Islam

Asian-American Community Wants Lunar New Year on School Calendar

Recently, a pair of Muslim holidays was added to the school calendar. This decision was, naturally, met with quite a bit of resistance from non-Muslims. Many believe that school holidays that involve a religious preference should apply to members of that religion only and not create a school-wide day off. But that’s not currently the case. Now, riding off of the Muslim win, the Asian community in NYC is trying to get the Lunar New Year added to the calendar as well.

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One NYC Teen Rolling in Cash Thanks to Stock Market

Most of us wish we’d been a little bit smarter in our teenage years and taken advantage of all that youthful energy to do more than party and chase members of the opposite sex. And while we might not necessarily regret our past, it’s a story like this that lets us know the potential we may have had. For a high school kid named Mohammed Islam has apparently made millions in the stock market.

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Anti-Islam Ads Finally Go Too Far

When you’re trying to make a point and that point has to do with hating on another culture, it’s only a matter of time before you’ll end up crossing the line. The recent anti-Islam ads that went up on NYC buses were tasteless but still upheld by the law. The latest ad that the same group is trying to use, however, didn’t quite make the cut.

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Another Person Suing NYC - This Time Because of a Gas Explosion

I’m going to get this out of the way first - People! Accidents happen! When you live in a city as big as New York, things will go poorly. The government can not regulate every last thing to ensure that you are always warm and comfy. When there’s a gas explosion, it’s not necessarily the fault of city negligence. Even if it was, you should be grateful that you survived and were not one of the eight people that actually died. Further, neck and back pain is NOT, under any circumstances, worth $25 million.

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Crime and Punishment in the Middle East

The advancement of social justice and freedom is something that we here in the West often take for granted. Our struggle against the oppressions of the Catholic Church are hundreds of years old and we now view the idea that religion should dictate law as being dangerous to the social order and unhealthy for the thinking individual. But there are still areas of the world where witch hunts and large-scale oppression still exist. The Middle East is dealing with this particular issue all across its many countries and even the change of regimes seems to have little effect in setting things right. The rule of religion, until it is directly challenged, will continue to use the barbaric remnants of medieval justice, keeping these countries firmly in the past.

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Youth of Middle Eastern turmoil turn to comedy

The countries of the Middle East and the surrounding regions have certainly seen their share of turmoil during the last decade. Revolutions, terrorism and wars abound with such frequency that it seems as if nothing will ever settle down there. But instead of running out and joining up with an angry militant faction, many of the youth in the area are choosing another outlet for their frustrations - stand-up comedy.

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Losing their religion

John Holt said something to the effect of we force our children to do things all day, every day that none of us could do ourselves. How many of us could pay attention to hours of lectures about subjects that we couldn't care less about—many of which we will never even use in our lives? If schools were optional and provided choices for students so they could attend only the things that fuel their passions, I might support them more.

It’s especially difficult, however, when you hear stories like these.

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Giving praise to violence with ignorance

The Boston bombings, though the numbers of deaths and injuries were gratefully small compared to other acts of violence, is still a catastrophe that resonated with the country. The idea that someone would attack a target that has little to do with anything political, that they would kill innocents in an apparently random act, is not only upsetting, it’s confusing. But this is not the first time that the United States has had to deal with an act of terrorism, nor will it likely be the last. The question is, will we react with the same ignoranc

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Israel and Palestine resume clash again

Though a cease-fire was called between the people of Israel and Palestine at the end of last year, it was only a matter of time before something set someone off and the conflict resumed. It is a seemingly endless war, sparked decades ago by the colonization of Palestinian lands by Israeli forces. Today, it remains, fueled further by political and religious tensions. Whenever the two governments manage to make peace, something happens and they begin shooting at each other again.

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Canaries taking out Osama

I’m not a violent person. I don’t believe in the death penalty, and I’m a far cry from a gun owner. With that being said, when the U.S. sent in Navy Seals to assassinate Osama Bin Laden, I found myself at a crossroads. I do believe that Bin Laden’s death will result in the lives of many saved. I also believe that by eliminating Osama, plans for future terror attacks against the U.S. and other nations, both Islamic and western alike, were stymied. But playing God scares me.

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