appreciated at some distance.
What’s my opinion on friendship? I’m a neutral. If they exist, then I’m yet to find one.
Disclaimer: For some reason, I feel this topic is incomplete. There is so much to mention, but the post has already exceeded beyond the length wherein I feel reader will feel intimidated to enjoyably read. There’s matters which I left for another time. I’m yet to discuss the terms “best friend”, “true friend”, “facebook friend”, etc. Either way, I’d appreciate if you posted in a comment your own thoughts of what I’ve shared with you.
@ The Hookah Bar // Lesson #1
Well, I didn’t smoke. And God willing, I shall never smoke anything in my life.
But Lesson #1: You can’t trust anyone.
Forget about friends, but you can’t trust the bouncers. I may look like I’m 25. But looks are deceiving. We learned that in grade school. In truth, I’m 17 and cannot be permitted in a bar.
But that’s the business mind, so let’s say we excused that. That still doesn’t explain how two of my closest friends would encourage me going to a bar, fully aware of who I am and what I believe in.
They shouldn’t even be there themselves. Not behind their parents’ backs. Not against 18 years of being raised in such a religious environment.
@ The Hookah Bar // The Story
This’ll be a multi-part story of my Hookah Bar experience.
First of all, the background: I was raised in a conservative and sheltered environment. Prayer rooms was my hangout, my bar. Instead of people offering drinks and cigarettes, there were people offering prayers and good services. Never once was I exposed to bars or any public spot where there were disgraceful or immodest actions occuring.
Tonight, two of my closest friends and I ate dinner at a Chinese restaurant. Thereafter, we ate frozen yogurt. I love food, so it worked well for me. That is, until they suggest Hookah.
I lightly discouraged it, but didn’t want to create a scene. I figured I’d sit on one side with a soda and iPod, while they were on another end smokin’ their Hookah. Little did I expect them to walk into a Hookah bar. All three of us were raised in similar environments. Neither of our parents had any clue or idea that we’d even ever think about going to such a place.
But apparently, this was their routine. Shoot, they spent 3 hours smoking Hookah just a couple nights before.
So there we went. We went towards the Hookah lounge. They were already 18, me still being 17. I have a beard. People often mistake me to have kids and married. Those two so-called friends suggested I tell the bouncers that I didn’t have my ID on me.
The bouncers actually accepted it, with a simple “But not next time.” Not even the slightest intention of smoking entered my heart. I went purely with the thought that I’d simply sit with my friends.
And that’s exactly what I did. Hat on my face so not to even sniff the toxic, I sat still. After a couple minutes, I told my friends this was not my cup of tea. It’s not something people expect from me, not something that paints my future. I’ve been raised with true and sincere morals, and those are what I live by. Not more than 5 minutes had passed, I took my friends’ keys and sat in his car for the next 45 minutes.
My friends did say they were “sorry.” Sorry for leaving me in the car. Not that I cared about that. I was more hurt at the fact that I thought I could trust them. Whereas, if I were to pick up one of those Hookah pipes, they probably would not have prevented me. But rather, encouraged me.
About Me
I'm your Muslim-American-Born-Teenager, but I'm far from being average or typical. I consider myself adventurous, but not in the sense that I'll go hunting for tigers in the rainforests of India (isn't that where you find tigers?) or attempt bungee jumping off the Empire State Building. Rather, my definition for adventure is to challenge myself in spiritual betterment...as monkish or Mullah Hullah as that may sound. But it really is an interesting adventure in its own weirdly and bewitched way. >Read More...
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