Islam’s Prophet Muhammad, from all of the accounts I have read, was a revered man, and in his lifetime, united all the Arabic tribes into one nation. He was born in 570 in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. At age 25, he married a widow 25 years older than himself, who bore his children, and was heartbroken when she died. He founded the first Islamic state, a theocracy in Medina, which was north of Mecca. Muhammad died June 8, 632. He lived a colorful life, and supposedly met the Angel Gabriel, and received Godly instructions and inspiration to write his book The Qumran, which is the Muslim Holy Book. This is not about Muhammad’s life, but what happened after his death. There have been many many pieces written, which supposedly tell of Muhammad’s crimes and bad acts, but that was a long time ago, and none can be proven, so we’ll skip that. After Muhammad’s death, two groups split the Muslim religion. One group, the Sunnis believes that the first four caliphs (supreme rulers), were the Prophet’s successors, and took his place as the true leaders of the Muslim Religion. The other group, the Shiites, in contrast, believe that only the heirs of the fourth caliph, Ali, are the legitimate successors of the Prophet Muhammad. Ever since, for over 1400 years, the two groups have been at each other, killing each other, struggling for control, and literally despising each other. Both share the same religious beliefs, but seem to have opposite political beliefs.
To me, a non-Muslim, it almost seems like Methodists hating Presbyterians, or Mormons hating Seventh Day Adventists. We’re all Christians, just like the Sunnis and Shiites are both Muslims. Silly? To me, but evidently not to Muslims. Shiites believe that the Imam is sinless by nature, and his authority comes directly from God Perhaps as Catholics believe their ultimate authority comes from the Pope? Sunnis, who comprise about 75% of Muslims, believe that there is no basis for a hereditary class of spiritual leaders, and leadership is not by birthright, but is earned, and may be given or removed by the people themselves. Shiites pray with their hands by their sides, and Sunnis pray with their hands crossed at their chest or stomach. Shiites are described by some, as ’devious, power-hungry, and corruptors of Islam.’ Sunnis are called ’extremist, and intolerant oppressors.’ With the Syrian rebellion, the hatreds between the two are more virulent than ever. Recently, four Shiites were beaten to death by Sunnis in Egypt.
In Iraq, after Saddam was toppled, the long oppressed Shiite majority had chance to take power over the Sunnis, did so, and the Sunnis have been murdering the Shiites ever since, with bombs of every size and description. During Lebanon’s 1974-2000 civil war, the main fight was between Christians and Muslims, but in the last 13 years, the fight has been between Sunnis and Shiites. Shiites helped to raise the guerrilla force Hezbollah. In Syria today, the civil war being raged, is between Lebanon’s Sunnis and Assar’s Alawite sect, an offshoot of the Shiites. Hezbollah is helping Assar. Iran is a Shiite powerhouse of the Middle East, and is home to a government led by Shiite clerics with oil wealth, and a Revolutionary Guard. Iran has extended its influence by its strong support of Syria. In Egypt, the overwhelming population is Sunni, and so much so, that little is known on Shiites in Egypt. Palestinian Muslims are almost all Sunnis. Their main connection with Shiites was the Shiite Hamas alliance with Iran. Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, broke its connection with Syria because of the civil war.
If this all sounds silly and complex, it is, and it’s the Shiite-Sunni continual war with each other, which has caused the troubles in the Mid East, which problems will continue to break out forever probably, and this is why AMERICA NEEDS NO PART OF IT! Nuf Said? Obama, I am certain, is ever so thankful to his Secretary of State, who casually saved his political skin by saying that the whole thing could be called off if Syria would get rid of all its gasses and chemicals and put them under U.N. control. Russia’s Putin agreed and if it were a chess game, checked Obama. Obama had painted himself into a corner and didn’t know how to get out, since America and the Congress were adamantly opposed to any involvement in Syria.
Meanwhile, in Australia, Conservative Tony Abbott handily beat the Labor Party candidate, which is the same in America as Republicans beating Democrats. The Aussies had grown very tired of the liberals’ enlarging government and adding thousands of new laws, regulations, and bureaucrats. I think this is what can happen here next year. The Aussie economy wasn’t doing badly, but they had had enough of left wing liberalism, just like America has…I think and hope! Yesterday, in my state of Colorado, voters recalled two liberal state senators who promulgated the state’s new, probably unconstitutional, very unpopular, gun law. If Colorado has had enough, maybe America has too!
Earth Warming?
Not hardly, according to naturalnews.com. The Arctic was supposed to be ice free by 2013, due to earth warming, but in actual fact, there has been no increase in earth temperature for 17 years, and the Arctic ice has been growing at a very rapid rate. 290,000 square miles of new Arctic ice has formed in just one year. No, the polar bears are not dying due to earth warming, and reduced polar ice. “Oh the poor bears will have no ice to sit on, and will die. They can’t swim, you know.” They can swim effortlessly, and as far as 62 miles at a time, at 10 MPH. They have a thick layer of buoyant blubber under that white fur. They are reproducing at a huge rate. The old Carbon Dioxide scare is nuts too. The more CO2 we have, the better plants and trees grow. Many greenhouses have CO2 generators in them. Poor Al Gore? No, he’s made his millions with those fraudulent books he wrote, lifetime VP salary, and flies around in his huge, fuel guzzling jet, and gets thousands for each speech.