Islam is a religion of Peace and justice?

I was willing to buy Islamic fundamentalists were giving Islam a bad name… Then I noticed that people purporting to be Islamic, are all over the planet doing the most horrific things.  

Even the worst of Christian Fundamentalists aren’t running around burning, kidnapping, killing, and engaging in the slave trade. Most of the time they’re running their mouths and nothing else.

When I see stuff like the snippets below, I have to rethink my position.

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Boko Haram kidnaps schoolgirls to sell into slavery.

What can you say?

Islam says slavery is OK. I find it ironic that 300 – 400 years after the white man was being sold slaves on the Nigerian coast.

We have slaves being sold from a Nigerian Islamic to other Islamic countries as sex slaves.  Honestly, this makes my heard hurt. 

CAIR would say; “Islam is a peaceful religion. This is a group of fundamentalists. They don’t represent the mainstream of Islam.

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For the record, I’m opposed to the US Military becoming involved in Nigeria.

My reasoning is this; our military would be encumbered by rules of engagement.They’d have journalists, and cinematographers and cameras of all types up their asses.  I’d suggest sending in Blackwater or another Mercenary group instead. 

No reporters, no photographers, no movie crews, and nobody is going to say anything about what’s done to boko haram.  The civilized world will look the other way. So any of those crazy mercs that need to get their freak on… This is the time and place to go let their killer instincts run wild.

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Give them the simple requirement. “Get the children back.” Pay them handsomely and if they happen to run across assets of Boko Haram like gold, or bank accounts, well, nobody needs to know about it do they?

The West would be be doing the peaceful followers of Islam a favor by wiping this aberrant group off the planet.

Then everyone could get to know Islam as the peaceful and gentle religion it is. 


Crucifixions In Syria

There’s the village in Syria where the people still spoke Aramaic.

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A village of christians who were terrorized by an Islamic para military group with the threat of crucifixion if they didn’t convert to Islam. Those who maintained their faith in Christ were in fact crucified.  

CAIR would say; “Silly rabbit, that old Convert or Die belief isn’t something Islam takes seriously anymore. This was obviously a group of deranged fundamentalists.


Rape Victim to be caned

The woman was GANG RAPED. The rapists thought she was having an affair. They Raped her to punish her and then when the justice system of her country found out she’d been raped, Allah’s infinite mercy was to cane her for being a victim.

CAIR would say; “The woman must have done something requiring the punishment of gang rape.”

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Facebook insult to Muhammed, CITY on lockdown.

Yesterday, Bangladesh had trouble because someone insulted Muhammad on facebook. Apparently a muslim mob took to the streets pillaging and generally terrorizing everyone else.

CAIR would say; “ ?????”


We won’t even talk about what most islamic countries do to gay people!

At the risk of CAIR calling me names…

This isn’t aberrant groups within the fabric of the religion. The IS the fabric of the religion. As proof I submit to you that these atrocities are happening worldwide, on a daily basis. The only common element is that the people are followers of Islam.

These aren’t independent fundamentalist terror cells. These are average people with a threshold for violence that’s set so low if they can’t find an enemy to kill, they’ll apparently kill each other at random for the slightest reason.

This behavior begs the question for me, what exactly are these people hearing from the Imams in the Mosques?

The only answer that fits behavior is something like “everyone hates you, they would deny you your religion, everyone else is evil and would eat your children, they’re coming to get you, when they do these evil people will rape you, your wife, your children, and then they’ll burn your home to the ground.” Hell after hearing a message like that all my life I’d be pissed off and ready to kill too!

(Wait, I do hear a message similar to that in this country. Only here it’s being said about conservatives and the Republican party on every news cast and Presidential press conference!) Another commentary for another time.

It’s been said, “Repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth.”

I can no longer buy into the repeated lie that Islam is a peaceful, just, religion. It can’t be, at it’s foundations its a religion based on a “convert or die” philosophy.

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Peaceful religions don’t explode into violence when their prophets are; Drawn, Insulted, or portrayed in a negative light.  

If this behavior were the norm,  Islam wouldn’t be a problem at all. The West would have already nuked the fuck out of Islamic countries for insults to Christ.

Its time for us in the West to stop attempting to delude ourselves. 

This is no religion of peace.

At best, this religion will leave it’s neighbors alone.

At worst, this is a religion that sanctions violence in all its many forms in the name of God.

The question for the West, is how to handle a ticking time bomb now embedded in every city of every nation?

There are times when I just want to scream!

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And not in a good way!

I’m a bit ADD. I know, I know, that’s become an overused cliché catchall that everyone and their brother uses to excuse anything from a hangover to a stroke.

Hear me out. I’ve been like this my whole life, and for me, this is completely normal. I’ve adapted to being this way because I’ve never know any other way to be. There are times when the ADD presents challenges, loud noises, crowds, bright flashing lights, can really mess with my calm and freak me out. Most of these challenges are manageable. If I feel myself being overwhelmed I’ll find a quiet spot to collect myself and then I’m good to go.

imagesOne of the biggest challenges ADD presents me with is listening to someone talk. If they have something to say and they keep on track I’m fine. If, however, they meander and pause the main thread of their story to fill in useless details or give me background that they should have given at the beginning of the story, then I’m likely to stop listening. In the worst case, the person doesn’t notice my eyes glazing over and they keep yammering.

This is usually when the ADD becomes a real problem. I respond first with annoyance, then hostility, then outright anger. The poor fool telling me, whatever they were telling me has no idea what they’ve done wrong or why I’m pissed off.

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Believe it or not, I feel guilty when I lose control and get angry because of the way someone is telling their story. It’s not fair to the other person. As far as they’re concerned they are telling a nice coherent little tale.

To an ADD person it’s annoying tedium. I can explain, I think using the following example.

The church made, because of the rummage sale, the church made, the donations to the rummage sale this year because, because of estate donations allowed the church to make,  One estate donated a teak modern dining set that was worth about 5000 dollars it went at silent auction for 2000, it was one of those Danish modern designs, I don’t know who bought it. The usual amount that the church makes on a rummage sale is $15,000 or so. This year the church made, oh there was a lot of very nice estate jewelry some of it brought in a lot higher than expected prices. This year the church made $30,000 although the final total isn’t in yet.

The story could have been summed up simply.

The church doubled it’s usual rummage sale income this year due to a number of estate donations.

Then if I was interested I could have asked what the total dollar amount was.

benefitsadhd2To an ADD person, the story, as first presented, is like fingernails on a chalkboard. The constant teasing about how much the church actually made, is annoying as hell.

There’s another level though that’s worse for the ADD person. It’s that for every one of those pauses we pause a stream of thought and start another one. Pretty soon your 2 minute anecdote has us nearing the maximum capacity of our brain power.

Think of it like trying to compute orbital mechanics of the entire solar system and keeping all the variables in your head.

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This is, I think part of the reason we ADD folk don’t like watching the late night news, it’s the constant teasers. If the 10 o’clock news really wants to piss of the ADD crowd; tease us for an hour and then never get to the story!

“Stay tuned to find out why your penis is at risk”

The way my brain works is probably best described as a corral of skittish horses. I have tons of thoughts running all the time and it requires an effort of will to harness those thoughts, put blinders on them, and then hitch them up to the wagon of a project I’m trying to do.

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A conversation like the story above tends to have an effect on my thoughts, that’s similar to what you get if a rattle snake suddenly appears in a corral full of skittish horses. After the chaos and dust clears, you’ve got horses spread to the four corners of the corral and none of them are going to do any work for the rest of the day.

I live with a person that tells stories like the example above.  That pisses me off by itself. (Come to think of it, my stepdad tries to lecture on science and technical stuff the same way; no wonder I dreaded asking him questions when I was in school!)

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What really pisses me off is when I catch myself telling stories the same way.

My ability to write today is gone. I’m going to go outside and run the weed whacker. I will avoid holding a fluffy pillow firmly over someone’s face.

Another one bites the dust…

NewImage.pngMy Aunt received an iPad today.

This is to replace the samsung Galaxy Tablet she’d been struggling with.

All the lady wanted to do was print some of her emails occasionally. And with the addition of a new printer AND 12.99 piece of software she could more or less, from the Galaxy.

NewImage.pngI say “More or Less,” as long as she remembered how to access the software and waited long enough for the software to wake up the printer. Then remembered not to send the item to be printed several times because of the time it took for the Samsung OS to be overridden by the $12 piece of software.

Part of the software’s function is to allow the Galaxy to see that the printer was in fact ready, and had been available the whole time.

NewImage.pngApparently, she was overjoyed when she asked the iPad to print something. And it DID without her having to fiddle with anything.

I’m unimpressed with the Samsung tablets just due to the experience I had with hers.

Android is an open OS and it’s a smart system. What Samsung did to the Android OS as they implemented it in the Galaxy Tablet is a crime.

NewImage.pngI can see making changes to the OS that are specific to the hardware, the OS is running on.

I can’t see purposely limiting basic functionality in the hopes that you’ll force customers to buy your printers. Yes! I call printing basic functionality.

Arguably Apple engages in a similar closed system with FaceTime, AirDrop, and a number of other features. I recall that Apple took it in the shorts with the first generation iPad because it wouldn’t print.

Unknown.jpegI also recall that 1 or 2 IOS updates fixed that deficiency because people were flat out pissed off.

I wish FaceTime could interface with Skype so that I didn’t have to have two pieces of software that did the same thing on my systems. I wish AirDrop and Bluetooth file sharing worked across devices regardless of the OS.

I’m a big believer in choosing a machine because I like its specs, looks, and comfort rather than what OS it runs.

Seamless connectivity is one of those things I believe in.

I ought to be able to make a video call from my iPhone to a friends android.

I should be able to do this WITHOUT having to turn on Skype, determine if the person I wanted to talk to is online. Text them if they’re not online, telling them I’d like to talk to them, then wait for their Skype call.

After all of that, hell it’s easier to just call ’em on the phone and burn cellular minutes.

Apple, with FaceTime has in fact made calling another Apple customer as simple as clicking on the video camera icon and the FaceTime application doesn’t have to be running at the receiving end. The new FaceTime VoIP feature is very nice too.

I video chat to my Apple enabled friends a lot more than my Skype or Google Hangout friends, precisely because of the seamless integration.

Seamless, that’s what I want and, as it turns out that’s all my retired parents and Aunt want too.

Before you write me off as another Apple fan.

I’ve worked with and owned PCs for years. I spent the last five years dealing with Blackberries and Androids. I’ve used Skype on the Android, I even thought that Google was going to make a unifying seamless application that would allow the user to call, or video chat, or use VoIP.

They do kind of, as long as you’re running their application in the background, and it hasn’t crashed, and you have a Google account.

So I know how that stuff works and how it doesn’t, especially if you’re running on limited internal memory on your device. When it works, it works pretty well.

However, the Apple solution works better.

That’s why I’m overjoyed that my Aunt has an iPad.

I’m hoping that in short order she’s going to have an iPhone too. I like the thought that she can walk into any Apple Store and get assistance. Unlike the situation where she walks into an AT&T store and is lied to or cheated, or “up-sold” to something she has no use for, but will have to pay for anyway.

I’m also jazzed that my Mom and Aunt will be chatting face to face more often.

After all, the technology was designed to bring us together, wasn’t it?

It Begins…

High Winds + Warmer Temps + Long drought = Wildfire

The Etiwanda Fire appears to be the first of the season.

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Looks like we’re going to have a long fire season.

Nothing much to do but make sure that you have a bugout kit.

This particular fire isn’t too big a deal to us on this side of the mountain, some folks in the foothills above Rancho Cucamonga and Ontario have been evacuated

This does serve as a reminder that all of us need defensible space around our homes. Take out the dead brush and make sure that you have your evacuation plans and rally points well defined so that you & your loved ones can meet if you get separated.

Lots of folks left for work this morning and they’ll find they can’t get home tonight due to mandatory evacuations.

If you have friends in the evacuation areas, you might try giving them a call. I’ll be making some phone calls a bit later to offer my guest room to friends.

As of this time, there’s no air support because the winds are too high for the aircraft to take off.

Be Safe

Weird weather

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70ºF One day and Snow the next.

On the other hand I am glad to have the rain, even if it turns into snow late at night.

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The dogs like it too. But they don’t really like having to pose for photos. Hence the nose and face in shadow.

I was hoping for a really long storm. It would have been nice to have the water and I’ll admit I’d have liked to have seen the wash flood.

I like the sound of rushing water especially if it’s reshaping the wash to it’s natural contours and filling in the gaping ravine that the flood control district created.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the Grand Canyon, the one in Arizona. But the one behind my house is a really bad imitation.

Nonetheless, I don’t think I’ll be hearing the rushing of water anytime soon. All the predictions say that this year is going to be dryer than the previous couple years.

Time to rework the sprinkler system to drip water so that I can at least preserve the raspberries, blackberries & grapes. The landscaping in the front yard is mostly desert stuff so thankfully I don’t have to worry about it too much. 

I was planning on a vegetable garden this year, but given the drought conditions I’m rethinking that. I don’t know if the cost of water would exceed the cost of the vegetables I’d be able to grow. I suspect it would once the drought conditions get worse. 

Some places in California are already sending out the “Water Police” looking for wasteful people. I’m sure that Rationing is next and that we’ll see water prices shoot up along with penalty surcharges for any baseline overages.

It’s going to be a long dry summer.