Thank You, Colin Powell

Comment

Comment by Hajj Muhammad Legenhausen on December 3, 2008 at 12:34am

Salam. I thought you would all like to see this from the LA Times:
Obama's inaugural oath
When Obama takes the oath of office, there's no reason not to include
his middle name.

November 30, 2008

When George W. Bush was sworn in for his second term in 2005, he began
his oath of office with the words: "I, George Walker Bush." Never mind
that Bush isn't in the habit of using his middle name (as opposed to his
middle initial, which became the title of an Oliver Stone movie). In
inaugural oaths, as in baptisms and other ceremonies, the addition of
middle names adds an appropriate note of solemnity.

No controversy surrounded Bush's inclusion of his middle name in the
oath. The same might not be true of a decision by Barack Obama to take
his oath as "Barack Hussein Obama" -- which is precisely why he should
do so.

Obama was dogged during the campaign by the allegation that he was a
secret Muslim, an Islamic Manchurian candidate. Even some commentators
who didn't accuse him of being a practicing Muslim delved into his
childhood in Indonesia in search of evidence that he practiced, however
briefly, the faith of his father or stepfather. Obama is a Christian,
but Hussein, his middle name, is a common Muslim name. To capitalize on
anti-Muslim sentiment, detractors took to calling him "Barack Hussein
Obama." (John McCain, to his credit, denounced a radio host in Ohio who
"warmed up" a Republican rally by using all three of Obama's names.)

Stripped of such evil intent, the "Hussein" in Obama's full name
shouldn't be taboo. Nor should the idea of an openly Muslim citizen
deciding to seek the presidency. That point was made eloquently by
former Secretary of State Colin Powell when he endorsed Obama. "Is there
something wrong with being a Muslim in this country?" Powell asked. "The
answer is no. That's not America. Is there something wrong with a
7-year-old Muslim American kid believing he or she could be president?"

Most Muslim Americans believe in and are pursuing the American dream,
and as Powell also noted, they are sometimes dying for it. Last year,
the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life released a survey concluding
that American Muslims are "largely assimilated, happy with their lives
and moderate with respect to many of the issues that have divided
Muslims and Westerners around the world." The survey also found that
"Muslim Americans reject Islamic extremism by larger margins than do
Muslim minorities in Western European countries."

The way to increase those numbers is to make clear that an American with
an Islamic faith -- or an Islamic name -- is not a second-class citizen.
When the new president takes the oath, he should say, loudly and
proudly: "I, Barack Hussein Obama, do solemnly swear that I will
faithfully execute the office of president of the United States, and
will to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the
Constitution of the United States.

Comment by Atif Ahmed Choudhury on October 30, 2008 at 11:22am

WS...haha oh yes the long list of conservative individuals and newspapers endorsing Obama is extremely impressive to say the least...I just really liked that website because it indicates a degree of strong grassroots support for Obama within even the Republican ranks and all of the posts were quite eloquent and insightful. In comparison the steaming pile of *fill in the blank* on http://www.democratsformccain.com/ is both crude and ignorant and much of it merely quotes J-Mac's malicious campaign ads verbatim and passes them off as "reasons" for their support. As a lifelong Democrat,, I was both stunned at the idiocy of some members of my own party and humbled by the wisdom displayed by some of our Republican brethren...indeed in a Barack Obama Presidency we can reach across the isle!

Also I completely agree with your previous post-well said Br./Prof. Legenhausen!

Comment by Hajj Muhammad Legenhausen on October 30, 2008 at 8:34am

Salam,
You think that's something, Ken Adelman is now endorsing Obama!!! Why? Because McCain is such a jerk he can only offer more harm than help to the neocon cause. Adelman thinks the neocons were right all along but their projects only failed, esp. in Iraq, because of Bush's incompetence. McCain does not display sound judgment, after all, he picked Palin, and so, some neocons, at least Adelman, are bailing out and endorsing Obama. Obama during the economic catastrophe will give the neocons time to regroup and go on the attack in 2012. See: http://open.salon.com/content.php?cid=35314.

Comment by Atif Ahmed Choudhury on October 30, 2008 at 4:05am

WOW...reaching across the isle indeed http://www.republicansforobama.org/

Comment by Hajj Muhammad Legenhausen on October 27, 2008 at 1:14am

Salam Br. Choudhury,
On heroism, I think we also need to be more restrained. To be a hero is to display outstanding courage and personal sacrifice beyond the norm. Heroism is a kind of excellence. It is an abuse of the term to apply it wholesale to all those who serve in the armed forces. I'm sure our armed forces have true heroes among their members. I would consider it appropriate to designate Colin Powell as a hero, too, for the outstanding courage and wisdom he displayed when he publicly defended being a Muslim and American--although we're in a pretty sorry state when it takes a hero to state what should be obvious to all. But we should not consider someone a hero merely because they have served in the military, and, on the other hand, showing disrespect to a person just because they are members of the military should be condemned, no matter how much we disagree with the policies they are ordered to carry out.
There are a couple more points in your comments with which I think it is important to take issue. First, the positive developments in Japan after the war in no way justify the use of nuclear weapons against Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The fact that the Japanese were able to recover does not mean that bombing them was not in vain. The Japanese themselves have worked hard to bring awareness to people of the horrors of nuclear weapons so that all efforts can be made that they will never be used again. If we want to honor our armed forces, we should work to ensure that they will never again be sent to fight as aggressors against those who pose no threat, that they will never again be ordered to bomb civilian targets, and that they will never again be used as scapegoats for a policy of torture dictated by a corrupt and incompetent administration.

Comment by liz omar on October 26, 2008 at 7:42am

I believe the founders of our country were men of morals, though sometimes misguided,"to err is human...", in an attempt to establish descency in the new world wanted to create equality for those who followed them to this great land.
Many mistakes were made along the way, dreadful ones, but to turn and restablish a more righteous idea in the land is commendable and shows the human element is alway's present as well as a reverence to a Supreme Being.
Now today in my sincere opinion you are making the same stride and I would
like to commend you in your efforts to put humanity and basic human concerns before political agenda. This is truely an effort that shows your inward character and concerns for all not just a particular party. May God's Mercy be with you in your courageous stride.

Comment by Atif Ahmed Choudhury on October 24, 2008 at 4:22pm

interesting article! it reminds me of this running joke with the ASM, ISNA, MSA, and the other various Muslim organizations, which is that they should officially endorse the candidate who we all want to lose :-)

Comment by Shah Peerally on October 24, 2008 at 3:03pm

Nice article

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/23/syed.muslim/index.html

Comment by Atif Ahmed Choudhury on October 23, 2008 at 1:13pm

I completely agree with you about the patriotism Brother Legenhausen-it really has become a distraction! Today it seems McCarthyism has been resurrected (*cough cough Michele Bachmann*) and many ignorantly use that notion as a buzz word...it functions as a simple characterization of people who don't agree with their narrow points of view.

However, I feel that heroism is not in the same category and as such hasn't been a misused and abused term, especially when it comes to characterizing the members of the Armed Forces. Besides their daily sacrifices for their nation, on a personal level these soldiers are heroes to me because it's brave volunteers like them which allow me to continue being a student. Indeed one may not agree with what they are doing, but the very act of them serving defers the reinstatement of the draft and allows us civilians to go about our daily lives without fear of having to serve (or our loved ones having to serve).

Furthermore, for the mother/father/sibling who has lost a loved one in this war, I cannot imagine the immense psychological strain it would have if they couldn't somehow believe that he or she did not die in vain. History itself has shown that their hopes are not necessarily unfounded! Dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki may also have been crimes against humanity, but nobody (especially the Japanese themselves) has argued that the resulting massive reconstruction and development wasn't a spectacularly positive development for Japan.

Yes this war was both unjust and illegal, but we must suspend judgment on the current situation until we can see how Iraq as a nation develops. We started this war, and we have a moral obligation to do our very best to resuscitate this war-torn, battered nation. To not do is paramount to abandoning the millions of innocent Iraqis and cruelly allowing their hopes and dreams to crumble.

Comment by Hajj Muhammad Legenhausen on October 23, 2008 at 12:58pm

Issues such as who is a hero, who is a patriot, and whether or not anyone died in vain are distractions. US soldiers who died in Iraq, like the many thousands of Iraqis who were killed by the US bombardment, are victims. The war in Iraq is a crime against humanity, no matter how it turns out. American Muslims should not have to fight an die in "preemptive" wars to prove they love their country.

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