In the name of Allah, the Merciful to all, the Compassionate
Yesterday, Friday the 13th, a bloody wave of bombings and shootings happened across Paris that left nearly 130 people dead. Islamic State has claimed responsibility and the French president, François Hollande, denounced as an “act of war” that must be countered “mercilessly”.
But who weaponized and financed the Islamic State or prior organizations in Syria and Iraq, so they can carry such attacks?
You may have heard a version of the story of Sabbath-Breakers who turned into apes and pigs. The story goes like this:
Once upon a time there was a Jewish village comprised mainly of fishermen. To observe the sanctity of the Sabbath, the fishermen would cease to work on Saturdays. However, the fish would appear in multitudes on that particular day of the week, whereas they were scarce on every other day. The fishermen began using deceitful means of placing nets, ropes, and artificial pools of water on the Sabbath, and collecting the fish afterwards, therefore breaking their pledge and covenant to honor the Sabbath. Although their fraudulence appeared lawful on the surface, it was, in reality, a wicked deed. As punishment, they were transformed into apes, the animals closest to humans. This is why their punishment was compatible with their crime.
This story is referenced briefly in the Quran (in 7:163-166 and 2:65), but some scholars claim that there is no reference to the story in the Bible or Torah. The Bible we have access to today is a trimmed and doctored version of a translation from Latin, which was, in turn, a translation of original Aramaic one. Many mainstream scholars believe this transformation of the Jewish fishermen Sabbath-breakers was not literal at all; rather, that it is metaphorical – simply meant as a figure of speech. Therefore some translations of these verses in the Quran say “Be as apes” or “like apes”.
We do not really need to search in historical books to know exactly if such an incident literally happened. My point is, we just need to see what’s going on right now in front of our eyes.
As western societies are distancing themselves from religious beliefs, the pillars of their civilization are crumbling:
Everything in today’s western society has become dysfunctional or out of its original purpose. The spread of Ghetto culture is an indication of this, and of the extent of deterioration. For example, how often do we hear people use more than ten F-words in a single sentence? Unfortunately, it is now common for the F-word to be used as the adjective, adverb, name, and as the verb in a sentence. It’s not derogatory anymore; you can use it as compliment, or for expressing happiness, anger, awe, and anything else for that matter.
To see just how fast the cultural situation is deteriorating in western societies, you can watch a movie from 1930s or 40s. You will find that even the kids’ talk very eloquently, politely, and wordy. Nowadays, western people use F-words to such an extent that each F-word no longer has a distinct meaning. Rather, it has become more like a gibber of animals; a repeated sound to express feelings or needs.
What is happening in western societies is the same thing that happened to the Sabbath-Breakers. They, too, are slowly turning into apes, as the culture and development that defines us as human beings regresses, leaving only the most rudimentary form of life.
Why is this happening?
Western civilization, if you can call it a civilization at all, has done its best over the past two or three centuries to equate religion to superstition. Consequently, if someone talks about religion, people mostly think he wants to sell them some superstitions or force them into believing any illogical belief without asking for a reason. Furthermore, after September the 11th, mainstream media is trying to persuade people that any religious belief is the root-cause of terrorism. For instance, Carter, a former president of the USA, has recently written a book titled “A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence and Power.” In his speech in Yale, he focused on the role of religion in violence against women. “A lot of the great religions now teach their followers, their believers, that women are inferior in the eyes of God,” he said.
I am not going to argue about how wrong his assertions are. These kinds of cheap arguments are comparable to “if one police officer unjustifiably uses a lethal force, you should abolish the rule of law”, or “if one criminal has a mustache, having a mustache is equal to being a criminal”.
Believing in After-Life and Eternal Judgment is the Foundation of a Civilization
Historically, the Arabic word selected for civilization (تمدن) was taken from the word for religion (دین). Civilization was attributed to a society in that the law and social manner originated from what Almighty GOD orders. In the Quran there is a distinct word for a civilized society (Madinah, مدینه), as opposed to a society in which the mode of governance is not based on religious beliefs (Ghariah, قریه). Religion in the past was a methodical way to reason and conduct a life, which not only satisfies our material needs, but also guides us through the after-life. No matter how advanced and thorough the laws of a society, if people believe that there is no eternal judgment, they will ultimately find a way to cheat and disregard the law. Hence, believing that no wrong-doing is going to be left unpunished is the only thing that guarantees abiding the law. Abiding the law is the foundation of a civilization. We can, therefore, conclude that believing in eternal judgment is necessary to build a civilization.
Throughout history it’s well-tested, time and again; that if popular vote is to be the foundation of law, some special interest groups will eventually manipulate people’s minds and abuse them.
Plainclothes Israeli forces infiltrated a group of Palestinians protesters this afternoon near a checkpoint outside of Ramallah in the West Bank and opened fire on the demonstrators, wounding one. Meanwhile uniformed Israeli soldiers wounded two more protesters with live rounds, critically injuring one by firing a shot into the back of the protester’s head.
In the name of Allah, the Merciful to all, the Compassionate
When on 11 September 2015, a crawler crane toppled over onto the Masjid al-Haram, the Grand Mosque in Mecca, killing 111 people and injuring 394 more, it was obvious that something fishy was going on there. Saudis put the blame on a strong storm. However, weather data shows that at that moment the direction of the wind was perpendicular to the direction of crane’s collapse, with a 22 km/h speed. Moreover it was reported that the crane was deliberately detached from its foundation.
In the name of Allah, the Merciful to all, the Compassionate
I came across a bit of news today about Public Safety Canada awarding a $170K grant to Australian academic Scott Flower. The title of the article was kind of misleading, as it claims Prof. Flower was tasked with discovering why Canadians are choosing Islam. But the official title of the project says the task was how to find people prone to extremism among reverts. Here is the brief of that project:
Towards understanding the extremely rare: distinguishing ordinary processes of religious conversion from violent extremism (Dr. Scott Flower)
In the name of Allah, the Merciful to all, the Compassionate
The mainstream belief is the western civilization is so advanced and so extra-ordinary that you cannot find any relation between the contemporary ideas with ancient ones. But that’s not true. Contrary to this, most of ideas that you see in technology, movies, and even Sci-Fi, are actually recycled ideas from past.
In the name of Allah, the Merciful to all, the Compassionate
In a statement, Oregon Health Authority spokeswoman Susan Wickstrom explained about the age of medical consent in Oregon:
"Age of medical consent varies by state. Oregon law -- which applies to both Medicaid and non-Medicaid Oregonians -- states that the age of medical consent is 15."
By: Karl reMarks
Many people are hesitant to talk about the Middle East and its politics because it seems to be quite a complex place that requires extensive knowledge to understand it. While this is certainly true, there are handy phrases you can use that will make you sound like you know what you are talking about without actually bothering to study the area. We have collected these phrases in the form of a handy guide below. Note that if used properly, you can even go on to become a certain moustached celebrated columnist allowed to pontificate on the region with very little knowledge to go on.
‘It’s all about the oil’
This is the mother of all phrases about Middle East politics. It is one of the most effective phrases in the context of Middle Eastern geopolitics and one that can explain everything. It has even been used to explain Saudi Arabia’s 8-0 defeat at the hands of Germany in the 2002 World Cup and the backlash against Haifa Wehbe’s latest video clip.
‘It’s all about the oil’ is best used along with a patronising phrase such as, ‘you’re so naïve, it’s all about the oil’, or ‘don’t believe everything you read in books, it’s all about the oil’. Generally it’s better to use it about countries that actually have oil reserves, but in case you’re stuck and you’re discussing a country that doesn’t have oil, you can claim that ‘an American expedition found a large reserve of oil in Lebanon in 1917 but kept the information secret.’
‘Saudi Arabia, pffft!’
‘Who do you think created all terrorists in the world?’ ‘Saudi Arabia, pffft!’ ‘What is really happening in Syria?’ ‘Saudi Arabia, pffft!’ ‘Who is responsible for the decline of the Arab novel?’ ‘Saudi Arabia, pffft!’
These are typical exchanges that explain how to use this very effective phrase in the right context. Used correctly, the phrase will make both you and the person you’re talking to sound knowledgeable and wise and avoid going into pesky details. But it is essential to make the sound pffft, simply saying ‘Saudi Arabia’ will make you look like an amateur. For added emphasis, you can throw your hands up in the air when you say pffft.
A warning though, in case the person you’re talking to likes Saudi Arabia, skip to the next phrase.
‘The Shia Crescent’
Alternately called ‘Iran’s fingers behind everything’ this is a very popular phrase when talking about Middle Eastern politics. The beauty of the Shia crescent as a concept to explain Iranian expansion is that it actually looks like a crescent and therefore must be true. Other variations like ‘the Shia triangle’ or ‘the Shia Mickey-Mouse shaped region of influence’ failed to inspire the public imagination despite being more geographically accurate.
A popular elaboration on ‘the Shia crescent’ is to use the phrase ‘the Persians are the true enemies of the Arabs’. By calling them Persians instead of Iranians you gave the weight of history to an otherwise mundane statement. See also the next item.
‘Sultan Erdogan’
‘Why is Turkey….?’
‘Erdogan wants to revive the Ottoman Empire.’
Much like with Iran, everything about Turkey’s modern politics can be explained by Erdogan’s secret desire to revive the Ottoman Empire, including Turkey’s decision to no longer compete in the Eurovision song contest. Well, clearly the rules were biased against neo-Ottoman revivalist electro-pop.
The strong evidence that backs this approach is Erdogan’s neo-Ottoman presidential palace and the historic uniforms for his honour guard. Whenever anyone brings up Turkey, throw your hands up in the air melodramatically and say ‘Sultan Erdogan!’ Everyone will agree with you and you will feel very clever.
‘Obama is an idiot’
Who was responsible for giving the Muslim Brotherhood control over Egypt? America. Who was responsible for the coup that removed the Muslim Brotherhood from power? America. Who is responsible for Saudi expansion in the region? America. Who is responsible for the Iranian rise? America. Pretty much the answer to any question that starts with ‘who?’ in the Middle East is always America. While this might not be strictly true some of the time, America is a very popular choice that everyone can agree on holding responsible for everything.
In order to use this correctly however, you must simultaneously hold two seemingly contradictory opinions: that America is a clever and scheming power that controls everything in the Middle East and that America is extremely stupid. If you’re questioning this, then you’re not quite mentally prepared to discuss the Middle East intelligently.
On a similar note, you must remember that America is either completely controlled by Israel and does its bidding all the time, or is the puppet master using Israel as its tool in the Middle East, whichever is more convenient under the circumstances.
Regardless of which direction you follow, always close by nodding and saying ‘Obama is an idiot’. Everyone will agree with you.
'Ancient Tribal Rivalries'
If all else fails, you can always resort to the ultimate trump card: 'these are ancient tribal rivalries', which can explain any conflict in the Middle East. Sunnis and Shias? Ancient tribal rivalries. Saudi Arabia and Qatar? Ancient tribal rivalries. Fairouz or Um Kalthoum? Ancient tribal rivalries.
Clearly, colonialism, Western interventions, political rivalries and ideological conflicts have nothing to do with anything happening in the Middle East today. It's all down to who stole whose camel centuries ago. Because the Middle East is that simple.
Lastly, remember not to attempt any nuance or complexity when using those phrases, that will completely ruin them. When talking about the politics of the Middle East, it’s crucial to stick to one-dimensional clichés that everyone can agree on.
This guide will soon be available as a smartphone app in case you can’t remember all the phrases correctly.
Posted by Alexander Mordvintsev, Software Engineer, Christopher Olah, Software Engineering Intern and Mike Tyka, Software Engineer
Artificial Neural Networks have spurred remarkable recent progress in image classification and speech recognition. But even though these are very useful tools based on well-known mathematical methods, we actually understand surprisingly little of why certain models work and others don’t. So let’s take a look at some simple techniques for peeking inside these networks.
In the name of Allah, the Merciful to all, the Compassionate
Last Monday, the Bishop of Rome addressed Catholic followers regarding the dire importance of exhibiting religious tolerance. During his hour-long speech, Pope Francis was quoted telling the Vatican’s guests that the Quran, and the spiritual teachings contained therein, are just as valid as the Holy Bible.
