Building for the Future

The horizon's the limit when people work together...

We’re very blessed in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) to have as many masjids as we do. Mississauga alone has over 30 masjids or places of worships which is more than many cities in Western society. However, does it really make sense to have so many masjids if it dilutes their ability to become social and communal epicentres? For as many masjids and places of worship as we have, very few are significant enough to really influence the masses and have a strong presence in the eyes of all people.

Instead of simply building a new masjid or place of worship on the basis of trying to have something a few steps closer to our houses, resources should be pooled together to create one centric location which has all the required facilities that a community could use. That would mean that instead of having three masjids within a 10 kilometre span, it would suffice to simply have one masjid instead which serves the entire area. Gymnasiums, exercise facilities, classes, seminars, workshops, conference meeting rooms, media rooms and large prayer halls which can easily accommodate the populace and allow for growth and more could all be built into such a place.

Additionally, the new masjid could be designed to be aesthetically pleasing and unique looking. This way, it could truly earn it attention, acclaim and interest from all people because of its visual appeal. People flock to see such sites across the world as they become true epicenters for a community and the same could be accomplished through these means.

By pooling the resources for three different masjids together to create one masjid, the community would yield significant cost savings and could focus the savings towards other projects and worthwhile causes. For example, hospitals are always in need of financial assistance and it would serve the Muslim community well, both morally and politically, to donate funds towards the building of a new hospital wing to help the wounded. Things such as this serve all people and help provide benefit to more than just the Muslim community and there’s great reward in helping those who are suffering.

For this to happen, the bigger picture must be sought and people need to be prepared to work together to make it a reality. It won’t suffice to simply accept anything less than what the intended end-goal is for this to happen nor will it suffice to allow people to lose sight of the end-goal. Otherwise, yet another small and insufficient structure is what we gain and the community as a whole doesn’t really benefit despite seemingly appearing as if it has. Progress isn’t determined by the quantity of facilities but rather the quality of one’s contribution to the greater good…

“Science fails to recognise the single most potent element of human existence…”
- System Of A Down (Science)

Sentinel Defense

Fortified within an epic moment...

No question, we live in a special time as the “free world” now has its first African-American leader. Barack Hussein Obama, the son of a black African immigrant and a white Kansas anthropologist, has been enshrined as the 44th President of the United States of America and brings with him a vision of hope, mutual respect and change.

Many looked forward to Obama’s inauguration ceremony with a momentous speech expected from a man who jumped onto the political scene by making several moving and epic speeches throughout his campaign that captivated audiences and voters. The ceremony included a prayer from an Evangelical Pastor as well which is normally not something that goes over well with most non-Christians due to the ultra-conservative nature of what they preach. However, the prayer surprisingly turned out to be quite tolerant and inclusive of other faiths. It was laced with several references to Muslim and Jewish beliefs… positive references. For example, the pastor referred to God in one passage as the “the most beneficent, the most merciful” which is the direct translation of part of the basic prayer and belief of Muslims – “In The Name of God, The Most Beneficent, The Most Merciful.”

The speech was specifically designed to be unifying and applicable to all rather than simply appealing to Christians. As nice as it was to see let’s hope the actions and steps going forward are consistent with what Obama has preached throughout his election campaign and beyond. One good thing that has at least come from this, for now, is that hope and optimism are at an all-time high when it comes to the political process and the future. Hopefully it doesn’t come crashing down and shatter all-together any future hopes if Obama doesn’t live up to the enormous level of hype and God-like status that he has seemingly attained. In the coming months, we now see what happens and if the hope and hype were warranted when Obama enacts policies to govern the United States of America – both domestic and abroad. We watch with cautious and guarded optimism…

“That world is calling so I’m crawling back to sea…”
- Chevelle (Saferwaters)

Shaking My Fist

In the land of the hypocrisy!

Why is it that people seem to forget how to drive in a parking lot? It’s like a jungle where every animal comes out looking for the last morsel of food to eat and will kill anything that comes in the way of that morsel. Parking spaces are devoured by the cars and trucks that can reach them first and wasted by large cars and trucks that have no regard for any others. It’s survival of the fittest in these parking lots.

One of the dumbest things that I hear people do is complain about the weather in Canada. It’s too hot, it’s too cold, it’s too windy, it was just hot and now it’s cold, there’s too much snow, it’s raining and the sun is out, it’s raining and the sun isn’t out, it’s raining, it’s too sunny. What the hell… if you don’t like the weather go somewhere else. Canada’s weather is unpredictable yet we’re all here despite it and complaining makes it no different…

How is it that a person who was declared “mentally unfit” to stand trial for his crimes against a nation is now the President of that nation? Asif Zardari, the President of Pakistan and considered to be one of the most corrupt men in Pakistani history, is famous for being known as “Mr. 10%” and now he runs a nuclear power. It’s no wonder that Pakistan is a joke internationally…

“Memorize the simple-minded, propaganda leaves us blinded…”
- System Of A Down (Hypnotize)

A Plea for Help

Under attack from snakes and venom...

When it comes to blogs, I think the base reason for why many people have them is to write about what one’s opinions about anything of meaning or value to them. Many people like to write about their problems and the issues that they face on a day-to-day basis but I’m blessed in not really having anything worthy to discuss on that front. I tend to always write about what it is that I want to do and accomplish and I think it comes across as bragging to some which wasn’t my intention. I like to use this blog as a forum sometimes to gather my thoughts and establish what it is that I want to focus on going forward.

With that being said, an issue of importance has come up which I want to discuss. It’s been bothering me a lot lately, especially considering that I thought I had it all figured out and knew how to handle it…

…and that’s the matter of standing idly by as atrocities are committed. As an observer of mankind’s actions and history, it’s clear that grave injustice is taking place in places such as Gaza where Israel is steamrolling civilians under the guise of trying to root out terrorism. The pictures, the civilian and neutral accounts and even different aspects of the media have shown that innocent people are suffering and are being targetted by “the world’s most advanced military”. This is a gross violation of every accord and conduct policy for war and are serious crimes against humanity which should be punishable as war crimes under mass genocide.

Why is it that for as progressed and advanced as humanity supposedly is that we sit idly by as murder and horrible brutality take place? What can we do to stop this? I’m tired of sitting on the sidelines and watching this terror continue and I desperately want to help in whatever way I can but I’m at a loss for what I can do to help bring this suffering to an end. Your suggestions are more than welcome… and I thank you for them.

“Only son that has held you up so high, feel like the road has been pushed away…”
- Onesidezero (Underground)

Drowning in a Sea of Voices

Finding my way through space and time...

Is it safe to say yet that blogs have lost their lustre and are poised to fade away thanks to social networks such as MySpace, Facebook, etc.? Ever since these social networks became prominent staples of online activity, it seems that blogs no longer get the attention they once did. As it was said famously by Despair.com about blogs, “Never Before Have So Many People With So Little To Say Said So Much To So Few“. Now, even those few who have such little to say are reserving their comments, tidbits and what-not to Facebook and MySpace.

There was a time when I used to write things and people would read it or comment on it. However, that’s no longer the case. It bothers me but it really shouldn’t because I shouldn’t be so self-centered to think that what I have to say has any weight or importance. After all, who am I? I’m just one of the many looking to find a voice on the convoluted web of the Internet yet with really nothing to talk about of value. We all take interest in reading the comments and words of people who are famous or important in some context or another and seeing as how I’m neither, I can’t imagine why people would really read my gibberish.

I suppose it’s the desire for attention that drives us to do what we do sometimes. My Facebook status should get a little more attention than something like this post so I suppose the true end of Target Theory approaches… then again, I’ve been feeling the desire to disappear again with dreams of The Casper Plan floating around. Can I ever really disappear though…? I doubt it… and just like Casper, it’s all fiction anyways.

“Everywhere I go, I mean, like everywhere I be, it seems like everybody knows, how I get down, and why I be…”
- Obie Trice (Everywhere I Go)