On the one hand, we have Douglas Farah at the Counterterrorism Blog:
Little noticed in the discussion of the Pakistan/Afghanistan Taliban issues are the points raised recently by Gen. David Petraeus about the continued use of charities and other external support for the radical Islamist group.
While there has been considerable attention paid to the revenue generated from opium trafficking in the Taliban's financial structure, little has been relatively little attention paid to the continuing role of charities in skimming off money that benefits the Taliban and others.
"You have funds generated locally, funds that come in from the outside, and funds that come from the illegal narcotics business," he said. "It's a hotly debated topic as to which is the most significant and it may be that they are all roughly around the same level."
Gen. Petraeus estimated that the Taliban raise a total of "hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars" each year from the three sources, and said the U.S. doesn't have precise figures.
Charities, as we learned right after 9/11 are not only valuable for the money they can raise and distribute virtually undetected, but for the identification cards and travel facilities they offer radical operatives to move around with official cover.
(This was shown by both the Benevolence International trial and the recent Holy Land Foundation trial, where principals received stiff sentences because of their charitable support for Hamas.)
And on the other hand, we have the Omerican President, speaking in Cairo:
"Freedom of religion is central to the ability of peoples to live together. We must always examine the ways in which we protect it. For instance, in the United States, rules on charitable giving have made it harder for Muslims to fulfill their religious obligation. That is why I am committed to working with American Muslims to ensure that they can fulfill zakat."
Encyclopaedia Britannica defines zakat as:
an obligatory tax required of Muslims, one of the five Pillars of Islam. The zakat is levied on five categories of property—food grains; fruit; camels, cattle, sheep, and goats; gold and silver; and movable goods—and is payable each year after one year’s possession.
The tax levy required by religious law varies with the category. Recipients of the zakat include the poor and needy, the collectors themselves, and “those whose hearts it is necessary to conciliate”—e.g., discordant tribesmen, debtors, volunteers in jihad (holy war), and pilgrims.
The five Pillars of Islam are
1. Faith (iman) in the oneness of Allah and the finality of the prophethood of Muhammad (indicated by the declaration [the Shahadah] that, "There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah").
2. Keeping of the five scheduled daily prayers (salah).
3. Almsgiving (zakat).
4. Fasting (sawm).
5. Pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca for those who are able.
I don't want to get too complicated, but it's complicated! According to Wikipedia, these five practices are essential to Sunni Islam, whereas Shi'a Muslims "subscribe to eight ritual practices which substantially overlap with the five Pillars."
And then there's the Shi'a "Twelvers" (who knew?) who have five "fundamental beliefs."
According to Shia Twelvers doctrine, what is referred to as pillars by Sunni Islam are called the practices or secondary principles... The first is jihad, which is also important to the Sunni, but not considered a pillar....
Shi'a Ismaili Seven Pillars of Islam... have three doctrines that are not included in the Sunni Five Pillars of Islam: Walayah, Taharah and Jihad.
I'm sure it's just a coincidence that The Won occasionally speaks of "five pillars" here in Omerica. In March, in his speech to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Obama proposed "five pillars" of education reform.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Thank you. (Applause.) Si se puede.
AUDIENCE: Si se puede! Si se puede! Si se puede!
And in April he proposed another "five pillars" for the economy; you'll no doubt remember it as the highly celebrated "House Upon a Rock" speech:
We cannot rebuild this economy on the same pile of sand. We must build our house upon a rock. We must lay a new foundation for growth and prosperity -- a foundation that will move us from an era of borrow and spend to one where we save and invest; where we consume less at home and send more exports abroad.
It's a foundation built upon five pillars that will grow our economy and make this new century another American century:
- Number one, new rules for Wall Street that will reward drive and innovation, not reckless risk-taking -- (applause);
- number two, new investments in education that will make our workforce more skilled and competitive -- (applause);
- number three, new investments in renewable energy and technology that will create new jobs and new industries -- (applause);
- number four, new investments in health care that will cut costs for families and businesses [what? no applause?]; and
- number five, new savings in our federal budget that will bring down the debt for future generations. (Applause.)
That's the new foundation we must build. That's our house built upon a rock. That must be our future -- and my administration's policies are designed to achieve that future.
Let's be clear as mud. Obama's mentioning "five pillars" has nothing to do with Islam, even if he does recite the Islamic call to prayer with a "first rate accent" and finds the story of Isra significant. The fact that his middle name is Hussein doesn't matter in the least, especially not to the Arab street Muslim World, which he has addressed only twice since his ascension... not counting his first formal TV interview as president, his first presidential phone call, or that video-message to the Islamic Republic of Iran. His bowing to the Saudi King... er, The Custodian of the Two Mosques... was not a sign of fealty; he was probably just looking for one of his contact lenses.
Plus, when Victor Davis Hanson says that Obama is "the most anti-Israeli President since the founding of the Jewish state," you don't have to listen; you can close your eyes and cover your ears. That has nothing to do with anything, anyway, or else it would be in the Bible New York Times. We all know that in 20 years, Obama never heard Reverend Wright's anti-Israel sermons. And though he wants the discussions at Mona and Rashid Khalidi's dinner table to extend around the world, this only shows how inclusive he is, to tolerate the aspirations of terrorists too. And we all say: Wow.
And for all you radical right wing "birthers" out there,
Forget the birth certificate ... look for the plaque!
I'm sure there's a plaque on a hospital wall somewhere in Hawaii that claims that The First African American President of the United States of America was born there.
George Washington Birthplace National Monument, 1732 Popes Creek Road, Washington's Birthplace, VA 22443
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born... at "Springwood," his family’s estate at Hyde Park, in Dutchess County, New York.
This house, the Richard Nixon Birthplace, is where Richard Milhous Nixon was born - in Yorba Linda, California in 1913. It is a National Historic Landmark.
If would like to know where the National Historic commemoration of Pres. Obama's birthplace will be, two of the top choices are the Queen's Medical Center in Honolulu (which is his claim) or the Kapi'olani Medical Center (assserted by his sister). I don't think the Mombasa Coastal Hospital in Kenya has a chance -- do you?
Hopefully, one day Dr. Chiyome Fukino may be legally able to divulge, not only that she has seen Obama's birth certificate, but the details of of what she saw. You know, what it says. About where he was born.
In the meantime, keep looking for that plaque. Surely The Won's devotees will want a plaque, a place, a gift shop, an historic destination for their pilgrimage... by way of a luxurious tropical vacation...
Surely they will.
At left, Invesco Field at Mile High Stadium in Denver August '08. At right, the White House some months later.
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