Category Archives: Islam

Poligami dan Keadilan

Sebetulnya saya segan membahas topik ini, karena kalau menilik kasus mas Puji dimana postingnya jadi dipenuhi komentar-komentar yang marah (padahal postingnya sendiri sama sekali tidak kontraversial), ada kemungkinan itu akan terjadi juga. Tapi di lain pihak, ini adalah kesempatan untuk memperkenalkan rasionalitas / objektifitas dalam melihat suatu hal; sehingga kita dapat melihat sesuatu tersebut dengan lebih adil.
Jadi, saya pakai dulu baju tahan api saya… ok, mari kita mulai.

Fakta : poligami halal dalam Islam.
Syarat: harus berusaha dengan segenap kemampuannya agar berlaku adil. Fakta : Allah swt menilai usaha kita, bukan hasil.

Fakta : Zina / selingkuh haram dalam Islam.

Nah berbagai faktanya sudah dibeberkan, sekarang kita coba lihat masalahnya dengan lebih jelas.

Inti dari keributan seputar poligami Aa Gym sebetulnya adalah karena kurangnya konteks. Padahal, seperti yang telah saya bahas sebelumnya, ketika konteks diketahui, maka persepsi kita mengenai suatu hal bisa langsung berbalik sampai 180 derajat.

Dalam kasus Aa Gym, konteksnya sama sekali tidak diketahui.
Mengapa Aa menikah lagi ? Di media massa, sejauh yang saya pantau, tidak ada di beberkan. Dan kebanyakan kita juga tidak bisa menanyakannya langsung kepada beliau.

Pada kasus seperti ini, umat Islam diperintahkan untuk berprasangka baik dengan tetap waspada.

Namun tekanan untuk berprasangka buruk tentu sangat besar, apalagi ketika didorong oleh emosi yang memuncak. Karena itu, alih-alih berprasangka baik; yang muncul seringkali adalah berbagai asumsi (anggapan, yang tentu saja belum tentu benar), yang kemudian memicu timbulnya prasangka buruk.
Beberapa contoh:

Anda tidak lebih dari seorang laki laki yang tidak sanggup menahan nafsu birahi.

Bagaimana komentator yang bersangkutan tahu bahwa alasan pernikahan tersebut adalah karena nafsu birahi ? Apakah kini sudah ada orang yang mampu membaca pikiran orang lainnya ? 🙂

Ketenaran dan uang ternyata membutakan mata anda. Sehingga anda rela memutar balikkan image masyarakat terhadap anda selama ini.

Asumsi: Aa Gym telah terbutakan oleh ketenaran dan uang.
Prasangka buruk: karena inilah dia menikah lagi.

Dalam berbagai kasus seperti ini, media massa juga tidak banyak membantu. Kadang karena keterbatasan ruang artikel, maka berita hanya ditulis sepotong-sepotong saja, tanpa ada penjelasan mengenai konteksnya secara utuh. Atau di lain waktu malah sengaja konteksnya memang dihilangkan, sehingga menjadi kontroversi (sehingga koran/majalahnya menjadi laku).

Disini pentingnya ajaran Tabayun di dalam Islam, istilah gaulnya, cek and ricek. Ketika ada suatu kabar, dikonfirmasi kembali langsung kepada yang bersangkutan.

Jadi kalau kita merasa sangat ingin untuk menghakimi Aa, jangan lupa untuk tabayun dulu.
Kalau tidak, sebaiknya kita berprasangka baik agar selamat.

Lantas apakah ini berarti bahwa saya pro poligami ? Apakah saya akan berencana untuk menikah lagi ?

Saya pribadi tidak ada rencana ini karena terutama berkaitan dengan soal tanggung jawab – pernikahan adalah sebuah tanggung jawab yang sangat besar. Sedikit selingan – yang saya agak kaget, ternyata justru orang Barat yang banyak paham mengenai hal ini daripada berbagai rekan saya yang Muslim; banyak mereka yang tidak mau menikah karena mengaku tidak sanggup dengan tanggung jawabnya.
Sedangkan beberapa kawan saya yang Muslim menikah dan kemudian ada beberapa yang tidak mau bertanggung jawab – suami tidak mau menjadi pengayom dan manajer yang baik, dan/atau istri tidak mau menjadi manajer rumah tangga yang baik dan mematuhi perintah atasannya.

Karena menikah adalah sunnah Nabi saw dan telah diperintahkan, maka saya pun menikah. Dan saya berusaha menjalankan kewajiban ini dengan sebaik-baiknya. Namun kalau disuruh tambah lagi, aduh kok rasanya saya tidak sanggup 🙂
Demikianlah lemahnya saya.

Anyway, sebetulnya kita bisa menanggapi hal-hal yang kontraversial seperti poligami sekalipun dengan tenang. Contohnya bisa dilihat salah satunya pada pacar saya.
Dulu “penentang” poligami yang gigih, terutama setelah melihat sendiri beberapa kasus dimana praktek poligami menjadi merugikan wanita. Kini alhamdulillah sudah bisa melihat soal ini dengan lebih proporsional, berimbang – adil.
Ketika kemarin saya ceritakan, “eh, Aa menikah lagi lho”, responsnya cuma berupa alis mata yang agak naik sedikit terkejut, lalu “Ooh”. Lalu saya sampaikan “iya, nikah dengan janda anak tiga”, dibalas dengan “mungkin untuk menyantuni ya, bagus deh”.
Dia sudah berhasil melihat bahwa ada kasus-kasus dimana poligami justru bisa bermanfaat bagi wanita sendiri. Dan adalah salah satu sebab mengapa poligami dibolehkan di dalam Islam (dengan batasan-batasannya).

Sepertinya baju tahan api saya juga sudah mulai kebakaran, ok saya sudahi dulu sampai disini. Komentar/koreksi yang konstruktif akan diterima dengan rasa terimakasih.

QKLK :: Mantan mata-mata Rusia masuk Islam sebelum meninggal

Kutipan :

Litvinenko’s father, Walter, said in an interview published today that his son – who was born an Orthodox Christian but had close links to Islamist rebels in Chechnya – had requested to be buried according to Muslim tradition after converting to Islam on his deathbed.

“He said ’I want to be buried according to Muslim tradition’,” Mr Litvinenko told Moscow’s Kommersant daily.

“I said, ’Well son, as you wish. We already have one Muslim in our family – my daughter is married to a Muslim. The important thing is to believe in the Almighty. God is one.’”

Sumber : The Times Online, 4 Des 2006

Shirin Ebadi

I just read a posting on Shirin Ebadi (thanks mas Fatih).

Very interesting. Not everyday you found somebody who’s able to realize and criticize the rigid interpretation and implementation of certain Islamic laws without slipping into becoming an extreme liberal.

Shirin seems to be a rarity, a voice of reason among the chaos. While others are either going to the extreme of interpreting Islam literally, or interpreting Islam so liberally it’s no longer Islam; Shirin manages to steadily and bravely walk on the middle path.
She even dared to criticize Israel in her Nobel prize speech.

Among many things, she got it right when she said that Islam can be interpreted quite differently, depending on who/how/where/when it was interpreted.
Different culture interpreted Islam differently; example, forced marriage is usual in certain Middle East countries, while it’s incompatible with Minangkabau’s matrilineal culture.
Another culture put great emphasis on inbreeding, which while halal, can be harmful (or even fatal) for the 3rd or 4th generation.

Another example; currently women are not honored in various cultures as they have had. They’re looked down if dared talking to a man. It’s in stark contrast with the beginning of Islam; Imam Syafie’s guru was a woman. And Aisyah ra (prophet’s wife) was a guru for many companions.
Some feminist went overboard when faced with these though – instead of reverting back to the original Islamic practices, they aimed to destroy Islam itself instead.

Extremism is never a good thing, and it’s against Prophet Muhammad’s teaching as well. It’s good to find another muslim(ah) with his/her vision set firmly on the original Islamic values. Hopefully more and more will show up.

If I’m wrong on my comments about her though, please feel free to correct me. Thanks.

Sukses dengan berpikir berbeda

Kemarin adalah hari Jum’at, dan untuk melakukan sholat Jum’at saya memilih sebuah mesjid yang tidak menggunakan karpet di lantainya. Tidak hanya lebih menghemat uang umat, namun juga tidak menyesakkan nafas penderita alergi debu ini.

Setibanya disana, di luar dugaan ternyata lingkungan mesjid ini adalah masyarakat yang taat agama. Walaupun saya sudah tiba cukup awal, namun saya telah didahului sekitar 100 orang.
Sekitar 6 shaf telah terisi. Tidak mungkin bagi saya untuk bisa mendapatkan tempat duduk yang paling afdhol, di depan, tanpa menyakiti / menyenggol orang lain.

Tengok sedikit, ternyata ada bagian sayap mesjid. Dan, kosong melompong.

Dengan santai saya berjalan ke sebelah sayap mesjid, dan langsung mendapatkan posisi di paling depan tanpa susah payah, atau menyusahkan orang lain.

“Kenapa yang sedang duduk di dalam mesjid tersebut tidak justru memilih shaf depan di sayap mesjid juga ?”; euh, saya tidak tahu kenapa. Saya hanya melihat kesempatan, yang mungkin tidak terlihat oleh orang lain – dan saya memanfaatkannya.

Ada banyak aspek dari kreatifitas. Salah satunya adalah kemampuan untuk melihat peluang. Dan, berbeda dari perkiraan banyak orang, ini bisa dilatih.
Caranya yaitu dengan sering memaksa otak Anda bekerja.
Maka setelah beberapa waktu (dan banyak penderitaan dari sakit kepala yang cukup akut), maka Anda akan mampu melihat hal-hal yang tidak terlihat oleh orang lain.

Ketika sudah mendapatkan kemampuan ini, mudah-mudahan kemudian bisa kita manfaatkan dengan sebaik-baiknya untuk kebaikan semua pihak.

Selamat mencoba.

Ahlul Kitab : masih ada ?

Pertanyaan yang sejak dahulu selalu terdengar kembali : apakah ahli kitab, seperti yang didefinisikan di dalam Al-Quran, masih ada ?

Satu kelompok berpendapat bahwa masih ada, dan menunjuk kepada kelompok agama seperti Kristen modern sebagai contohnya. Pendapat ini banyak ditolak karena agama Kristen modern telah mengalami banyak perubahan dan, terutama, berpendapat bahwa Yesus adalah Tuhan. Sebuah dogma yang secara khusus ditolak oleh Al-Quran, sehingga menjadi kontradiksi yang cukup jelas.

Satu kelompok lagi berpendapat bahwa ahlul kitab sudah tidak ada lagi.
Namun pendapat ini lebih sulit lagi untuk diterima, karena jika satu saja dari 5 milyar penduduk bumi ternyata masuk dalam definisi ahlul kitab versi Al-Quran, maka sudah cukup untuk membuat pendapat tersebut menjadi salah.

Hari ini kebetulan saya menemukan tentang Unitarian Christianity. Membaca keterangannya, menarik sekali; jelas ini berbeda dengan akidah Kristen mainstream :

  1. Percaya kepada Tuhan yang satu
  2. Injil adalah wahyu Tuhan, namun ditulis dan telah di edit oleh manusia.
  3. Percaya bahwa bayi terlahir tanpa dosa, namun kemudian memiliki kemampuan untuk menjadi baik ataupun jahat (free will).
  4. Percaya bahwa akal sehat dan sains dapat bersatu / tidak kontradiksi dengan doktrin agama
  5. Menjadikan Yesus sebagai idola / contoh teladan dalam menjalani kehidupan.

Unitarian adalah kelompok mayoritas dalam agama Kristen, sampai terjadinya Konsili Nicea. Setelah konsili yang kedua, para pengikut Unitarian dianggap sebagai pelaku bid’ah (heretic), dan dikejar serta dibunuh secara massal. Kelompok Trinitarian kemudian menjadi mayoritas dalam agama Kristen, dan terus mendominasi sampai sekarang.

Unitarian mulai berkembang lagi setelah munculnya kelompok Protestan. Banyak tokoh-tokoh dunia yang ternyata adalah penganut Unitarian (atau sekte-sektenya) :

  • Tim Berners-Lee
  • Alexander Graham Bell
  • Charles Dickens
  • Felix, Bishop of Urgel
  • Matt Groening
  • Thomas Jefferson
  • Isaac Newton
  • Florence Nightingale
  • Beatrix Potter
  • Christopher Reeve
  • Dan lain-lainnya

(Perlu diperhatikan bahwa ada banyak kelompok-kelompok Unitarian, beberapanya malah percaya bahwa Yesus adalah anak Tuhan. Jadi tidak semua kelompok yang bernama Unitarian otomatis mempercayai semua poin-poin yang tercantum di atas)

Browsing Internet hari ini menambah sebuah wawasan baru yang sangat menarik, alhamdulillah.

A Preacher For Traders

For the past few weeks, every Saturday morning, I joined in a gathering in friend`s house. Called “pengajian”, or muslims gathering, usually there`s a preacher (ustadz) speaking, and the others are listening. The topic is strictly religion-related. This one is a bit different though.

First, almost all of the audience are traders; all from west sumatera region. Second, the preacher is a trader too. A millionaire in fact. Third, questions and discussions are most welcome at any time, even if it will interrupt the speech.

Needless to say, every meeting is a heated and lively one. Religious dogma got interconnected with real-life cases seamlessly. The preacher happened to be an expert in Qur’an, instantly citing the related verses for each cases. He also happened to be a senior trader among us, definitely the richest. His responses are very much based on his Quranic expertise as much as on his trading experiences. The audience however doesn’t always accept everything willingly, questioning everything critically. The speaker responded in clarity, satisfying everyone.
There are cases sometimes when he doesn’t know the answer, and he’s willing to admit it. To which of course we have no problem.

Some of the interesting discussions :

  1. Bribery / commission : The slippery slope. A trader complained that many of his corporate customers are asking for commission. Otherwise, they’ll buy from other supplier, causing him great loss for each customer.

    The speaker responded that he definitely avoid marking-up practice; where you inflate the price on the corporate invoice, and give the difference to the person.

    However the trader raised another issue, where he didn’t do that, and he actually lowered the price so the company is getting the best deal – and on top of that he still had to give the person some money (out of his own pocket).

    Everyone agreed that this is kind of a grey area. First, this can be categorized as bribery, since he won’t give the money if that person is not the company’s staff (this is among the definition of bribe). However, on the other hand, if he doesn’t give the money, that company’s employee will buy from other supplier; which actually sells at higher price with lower customer service quality.

    A trader then told his experience as a supplier to a foreign company; he gave gift to the contact as usual; but the contact declined. But the surprise doesn’t end there, a few days later another company’s official showed up on his shop and asked him for name of employees who has received gift from him. To which he said none (which is the case).
    He was then told that if there are any of the company’s staff dared asking for gift (bribe) from him, just report them, and they’ll be sacked immediately.

    We wished if only all companies, especially local ones, are like this. It will make life much simpler for us.

  2. Government siding with conglomerates, and killing traders in the process. Especially with the rise of multi-story malls, while ignoring various planning regulations; killing traditional markets in the process.

    One of the solution is to move into “modern” market, aka the malls. But this is not always easy, and definitely is not cheap. A shop in traditional market can cost only about 20% of a shop in a mall — and generate more money. In malls, the traditional traders will have to compete with well-known, international brands. It’s as if we’ve gone to the war againts giants.

    People will need to go to the malls less often, and to the traditional markets more. And planning regulations (eg; no hypermarket in town, etc) needs to be executed properly.

  3. Business in the remote areas : surprisingly, this can be very profitable. Reason being no one else is looking to do business there. So when you come, there’s usually no competition. The speaker have even traded in East Timor, during the war time. He made serious amount of money back then, because everyone else was too scared to trade in a war zone.

    He noted that other traders have commented that the more dangerous the area, the easier to trade, because “you can make your own laws”. Needless to say, he doesn’t recommend this.

I’m currently looking forward for the next gathering.

ManiacMuslim.com

WARNING: Do NOT, I repeat, do not visit this website when you don’t have time to spare. Also make sure that no one is around when you browse it, to save you from embarrassment of witnessed while laughing like madman to your computer.

Joke about inter-family marriage

ManiacMuslim.com is a satire website; created by a muslim (goes by name of Hamzah Moin) that discusses about various silly things muslims does. The best thing is it’s really funny, so instead of making people angry, some people can only smile and thought “oh well, he’s right about it”. Most people will succumb to uncontrollable laughter though. 🙂

For example; the Darth Vader picture is in an article (among others) criticizing inter-family marriage. In some muslim countries, there’s tendencies to marry with close family, such as cousins. This is permitted in Islam, but not encouraged – however some muslims are going overboard with it. The article criticize it in a strikingly funny way.

More surprises are in this article, about Facebook and its adoption by some Muslims. I’ve already witnessed myself one of the incident (a sister with hijab showed her photos without hijab on Friendster, to our surprise), so I think this article is not pure satire; but mostly based on real events. Sad, but true.

Some muslims are overzealous in their dawa (call to Islam). This article remind us of the potential pitfall of extremism. Made me cringe. On the other hand, this website has the best coverage of the Danish incident. Poor Kinder Surprise never even saw it coming, LOL.

There’s the classic ones as well, such as the Online Nikah (OMG, ROFLMAO). If you’re having problems understanding some of the lingo used there, please feel free to refer to this short guide.

Despite making all kind of fun on (silly) Muslims, Hamzah is actually promoting a conservative & rational Islam. In this article for example, he encouraged people to do Nikah procession like the Prophet did :

Batman beaten by Riddleress

This is the #1 justification for every Muslim male on the planet to get chummy with girls. Well more than chummy actually. E-dating… where you first exchange your life stories and pics then move onto feelings and thoughts about one another and become almost lovers when all of a sudden the guy backs off and says “no sister we are just brothers and sisters in Islam… nothing more… teehee.”

I’m sorry brothers but let’s face it… you can talk to 100 women before marriage and think you “mastered the girl situation” but as soon as that Nikkah contract is signed, you’ll soon realize that the “experience” you received from e-dating those 100 Muslim girls in the past was useless. Why? Because girls are unsolvable. Period. Ever stop and wonder why they made the Riddler from the Batman comics to be a male? It’s because if the Riddler was a female then Batman would NEVER be able to solve any of her riddles. The Riddleress would be victorious and that would be the end of Batman forever.

The islamic nikah process is simple, and there’s no need to make it complex :

The whole marriage process done the Islamic way is ample enough time to get to know your potential spouse. No need to instant message each other 4 years before the big day to “get acquainted”. I’d get bored if I already knew everything about my wife after (or before) the Nikkah, wouldn’t you?

Almost consistently in his articles, Hamzah promotes logic instead of emotion, conservatism instead of extremism, humbleness instead of arrogance.

Superior logic, excellent grammar and spelling, and great sense of humor. Even has an article with Batman in it. What more could you ask ?

Highly recommended !

Respons untuk Respons terhadap pidato Paus

Dari milis is-lam :

Ada berbagai disinformasi yang disebarkan oleh berbagai pihak untuk membela Paus pada saat ini :

  1. Paus telah dikutip secara serampangan oleh media massa, dengan tujuan untuk meningkatkan oplah koran ybs :

    Tidak benar. Saya sudah membaca langsung naskah pidato aslinya, dan memang ada berbagai kesalahan di situ.

    Detilnya bisa dibaca misalnya disini.

  2. Paus telah dikutip di luar konteks, sebetulnya inti dari pidato Paus adalah mengajak dialog antar agama agar bisa tercipta kedamaian :

    Tidak benar, saya sudah membaca teks pidato lengkapnya, dan inti dari pidato Paus adalah mengajak rekonsiliasi antara sains dan agama. Dan dalam pidato tersebut, Islam dijadikan contoh mengenai agama yang tidak “reasonable” / tidak menggunakan akal pikiran; dan bahwa agama Kristen tidaklah seperti itu.

    Jadi sebetulnya isi pidato Paus yang selengkapnya malah mungkin lebih parah daripada yang dikutip oleh berbagai media massa.

  3. Paus mengatakan Muslim barbar, dan lihat bagaimana respon mereka (Muslim) terhadap ini (2 gereja di bom, dll), memang barbar kan ?

    Ini sama seperti jika saya melihat beberapa orang Padang pelit, dan lalu berkomentar bahwa SEMUA orang Padang itu pelit. Hal ini disebut generalisasi – ketika ada sebagian yang bertindak namun kemudian kita menuduh bahwa semuanya sama.

    Ada banyak komunitas muslim yang merespons pidato Paus ini dengan rasional dan bijaksana.

  4. Umat Islam baru ribut kalau agamanya dihina, tapi diam saja jika ada muslim yang melakukan terorisme:

    Ini hanya sok tahu, memangnya ybs bisa memonitor seluruh media massa yang ada di seluruh dunia ?

    Komunitas muslim di inggris sering memprotes berbagai kegiatan terorisme yang mengatasnamakan Islam, namun seringkali tidak dimuat oleh media.

  5. Paus hanya mengutip saja, dan tidak lantas berarti bahwa Paus setuju dengan tuduhan (Nabi saw memerintahkan untuk menyebarkan Islam dengan kekerasan) tersebut.

    Tetap ada kesalahan Paus, yaitu tidak menuliskan pendapatnya sendiri atas kutipan tersebut. Karena tidak ada, maka wajar jika kemudian ada orang yang mengira bahwa Paus setuju dengan tuduhan tersebut.

Silahkan disebarluaskan agar kasus ini menjadi lebih jelas.

Salam,
Harry

“RULES OF THE GAME” LIPUTAN MEDIA DI TIMUR TENGAH

Sumber: http://satrioarismunandar6.blogspot.com/2006/08/rules-of-game-liputan-media-di-timur.html

Sejumlah pernyataan di bawah ini saya kutip dari sebuah posting di Internet. Terkesan simpel, tapi bagi saya –yang kebetulan dulu sering meliput politik Timur Tengah– memang ada kebenarannya. Hegemoni wacana pemikiran, yang merugikan posisi Palestina dan Arab, memang banyak menghinggapi insan media. Kita juga bisa membandingkan dengan pemberitaan media atas agresi Israel ke Lebanon, Juli-Agustus 2006.

Tetapi penilaian tentu terserah Anda masing-masing. Ini adalah sejumlah “rules” yang sering dipraktikkan media, dalam meliput konflik di Timur Tengah:

Rule No. 1: In the Middle East, it’s always the Arabs that attack first and Israel that defends itself. That’s called retaliation.

Rule No. 2: Arabs, whether Palestinian or Lebanese, have absolutely no right to kill Israeli civilians. That’s called terrorism.

Rule No. 3: Israel has every right to kill as many Arab civilians as it wants. That’s called legitimate self-defense.

Rule No. 4: When Israel kills too many civilians, the Western powers urge for restraint. That’s called the reaction of the international community.

Rule No. 5: Palestinians and Lebanese have no right to capture Israeli soldiers, even if their numbers are limited to three.

Rule No. 6: Israelis have the right to capture as many Palestinians as they wish — over 10,000 prisoners as of today, of which 300 are children. Uttering the magic word, “terrorist,” is all that’s
needed to throw Arabs behind bars without charges.

Rule No. 7: When you say “Hizballah,” you should always add “supported by Syria and Iran.”

Rule No. 8: When you say “Israel,” you should never add “supported by the United States and Europe” lest the conflict appear imbalanced.

Rule No. 9: Never mention “occupied territories,” or “UN resolutions,” or “violations of international law,” or “the Geneva conventions.” That might perturb television viewers and lead them to ask questions.

Rule No. 10: Israelis speak English better than Arabs. That is why we always give them — and their supporters — more air time. That way, they can explain Rules 1 through 9 to us. That’s called media objectivity.

Rule No. 11: If you don’t agree with any of these rules, or if you think they favor one party over another, that’s because you’re a dangerous anti-Semite.

Quicklinks – Israel vs Hizbollah crisis

Israel was just defending itself from Hizbollah ? Wrong, the kidnapping of 2 Israel soldiers (previously thought as the cause of the war) were caused by Israel’s (almost daily) violation of the border :
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0801/p09s02-coop.html

The current war is premeditated and already very prepared. Hizbollah’s kidnap of 2 IDF soldiers provided Israel with the excuse to finally launched it :
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,1839282,00.html

To Israel with love – why the Americans are so overwhelmingly pro Israel ?
http://www.economist.com/world/na/displaystory.cfm?story_id=7255198

Israel ranked better economically than even Brunei, but it’s also the top receiver of aid from US gov’t :
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,1834555,00.html

Save the Indonesian Catholics

I read a news titled “Indonesian Catholics to face firing squad on Saturday” on Catholic News this morning. Seems like many Catholic groups are asking Indonesian Gov’t to spare the life of the accused.

Actually some non-Catholic groups are asking the same thing too. Although for different reason – several Muslim organization suspected that these 3 men are just puppets. The masters are still safe behind the curtain.
If these men got executed, then the secrets will die with them. And justice will not be delivered.

By saving the life of these 3 men, then hopefully we’d be able to investigate further and find the real masters behind the massacre. The ones who really responsible for it.

The chance is really slim though.

Indonesian Bloggers Condemns Israel

I just posted a simple script on the sidebar of this blog to support Indonesian Blogger’s movement to condemn Israel. Instructions to join are available here.

In short, Israel is the root of the problems in Middle East.
First, it took over other people’s land, so it can create the country of Israel. Second, it has now employed policies so racist, it has became the Nazi of middle east. And so on.

There are propaganda campaigns going on all over the Internet that says the points above are wrong. But when you check with unbiased sources, you will find out that they are correct.

We have been invaded as well (Dutch & Japan), so we know that the ordeal of the Palestinians and others around Israel are worse. Back at that time, our freedom fighters too were branded as terrorists. Guess who ended up unmasked as the real terrorist ?

My heart goes to the victims of Israel’s atrocities.

To other Indonesian bloggers – you can do something. You are not helpless.

Berwudhu yang efisien dan tidak mubazir

Kemarin saya mampir ke Depok Town Square, memenuhi janji dengan keponakan untuk membawa mereka ke sana. Ketika telah tiba Maghrib, kami menuju ke musholla untuk menunaikan sholat.

Antrian di tempat wudhu sudah sangat panjang. Sambil menunggu, saya jadi bisa melihat berbagai cara orang dalam melakukannya.
Tapi rata-rata sama; berwudhu dengan kran yang dibuka sekencang-kencangnya, dan setiap bagian wudhu dilakukan berkali-kali dengan sangat lambat. Tentu saja makin lama antrian menjadi makin panjang, padahal waktu Maghrib cuma sebentar dan semakin mendekati habis.

Begitu giliran saya tiba saya coba perlihatkan cara wudhu “alternatif”, yang saya dapatkan informasinya dari beberapa ustadz (salah satunya ust. Yazid Jawwas), yaitu :

  • Membasuh kedua telapak tangan 1x
  • Dengan satu genggam air, dihirup ke hidung dan mulut (berkumur) 1x
  • Membasuh wajah 1x
  • Membasuh tangan s/d siku 1x
  • Membasuh rambut dan disambung ke telinga 1x
  • Membasuh kedua kaki s/d mata kaki 1x

1. Hemat air : Rasulullah saw bisa mandi wajib dengan 1 gayung air. Logikanya, kalau hanya untuk berwudhu, tentu bisa menggunakan air yang lebih sedikit lagi jumlahnya.

2. Membasuh anggota badan : Ternyata 3x membasuh itu adalah jumlah maksimal. 1x membasuh saja sudah cukup. Cuma memang kadang kita diganggu oleh bisikan2 yang membuat kita was-was, “eh, sudah kena semua atau belum ya tangannya?”, dst – sehingga banyak orang yang malah jadi membasuh bahkan lebih dari 3x.

Ini sudah saya cek dan praktekkan sejak dulu, tapi saya tidak hapal lagi semua dalilnya. Mungkin ada yang bisa membantu untuk melengkapi dalil-dalilnya.

Anyway, ternyata Islam memang adalah agama yang mudah dan tidak menyulitkan sebetulnya.

OOT :
Musholla di Depok Town Square sangat kecil dan amat sangat tidak sepadan dengan kapasitas gedungnya yang luar biasa besar. Hindari mendatangi DTS di waktu sholat, supaya tidak mengalami kesulitan seperti yang saya alami (antrian sangat panjang untuk sholat).
Atau, hindari saja mendatangi DTS. Mosok kalah dengan PIM 2 (Pondok Indah Mall 2), tiap lantainya ada musholla, dan besarnya mencukupi – padahal lokasinya tidak begitu banyak muslimnya.

Sex Education

I’ve not yet encountered this event, but I know it will come sometime. One day, one of my children will ask about sex, and I will have to explain it to them. I’m not scared (well ok, not much 😀 ), but I think I’ll have the hardest time of keeping my face straight. :mrgreen:

Mbak Santi have endured this twice apparently. But her second event is more special, because Baby is an active and very inquiring little girl.
My jaw dropped at first when I read this article , and then I feel pain in my stomach as I was trying hard not to burst into laughter in my office room.

But I think you handled it alright mbak. Thanks for the ideas and inspirations ! 😀

note: here’s an article with photo of this very clever girl. May you grow to be a very good girl, insyaAllah.

Islam is Fun : Konsep Surga

Kemarin ini kembali saya mengajak anak saya, Umar (4 tahun), untuk sholat Jumat di mesjid. Umar senang sekali, biasanya dia jarang melihat saya sehari-hari (karena jadwal kerja saya yang cukup padat, biasanya Senin – Sabtu, 07:00 – 23:00). Tapi untuk mengajarkan kewajibannya ini, saya akan coba selalu sempatkan.

Selesai sholat saya ngobrol2 dengan Umar sambil menyetir ke rumah. Walaupun anak laki-laki, tapi yang satu ini doyan curhat 🙂 enggak seperti bapaknya, hehe. Kita membicarakan berbagai hal, sampai akhirnya menyinggung soal Surga.
Iseng, saya tanya ke Umar; “Mar, surga itu apaan sih?”

Berpikir sejenak, lalu Umar menjawab, “Bebek”.

😀 Bengong sejenak, lalu saya berusaha menahan tawa saya, takut membuat Umar jadi malu :mrgreen: untung saja jalanan kebetulan juga agak sepi, sehingga ketika mobil menjadi agak oleng juga tidak mengenai apapun, haha.
Kids says the funniest thing indeed !

Tentu saja saya harus menjelaskan “kekeliruan” ini. Kemudian saya melihat dua pilihan; jelaskan secara standar, atau jelaskan dengan bahasa anak-anak.
Saya pilih yang kedua.

Saya jelaskan, bahwa surga itu isinya enak-enak semua. “Di surga ada sungai lho”, saya tahu dia senang main-main di sungai ketika liburan ke villa di daerah Sukabumi, dan matanya menjadi kelihatan tertarik — “tapi, sungainya itu sungai Fanta”. Matanya tiba-tiba membelalak, dan mulutnya terbuka lebar – tercengang.
Saya kesulitan menahan tawa lagi – but, the show must go on 🙂

“Di surga juga ada banyak pohon”, tutur saya. “Tapi, pohonnya pohon permen”. Kali ini Umar seperti akan melonjak dari tempat duduknya.
Saya teruskan lagi, “Juga ada gunung es krim. (ooohh) …. Tapi tahu nggak, nanti Umar bisa ketemu sama siapa di surga? Coba tebak, hayo”.

Dengan penuh semangat, si Umay (panggilannya untuk dirinya sendiri) menyebutkan semua anggota keluarganya satu per satu 😀 baik banget nih anak. Saya jadi lama mengiyakan dia sambil mengatakan, “terus siapa lagi hayo?”. Berhubung keluarga kami keluarga besar…. lumayan lama juga jadinya, huhu.
Akhirnya terpaksa saya putus, “…iya, dan nanti di surga, Umar bisa ketemu sama Sonic lho”.

Si Umay berteriak gembira. Kebetulan salah satu game favoritnya di komputer adalah Sonic. “Iya, nanti Umar digendong Sonic, terus diajak jalan-jalan keliling Surga. Atau Umar mau main sama Miles saja? Nanti Umar dia gendong, dan diajak terbang keliling”, “ah, ah, Umay mau, Knuckles juga, wooooo…. ” menirukan gaya Knuckles ketika sedang gliding.

Kami telah hampir tiba di rumah. Dan dalam waktu yang singkat tersebut, kini si Umay sudah tahu seperti apa surga itu 😀
Mudah-mudahan dia akan semakin terus menemukan bahwa agamanya tidak hanya fun, namun juga baik dalam segala hal.

AnsweringIslam.org

I noticed that a member of my family was browsing this website. I mentioned to him that he’ll need to take everything with the biggest grain of salt, but had to finish my tasks and he was gone before I could elaborate or listen to his inquiries.

Anyway, there’s so much disinformation in this website, it’s going to need a dedicated team to clarify them. I’m just a layman with almost no spare time, so I decided to pick up only 2 pages from that website and clarify them.

[ 1 ] Hamzah’s “Testimony”

The author began by saying :

This testimony of Hamzah is very special. He was a learned Muslim scholar. He was educated and shaped under Islamic and Quranic teachings since his childhood. After getting his Islamic education for more than 16 years he successfully obtained his Islamic School Certification. It is clearly evident that his knowledge of the Quran and Islam has already been sufficiently deep and well developed. Nevertheless after three years of struggling with his theological and spiritual questions – searching honestly within both Islam and Christianity, Hamzah finally surrendered his life into the gracious hands of Isa Al-Masih (Jesus Christ) – his most loving and compassionate Saviour!

Somehow I doubt that. (the emphasized text)

An example, he said that :

I was surprised to learn who shall come to release the World from the evil Dajjal’s hand – he is no other than ISA Al-Masih (Jesus Christ) as the Imam Mahdi himself!

He got this messed up. Imam Mahdi is not the same person as Al-Masih.

Imam Mahdi is an Arab, whose lineage can be traced back to Muhammad. While Al-Masih is Prophet Isa (Jesus), who’s sent back down by God to destroy Dajjal.
When reading the whole text in relation to this story, it’s mentioned that after defeating Dajjal, Isa Al-Masih then pledged allegiance to Imam Mahdi and recognize him as his leader (King).
Imam Mahdi then ruled the Muslims (including Al-Masih) and bring back peace and prosperity to them.

This is a fairly well-known story, and Hamzah (the scholar) missed it ?
Is he really a scholar ?

The next example :

But he (the christian) said very coolly: “Oh for me that is not a problem, whether there is a new religion or not … because for me, by FAITH I will surely enter heaven!”

Hearing this, I was very shocked …! Because in my 10-plus years of study at the Islamic pesantren centres and four years study at the advanced Islamic Institute, never had I heard that entering heaven is something sure or definite for normal Moslems!

That’s is really weird – because all muslims will enter heaven. But this “scholar” doesn’t know.

However, there’s a difference. While some Christians boasted that they’ll go straight to heaven, Muslims with sins will be cleansed first in Hell. Once they’ve paid for their sins, then they’ll enter Heaven. Personally, I think this is justice.
Imagine if by faith only you’re guaranteed heaven – then you can wreak havoc, rape/steal/lie/kill people, and still got heaven ? This world will soon fall into chaos, with people trying to avoid becoming the victim / loser.

And so on. AnsweringIslam.org tried to convince their case by presenting this “scholar”, but it only exposes their true identity.

[ 2 ] Top ten reasons why Islam is NOT the religion of peace

Some zealots are going to label me as “muslim apologetics” because of this 🙂 without even trying to read it thoroughly, but I have a duty to rebuke these lies/misinformation within my capability, so here it goes :

10. Muhammad nicknames his weapons : This is a pretty silly argument, but anyway – These (weapons) are instruments which is crucial to one’s continued life, so I guess it’s ok if one gets a bit sentimental about it. This is common practice among soldiers – even to this day. Yes, today’s modern, God-less, soldiers.

9. Muhammad commands in his Quran that adulterers and adulteresses should receive a hundred lashes : Well, most westerners indeed may have problems with this because of vast culture differences. If you’re one of them, remember; just a few centuries ago, you were doing it as well, and you find it ok.
But while western moral standards changes continuously (causing some to become confused as to what is right and what is wrong, now), Islam’s moral standards remains consistent, even after centuries of the Prophet’s death.

Another poison is this, in relation to the execution of a woman due to adultery :

It is true that Muhammad told Khalid to be gentler, but how gentle does one have to be when one throws a rock at a woman buried up to her breasts? Is the rock required to go only 30 miles per hour or 40? Perhaps Muhammad was ordering Khalid not to curse her. In any case, the prophet prayed over her dead body and then buried her. Truthfully, how effective was the prayer when Muhammad and his community murdered her in cold blood? They should have forgiven her and let her go to raise her child.

Seems that the author doesn’t understand Islam. Yet, somehow managed to create this long article.

Even the Prophet, much less the others at that time, does not have the right to forgive such sin – a sin which is committed against God. Which only God alone have right to forgive.
The lady understood this, therefore she knows that if she does not receive her punishment in her lifetime (because of Muhammad’s hesitation to execute it), then she’ll receive it in Hell; and it’ll be far worse.

Therefore, she forced Muhammad (by her persistence) to deliver the punishment. After many tries in many months, finally Muhammad agreed, and did it.

After the execution, Muhammad then praised her bravery :
Thereupon he said: She has made such a repentance that if it were to be divided among seventy men of Medina, it would be enough. Have you found any repentance better than this that she sacrificed her life for Allah, the Majestic?“.

Same event, but now it no longer seems that Muhammad is a cold blooded bastard as portrayed in the original article.
This event also act as a caution to Muslims – when someone is accused of adultery, do not believe it (and definitely don’t punish) straight away ! Because even when it’s already proven, Muhammad still give the choice – now, or later.

8. Muhammad in his Quran permits husbands to beat their wives. – what they failed to mention is that it’s strongly encouraged to solve the problem amicably, and the punishment only as last resort.

Unfortunately, our own fault too, many Muslim tend to execute the last resort first, and in abundance.
It has become the local culture in many places. In some cases, women got killed because of this.

It’s said that “Among the Muslims, the most perfect as regards his faith is the one whose character is most excellent, and the best among you are those who treat their wives well.

And so on…. sorry I’m running out of time, so I’ll skip right to the number one :

1. Muhammad launches his own Crusades. – as if Islam taught us to “convert, or kill, everyone”, like how the Christians were instructed on the Crusades. Not.

Muhammad actually give other nations choice. Agreed to be lead by Muslims, and pay tax like everyone else. The concept of dhimmitude saves and protects people, not humiliate them. Or you can refuse (a King was asked; he refused politely, and treated the messenger well. Nothing happened)
But if you acted dishonourably, then we promised you an honourable war.

If you look into that time, there’s simply no other nation doing this. If you can’t defend yourselves, then be prepared to either die or become slaves.

For example, the past Christians’ crusades – very cruel and sadistic :

Radulph of Caen said : “In Maarra our troops boiled pagan adults in cooking pots; they impaled children on spits and devoured them grilled.“

Islam defined a very strict code of conduct on war. Even the trees are not to be harmed (hello suicide bombers). Only combatants (those that endanger your life) may be killed.

Summary: methods of brainwashing used by AnsweringIslam.org = one sided facts, partial information, failure to discuss the data in the proper context, and so on.

Again, a team of (truly) knowledgeable scholar (unlike our friend Hamzah) will have no problem rebutting this website. Gotta go now, hope it helps to clarify things.

MuslimHeritage.com

Found this website by accident – MuslimHeritage.com. Shows what Muslims were in the past – rahmatan lil ‘alamin, a blessing for all.
Unfortunately, that’s not the case now. Not yet, I hope.

Note: If you’re a Muslim (or not) blogger, please help spread the word. Link to this article (or the website), so others may find it as well.
We may not have the money and facilities of the big media, but together, we can bring back the balance. Thank you.

A few interesting articles :

[ 1 ] The tolerant & humane muslims

The conquest of Mecca :

as Scott says: `with a magnanimity unequalled in the annals of war, a general amnesty was proclaimed and but four persons, whose offences were considered unpardonable, suffered the penalty of death.’

Unequalled indeed, as the norms was as below :

…in 1098, during the first crusade (begun in 1096), when the Crusaders took Ma’arrat an’Numan, the slaughter never stopped for three days so that the Franks killed more than 100,000 people.

“‘Our men’ said the pious and charitable chronicler (Lebon’s words) `walked through the roads, places, on the roofs, and feasted on the slaughter just like a lioness who had her cubs taken from her. They cut into pieces, and put to death children, the young, and the old crumbling under the weight of the years. They did that in groups… Our men grabbed everybody who fell into their hands. They cut bellies open, and took out gold coins. Oh detestable cupidity of gold! Streams of blood ran on the roads of the city; and everywhere lay corpses. Oh blinded nations and destined to death; none of that multitude accepted the Christian faith. At last Bohemond brought out all those he had first invited to lock themselves in the tower of the place. He ordered that all old women be put to death, and also old men, whose age had rendered useless; then all the rest he ordered to be taken to Antioch to be sold as slaves. This massacre of the Turks took place on 12 December; on Sunday; but on this day not all work could be accomplished; so the following day our men killed all the rest.” — Robert the Monk

Radulph of Caen said : “In Maarra our troops boiled pagan adults in cooking pots; they impaled children on spits and devoured them grilled.

And yet, even when Muslims were slaughtered en masse, still they found reserves of unequalled humanity. Finucane tells how in 1221, the defeated Christians were visited by their (Muslim) enemies, who brought them food to save them from starvation.

Be valiant; die rather than yield; be merciful; slay neither old men, nor women, nor children. Destroy no fruit trees, grain, or cattle. Keep your word even to your enemies.” — Caliph Abu Bakr

That’s how jihad is really done.
Bus bombings, bali bombings, civilian killings – it’s now clear that those are not jihad. Very contrary to what the media / propaganda machines tells us nowadays, isn’t it.

About tolerance :
“the Muslims of the seventh century had abstained from persecution and had permitted Jews and Christians to practise their own laws and to elect their own judges. Yet nearly a thousand years later, people in Europe were still being tortured and burned alive for their faith. And in general, the Ottomans continued the policy of religious toleration which they had inherited from the Arabs.” —- Glubb

Muslims, Christians, Jews living together — an absurd and crazy idea ?
Definitely not. And it has been done, when Muslims were in charge and practiced the true Islam :

Araya Goubet, too, notes how `religious tolerance, Islamic inspiration, permitted the harmonious coexistence of Christians, Moors, and Jews until the end of the fifteenth century. The dominance of the Christian clergy led to the gradual exclusion, subjugation, and expulsion of the other religious groups, starting in 1492 but culminating in 1567 when Philip II published a decree forbidding Moriscos [Christianised (ex) Muslims] from using Muslim names and the Arabic language. The Moriscos were finally expelled in 1609. Ultimately the history of the Iberian people can be summed up as `living togetherness’ until ‘its breaking apart beginning in the fifteenth century.

In this article I’d like also to call my brothers & sisters in Islam to start washing away their kafir-phobia.
There are bad kuffars (kafir/kuffar = non-muslim) indeed, but there are much more of the good ones (although most of them are silent). It’s injustice to sentence them all as bad, and Islam abhors injustice.

We can live together in peace. Deal with the bad ones, and live peacefully with the rest of them.

In Cordoba, there were eight hundred public schools frequented alike by Moslems, Christians and Jews, where instruction was imparted by lectures. The doors of the college were open to students of every nationality, and the Andalusian Moor, Scott adds, received the rudiments of knowledge at the same time and under the same conditions as the literary pilgrims from Asia Minor and Egypt, from Germany and France and Britain.

In this very field of scholarship, doors were open to all scholars whether they were Chinese, Indians, Africans, Europeans, Jews, and all thrived. Some of Islam’s earliest and most prominent scientists at the Abbasid court, Ishaq Ibn Hunayn and Hunayn Ibn Ishaq were Nestorian Christians. Thabit ibn Qurrah, the astronomer, was a Sabean. The Bakhishtu family who held most prominent positions in the court in the ninth century were Christians, too. And so were the historian-physicist Abu’l Faraj; ‘Ali ibn Ridwan, the Egyptian, who was the al-Hakem’s Doctor; Ibn Djazla of Baghdad, and Isa ibn ‘Ali, another famed physicist; and so on. The Jews had the most glorious pages of their civilisation under Islam, too. If one just sifts through the hundreds of pages of Sarton’s Introduction to the History of Science, one is amazed at the many names of Jewish scholars who worked in the midst of Islamic civilisation on all subjects. Some were not only scholars, but even occupied some of the most trusted positions in the Islamic jurisdictions. Maimonides (philosopher-physicist) was Salah Eddin Al-Ayyubi’s doctor, and Hasdai ibn Shaprut, followed by his sons, held some of the most prominent positions in Muslim Spain. Nearly all Muslim envoys to Christian powers were Jews; and most Muslim trade was in the hands of the Jews.

Even when Islamic land was threatened by both Crusaders and later the Mongols (mid-thirteenth century) so that much of the population was wiped out (800,000 deaths in Baghdad alone in 1258), minorities, whether Jewish or Christian (even if allies of the Crusaders) still survived under Islamic rule to our present day with all their powers, privileges and wealth intact. This fact is surely a far cry from the stereotyped image of Islam as the religion of intolerance. Which highlights the true character of Islamic civilisation, a character that has remained completely alien to their successors. The Muslims did not attack the faith and practice of others. Difference of faith is a state with which Muslims could, and can live.

In regard to race / skin colors :

In Islam, simply, and for fourteen centuries, no person was stigmatised for their colour. The offspring of a non-white mother and white father was entitled and admitted to full equality, and was not excluded from high office. From 946 to 968, Egypt was governed by Kafur, a Negro born in slavery. Whether in tenth century, or today, says Levi Provencal, there is no lack of coloured people in the ranks of aristocracy or the merchant classes: this has always been an essential feature of Muslim worldview.

I love the idea of Muslims as a group of colour-blind people :

….the colour-blindness of the Muslim world’s religious society and the colour blindness of the Muslim human society: these two influences had each been making a greater impact, and an increasing persuasion against my former way of thinking.” — Malcolm X

In Mecca there were `no segregationists-no liberals’; indifference to colour was spontaneous, and for Malcolm X this was evidently a shattering experience:
`I shared true, brotherly love with many white complexioned Muslims who never gave a thought to the race, or to the complexion, of another Muslim.

Do you think only westerner millionaires give inheritance to WWF or other animal-welfare causes ? Think again :

Thevenot noted persons who leave enormous wealth to feed cats and dogs.

Thevenot also observes that the charity of the Turks extends to animals and birds. On market days many people buy birds which they soon set free.

Benevolence was a form of charity which was commended by the Prophet as the first of all virtues; a benevolence which, indeed, is extended to all animals.

[ 2 ] The world-class University of Sankore, Timbuktu

The very mention of Timbuktu will give an image of a place so desolate, so remote, no one will go there except Donald Duck (even then just when he owe big to his Uncle Scrooge / when he need to disappear after messed something up real bad)
But do you know that way back to 989, Timbuktu used own a world-class university, with students coming from all over the world to study there ? Bet you didn’t know that (me neither).

Quoted:

The Sankore Mosque was founded in 989 by the erudite chief judge of Timbuktu, Al-Qadi Aqib ibn Mahmud ibn Umar. He had built the inner court of the mosque in exact dimension of the Ka’abah in holy Makkah. A wealthy Mandika lady then financed Sankore University making it the leading centre of education. The Sankore University prospered and became a very significant seat of learning in the Muslim world, especially under the reign of Mansa Musa (1307-1332) and Askia Dynasty (1493-1591).

The inventor of intellectual freedom in modern universities ?

The University of Sankore had no central administration; rather, it was composed of several entirely independent schools or colleges, each run by a single master (scholar or professor). The courses took place in the open courtyards of mosque complexes or private residences. The primary subjects were the Qur’an, Islamic studies, law and literature. Other subjects included medicine and surgery, astronomy, mathematics, physics, chemistry, philosophy, language and linguistics, geography, history and art. The students also spent time in learning a trade and business code and ethics. The university trade shops offered classes in business, carpentry, farming, fishing, construction, shoe making, tailoring, navigation etc. It prospered and became a very significant seat of learning in the Muslim world.

It was claimed that the intellectual freedom enjoyed in Western Universities was inspired from universities like Sankore and Qurtuba (Muslim Spain) universities.

University Campus

International students ? They’ve had it centuries ago :

Like all other Islamic universities, its students came from all over the world. Around the 12th century, it had an attendance of 25,000 students, in a city of 100,000 people. The university was known for its high standards and admission requirements. It produced world-class scholars recognised by their publications and graduates.
Quoting the French author Felix Dubois in his book, Timbuctoo the Mysterious:

The scholars of Timbuctoo (Timbuktu) yielded in nothing, to the saints in the sojourns in the foreign universities of Fez, Tunis, and Cairo. They astounded the most learned men of Islam by their erudition. That these Negroes were on a level with the Arabian savants is proved by the fact that they were installed as professors in Morocco and Egypt. In contrast to this, we find that Arabs were not always equal to the requirements of Sankore.” — Felix Dubois

Unfortunately, 10 centuries later, the Sankore University fell into darkness. Most, again including me, never heard about it. It’s waiting the Muslims to regain their glory again.

And there are tons of other excellent articles there. You can spend a whole day there and still not finished with it. Go now and take a look.
Enjoy.

IndonesiaMatters.com against muslim ?

At first I was happy to find another website that blogs in English and informs the outside world about Indonesia. However, when I started to read more of its article, it reminded me of muslim-haters such as faithfreedom.com and such.

A few examples:
[ The Crusades and Liberal Islam ] (see comments by Patung, its owner)
[ Tennis Team won’t play is Israel ] – (quoted: “The Indonesian refusal to recognise the existence of Israel rears its ludicrous head again”)

It’s absolutely Patung’s rights to express his/her opinions. But with “Indonesia” in its website title, while the articles doesn’t reflect what many Indonesian think; well I was just hoping that he’d be able to be more neutral.
Or at least makes it clear that the website contains his personal opinions; which may not necessarily represent most Indonesian.

I’ve dealt with many muslim-haters before; some are just mislead / misinformed, some have flawed logic, but some intentionally use any way to destroy Islam. I’ll engage in a discussion here in my spare time, and we’ll be able find out who’s who.

Playboy Indonesia #3

Ternyata tidak perlu menunggu lama untuk mulai melihat hasil dari teori Jendela pecah sehubungan dengan Playboy Indonesia – di edisinya yang ke tiga saja, majalah ini sudah semakin syur dibandingkan dengan edisi-edisi sebelumnya.

Dan seperti biasa, kembali dijual di jalanan dengan bebasnya. Sesuatu yang tidak akan bisa terjadi bahkan di negara asalnya sekalipun. Memang Indonesia ini luar biasa.

Jadi, kapan nih kita bisa mulai menikmati wanita yang telanjang bulat 100% di Playboy Indonesia ? Edisi kelima ? keenam ? Wah sudah tidak sabar nih 🙁