The latest scandal against Muslims is the ban on the wearing of the Niqab (full face veil that reveals only the eyes) in France. The ban, enforced throughout France on April 11th, 2011, further demonizes the choices and rights of all Muslims globally. Muslim women who publically sport the Niqab are faced with a fine of 150 Euros ($215). Men found guilty of forcing women to wear the Niqab may be fined up to 60,000 Euros ($87,000) in addition to a possible two-year jail sentence. An estimated 1900 women wear the Niqab in France. Two-thirds of these women are French nationals with an estimated 90% over the age of 40. President Nicholas Sarkozy’s law was passed after the majority of French parliament and the public supported the idea that the Niqab imprisoned women and contradicted the secular nations values of equality and dignity.

The Niqab is a controversial issue in both Muslim and non-Muslim countries. Muslim scholars have argued for and against the wearing of the Niqab for centuries. Some look at the face veil as oppressive while others find it liberating. Who is right? Who is wrong? I don’t know the answers to the prior questions as absolutes but what I do know is the mere ban of the Niqab in itself is an act of oppression. France pride’s itself on being one of the leaders of the “free” world. France labels itself a country that tirelessly fights for women’s rights. France boasts laws that support the practice of religious freedom. Ironically, a country of liberty for all feels entitled to oppress a group of women who choose to wear the Niqab. There are two ways to examine this situation; firstly, from a religious perspective and secondly, from a human rights perspective.

Let us delve into the possible religious explanation of the Niqab. I have researched the Quran, Hadith and Sunnah and found a few evidences that may be interpreted as support for wearing the Niqab. There is ample evidence that proves the Prophet’s (SAW) wives covered their faces in the presence of non-mahram (non-guardian) men. There is evidence that proves Asma, who was not the Prophet’s (SAW) wife, covered her face. Easily, one can conclude that wearing the Niqab is halal (permissible). The aforementioned evidence can be used to argue against the ban on the Niqab from a religious perspective. According to the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen,”No one may be questioned about his opinions, [and the] same [for] religious [opinions], provided that their manifestation does not trouble the public order established by the law” and “The law has the right to ward [i.e., forbid] only actions [which are] harmful to the society. Anything which is not warded [i.e., forbidden] by the law cannot be impeded, and no one can be constrained to do what it [i.e., the law] does not order.” The prior two clauses candidly state the French government cannot subjectively regulate and prohibit religious activity and may only do so to the extent that there is a need to safeguard the public.

Religious profiling based on dress choice is not an effective manner in securing the public as many examples confirm. On August 29th, 1969, Palestinian Muslim Leila Khaled was part of a team who hijacked a flight from Rome to Athens. She donned no Niqab, not even a headscarf. In June 2008, Maite Aranalde the world’s most wanted female terrorist and a non-Muslim, was sentenced to eight years in prison after being convicted in a Paris Court for criminal association with terrorist intent. In September 2010, France was on high alert after a would-be Muslim female suicide bomber threatened the transport system in Paris. Her whereabouts are still unknown and there is no connection to a Niqab. Colleen LaRose, a non-Muslim from Pennsylvania more popularly known as ‘Jihad Jane’ did not fit the popularized version of a “Muslim” terrorist. There have been very few women who have worn the Niqab and committed terrorist acts. In collaboration with prior mentioned examples one can safely conclude that the wearing of the Niaqb is not a security matter and the French government has yet to prove that it has been in the past.

Let us examine the human rights aspect of the Niqab ban. Let us remove the presumed religious affiliation of the Niqab from the equation. Let us focus solely on women’s rights in France. France has long been known for boasting its fight for all women, regardless of class, ethnicity, religion and race. Women in France are free to walk in Daisy Dukes and bra-type tops. Women in France are free to wear mini skirts with tank tops. Women in France are free to wear the hijab. Women in France are free to laze around topless on public beaches. Women in France are free to tattoo their entire bodies including their full face. Women in France are legally allowed to work in strip clubs that accommodate any paying member of the public. Women in France are allowed to pose in Chantelle bras and lace thongs on human-sized billboards. Yet, Muslim women are being banned from wearing a Niqab.

Banning the Niqab violates the rights of women who choose to wear the Niqab. This ban is a so-called movement to liberate women and ensure public security. However, one can equally argue that women who strut the streets half-naked may be a public security issue as well. One may argue based on statistics that the rate of rape and sexual harassment is higher in secular nations that have no limits on women’s dress. One may further argue that nudity and avant-garde dress are unhealthy for our children. However, such arguments would be considered a violation of women’s rights and thrown out of court in a heartbeat. There is no hard evidence that wearing the Niqab threatens public safety, public order, health, morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others. The ban on the wearing of the Niqab is only a hindrance in helping women who are coerced into wearing the Niqab and does absolutely nothing except impose unjust laws on those who choose to wear the Niqab. This ban will only serve to imprison women to their homes rather than liberate them.

Let us not be imprudent in our judgment and unjust in our laws. A ban on the Niqab violates the right to freedom from discrimination on the basis of both religion and gender. Furthermore, a ban on the Niqab is as much as a violation on women’s rights as it is a violation to force a woman to wear the Niqab.

Below is a letter that I would like to send to a Masjid that I have frequented for several years. I wrote this post right after last year’s Eid Al-Adha because my experiences at a particular Masjid have become so frustrating. For the sake of privacy I have blocked out those areas of the letter that would give any indication of the Masjid I’m referring to. This particular Masjid has done lots of good work. They provide a house of worship for Muslims, Eid, Taraweeh, Arabic classes for children and adults, not to mention do lots of charity. They have done many good works (fisabilillah), but have unfortunately come up short in binding the congregants together across ethnic and or racial lines. Although this letter was spawned from my experiences at this Masjid, this is a problem at many Masjids. Whether the Masjid is in the U.S. or abroad. I hope that this letter reaches as many people as possible (inshallah), especially those leaders (Imams) of certain Masjids. As believing Muslims we cannot choose to ignore this problem as being silent on this issue is akin to being an enabler of this problem of cultural nepotism.

As Salaam Alaikum Wa Rahmatullah.

It is with great sadness and frustration that I write these words. I have been frequenting this Masjid at

As a person of African descent (African American/West Indian) I have never felt completely welcome at this Masjid. I realize that the majority ethnicity is Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi and this monolithic South Asian community has intentionally or unintentionally created a wall of “ethnic Islam” that does not bode well for those individuals who are of a different ethnicity. I’ll explain.

Several times during the closing of the Eid Khutbah and many brothers are giving their well wishes, I have found myself completely by myself and somewhat ignored. I have had congregants look away from me and bypass me to give their well wishes to others. I have also observed this ill-loving behavior towards other brothers of African descent. This might seem trivial at first glance, but I have experienced this behavioral phenomenon in this center for several years. In addition, many times during the closing prayer and the Khateeb is rattling off countries of concern, I’ve yet to hear the Khateeb mention Africa. You hear Indonesia, Pakistan, Iraq, Palestine, Middle Eastern countries etc, but never Africa. You know where one of the largest populations of Muslims are? Africa. Over 30% of the global Muslim population lives in Africa. And considering all the issues that are going on in Africa (with such a large Muslim population), this continent should be on our Islamic radar.

Not that this is merely a numbers game, but I’m bringing this to your attention because there are many brothers and sisters of African descent (whether born in America or abroad) who feel ostracized and this cognitive dissonance towards ethnicities outside of your own needs to be addressed. Ignoring the problem will deepen the cultural fault lines in the Masjid. Even a simple As Salaam Alaikum to many other brothers is often ignored. The salaam rebuttal is robotic at best. I want to make it clear that this monolithic cultural problem is an issue at many Masjids. A very good and dear family member of mine who runs several Masjids in NY) frequented a Pakistani Masjid this past Eid (Eid Al –Adha 2010) and was given the same ill-loving treatment. After the Eid Khutbah not one member gave him and his brother well wishing nor shook his hand. No Salaams and no Eid Mubarak whatsoever. Completely ignored as if he and his brothers were the invisible men in the Masjid.

The Messenger of Allah [s] further guides us by saying:

“Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should be hospitable with his or her guests.”

This monolithic cultural problem is not exclusive to just South Asian or Middle Eastern dominated Masjids. I have many close friends of mine who are of Pakistani and Middle Eastern descent who have frequented majority African Masids and have been given the same cold treatment. This is a problem in many Masjids, not just yours. Several years ago I visited Dubai and attended a Khutbah were the Khateebs’s main focus of the lecture was this same ethnicity issue. Although Islam makes it clear that we are all brothers and sisters in Islam, irrespective of ethnicity, I don’t believe that many people take this important message to heart, not to mention carry it out in their day-to-day lives. I want to be very clear on this issue, I’m not looking for some type of “charity love” from this Masjid. Patronizing me or others, with guilt driven acts, condescension, or empty or contrived intentions is just as dangerous. This is an issue that has to be fixed over time. Here are a couple of suggestions. These suggestions are based on successes from other Masjids that have had this problem:

1. Do more Khutbahs on the roots of racism and indifference. By not highlighting the problem this will not build awareness among the Ummah. Hear no evil, see no evil.
2. You should seek a more diverse group of Khateebs for your Khutbahs. Get groups from every walk of life. Young, old, converts to Islam, different ethnicities (especially those ethnicities that the congregants seldom see or talk to), etc so the congregants can see the Masjid demonstrating a core part of Islam, diversity.
3. Participate in helping countries that are outside of your culture and make it clear to the congregants that the Masjid is apart of this effort. One of the Masjids I volunteer at not only help countries in Bangladesh and India, but they do a lot of work in Africa too. Keep in mind that the Masjid is not run by Africans or South Asians. Yes, there are floods in Pakistan, but there are also floods in Dakar and Benin too. We need to step out of our comfort zone and lend a hand to all in need, not just those that have the same cultural background.
4. Get the congregants of the Masjid to meet up with other Masjids that are of a completely different ethnicity and/or Madhab and utilize the common ground that all Muslims have, the Quran and related Hadiths. There is no doubt this will help to melt away some of the perceived cultural differences.

Very similar to your point in the Khutbah you did for this past Eid-Al-Adha, we have to do more than just talk. Just like our children will be watching our actions, so will the congregants monitor the actions of the Masjid. With the Masjid being a central part of the community, it is critical that we remove this oppressive disease from our hearts (Allahualim). There is a perverse level of otherness and xenophobia that exists in our Masjids. This type of behavior would be unacceptable during the days of the Prophet (PBUH), and it is unacceptable today.

Before I bring this letter to a close, I will leave you with a reminder from our glorious Quran, a paragraph from the Prophets Last Sermon and related Hadiths which specifically touches on this subject:

Surat Al-Hujurat:
“O Mankind, We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other. Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is he who is the most righteous of you” (Quran 49:13).

From the Prophets Last Sermon:
“All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over black nor a black has any superiority over white except by piety and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood. Nothing shall be legitimate to a Muslim which belongs to a fellow Muslim unless it was given freely and willingly. Do not, therefore, do injustice to yourselves.

Remember, one day you will appear before ALLAH and answer your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.”

This is a very eye-opening Hadith on the evils of discrimination, prejudice and racism. The explanation below is pulled from a lecture by Shaykh Muhammad Hannini from his lecture Loss of an Ummah by the An-Nahda Institute.
It was also transmitted, in two different versions, by Ibn al-Mubarak in his two books, Al-Birr and As-Salah, that a disagreement occurred between Abu Dharr and Bilal. The context of this hadith is Abu Dharr and Bilal were having a discussion among the other companions about the war. Abu Dharr mentioned something and Bilal corrected Abu Dharr. Abu Dharr got extremely upset and said “Even YOU, son of a black woman is going to tell me that I am wrong?” After hearing this Bilal was extremely upset and said to Abu Dharr, “By Allah, I will complain to Rasulullah (PBUH) to tell him about what you said.” Bilal went to Rasulullah (PBUH) and said Rasulullah, “Did you hear what Abu Dharr said?”. The Prophet responded, “What did he say about you?”. Bilal then explained the incident between him and Abu Dharr. Rasulullah (PBUH). After hearing this, the honorable face of Rasulullah (PBUH) changed. With Abu Dharr using skin color he was threatening the bond of the brother’s and sisters.

The identity of emaan is being threatened. When you call someone the son of a black woman, this is not something light. After the news had spread about the incident, he went to the Rasulullah (PBUH) in the Masjid and said to The Messenger (PBUH) The Messenger (PBUH), “As Salaam Alaikum”. Abu Dharr later reported that he wasn’t sure if the The Messenger (PBUH) answered him back. The Messenger (PBUH) of Allah (saw) was extremely upset by Abu Dharr’s comment, so he (saw) rebuked him by saying, “That is too much, Abu Dharr. He who has a white mother has no advantage which makes him better than the son of a black mother.” In addition to this he said to Abu Dharr, “Did you tell him (Bilal) about his mother ? Did you put him down because of the color of his mother? You are a man who has jahiliyyah (kuffur) [disbelief] in him”. Abu Dharr cried. He went to Rasulullah (PBUH), “Forgive me, and ask Allah (SWT) to forgive me.” He left the Masjid weeping with tears. This rebuke had a profound effect on Abu Dharr, who then put his head on the ground (dirt) swearing that he would not raise it until Bilal had put his foot on his face. He said to Bilal, “You are the honorable person, and I am the humiliated person”. Bilal cried, and then came close to the cheek of Abu Dharr and hugged him, then said “Abu Dharr, a forehead that does sujud to Allah, does not get stepped on, but rather gets kissed”.

As quoted in Islam The Natural Way by Abdul Wahid Hamid p. 125

A man once visited the Prophet’s Masjid in Madinah. There he saw a group of people sitting and discussing their faith together. Among them were Salman (who came from Persia), Suhayb who grew up in the Eastern Roman empire and was regarded as a Greek, and Bilal who was an African. The man then said:

“If the (Madinan) tribes of Aws and Khazraj support Muhammad, they are his people (that is, Arabs like him). But what are these people doing here?”

The Prophet became very angry when this was reported to him. Straightaway, he went to the mosque and summoned people to a Salat. He then addressed them saying:

“O people, know that the Lord and Sustainer is One. Your ancestor is one, your faith is one. The Arabism of anyone of you is not from your mother or father. It is no more than a tongue (language). Whoever speaks Arabic is an Arab.”

These proofs and evidences demonstrate that tribal ties, exclusive ethnic allegiances and blind nationalism have no place in Islam. Muslims are commanded to stick together and not disassociate themselves from each other because they come from different ethnicities. I’m not naïve to believe that JUST one cultural center is the core problem, it’s the lack of good manners, etiquette, and a need to reinforce a lovingly brotherhood/sisterhood which seems to breed in certain Masjids. The cultural polarization that is created from this behavior is like acid being poured on the bonds of the believers.

With much sincerity and respect,
Malik

• Loss of An Ummah by Mohammed Haninini
• Falling in to the Trap of Nationalism or/racism
• VIDEO: Explaining the Hadith Series 2 – (Racism & Tabari)
• 33 Tips to launch your personal Jihad against Racism and Nationalism
• Hospitality towards Guests
• Prophet Muhammad: The Hospitable

..MILK?! Oh you thought that was a white russian in that screenshot? Oh yeah I’m sure you thought something else. Yeah my non-Muslims friends and family saw the title and probably thought “What? I thought Malik didn’t drink alcohol?” and my Muslims friends probably said “Oh no, astagfurillah, Malik drinks alcohol?”. No, I don’t drink alcohol (circa 2004) and inshallah I never will. I converted to Islam in 2007. Maybe you didn’t even think of any of these things, but I’m just having a little fun here. Even my mouthwash doesn’t have alcohol in it, nor do I use vanilla extract because of the process of using alcohol to create the extract. Strictly vanilla powder my friends.

To be honest, this post is not about why I drink milk or the countless ways I avoid ingesting alcohol, but the title was used to catch your attention. However, this post is about how alcohol (even though I don’t drink it) still seems to impact my life. As many of you know, Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcohol and ingesting any other intoxicant. But lets take it a step further. Not only are Muslims prohibited from drinking alcohol, they are also prohibited from being in areas were alcohol is served, like restaurants and bars. It’s not easy when you are out and about, but I try my best. Trying to find an establishment in the U.S. that doesn’t serve alcohol is like trying to find a congressman or congresswoman in Washington that doesn’t have a lobbyist as his or her shadow. Even social events like weddings and/or gatherings at a house where alcohol is being consumed is a problem. It’s one of the reasons why I have gatherings at my house because I don’t want my family around alcohol, but here is the problem:

In today’s society, especially in the U.S and Europe, drinking alcohol is the norm. It is socially accepted drink of choice. Everywhere you go, and no matter what event (even so-called “religious” events that celebrate the birthday of prophets) people are going to drink, and more than likely get wasted. Obviously we have our religious obligations (and many of us are proud to uphold them), but no sober person wants to be in that type of environment. at least the sane sober folks. I’m going to try my best not to bash people who drink alcohol. That’s not really what this post is about. Listen, if you want to drink, have a blast. I don’t agree with it, but to each his own. My issue is the balance between my beliefs and my close family members and friends.

This issue happens often because most of my non-Muslim friends and family drink. (even some of my Muslim friends drink). Basically my non-Muslim friends and family want me to, as they like to say, “make an exception”. This usually means the following:

Because of our long lasting friendship or family connection over the last couple decades we feel that it wouldn’t be a big deal if you attended ______________ event. We love you and we want to see you. We know you and your family have this Muslim thing with the alcohol and we just don’t see how you can’t separate Church and State (in my case Mosque and State) then come on by. You don’t have to drink, but we are going to drink.

I’m sure you can see the conundrum. For the sake of argument, lets say that in some weird universe somewhere in the Quran, it gave the pass for Muslims to attend events were there was alcohol, but as long as you didn’t drink alcohol, everything is okay. The part that people don’t understand is it’s not just alcohol itself, but how alcohol impacts the person consuming alcohol and the people around the alcohol. Let’s say I wanted to attend a social event with a group of friends. Half of the people have poor spending habits and the other half have great spending habits. While I’m at the event, do I really care what the net worth is of any of the individuals at the event? No, because the context of the event and the people attending have no direct connection. But let’s change the context and instead of just a random gathering of folks socializing, it was an event about starting your own business and everyone at the event had to put their money together. Same people from the first event, but we now have a set of issues. The fact that second event is tied to money and savings, puts the folks with poor spending habits against the folks with good spending habits.

Lets jump back to the topic of alcohol. A group of Muslims being in the context of another group of people drinking alcohol is straining the belief of the Muslim. This is not a light matter. If it was, I wouldn’t be spending more than 500 words talking about this stuff. The believing Muslim does not want a strained relationship with Allah, but at the same time wants his closest friends and family to understand the importance of adhering to his or her faith. For believing Muslims, there is no dualistic behavior based on external circumstances. I know most people practice their faith like this, using a set of subjective criteria and put bits of pieces of their faith into practice under a secular framework. I’m sorry but Muslims don’t roll like that.

So what about the “Can you make an exception?” line I always get. No. I love you friends and family, but NO. A better question is “Can you make an exception?”. The part that is bewildering to me, is most people drink all year round. Whether it’s at birthday parties, weddings, going to clubs, restaurants, sporting events, after work drink at home, go out with co-workers drink, even religious events. So being that you drink 99% of the time, why not make an exception for those who don’t want to be around alcohol? Your choice to drink is not tied to anything other than “Hey I want to drink with a group of friends and family”. I’m not trying to rock the boat, but I don’t see how taking a break from alcohol every now and then is going to be some type of net loss in fun points. The “social pressure” to commit to the group (alcohol consumers), being creatures of habit and simple choice to drink is a bigger incentive, than to NOT drink because of one individual. Among drinkers who attend social events, not having alcohol served is akin to removing the ball from football, basketball or baseball game. This is the new social norm. I get that. I’m not naive. I just wonder if there can be balance. I know if I said to any one individual, “Hey I’ll give you $50K if you invite me to all your events and social gathering for 1 year while not having alcohol at any of those social gatherings.” Only a fool would deny such an offer. In short, the world is awash in incentives. The downside risk (backlash from friends and family) from not serving alcohol would be obliterated because the financial reward eclipses the backlash. If we take this fictitious scenario a bit further, a simple explanation to the group “Hey I’m doing this for 50K”, would probably prevent any further complaints and social backlash. In the end, the mob rules.

Some people don’t realize how serious Muslims take their faith. This new age of “religious secularism”, has made Muslims out to be the conservative party crashers. To be honest, I like that. I could care less that people think I’m a weirdo for not getting drunk. Or think I’m too strict because I don’t allow my family to be socially invaded by people with liquor on their breath and drunk behavior at certain social events. Or think I’m a weirdo for saving thousands of dollars for not having to buy into the idea that purchasing alcohol to drink is the norm. Some call it personal choice. The timing of this post is right on the money. Millions of people will be getting blasted over the Holidays. I know what it’s like. I used to do it. I would ask people to keep an open mind and heart. There are those around you who subscribe to a different set of norms. There is no sweat off your back if you don’t drink a couple times a year, but it’s a whole set of circumstances for me and many Muslims who don’t want to be around alcohol in big social gatherings (if we can help it). Not because we wan’t to be difficult, but we love the principles of our faith and we want to act upon those same principles. (Feesabilillah)

I’ll close with this,

Alcohol can’t hug you,
Alcohol can’t smile at you,
Alcohol can’t have a conversation with you
(although you might have a conversation by yourself after drinking too much)
Alcohol can’t love you,
Alcohol can’t respect you,
Alcohol can’t be there for you when you need the most help,
only loving human beings can.

Respectfully yours,
Malik

Many people ask me how I converted to Islam. To be honest, if someone told me in 1998 (The year I graduated from Syracuse University) that “Hey Dwayne, you are going to be Muslim one day”, I probably would have replied “Yes, and the moon is made out of cheese and I lift up the Empire State Building for sport on weekends”. My conversion to Islam is quite extraordinary and this one event will cascade into several other events that will change my life forever. Well, here’s how it went down:

My spiritual journey began around mid 2002. I’ve told this story many times, but one day I was lying in my bed staring at the ceiling and somewhat nodding off to sleep. I was just lying there thinking, but not about anything in particular. My mind was just clear, and then something just startled me inside. Not like someone physically startling you by surprising you, but just similar to a sonic boom going off in my chest. I immediately stood up on my bed. As if my soul just grew exponentially. Till this day I can’t really explain it but religious folk call it spiritual awakening. I felt something that definitely rattled my soul and my spirit. At the time I didn’t really know what it was so after a couple of weeks went by I just forgot about it. Interestingly enough I went into the the Strand book store several months later which was located around Union Square in Manhattan. I was walking by several books and as I was walking out of the store I peaked around the corner to find a set of books that caught my eye. Several were dark green and burgundy with gold trimmings. I didn’t know it at the time but these were Qurans. As soon as I saw the book I knew I needed to buy it. It felt like it was the answer to what startled me in my bed as I was lying down.

I didn’t read the Quran after I bought it; I just put it right on my shelf. It wasn’t until months later I began to delve into Islamic scriptures online and get bits of information through many Muslims that would cross my path. It was like the seed was planted when I was lying in my bed and now my mind is branching out to the Islamic community for spiritual nourishment. I knew no Muslims prior to this “awakening”. I had no Muslims friends and I most certainly knew nothing about Islam, and whatever I knew about Islam was the slanderous rhetoric from the MainStream Media (MSM). I was brought up with a Episcopalian Christian background. Went to church just about every Sunday with my mother up to about 1996. Eventually I stopped going to church, and I was really a Christian by label, but not by deed or action.

One year into my study (2003), I met Sarah (currently my wife). At the time she was in Saudi Arabia. She would send me Islamic books and Quranic text from Saudi Arabia. One of the first books I read was the The Ideal Muslim by Dr. Muhammed Ali Hashimi. This book was critical in shaping my understanding of Islam. I spent the next 4 years studying Islam, and converted to Islam on April 7th, 2007 at the Islamic Cultural Center of NY. Alhamdulliah, Sarah was one of the witnesses to my shahada, including Imam Shamsi Ali and several other witnesses.

So fast-forward to today and I’m extremely happy to be Muslim while being apart of the Islamic community. Converting to Islam was one of the smartest things I have ever done in my life. My life is so much more stable, balanced, and Islam creates the foundation for me to focus on what is important, while eliminating those things in my life that were of no benefit to me or the people around me. I’m happily married to my beautiful wife Sarah, and we have 1 beautiful son, Saud Abdul Malik Oxford, who is 18 months and growing like a bean stalk. Alhamdulliah, I have so much to be grateful for. May Allah continue to provide the wisdom, stability, and guidance that he has given to me from day one. Ameen.

I’ve been Muslim since April 2007, and I get a lot of questions about what it’s like to be a Muslim. Some of the questions are thoughtful, while others are more accusatory and xenophobic. However, with the all the media bias and misinformation taking precedence over the haqq (truth), I wanted to put this short list together for others to dig deep on what comes very natural to many Muslims around the world. I have also provided links that point to evidences on each ruling. For any learned Muslim brother or sister that can provide better links as evidences, please comment or send me a message via Facebook.

1. Men and women have to purify after going to the bathroom
Have you ever seen someone walking toward the rest room with a empty water bottle and said to yourself, “Eww, that person is going to drink water in that bathroom?”. Chances are they probably weren’t refilling to get a drink and more than likely are going to “wash up” after they go to the bathroom. Why? As Muslims, we are required to be pure and clean for prayer. Keep in mind we pray five times a day. You are praying in front of Allah, so isn’t it only right that every part of your mind, body, and soul be purified? I probably don’t have to get into the details of how this is done, but with a bit of imagination I’m sure you can figure out how water is used to purify oneself after going to the bathroom.
Evidence: Taharah (Purification)

2. We believe in Jesus..yes and Moses too.
Contrary to popular belief, Muslims believe in Isa (Jesus). As a matter of fact you cannot be a true believing Muslim if you don’t believe in Jesus as a prophet of Allah (SWT). He is one of the most well respected prophets and is mentioned many times in the Quran. As Muslims, we believe he is a prophet, just like Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was responsible for delivering the word of God via the Quran, Isa delivered the word of God via the Injeel. (the original Bible)
Evidence: Muslims Hate Jesus (a misconception)

3. Eroticism is allowed, but only with your wife or husband
That’s right, there isn’t any boyfriend or girlfriend stuff in Islam. Many people gasp when they find out this fact. However, there is strong scientific evidence that suggests (meaning no silver bullet) that having “serial” sexual relationships before building a loving bond with your significant other can emotionally compromise the future of your relationship. For about a year, I’ve been working on a 4 part “Science of Relationships” post that will give some food for thought.
Evidence: Marriage and the importance of marriage in Islam

4. There is no Islamic ruling that allows you to beat the living sunshine out of your wife
Contrary to “ignorant” belief, you cannot beat your wife or any other women you know. The first thing that usually comes out of someone’s mouth is “What about Surah 4.34? It says you can beat your wife?”. No, you must have beat your head against a wall too many times. Unfortunately, you misinterpreted the verse.
Evidence: On Beating One’s Wife

5. Men and women must lower their gaze.
As a Muslim (especially men) you are not allowed to look another women up and down unless she is your wife. Same goes for women. You can look at your husband, but not other men. In the summer time, it’s not easy because many women and men are half-naked anyway, but you do your best. I actually started wearing shades because women (even though they see I’m married) try to make eye-contact with me to flirt. I’m not talking about an innocent gaze where you are looking at your surroundings. I’m talking about a “Yo, that girl got a fatty (nice body)” (while you elbow the dude next to you). It’s disrespectful and haram (prohibited).
Evidence: Hadith of the Guarantee by Abdur Rahman

6. Most forms of Music is prohibited
This is a highly contentious topic, even among Muslims. This topic is too deep for me to elaborate in several sentences but for the sake of time, I’ll provide several links that will give you food for thought. As a person who adored hip hop like a first son, this is not an easy task for me. Over the years it’s become easier for me to let go, and I can spend time on more important matters.
Evidence: Is Music Haram (prohibited) by Dr Zakir Naik, Music in Islam prt1 by Yusef Estes, Music in Islam by Yusef Estes prt2. Here is a post I did on music called the True Cost of Music by Malik

7. Most Muslims are NOT of Arab descent
The bulk of the Muslims (roughly 52%) are actually in the South, South East, North, Central Asia part of the world. Comprising around 50% of the entire Muslim population. Indonesia, which has the larget location of Muslims in any one area has a whooping 200 million Muslims! A close second and third, is Pakistan (167 million Muslims) and India (156 million). About 17% of all Muslims are of Arab descent.

34% of Muslims in America are of African Descent (African American and African)
Although the total number of Muslims in America has varied from year to year, but many staticians put the number somewhere between 5 to 7 million Muslims total where 30% are African American and around 4% are native Africans.
Evidence: List of countries by Muslim population

8. We are not interested in interest.
For Muslims, participating in making money off of money is completely prohibited. It’s actually a grave sin. For sake of this brief post, I’m not going to get into all the details but adding on money on top of already existing loan is akin to theivery in Islam. Profit is okay, but not from interest (Ribaa). In most forms of business, all transactions have to have a shared profit. Why? The risk is balanced on each person who is taking part in a business transaction. Handling business in this manner protects both business partners.
Evidence: Part I and Part II of The Case Against Interest By Abu Ubaydah Andrew Booso. If you have extra time you can read my scathing article against interest called Casino Capitalism. | VIDEO: Interest and Islamic Banking by Bilal Philips

9. Are most African Americans Muslims members of the NOI? (Nation of Islam)
I actually get this question a lot. Are you from the Nation of Islam? The best way I can frame this would be this. Is every green plant with a stem a piece of basil? If you can’t answer this question, then I will answer it for you: No. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t African Americans who are still members of the NOI. The majority of African Americans Muslims are not affiiated with NOI.
Evidence: Wiki: Nation of Islam

10. Jihad and Allah u Akbar does not mean I want to KILL you
Uh oh, did someone say the word “Jihad” and “Allah u Akbar”? Unfortunately the media has miscontrued the true meaning of the word “Jihad” and “Allah U Akbar” and most people have associated it with some type of code word for Islamic terrorism. Jihad is the Arabic word for struggle. A good Muslim friend of mine has the name Jihad. For Muslims, Jihad is to struggle to do the just and righteous things for the sake of Allah. This dedication to do what is required of you as a Muslim is our Jihad. Allah u Akbar means God is Great. Not “Let’s kill people” or “lets blow ourselves up”. During any 1 of our 5 daily prayes, “Allah U Akbar” is mentioned at least a dozen times. It’s very common word in Islam and merely reinforcing the greatness and beauty of Allah.
Evidence: VIDEO: Islam and Terrorism | What is Jihad? by Brian Handwerk

11. We get up before the roosters.
As I said earlier Muslims pray 5 times a day. One of the prayers is known as the morning prayer, Fajr. Fajr is supposed to be prayed before the light of sunrise hits the sky. I’ll be honest, it’s not the easiest prayer to catch, but when you do, the feeling is amazing. My day actually starts off better when ever I make Fajr on time. I’m actually utilizing this Ramadan to be better at catching Fajr on time, Inshallah (God willing)
Evidence: VIDEO: Importance of Fajr Prayer. This video is pretty long, but here is a shorter description that explains the Fajr prayer.

12. My ribs are touching
Yes if you ask any Muslim, their ribs will definitely be touching as Ramadan has just begun. Once a year, Muslims fast for one month. Known as Ramadan, we fast from sunrise to sunset. We are allowed a meal (suhoor) before the morning prayer (Fajr), then we break our fast with a meal (fatoor) at sunset at the beginning of the evening prayer (Maghrib). During this month, Muslims reflect on the greatness of Allah, ways that we can improve ourselves within the guidelines of Islam, and do our best to carry out good deeds that will postively benefit society. It’s also a time to reflect on the poor and sometimes forgotten souls of society. (which we should do all the time) Keep in mind that there are hundreds of millions of people around the world who are not as fortunate as ourselves (those of us who have the comforts of food, clothing, and shelter) and it is our duty as Muslims to help those who need assistance and guidance. At least 80% of the world live on less than $10 dollars a day. In addition most Muslim use this opportunity to fulfill one of the obligatory pillars of Islam, Zakat. Every Muslim (who has the means) is obligated to give at least 2.5% of their wealth (minus your debts) to the poor every year.
Evidence: What Are You Required To Do During Ramadan?

13. Sharia Law Does Not Mean “Get Rid of Non-Muslims, Chop Peoples Arms off or Enslave non-muslims”.
I’ve specifically added this new addition to this list because I keep hearing the “alarm bell” go off in this country from certain groups who believe that Sharia Law is the Islamic version of Mein Kampf or it some fringe set of laws that only the likes of religious extremist love. No. No. No. No. I was recently reminded of this ignorance by an interview where Herman Cain felt that Americans have the right to ban mosques because JUST Muslims are violating the constitution with their institution of Sharia Law. A couple things:

1. Herman Cain and anyone else who believes this garbage does not understand the 1st Amendent
2. Muslims are not interested in some national Americana Sharia Law initiative. How do I know? Because I’m Muslim and I talk with Muslims every day. This isn’t some type of bate and switch initiative. We build Mosques to pray, not take over the world.
3. If Herman Cain and others actually believe that other faiths do not intermingle their faith in public places (not that I have a problem with this), then he is either naive, playing politics (likely), or just scapegoating Islam (playing the xenophobic card).

Evidence: The Myth of Sharia Law in America | CFR: Governing Under Sharia Law | BOOK: Islam and the Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Shari`a by Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na`im

Photo is by “Heart Throb Tawd”

What Not to Write: More on Bad Veil Headlines
http://muslimahmediawatch.org/2010/07/what-not-to-write-more-on-bad-veil-headlines/

The above article from Muslimah Mediawatch is by far one of the most accurate descriptions of the often misunderstood purpose of the hijab (known to many as “the veil”). Never have I seen such a piece of fabric become such a point of political bias, ideological conjecture and pontification.


Conclusion:
Mind your damn business—women who choose to wear the hijab are not oppressed and juxtaposing independence with the “oppresive” veil (as if they are complete opposites) is by far one of the biggest narrative fallacies out there.

In the wake of the new maniac and psychopath of the month (i.e Joseph Stack who did a homicide-suicide plane crash into I.R.S. building in a failed attempt to kill hundreds to Faisal Shahzad failed Times Square bombing that could of maimed/killed hundreds, maybe even thousands) who in some twisted sense of righteousness believe that killing innocent civilians equates to some deed of salvation or proper retribution for past misgivings. These characters are some of the more obvious examples. The definition of terrorism is the following:

terrorism, act of terrorism, terrorist act (the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear)

Here is my open letter to “The Terrorists”, current and aspiring psychopaths and cowards who might not have thought they “fit the profile”.

Dear Terrorists,(but not limited to)

The “loose cannon” who claim they are Muslim and follow the Quran and Hadiths in Islam who like to blow themselves up (and others) thinking (Allahhualim) that they are going to see Jenna (Heaven). You better go back to the deen of Al-Islam (if you haven’t already blown yourself up) and re-study because your eyes, ears and hearts are sealed with wickedness and the shaytan.
That’s violent terrorism.

Police officers and those in authority in the justice system who beat down and kill civilians mercilessly because you think they are expendable. You have the disease of cognitive dissonance towards those that you’ve concluded have an “otherness” about them which does not fit into your own cultural matrix.
That’s enforcement terrorism. (not to mention xenophobic and prejudice)

The executives and investment houses/banks/firms sitting in their ivory tower embezzling tens of millions and creating questionable investment instruments (money schemes) while undermining the integrity of the financial system. Impoverishing tens of millions for your own selfish benefit.
That’s financial terrorism.

For the murderers and killers who worship gang violence while killing people in your own community including innocent women and children because you want a quick drug profit.
That’s social and urban terrorism.

Those in the halls of Congress (politicians and law makers at the state and federal level) that play up people’s worst fears to usurp power and mislead your constituents with a divide and conquer strategy. Laying in bed with lobbyists and playing both sides of the political coin for your own one dimensional power grab.
That’s political and institutional terrorism.

For the country that goes into other countries claiming (lying) that another country has WMDs (Weapons of Mass Destruction) because so-called intelligent organizations with fancy acronyms “certified the facts” with a faulty threat matrix then mercliessly kills over 150,000 plus innocent civilians (45 9/11s) for almost 10 years while injuring millions then arrogantly occupies the same country creating more violence and misery for the citizens. Or any country that uses occupation as a foundation for foreign policy.
That’s sovereign terrorism.

For the governments and related banks that are in cahoots with one another who indulge in “too big to fail” bailouts and print money like it grows on trees while causing inflation and devaluing the dollar. Not to mention the draconian practice of fractional reserve banking and usury which buries people under so much interest that they are financially impotent.
That’s economic terrorism.

For the racist bigot (and many don’t even know they are and will read this and say, “Oh that’s definitely not me”….well not so fast, it might be you) individual that foolishly claims to believe in God but sympathies with their ethnic, racial, or tribal identity over the inclusive and humanitarian guidelines of all monotheistic ways of life. Now called religion. 
You are a ethnocentric terrorist. (Not to mention a hypocrite)

For the so-called news organizations that are muliti-milllon dollar partisan hack misinformation “non-thinking” tanks that spew misleading, demeaning, information and purposely confuse the public with empty politically inspired anecdotes and regurgitate sound bites from their corporate/ political slave masters.
That’s information terrorism.

If there was anyone who thought any one group of people have cornered the market on “terrorism”, you have not done your homework.

“He who kills a person without (the latter) having killed another person, it is as if he has killed all of humanity, and he who makes one person survive, it is as if he has caused all humanity to survive” – (32,5) – Quran

A friend of mine asked me about this and I’m sure there are others. I just want to be clear. Although I agree that this South Park episode is disrespective to the faith of Islam and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), people in America are given the right to say whatever they want. If we were in an Islamic country, they could say it but there would be consequences. And when I say consequences I’m not talking about death.

The “they should be killed” reaction from a handful of Muslim extremist do not speak for the billions of Muslims and should be viewed with caution. What I do find interesting is these same Muslims are quiet when Isa (Jesus) is ridiculed, and probably more ridiculed via entertainment than any prophet. We have just as much love for Prophet Isa so where is the love there? I find this selective rage…well..lets just say interesting. The fact that a handful of Muslims believe they have the right to selectively murder individuals on site is disturbing.

It would be nice for the MSM (Main Stream Media) to be balanced in their reporting on Muslim matters of various opinions. When Muslims are volunteering and doing good deeds, it’s seldom reported. I could care less what some writer wants to write and so do a lot of my brothers and sisters in Islam. I work with with 3 Muslims at work, a Muslim at the security desk of my building, and been attending prayer congregations at the Masjid since this has gone down, and no one has said a thing. No outrage. No one calling for the death of Trey Parker and Matt Stone. This issue is like a pin in the universe when it comes to matters in the Islamic community.

And when you see the word “Fatwa“, it’s just an opinion, albeit a significant opinion. There is nothing deadly about the word. It just a religious opinion concerning Islamic law. A fatwa is not a small matter and requires a thorough and satisfactory review from respected religious scholars from the Ulema (Muslim scholars trained in Islam and Islamic law). At this present moment I have not heard approval of the fatwa issued by the Revolution Muslims. Also keep in mind that not anyone can issue a fatwa which has global implications.

So in the future when you see this flair up from a micro-set of a particular community, you can refer to this post. Of course you’ll have some people who are more vocal and a bit more animated about this issue, but lets be objective folks. I want to be clear. I do believe that the issue is disrespectful, but I don’t agree with the response from this small group of Muslims. A better approach is to issue a respectful open letter to Trey Parker and Matt Stone explaining why this act is disrespectful. Not that things would change anyway (Allahualim), but the pen is mightier than the sword.

The ink of the scholar is more holy than the blood of the martyr.” Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

1. Part I: Renting vs Buying a home
2. Part II: Why Can’t I Make Ends Meet?
   (How I found the Austrian School of Economics)
3. Part III: Saving Money vs Serfdom
4. Part IV: Casino Capitalism

Shout out to Br. Halit for giving me the title for this post, originally titled The Case for NO Interest. I am no Islamic scholar or fancy economist. I’m a student of Islam and life. Although I don’t have the vast econ-textbook knowledge like many official economist, by the good graces of Allah, I do have common sense and a pragmatic mind. With all the thousands of economist around the world, only a few of them had the insight to foresee the recent 2008 financial crisis, not to mention past crises. Doesn’t mean that we don’t need economists, but I see a lot rear-view/hindsight economists out there. I wrote this post due to my interest, no pun intended, in understanding the Islamic law regarding the prohibition of Riba (interest). Many of the themes of this post are related to Islam. If you have a problem with that and topics that have to do with Allah (God) make you too uncomfortable, then you should go here:

Table of Contents

1. Allah’s (God) ruling on Interest
2. I’m NOT Interested
3. Economic Sophistry
4. A Fair Alternative to Interest
5. Conclusion

Allah’s (God) ruling on Interest

The purpose of this post is a conversational starter on the questionable merits of interest. In addition I’m doing a bit of education here for non-Muslims because they ask me question after question after I tell them that interest is prohibited in Islam. I will address some of their questions in this post. Regardless of your way of life, clearly there is room for discussion on abolishing interest based transactions. From an Islamic perspective, Riba (Interest) is prohibited. Taking interest or charging interest is prohibited. A transaction can be prohibited by adding money on top of money (giving or taking) or by overpricing assets that are sold to the public. In Islam, every financial action should be just. You can profit, but not at the gross expense of others. The whole point of Islamic finance is to create a proper balance between the basic needs of society and the profitability of those business transactions that impact that society. In today’s world of secular based ideology, a person in power can justify any act through legal sophistry, even if the act undermines the person and the surrounding community. In Islam, you don’t “Rob Peter to Pay Paul“, then wrap an act or law in some fancy legalese, while ignoring the financial imbalances and “moral hazard” that is inserted into the economic system.

In my view, this is the root of the problem. As long as their are lawyers, financiers, investors, and government regulators that can justify questionable financial acts with legal and economic sophistry, we could have continued systemic problems. It’s not just Islam that prohibits usury (interest), but every monotheistic religion has prohibited usury. Over time, with re-writing and revisions of theological law, the use of usury has been used as an acceptable mechanism for profit. Allah knows best, but I do believe that interest is 1 head of a 5 headed demon of what is wrong with the economy. In addition to interest, clearly we are suffering from a ethical problem, financial illiteracy problem, debt burden problem, regulatory reform problem and definitely a hubris problem.

I’m NOT interested

When I get into discussions on economics and Islam, while making it clear that Islam does NOT allow interest based transactions, many people ask “Well how do you make any money in Islam?”. That would be like me saying “Hey I don’t drink alcohol”. Then they ask me, “Well how do you quench your thirst”?

I find it strange that the same people who say “Hey, let the free and fair market take it’s due course”, are the same people that aren’t as excited to deal with the burden of all that “free market” activity when the economy collapses. I like to call these people “Fair Weather Market/Economy Capitalists”. All the interest in the world couldn’t even save two major investment firms in 2008, Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers. What about AIG? Those are just the more recent victims and had other firms not been bailed out, many more would have gone under. Remember Long Term Capital Management in the 1990s? I thought interest was supposed to account for risk over time? Uh, what happened?

What is so interesting is if you talk to the so-called “interest specialists” about interest they will give you some economic sophistry on how interest is needed for true capitalism or interest is not responsible for our economic missteps. Being that interest is so tightly coupled to our economy how could anyone believe that interest isn’t part of the problem when many of the 140 financial crises we’ve had since 1978 had to do with debt or interest rates. Many times they will quote me some “classical theory of interest-esque or time preference theory” response or something similar to the Wiki definition below:

Definition

Compound interest is very similar to simple interest; however, with time, the difference becomes considerably larger. This difference is because unpaid interest is added to the balance due. Put another way, the borrower is charged interest on previous interest.

Did you folks just get what I just typed? Lets also keep in mind that these are “THEORIES“, not laws. Charging interest on previous interest. And this is what we call an equitable transaction? Says who? The gatekeepers of the economy? Or I should earn a return on money that I have not earned? I guess the supermarket should charge me double the “regular” price of milk because they built the supermarket, bought the trucks to deliver the milk, hired people to put the milk on the shelves, etc.

The typical response:

You see that’s how it works. It’s absurd to think that someone shouldn’t pay for money over time. Look, the consensus is clear, we smart people say so, and we have the theories (not laws) and dusty economic books to prove that interest is needed for capital markets, so get over it. Don’t let me quote Jeremy Bentham.

Absurd huh? I guess as long as we are using text book definitions, here is the text book definition of alcohol (Ethanol):

Any of a series of hydroxyl compounds, the simplest of which are derived from saturated hydrocarbons, have the general formula CnH2n+1OH, and include ethanol and methanol.

“Of course, there is nothing in that definition that seems harmful, right?” Just a bunch of hydroxyls and hydrocarbon atoms doing the bounding “two step”.

Lets just ignore the amount of murders, car accidents,alcoholism, addiction, rapes, drug abuse, broken families, bankruptcies, domestic violence, financial cost to the health care system, human cost to livelihood, brain damage, etc that this psychoactive drug contributes to and all is well. Nothing but a lipstick on a pig. As long as we dress it up with sophisticated language and words that only phds and so called “economists” can understand, we should be happy to deal with interest in the economy.

Economic Sophistry

What is even more perplexing, is you’ll have pro-interest individuals stating, “Hey, without interest we wouldn’t have the proper growth in the global economy” Really? Do these individuals realize how many times governments and monarchies around the world since the French Revolution have literally printed themselves out of an economic crisis (yes printing money out of thin air) while debasing the currency and sending inflation through the roof? [See A Free Nation Deep in Debt by James McDonald] Is this what free and fair market is? Whenever I get into deep trouble just print more money to fix the problem and still call the system a free and fair market? Fractional Reserve banking? We arbitrarily choose who the winners and losers (bailouts) are in the economy and then call it a “free and fair” market? Is this not hubris?

I’m curious what the economies around the world would look like if money wasn’t printed out of thin air to “fix” the economy? Oh, no problem, well just have deficits that we will never ever pay back. Can you imagine an American citizen telling the IRS, “Oh hey don’t worry about my debt, that is just a deficit and I’ll just carry it over for the remainder of my life while printing up money from my house to pay for new bills. See, I fixed the problem”. And this is what they call a “free and fair” market? With that being said I am not for the printing of money because this is just another form of interest, not to mention it is a economically flawed approach to monetary policy. With all the interest that is being charged, none of it was enough to account for risk over time. The current crisis is yet another indicator that the same Wall Street titans that profit off of interest based financial instruments are nothing but “welfare” corporations who got done in by the same interest they charged. In fancy econ-world talk they call this “over-leveraged”. This is just another word for “Hey I can’t pay this loan back with interest”. Every major bank/investment firm was almost insolvent, if not insolvent in 2008. You name it, Citibank, Lehman, UBS etc, and some banks like Washington Mutual have been banished to bankruptcy land, never to be seen again.

As Nassim Taleb states in Black Swan regarding the Savings and Loan Crisis:

The same happened in 1983 with money center banks losing cumulatively every penny ever made, and in 1991-1992 when the Savings and Loans industry became history.

Take a look at the “free and fair” market looks like with bailout after bailout since the 1970s:
http://www.propublica.org/special/government-bailouts

So what happened banks and investment firms? Wasn’t interest and your high returning investments supposed to dig you out of the hole when financial disruptions strike? Apparently not. So if interest is not even a mechanism that can properly account for risk over time, then why are we doing it in the first place? Don’t be fooled by the fancy language, “Re-capitalize” is just another fancy word for “Corporate Wic Check”. Instead of food, the tax payers are buying toxic assets. I would use the term “buying” lightly. “Off-Balance Sheet” has now become another word for “hiding risky assets that I know would completely deteriorate my companies net worth and possibly make my company insolvent”.

Fictitious Banker Convo:

Banker: Uh Mr. Oxford I noticed that you had 40K in credit card debt. I think this is going to be a problem with getting you that loan.
Me: Oh no problem, you see you actually weren’t supposed to see that. I have this thing called “off balanced sheet” which hides that 40K debt so my balance sheet looks better than it is.
Banker: Hmm, okay that makes sense, why would I want to get an accurate representation of the risk. That just preposterous. Ha ha ha (laughs nervously)
Me: Exactly, I kind of felt the same way, so can I get a “do over”?
Banker: Sure. You are approved.

The stalwart supporters of this farce economy are like the following story:
Let’s say a bunch of engineers (Bankers and Investment Firms) create a recycling water cleansing system (RWCS). They say that as long as you have 800,000 liters of water (cash) in the system, the system can maintain itself. Whatever run off (bad investments) and natural evaporation (risk) that happens will be replenished by natural rain fall (interest and fractional reserve banking) and the efficiency of the system extracting more water out of the system (profitable investments). Then over time, instead of 800,000 plus liters of water in the system, the amount decreases by 50,000 liters every 3 months. By year 3 the water system is struggling with only 200,000 liters. Even with natural rain fall subsidizing the system, they still can’t cut it. Now instead of admitting that the recycling water cleansing system is not working, the engineers siphon water from the Atlantic Ocean (Bailouts and printed money) into the RWCS to artificially bring back the system up to 800,000 liters of water while patting themselves on the back and stating “Hey look, our system works. All we need is the occasional water subsidy and we are in business”.

What a sad state of affairs. Are we so blind?

A Fair Alternative to Interest

Some might read this and think I’m some wacko dogmatic socialist. As if creating a profit mechanism that is an alternative to interest based profit makes you a socialist. Ha! I’m no “Capitalist” which means my motivation in life is not just profit. When I do business, I’m for making a profit but not at the expense of what Allah has intelligently decreed for society at large. In addition, equality and being just is more important than mere profit, and it’s not like that ideology has served ALL of society well, considering the current circumstances. A title I’ll steal from John Kim which is a Capital Anarchy. This is what we are dealing with in the 21st century. Many people outside of Islam might believe that people who believe in following the guidelines of Quran and the Shariah of Allah (SWT) are bunch of mindless drones that don’t actually reflect and ponder on those same rulings with proper intellect. This is far from the truth. When I found out that usury (interest) was prohibited in Islam, I spent a substantial amount of time researching the law and the mathematics behind the prohibition. Not to mention, that are many Islamic scholars who can elaborate even beyond my amateur approach to explains Riba and it’s consequences to the global economy. If you are interested in thinking outside of the box, hit me up on Facebook and I’ll give you the sources. There are some sources below too.

As I said earlier, there are lawful ways to profit that don’t involve interest. I’ll use the example of buying a house, which is a business transaction that most people can relate to. I touched on the Islamic Financing option in my the First Part of Economics Made Simple Renting vs Buying a Home.

As you can see the transaction is a equitable one that balances the risk. Each party owns their fair share of the investment, which brings me to my next point of Profit-Sharing also know as Mudarabah. You can read about more Islamic Financing options from here. There over 8 different options and all of these options cover various financing needs, whether a line of credit is needed, financing of large purchase items like a house, etc.

I don’t see how one of the main approaches from various venture capital firms is something that cannot be utilized in more areas of finance. If profit sharing was so inefficient why do multi-million dollar VC companies exist? Why don’t they charge interest on the money they lent you? It’s simple, what ever you put in is what ever you get out of the investment. If you own 25% of the investment you get 25% of the ROI (Return on Investment). If you own 66.6823% of the investment you get 66.6823% of the ROI. What is also very beneficial with this model is it allows people with smaller amounts of liquidity to get in on the ground floor of a particular investment. Very similar to how a fractional shares work.

Check this out:
Just imagine that a supermarket wanted to move into your neighborhood. Instead of going to a bank with interest, the locals of the community can become investors too. So the total start-up cost for the supermarket, let’s call it GroceryMart, Inc need 20 million dollars. The company has the first 10 million. So they go to an Islamic bank for the 7 million and that Bank now own 35% and the rest of the 3 million is financed by the local community giving them 15% of the business. If anyone wants to offload their shares, you find another buyer or negotiate with GroceryMart.

As income streams into the business, money is equally distributed based on the percentage of ownership or other contractually negotiated payment schedule. In the contract it is stipulated that at any point in time GroceryMart can put in a bid to buy out shares of the other share holders. No different than when a company on the stock market buys back shares. Now what is great about this scenario is the risk is evenly distributed. If the business does well, we all do well and if the business does bad we all do bad. Although I mentioned the stock market example, none of these shares can be traded or bid up in price. The only way the values of the shares go up, is if the company brings in more income.

There are couple things that are accomplished with this one tactic of Islamic Finance:

1. Risk is evenly distributed based on how much you put into the business
2. There is no compounding interest that is exponentially accruing on one side of the business transaction.
3. This will actually allow people who don’t have a lot of disposable income to become investors. No different than buying fractional shares. This will greatly contribute in upping the financial literacy of the community and create a starting point for non-wealthy individuals to invest in simple straight forward businesses.
4. No more winner take all.
5. No distortion of assets from speculation and interest. Because there is no interest we don’t have wild swings in asset valuations running away from the actual value of the asset. (Very similar to what happened to the housing market in 2008)

Now some may argue that this methodology is crude or inflexible and might not maximize the highest potential for profitability. I would ask, in comparison to what? To the current so-called “free and fair” market that gets the luxury of being bailed out with printed money out of thin air whenever an economic financial crisis happens? Since the 1900s we have never had a market that did NOT have the luxury of being bailed out. In just about every instance there was never enough interest earned to properly cover the inherent risk over time. So not only do the banks and investment houses get the luxury of charging interest which is supposed to account for risk over time, but when their risked based models fail miserably the tax-payers have to bail them out. If this is a “free and fair” market, then maybe we should go back to sharecropping because this is no different.

Conclusion

I would like to reiterate that this post is a conversational starter. I would like for pro-interest individuals to watch the movie Life and Debt, or read the history of how IMF and World Bank policies have “benefited” the countries that they have done business with, or read about PayDay loans, or the 1978 Marquette Decision, or The History of the Credit Card by Frontline or any financial crisis that has happened since the 1900s. In every circumstance interest was involved which distorted the true value of assets in the market or the interest rate that banks were charging were incorrectly pegged against the assets that they were holding. In many instances, the wealth was completely wiped out be taking on loans with interest. Also keep in mind if we had let the “free and fair market’ play out, there would be way more companies going under. What we are seeing today is a fraction of bank failures due to this fiat currency/interest/fractional reserve based system artificially propping up the system.

Some might argue about savings and not getting interest. In today’s fiat based economy a dollar today is not a dollar tomorrow. The amazing part is no one every asks the big word..Why? Well, if I’m a government and I keep printing money out of thin air and dumping it all over the economy, that’s is going to lead to inflation and that milk, beans, bread or whatever is going to keep going up in price. Reserve banking (not fractional reserve banking) and stopping the demonic practice of printing money out of thin air would dramatically help in keeping prices tame. There is no reason why prices shouldn’t go down if there is not enough savings and resources in the global economy to buy everything. It’s almost impossible to know what the true price is of anything because of all this tinkering with the money supply.

In addition to this, how on earth can we trust a practice that financially punishes the most vulnerable people on the planet with higher rates of interest? Is that just? To add insult to injury now these “Credit Card Banksters” want to charge annual fees on credit cards users who don’t use their card as revolvers. What type of nonsense is this? Should we just continue this practice because the so-called financial specialist in their ivory towers say so? I would also ask those same individuals that claim to adhere to any one of the monotheistic religions to re-read their religious doctrine and put the use of usury under a microscope.

Here are some links to get you started

Bible: Kings James Bible on Usury
Torah: Judaic Ruling on Usury
Quran: Quranic Ruling on Interest

Profit sharing is class independent. It’s fair, transparent and easy to implement. With true profit-sharing, there is no distortion of the money supply (whether through interest or printing money out of thin air). For the most part, every dollar can be accounted for.

Even Warrent Buffet had to admit the following:

But Mr Buffett argues that such highly complex financial instruments are time bombs and “financial weapons of mass destruction” that could harm not only their buyers and sellers, but the whole economic system.

He gave this warning in 2003.

How much financial carnage do we have to see to understand that interest distorts markets? Are we not tired of being thrown around like a rag doll in the economy by the so-called “financial czars” and “phd interest specialists” who act like they are the gate keepers of this economy? Do you actually feel like this market is fair or you actually feel that you have economic freedom in such a distorted market?

God willing, the root to proper economic prosperity is transparency, financial equality (ethical capitalism), efficient production, fair competition which is underscored by socially responsible driven economy. These 5 principles should underscore our financial decisions and destroy the 5 demons of the economy I mentioned earlier. Not speculation, wild gyration in interest rates, and corrupt laws that protect corporate malfeasance.

If you are going to live and die by the gun of “Russian Roulette” interest, I find it quite hypocritical for the same individuals to expect the bailout ambulances to come running to their rescue.

I refuse to sit as a back seat driver and go for the ride with “financial legalese that justifies interest, which no one can understand” driving and “economic sophistry” riding shot-gun. It’s time to pull over and get out the late model White Ivory Tower EX Edition sedan.

• Why Greece Matters
  http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2010/02/podcast_yes_greece_could_defau.html
• Warning Against Riba Transactions
  http://abdurrahman.org/economics/ribaIbnBaz.doc
• Foreclosures Are More Profitable Than Loan Modifications, According To New Report
  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/21/perverse-incentives-lead_n_328378.html
• How massive student loan debts are sinking American dreams and causing a national economic headache.
  http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/525/index.html
• Nassim Taleb
  http://rs.resalliance.org/2008/09/17/financial-resilience-taleb-and-mandelbrot-reflect-on-crisis/