{ Nirvana - Come As You Are }
I like both verisons.
Yuna's cover of Nirvana's "Come As You Are"
Nirvana - Come As You Are
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Yuna's cover of Nirvana's "Come As You Are"
Nirvana - Come As You Are
{ Brazil: A Racial Paradise? }
In Brazil, Professor Gates delves behind the façade of Carnival to discover how this ‘rainbow nation’ is waking up to its legacy as the world’s largest slave economy.
{House of Numbers}
I believe this is one of the most profound documentary I have ever watched.
The HIV/ AIDS Story is Being Rewritten
In House of Numbers: Anatomy of an Epidemic, an AIDS film like no other, the HIV/AIDS story is being rewritten. This is the first film to present the uncensored POVs of virtually all the major players; in their own settings, in their own words. It rocks the foundation upon which all conventional wisdom regarding HIV/AIDS is based. House of Numbers could well be the opening volley in a battle to bring sanity and clarity to an epidemic gone awry.
“Leung manages to present a barrage of intriguing theories debunking our generally accepted beliefs… There’s no denying, however, the value of exploring such game-changing topics as how HIV-infection numbers are cooked for monetary and political gain; how the effects of global poverty may have led to so many AIDS-related deaths; how such widely used AIDS drugs as AZT have, themselves, often proved fatal; and whether HIV really exists.”
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times
{Starsuckers}
This is an amazing documentary that clearly covers the absurdity of celebrity culture and the cult like ambition to become famous. It also depicts how the media keep us distracted from more important issues with the use of misinformation (fake news) and gossip. A must watch! Truly an eye opener.
"Starsuckers is a feature documentary about the celebrity obsessed media, that uncovers the real reasons behind our addiction to fame and blows the lid on the corporations and individuals who profit from it.
Made completely independently over 2 years in secret, the film journeys through the dark underbelly of the modern media. Using a combination of never before seen footage, undercover reporting, stunts and animation, the film reveals the toxic effect the media is having on us all and especially our children.
Chris Atkins presents Starsuckers as a series of five lessons on fame in the modern world: how children are persuaded that fame is something they want, how television and the media reinforces the importance of celebrity and the efforts to attain it, how the mind and body reinforces our need to follow the activities of well-known people and strive to join their number, how the press became addicted to celebrity coverage, and how the art of promoting fame has led to celebrities and their handlers controlling the press instead of the press having say.
Along the way, Atkins demonstrates how celebrity news with no basis in fact gets into print, why newspapers will run press releases almost verbatim, how parents will eagerly sign away the image rights to their kids, how certain mass scale charity events end up helping the performers far more than the causes they designed to support, and how publicists keep accurate but unflattering stories out of the news."
{What royal wedding? Get informed, go vote!}
It seems to me we are intentionally being forced to live vicariously through the highly publicized royal wedding. I cannot step out of my house or surf the net/channel without someone mentioning the stupid over the top royal wedding. I cannot wait for this disaster to end! Quite frankly, I do not care for the royal family and I do not understand why people care so much.
I just wish more Canadians had such enthusiasm for the current federal election, since this will affect our lives in the next few years. Lord knows I despise Stephen Harper and the constant rotation of liberal and conservative minority government. My Canadian readers please give the NDP a chance this year! Heck, vote Green or Bloc instead of allowing Harper to regain power again.
Remember to VOTE May 2, 2011, if you have not voted during the long weekend.
{Piles of Stuff: A Reflection on Consumerism}
Bismillah
I went straight to my room after returning from my uncle’s janazah (funeral prayer). He died from Leukemia and just returned from umrah a few weeks before his death. Upon entering my room, the thought that he was being placed into the ground and the men covering him with dirt was so heavy. I thought of how much he helped others whenever he could, whether financially or psychically. I thought of how he would drive my mom every Saturday for nearly an hour to take her to a Qur’an class in a different city because she was scared to drive for such a long distance at night time. He would drive around in his bright blue hatchback from 1995, even though he was more than able to afford a newer shinier car, because he thought it was a waste of money. I thought of his small apartment and his belongings and who would sort through his things. I then started to look around my room, books here, clothes there, CDs on that side and packages on the other.
I couldn’t hold back the tears.
I finally understood Surah At-Takathur:
أَلْهَاكُمُ التَّكَاثُرُ
The mutual rivalry for piling up of worldly things diverts you,
حَتَّىٰ زُرْتُمُ الْمَقَابِر
Until you visit the graves (i.e. till you die).
This was nearly four years ago. I didn’t realize how many useless things I had until a loved one moved on to the next life and left behind all of his belongings. I thought of my useless belongings and who would go through them after my death.
We live in a word of consumption. We are consumed with consumerism – constantly buying and buying – to the point where we run out of space in our homes for everything we buy. We are transfixed when we see a store that has “BLOWOUT SALE!” written in its window. We can’t help but line up in the freezing cold for that newer model, telling ourselves that we can’t be seen with last year’s model. We swipe and swipe until our cards are worn out. We compete with friends and family to see who can buy the shinier and fancier product first.
For what? For stuff.
The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “Ruined is the slave of the dinar, dirham, and fancy clothes of velvet and silk! If he is given, he is pleased, and if he is not given, he is displeased.” (Bukhari) Who is a slave? A slave is someone who is bound by his master. He must answer to his master when he calls, and he spends his time in servitude to him. Similarly, the slave of money constantly has money on their mind. They think of ways to get more of it while they spend and spend. The slave of money always wants more, and he cannot bear it when he does not receive it. It runs their life, and it is their first priority. The Prophet (alayhi salaatu wa sallam) says this person is ruined because he will never be able to be thankful for what he has. Allah says,
وَكَانَ الْإِنسَانُ كَفُورًا
And man is ever ungrateful. (17:67)
This cycle of consumerism has turned us into slaves of Dollar Bill, while we should only be slaves to Allah (The Most High). Our servitude belongs only to Him. This worldly life is not meant for us to fill our homes with stuff. We should be using this life to come closer to Allah and not to be diverted from Him. Just as a slave is exhausted from his labor, our constant consumerism tires us. We are consumed with consuming. We are tired. Even if we may not spend constantly, we still own too many things, most of which we cannot even remember purchasing. Piles and piles just lying around.
Allah ‘azza wa jal reminds us in the Qur’an,
إِنَّمَا هَذِهِ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا مَتَاعٌ وَإِنَّ الْآخِرَةَ هِيَ دَارُ الْقَرَارِ
This worldly life is only [temporary] enjoyment, and indeed, the Hereafter – that is the home of [permanent] settlement. (40:39)
These possessions that we hoard may be our safety net and our “cool” factor in this life, but the reality will come after we die. These things that we worked so hard for, saved up our salaries for, and stood in line for don’t really belong to us. They cannot keep us company in our graves, rather they will be taken by other people. The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “Three things follow a dead man, two of which will return and one will remain with him. His family, his property and his deeds follow him but his family and property return, while his deeds remain with him.” [Bukhari]
It will be hard for us to break free of the shackles of Dollar Bill because it is the nature of humans to always want and want. The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) tells us, “If the son of Adam had money equal to a valley, then he will wish for another similar to it, for nothing can satisfy the eye of Adam’s son except dust.” [Bukhari]
This is how we were created. We will always look to what people have around us and desire it for ourselves. We will slowly walk past that store, and gaze longingly into all that shiny-ness. It is not impossible though to remove ourselves from it. Allah does not burden anyone beyond what they cannot bear. When we taste the sweetness of freedom after slavery, we will see how much it was weighing us down.
We find our best example in the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam). He was undeniably the ruler of Arabia at the time of his death, yet his home was bare. When Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) asked him why he lived in such a way while the kings of Persia and Rome were living lavishly, he responded, “The example of me and this worldly life is like that of a rider traveling on a hot summer day, so he took shelter in the shadow of a tree for an hour, then left it and went on his way.” [Tirmidhi]
After I realized how much stuff I had that day, I’ve taken measures to keep myself from falling into the cycle again:
1- Avoiding malls unless its necessary. Malls are designed to make us buy things and window displays are meant to lure us in. You can keep yourself from the temptation by not putting yourself in that situation.
2- When you get something, give something. It is so easy to forget how much stuff we have piled in our homes. It is only when you move or travel that this realization comes. When you buy something, find something else to give as sadaqah (charity) or give it to a sibling or a friend.
3- Ask yourself if this item will bring you closer to Allah or if it will benefit you after you die. Do you really need it? Most of the time, the answer is no.
4- Stick with people who don’t remind you of at-takathur, the competition to see who can get the best. Surround yourself with friends who compete with you in good deeds instead.
5- Keep it simple. The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said to be in this world as a traveler. We’ve all seen those poor souls at the airports struggling to carry and lugging around way too much luggage. Don’t be one of them.
6- Go to a developing country and see how the vast majority of humanity lives. If you can’t go, then read the World News. I’ve never witnessed poverty like I saw in Egypt. I felt disgusted in myself and in our culture for how wasteful and ungrateful we are, while they were so thankful for the simple piece of bread they were able to have for dinner.
7- Read the biography of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) and the lives of the Companions and righteous and see how they lived. We may not be able to live how they lived, but we can be as simple as they were in our own way. The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “Do you not hear? Do you not hear? Simplicity (in life) is part of Faith, simplicity is part of Faith.”[Abu Dawood]
8- Count your blessings. Literally. Reflect on how much you have, and how much Allah has given you…and how much you given to Him.
9- Try not to be wasteful, and teach any young ones around you not to be wasteful. Be it with food or even when taking notes. Why leave a whole page blank when it can be used? Allah says, “and eat and drink but waste not by extravagance, certainly He likes not those who waste by extravagance.” (7:31)
10- Focus on the hereafter, and Allah will give you the dunya. The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “For the ones whose concern is this world Allah will scatter his affair, and place poverty between his two eyes. And he will not get from the world except what is written for him. And for the one whose intention is the hereafter Allah will gather for him his affair and place contentment in his heart, and the world will come to him willingly.” [ibn Majah]
11- Ask Allah (Glorified is He) to make you content with what you have, and to make His Pleasure your goal. Ask Him to make you among those who are grateful and patient, and among those who race in good deeds and not of those who race in amassing possessions. You will realize that contentment is the real treasure.
If these tips aren’t enough to help you, then think of the last ayah of Surah At-Takathur:
ثُمَّ لَتُسْأَلُنَّ يَوْمَئِذٍ عَنِ النَّعِيمِ
Then, on that Day, you shall be asked about the delight (you indulged in, in this world)!
Can you imagine standing in front of Allah, Lord of all that exists, and being asked about the stuff we spoiled ourselves with?
Free yourself now from the shackles of Dollar Bill, before your time is up and your belongings will be left for someone else to sort through.
{“You are spouting Israeli propaganda” }
“You are spouting Israeli propaganda” - Norman Finkelstein
Norman Finkelstein interviewed on Danish public service TV by Jewish, and pro-Zionist host Adam Holm. November 14 2009
Adam Holm was reprimanded by his superiors from Denmark Radio recently for having published a news paper article expressing his strong support for Israel. The Danish Broadcasting Company prefers to kept the illusion of impartiality.
On this occasion a stoic Finkelstein manages to get Adam Holm off balance as Holm more and more desperately tries to counter Finkelsteins simple message: Uphold international law in connection with Israel as with any other state. Adam Holms clearly emotional approach speaks louder than a thousand words.
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