Abu Dharr Archive

Archive April 2007
Monday April 30 2007/12 Rabiul Thani 1428 'Because British soldiers are killing Muslims' Ian Cobain and Richard Norton-Taylor, Guardian Unlimited The roots of the international conspiracy to mount a bomb attack in the UK, which was intended to kill and maim as many people as possible and cause unprecedented disruption, can be traced to a point long before the war in Iraq. Several of the plotters had come together in 2001, some had discussed "hitting" British targets before the invasion, and at least one had undergone terrorist training before 9/11. The war, however, clearly provided the impetus - or at least the excuse - for a plan to target the UK. Mohammed Junaid Babar, an American member of the cell who turned supergrass after being picked up by the FBI, admitted that the plotters "believed the UK should be hit because of its support of the US in Afghanistan and Iraq" and because, at that time, "nothing had ever happened in the UK". Saturday April 28 2007/10 Rabiul Thani 1428 Schoolgirl goes to court over chastity ring Jonathan Petre and Hazel Southam, Daily Telegraph A teenage girl banned from wearing a Christian chastity ring at school is taking her case to the High Court. Lydia Playfoot wanted to wear a silver ring that showed her commitment to remain a virgin until marriage. But her school refused permission on health and safety grounds and because the ring infringed its jewellery policy. The dispute echoes last year's row over whether a British Airways employee could wear a cross and that of Shabina Begum, a Muslim excluded from her school in Luton for wearing a jilbab in defiance of school rules. She took the school to the High Court but lost her case. Miss Playfoot, 16, from Horsham, West Sussex, has an impressive array of politicians and Church leaders backing her claims... Islamic street preachers Riazat Butt, The Guardian There can't be that many female playwrights who are deaf, punk and Muslim, so Sabina England is something of a find. With a lurid Mohawk and leather jacket slathered with slogans, she looks every inch the rebel and has an attitude to match. Sabina, who says she lives in the "shitty midwest of the United States" or the "HELL-HOLE OF BOREDOM AND YUPPIES", is part of a subculture that, until a few years ago, existed only on paper. The Taqwacores - a novel about a fictitious Muslim punk scene in the US - has spawned an actual movement that is being driven forward by young Muslims worldwide. Some bands - such as the Kominas - have a cult following. Others, such as Sabina, are virtually unknown. In a brief email exchange, she lays out some harsh truths. And check out: The Big Announcement: Sculptable Prims! (Second Life Insider) Wednesday April 25 2007/07 Rabiul Thani 1428 Six held in anti-terror raids over 'incitement' John Steele, Ben Quinn and Duncan Gardham, Daily Telegraph Six men, including a radical Muslim who generated headlines last year by barracking the Home Secretary, have been arrested by anti-terrorist police investigating alleged incitement to commit terrorism overseas and terrorist fund-raising. The men, including Abu Izzadeen, 32, a former electrician who converted to Islam and changed his name from Trevor Brooks, were held in raids yesterday in London and Luton, Beds. A number of those arrested, like Izzadeen, have had alleged links to the now defunct al-Muhajiroun group. The men, aged between 21 and 35, were being questioned last night in Paddington Green high security police station, west London. Anti-terror chief asks Muslims to help more John Steele, Daily Telegraph Few anti-terrorist operations are sparked by intelligence from Britain's Muslim communities and the flow of information to police and MI5 has to be increased, the UK's most senior counter-terrorist officer said last night. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, head of Scotland Yard's counter-terrorism command, warned there was also a dangerous distrust of the intelligence on which police worked. This was typified by the controversy over the abortive "chemical bomb" raid on a house in east London last summer. He criticised those who fuelled this distrust by claiming police operations were politically motivated to justify British foreign policy. The public was not being informed of the true nature of the terror threat, said Mr Clarke. Unearthing The Lost Literary Heritage Of West Africa Kelly Izdihar Crosby, Alt.Muslim As the International Museum of Muslim Cultures enters its sixth year of operation, this unique museum in the South has brought yet another world class exhibition to Jackson, Mississippi. Drawing from the success of the previous exhibit, Islamic Moorish Spain: Its Legacy to Europe and the West, the museum's newest exhibit The Legacy of Timbuktu: Wonders of the Written Word reveals West Africa's lost literate heritage. Opening in November 2006 to positive reviews from local and national media, this exhibit details the rich history of the great African Islamic empires. And check out: Muslim women glad Hirsi Ali quit Netherlands (Islamophobia Watch) Is it cos I is Muslim? (Rolled Up Trousers) Tuesday April 24 2007/06 Rabiul Thani 1428 Fascist America, in 10 easy steps The Guardian, Naomi Wolf Last autumn, there was a military coup in Thailand. The leaders of the coup took a number of steps, rather systematically, as if they had a shopping list. In a sense, they did. Within a matter of days, democracy had been closed down: the coup leaders declared martial law, sent armed soldiers into residential areas, took over radio and TV stations, issued restrictions on the press, tightened some limits on travel, and took certain activists into custody. They were not figuring these things out as they went along. If you look at history, you can see that there is essentially a blueprint for turning an open society into a dictatorship. That blueprint has been used again and again in more and less bloody, more and less terrifying ways. Let Me Tell You About My Brother... Hesham Hassaballa, Alt.Muslim In the Name of God, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. Let me tell you about my brother. As the blogosphere was aflame with intense speculation (and it was just that: speculation) about Cho Sueng-Hui's possible connection to "Islamic terrorism" because of the words "Ismael Ax" tattooed on his arm, the Virginia Tech Muslim community was mourning the death of one of their brightest stars. Waleed Shaalan, 32, was a graduate student in the Civil Engineering Department at Virginia Tech. He first came to VT in August 2006 from northern Egypt. He took on an assistantship position, choosing to leave his Ph.D. track which he started in Egypt. He was known for "his broad smile and wave that he gave everyone." First UK law firm opens 'virtual' office in Second Life Michael Herman and Alex Spence, The Times Solomon Cortes greets his guest at reception, shakes hands and makes small talk about his firm's new floor-to-ceiling tropical fish tank before leading him into a meeting room and offering a chair. There is nothing unusual in this scene - except that it is taking place at a virtual law firm, and Solomon Cortes is in fact the sunglasses-wearing digital alter ego of David Naylor, an intellectual property partner at Field Fisher Waterhouse. Thanks to Mr Naylor and his team of tech-savvy lawyers, FFW yesterday became the first major UK law firm to open an office in Second Life, a fast-growing online community with more than 5 million inhabitants and a self-sustaining economy worth $2 billion (Ł1 billion) a year. And check out: BBC Radio 4 - I'm a Muslim, Get Me out of Here! (Indigo Jo) Flight of middle class Muslims By Navid Akhtar and Mukti Jain Campion Many Muslims, fed up with what they see as Islamophobia, are upping sticks and heading for the Middle East. At Nuzhat al-Sibassi's family home in south London, the contents are being packed away in boxes, ready to be shipped to the United Arab Emirates. Mrs al-Sibassi was born in Britain to Pakistani parents, raised and educated here. She's worked as a senior hospital manager in the NHS, but is now moving with her family to the United Arab Emirates. "Living here is not how it was. The politics and the environment has changed and people's perception of Muslims has changed dramatically. A number of incidents in UK over past 3-4 years have marred life for decent Muslims living here." Saturday April 21 2007/03 Rabiul Thani 1428 The sheikh is back in town - and auction prices are soaring Chris Hastings and Beth Jones, Sunday Telegraph Two years ago, he was under house arrest and at the centre of an international controversy involving the alleged misappropriation of public funds. Now Sheikh Saud Al-Thani of Qatar, the world's biggest art collector, is back in London and thought to be single-handedly fuelling the lucrative market in Islamic Art. Sheikh Saud, who is famous for paying massively more than the estimated prices for items that he likes and who once bought a Mughal fly whisk for 113 times its asking price, last week attended an Islamic sale at Bonhams as well a preview show at Sotheby's. Morocco's turning tide Jason Burke, The Observer An empty square in front of the ferry docks in the northern Moroccan port city of Tangiers. It's after midnight on a fresh spring night and scruffy teenagers fight and shout under a palm tree. The narrow lanes leading up to the old town - the medina - with its shops, winding passageways and windowless walls, are silent but for the footsteps of the occasional shift-worker hurrying home. A dog barks, the waves slap on the dockside and beyond the gravel of the long beach a ship's horn sounds dully in the darkness. To the north, across the nine mile-wide Straits of Gibraltar, is Europe. A sign in Arabic and French points the way to the docks serving Italy, France and Spain. To the east, beyond the curve of the bay and the rows of half-constructed apartment and office blocks, and the new railway station, lies the southern coast of the Mediterranean, sliding away towards the heart of the Arab and Muslim world. And check out: Antisemitism in Second Life (Kafka's SL World) Saturday April 21 2007/03 Rabiul Thani 1428 Trees come down no more Eloise Pasteur, Second Life Insider Second Chance Trees offers a unique opportunity to do something about this. There are 10 types of rainforest trees you can buy for L$300 each, and plant on the island - mine's on the right of the picture. So what? Well for each pixel-and-prim tree you plant, Plant-It 2020 will plant one, matching your chosen species, in an appropriate part of the real Earth. The sim offers you the chance to find out more about rainforesets, their contributions to our lives and so on. Given my background Azadirachta indica was an easy choice. Why? NEEM TREE Also called a margosa tree, the Neem tree is a fast-growing broad-leaved evergreen, Azadirachta indica, native to India and Myanmar. Catholic Church buries limbo after centuries Reuters, via Yahoo! News, UK VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Roman Catholic Church has effectively buried the concept of limbo, the place where centuries of tradition and teaching held that babies who die without baptism went. In a long-awaited document, the Church’s International Theological Commission said limbo reflected an “unduly restrictive view of salvation.” The 41-page document was published on Friday by Origins, the documentary service of the U.S.-based Catholic News Service, which is part of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Pope Benedict, himself a top theologian who before his election in 2005 expressed doubts about limbo, authorized the publication of the document, called “The Hope of Salvation for Infants Who Die Without Being Baptised.” Friday April 20 2007/02 Rabiul Thani 1428 'I felt more welcome in the Bible belt' Manal Omar, The Guardian G2 One Sunday last month I went for my afternoon swim at my local David Lloyd's fitness club wearing the Islamic-style swimsuit I have been wearing for years. The swimsuit has recently been celebrated by media outlets from Newsweek to National Geographic as an innovative way for Muslim women to become more active. As an American-Muslim woman, I have always been determined to be active without compromising my faith. I have been swimming in capital cities across the world from Rio de Janeiro to Washington DC to Kuala Lumpur, and now London. Although I get curious stares, I have never had any awkward moments when I head out for a swim. Growing up confused Dominic Casciani, BBC News It all started to go wrong for Imran Ahmad at the Karachi Bonnie Baby competition. Despite his raised eyebrow and suave suit (see picture above) he is devastated to be placed second by the judge, who has given first prize to the competition organiser's child. "It's absolutely typical of the third world," recalls Ahmad, referring to the inherent low-level corruption. And fortunately for him, his family soon take a chance on a new future in England. Years later, and now a very grown up Home Counties professional, Ahmad has published his memoir of a 1960s and 70s childhood and coming of age, Unimagined. The Complete Rebuttal For Second Life Sceptics Mitch Wagner, Information Week Weblog Second Life expert Wagner James Au provides the final rebuttal to sceptics who think that the virtual world is just a fad, or are baffled why it's getting so much attention. Au, a journalist who specialize in gaming and Second Life, is the subject of an interview by Henry Jenkins of MIT Media Lab at the blog Confessions of an Aca-Fan. Au was the first "embedded journalist" in Second Life, back in 2003, working for SL developers Linden Lab. He stopped working for them, but continued providing SL coverage on his blog, New World Notes. He just finished writing a book of the same title. Au says there are two "conversations" going on about Second Life. What the Internet will be like in the future Robert Hof, BusinessWeek Ever since Neal Stephenson published Snow Crash in 1992, the virtual world he described in his seminal dystopian novel has been the Holy Grail for a generation of tech whizzes. The metaverse, as Stephenson called it, was essentially the Internet. But in place of the flat, two-dimensional World Wide Web that had just been invented, he imagined a completely immersive and highly social 3D online world. People's avatars, or virtual representations of themselves, could interact using facial expressions and body language so richly textured that for many the metaverse became more compelling than the real world. Now, 15 years later, the glimmers of a real metaverse are coming into focus. And check out: Church's services 'loud as a nightclub' (Daily Telegraph) The Germans are coming! (Kafka's SL World) Introducing: Estate Level Governance (Official Linden Blog) Wednesday April 18 2007/29 Rabiul Awwal 1428 People feel more insecure - Blair's legacy will be a divided kingdom Philip Johnston, Daily Telegraph In the third part of our series in which ordinary Britons describe life under Tony Blair, Tariq Ahmad talks about being a Muslim who long ago passed the 'Tebbit test'. In 1997 I was working with the NatWest group. I had joined the Conservative Party a few years earlier and it was not, to be frank, the best time to be a Tory. Friends and colleagues thought I was insane. They told me I was a member of the wrong party, that I was going against the grain. "You guys are haggard, exhausted and rotten," they said. "What are you doing staying with them?" The Conservative Government was deeply unpopular and it is true that Blair did look very different, like a man of the people. I feared we were being left behind. New Labour and Blair seemed to have captured not just the popular vote but also the public's imagination. And check out: Muslims can claim cash for their harems – shock revelations (Islamophobia Watch) Tuesday April 17 2007/28 Rabiul Awwal 1428 Universities 'targeted' by Islamic extremists Philip Johnston, Daily Torygraph British universities will be warned this week that they are being targeted by Islamic extremist groups looking for recruits. A conference of chief security officers will hear that religious radicals remain active on campuses and have infiltrated at least 20 institutions. Prof Anthony Glees, of the Centre for Intelligence and Security Studies at Brunel University, will say the threat must be "urgently addressed". The Government has issued guidance to universities over how to deal with the threat. Bill Rammell, the higher education minister, said it was "real, but not widespread." But Prof Glees will tell a conference of the Association of University Chief Security Officers in Exeter that there is a danger of complacency. SL residents mourn student deaths at Virginia Tech Marvel Ousley Yesterday, after the news that at least 30 students at Virgina Tech in Blacksburg, Va., had been shot by a gunman who eventually killed himself, Second Life residents began to set up memorials to the victims. Forcythia Wishbringer, head of Elf Circle, a high fantasy group with more than 600 members, turned the lights off in her sims starting at 7:22 p.m. for 24 hours in respect for those who died. At Info Island, a memorial was erected, where people could take a candle and leave flowers. A sculpture of a man on his knees, and arms raised in the air as if he were asking "why?" was created by Darrien Lightworker. "Learning Island" Launched for Second Life Educators Community Digital Communities A cooperative effort between the product development team at Angel Learning and the SLED (Second Life Educators community) has produced a virtual experience within the popular Second Life virtual world designed for educational experimentation. The Island, known as "Angel Learning Isle," will open to the public May 15th. "Angel Learning Isle was built specifically for experimentation in the use of virtual collaboration technologies in online learning," said Ray Henderson, chief products officer, Angel Learning. "Our first goal was to create a place for faculty and learners new to Second Life to get their bearings and practice new navigational and communication skills." And check out: Pipes in search of 'moderate Muslims' (Islamophobia Watch) Religious Web Sites Ape MySpace, YouTube (RN Blog) Monday April 16 2007/27 Rabiul Awwal 1428 It isn't all pretty in cyberspace Mel Campbell, Sidney Morning Herald How ugly are you? Whether you are just a little plain or you make small children cry in the street, join the online community Uglynet.com. There you'll meet people all over the world who oppose the idea that beauty equals social power. "About 90 per cent of people feel ugly, but no one ever talks about it," says the website's mission statement. "Fight for your right to wear plus-sizes, have crooked teeth, go bald with a comb-over, have skin issues and a succession of bad-hair-days!" Ugliness doesn't mean unhappiness, it says, and the aesthetically challenged should wear their lot as a badge of honour... Talking Politics Willow Caldera, SL New Network Platon - Saturday afternoon saw some of Second Life's prominent political thinkers gather for a Political Campaign Panel Discussion, focusing on the present and future of SL political campaigning. Making up the panel were the SL campaign organizers for US Senators Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John Edwards, as well as a reporter, a blogger, and a Second Life strategist. The debate was moderated by Miranda Tibbett, formerly of PBS. The panel acknowledged that the current big players in online campaigning are YouTube and MySpace, but that this may change very quickly as platforms like Second Life grow in importance. And check out: Abdul-Hakim Murad: the churches and Bosnia (Indigo Jo Blog) Sunday April 15 2007/26 Rabiul Awwal 1428 Bodhi is Online The Milarepa Land Trust Bodhi is a virtual island in the online world of Second Life dedicated to the teachings of Buddha. Bodhi is a public commons dedicated to Dharma and for the benefit of all. Although Bodhi is under construction, you are welcome to explore the sites, structures and texts found on the island. In Second Life, Bodhi is here. Bodhi can found on the web at: The Bodhi Sim Blog And the Bodhi discussion forum. The island takes its name from the ancient word for "awakening," for it was under the Bodhi tree where Gautama Buddha achieved enlightenment, an awareness of the true nature of life and the world around him. Muslims will not waver over veils Jonathan Wynne-Jones, Sunday Telegraph Britain's Muslim community overwhelmingly believes that women should be allowed to wear the veil, despite fears that it presents a barrier to integration, a study has found. Almost nine in 10 Muslims think that any government moves to ban the veil would hurt social cohesion. Schools already have the power to ask pupils to remove the niqab - which covers the entire face apart from a slit for the eyes - to improve safety, security and learning. There have been calls for a wider debate on whether it is appropriate for the full veil to be worn in public at all. But a Gallup Poll to be published this week found most Muslims firm in the belief that Islamic women should be free to wear it. Widow pins hopes on fresh evidence in jail cell killing Jamie Doward, The Observer Britain's prison system faces scrutiny this weekend over its treatment of ethnic minority prisoners as new evidence is revealed about how an Asian inmate was killed by his white cellmate. The inquest into the death of Shahid Aziz, 30, will pose new questions about the role of staff at Leeds prison and raise fresh concerns about overcrowding in Britain's jails. Aziz was murdered within minutes of being locked in the same cell as Peter McCann, who had twice been caught in possession of an object with a blade in the weeks before the killing and had attacked fellow inmates on two previous occasions. Despite his history of violence, McCann, 25, was considered a 'low risk' threat to other prisoners. Multiracial Britain confuses Poles Anushka Asthana and Mary Fitzgerald, The Observer It is a difficult social and cultural problem: what to do when tens of thousands of immigrants from an almost wholly white country arrive in a nation that has a fierce pride in its multicultural mix? It is an issue affecting the many Poles coming to Britain, who are being warned to be ready for a country where being black or Asian is not unusual and it is wrong to react 'negatively' to people of different races. The message has been spread through Catholic priests in Poland and is aimed at families moving to the UK from all-white towns and villages. The Polish Educational Society of London approached the priests following claims of racist behaviour among Polish children and their parents. Soaring Beyond Physical Challenges in Virtual Worlds Tom Peters and Lori Bell, Computers in Libraries - Technewsworld Recently, 3-D online multiuser virtual environments (MUVEs) have become very popular. In these online worlds, users have avatars (digital surrogates) that move around within the virtual world, interact with others and the virtual environment, build things, etc. The Wikipedia article on MUVEs lists "Second Life", There.com, "Activeworlds" and "Neverwinter Nights" as the most popular existing MUVEs. Within the related universe of MMORPGs (massively multiplayer online role-playing games), "World of Warcraft" has more than 8 million users. During the past year, the number of registered avatars in "Second Life" has mushroomed from a few hundred thousand to well over 3.3 million, and the number of avatars active in-world in the past 60 days exceeds 1 million. And check out: "Inshallah" on the BBC: a cultural cringe? (Indigo Jo) About the Milarepa Land Trust (The Milarepa Land Trust) Sunday Morning Blues (Craig Murray) Saturday April 14 2007/25 Rabiul Awwal 1428 Ghost Exhibit Shut After Islamic Clerics Protest AP, via SFGate.com, USA, via RNBlog KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — A Malaysian state has closed down a museum exhibition on ghosts, ghouls and supernatural beings after Islamic clerics claimed it was detrimental to Muslims’ faith, newspapers reported Saturday. The exhibition at the state museum in southern Negeri Sembilan has drawn some 25,000 visitors since it opened March 10. But it has also attracted criticism from religious scholars who charged the show was un-Islamic and based in fantasy, the New Straits Times reported. Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Rais Yatim also disapproved of the exhibition, saying it was not beneficial to the community. And check out: Exactly Who Is Creating Radicals: Muslim's or The Government? (MPACUK) A new frontier of ministry (Brownblog) Friday April 13 2007/24 Rabiul Awwal 1428 Aussie hosts Seder in cyberspace Joshua Levi WHY was this Seder night different from all other nights? And does virtual maror have the same sting? Sydney resident Jeremy Finkelstein has the answers to those – and many other – questions about celebrating Pesach in cyberspace, after hosting the world’s first Seder on online virtual world Second Life last Monday. Finkelstein, who is known on Second Life by the name Cryptomorph Lake, is among the millions of people and corporations, including Reuters, Nike, Sony and Dell computers, to have embraced the phenomenon, where people’s characters, known as avatars, live a virtual existence, work in virtual jobs and support a virtual economy. World mourns Kurt Vonnegut Diago Quaranta, SLNN People all over the world mourned the loss of writer Kurt Vonnegut this week, as the 84 year-old author of "Cat's Cradle," "Slaughterhouse Five," and "A Man Without a Country" died Wednesday in Manhattan. News agencies remembered Vonnegut for his witty and influential writing, and here in SL residents look back to the last broadcast interview with Vonnegut, which was streamed live in SL in August. The interview was hosted by The Infinite Mind, a U.S. radio program with an estimated 1 million listeners. The program focuses on the art and science of the human mind and human behavior. The interview was the last in a series which launched The Infinite Mind's virtual broadcast center in SL. Wednesday April 11 2007/22 Rabiul Awwal 1428 The blogosphere risks putting off everyone but point-scoring males Jonathan Freedland, The Guardian So you're at a public meeting on, say, the war in Iraq and the main speaker has just sat down. Someone in the audience rises to declare the speaker is talking crap, but that's typical of him because he knows nothing and it's a scandal that he's paid for the rubbish he turns out. A second man agrees that the speech was trash, but tells the first man he should crawl back under his stone because he never says anything worth listening to. A third man wonders why the speaker didn't mention Israel, especially given his Zionist-sounding last name. UK Hospital banned hot cross buns to avoid offending non-Christians (only they didn't) Daily Mail, UK, via RNBlog Hospital staff claim they were banned from handing out hot cross buns this Easter in case they upset non-Christians. The decision disappointed patients at Poole Hospital in Dorset and angered catering staff. In an email to their local paper, sent on Good Friday, catering staff said: ‘We the kitchen staff of Poole Hospital were disgusted to find that the patients were not getting hot cross buns this morning. “The manager of the catering department said he was worried about the ethnic minorities that work here.” The workers, who did not want to be named, said they had been inundated with calls from nurses on the wards asking why there were no buns this year. Artists invited to submit entries for Arts Plus residencies Diago Quaranta, SLNN ARTS PLUS - Arts Plus, a real world organization created by the French Ministry of Culture seeks Second Life artists to participate in the first real and virtual world exhibition and a new virtual residency program. Arts Plus brings artists together to produce exhibitions and works on various themes. For their latest project: the exhibition Les Femmes Heroiques, they teamed up with the Computer Band to bring the show to life in the virtual world. Residents are invited to enter avatars based on the 11 heroines depicted in the show, and the best ones as decided by the jury will be given free land in Arts Plus for one year to use as a virtual workspace and will also be involved in any future Arts Plus projects. Second Life ploy for Paris garden BBC News Online A Paris residents' association is using the virtual world of Second Life to get the town hall to press on with plans to redevelop a central area of the city. Residents have until 1 June to suggest ideas for a new garden for Les Halles in the centre of the French capital. Mayor Bertrand Delanoe revealed plans in 2004 to revamp the area. Les Halles was the central wholesale market for the Paris region until the 1970s when it was razed to the ground to make way for a shopping centre. It is also a major underground hub and redevelopment plans for the area include renovating the garden. But local residents' association Accomplir (Accomplish) says residents have not been consulted over the gardens which they say are at the heart of local life. Tuesday April 10 2007/21 Rabiul Awwal 1428 Tokyo flooded as Second Life suffers climate change PC Advisor Second Life is increasingly being used by major brands and advertising agencies to promote their products – allowing Second Lifers to buy virtual Nike trainers from Niketown in Second Life, lattés in their ‘local’ Starbucks and to have a beer or two in Heineken-branded bars in the virtual world. So it was a refreshing change to discover that a UK-based charity, Adventure Ecology, last week partnered with the advertising agency Ogilvy for altogether more altruistic reasons. With the co-operation of Anshe Chung, Second Lifers awoke last Tuesday morning to discover that their favourite haunts were submerged under water. Howls of protest as web gurus attempt to banish bad behaviour from blogosphere Ed Pilkington, The Guardian Perhaps it was inevitable. When two leading internet pioneers came together this week to propose a set of guidelines that would filter out offensive and abusive comments from blogs, they were met by a torrent of offensive and abusive comments. Images of excrement were abundant amid the reaction yesterday to the proposed "bloggers' code of conduct". The anonymous blogger bynkii (motto: because misanthropy is fun) likened the idea to "troll faeces, specifically designed to create a special group of self-satisfied, smug, condescending dingalings looking down their noses". Monday April 09 2007/20 Rabiul Awwal 1428 Religious Diversity in SL Diago Quaranta, SLNN Religion and belief are an important part of many people's lives, and they also have a place in the virtual world. In Second Life residents are not only celebrating their own religions, but helping people learn about others, as well. Religion in SL life has recently been publicized in mainstream culture, with an article in USA Today about faith in SL. While every major religion has established some presence in SL at this point, there are locations which attempt to bring every religion to one place, or provide information on all the different faith centers in SL. One such organization is Second Faith, a non-profit group operated by Drown Pharaoh. The Second Faith building in Chebi and the group's Web site Sunday April 08 2007/19 Rabiul Awwal 1428 In Second Life, nobody knows you're a lapsed Catholic Stephanie Simon, LA Times If all goes well, the naked lady won't show up this morning when Pastor Craig Groeschel preaches his Easter service. But several cats will probably drop in. A horned dragon might perch on the crimson seats. There could even, perhaps, be an emu strolling in. Groeschel will deliver his sermon in an Oklahoma City church. It will also be streamed over the Internet to the virtual world called Second Life — a world populated by 5 million pixilated characters of every description. In this three-dimensional metaverse — a vivid, ever-changing universe created by gamers — characters can buy virtual clothes from real-world manufacturers, hold virtual rallies for flesh-and-blood politicians, and now, increasingly, worship in sync with the congregations in bricks-and-mortar churches. Hospitals would be guarded in wake of attack Laura Donnelly, Sunday Telegraph Security guards could be posted at hospitals to stop casualties gaining entry and contaminating other patients in the event of a "chemical" terrorist attack, government plans show. Guidance published last week instructs every hospital to "retain control of access to its facilities" following a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear incident. The advice is part of the Department of Health's planning framework for dealing with "mass casualty incidents" - whether from terrorist attack or infectious diseases, such as a flu pandemic. Friday April 06 2007/17 Rabiul Awwal 1428 Scholars present paper on more than 150 SL museums Childs Writer, SLNN Two PhD students and a college professor visited more than 150 museums and art galleries in Second Life as part of their research for a paper entitled: A Second Life for Your Museum: 3D Multi-User Virtual Environments and Museums. Though their study was not a comprehensive one, it is by far the most detailed and characterized list of SL museums to date. Aethalides Kukulcan (Richard Urban in Real Life) is a doctoral student at the University of Illinois Graduate School of Library Science. In 2005, Kukulcan stumbled upon SL while studying the use of games and learning. A second look at school life Education Guardian The first day at a new school is never easy. You've bought new clothes for the occasion - although you're not sure if the astronaut helmet matches the kilt. You watch your teacher hovering above the floor, waiting for the final stragglers to arrive. At last, your missing classmate appears on the roof, apologising for her tardiness: she was trapped in a cloud of bubbles. Welcome to school life - in Second Life. More than 100 pupils aged between 13 and 17, all members of the National Association for Gifted and Talented Youth (NAGTY), are being taught in virtual classrooms in the popular giant 3D computer game...

Archive April 2007

Monday April 30 2007/12 Rabiul Thani 1428
'Because British soldiers are killing Muslims'
Ian Cobain and Richard Norton-Taylor, Guardian Unlimited
The roots of the international conspiracy to mount a bomb attack in the UK, which was intended to kill and maim as many people as possible and cause unprecedented disruption, can be traced to a point long before the war in Iraq. Several of the plotters had come together in 2001, some had discussed "hitting" British targets before the invasion, and at least one had undergone terrorist training before 9/11. The war, however, clearly provided the impetus - or at least the excuse - for a plan to target the UK. Mohammed Junaid Babar, an American member of the cell who turned supergrass after being picked up by the FBI, admitted that the plotters "believed the UK should be hit because of its support of the US in Afghanistan and Iraq" and because, at that time, "nothing had ever happened in the UK".

Saturday April 28 2007/10 Rabiul Thani 1428
Schoolgirl goes to court over chastity ring
Jonathan Petre and Hazel Southam, Daily Telegraph
A teenage girl banned from wearing a Christian chastity ring at school is taking her case to the High Court. Lydia Playfoot wanted to wear a silver ring that showed her commitment to remain a virgin until marriage. But her school refused permission on health and safety grounds and because the ring infringed its jewellery policy. The dispute echoes last year's row over whether a British Airways employee could wear a cross and that of Shabina Begum, a Muslim excluded from her school in Luton for wearing a jilbab in defiance of school rules. She took the school to the High Court but lost her case. Miss Playfoot, 16, from Horsham, West Sussex, has an impressive array of politicians and Church leaders backing her claims...

Islamic street preachers
Riazat Butt, The Guardian
There can't be that many female playwrights who are deaf, punk and Muslim, so Sabina England is something of a find. With a lurid Mohawk and leather jacket slathered with slogans, she looks every inch the rebel and has an attitude to match. Sabina, who says she lives in the "shitty midwest of the United States" or the "HELL-HOLE OF BOREDOM AND YUPPIES", is part of a subculture that, until a few years ago, existed only on paper. The Taqwacores - a novel about a fictitious Muslim punk scene in the US - has spawned an actual movement that is being driven forward by young Muslims worldwide. Some bands - such as the Kominas - have a cult following. Others, such as Sabina, are virtually unknown. In a brief email exchange, she lays out some harsh truths.

And check out:
The Big Announcement: Sculptable Prims! (Second Life Insider)

Wednesday April 25 2007/07 Rabiul Thani 1428
Six held in anti-terror raids over 'incitement'
John Steele, Ben Quinn and Duncan Gardham, Daily Telegraph
Six men, including a radical Muslim who generated headlines last year by barracking the Home Secretary, have been arrested by anti-terrorist police investigating alleged incitement to commit terrorism overseas and terrorist fund-raising. The men, including Abu Izzadeen, 32, a former electrician who converted to Islam and changed his name from Trevor Brooks, were held in raids yesterday in London and Luton, Beds. A number of those arrested, like Izzadeen, have had alleged links to the now defunct al-Muhajiroun group. The men, aged between 21 and 35, were being questioned last night in Paddington Green high security police station, west London.

Anti-terror chief asks Muslims to help more
John Steele, Daily Telegraph
Few anti-terrorist operations are sparked by intelligence from Britain's Muslim communities and the flow of information to police and MI5 has to be increased, the UK's most senior counter-terrorist officer said last night. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, head of Scotland Yard's counter-terrorism command, warned there was also a dangerous distrust of the intelligence on which police worked. This was typified by the controversy over the abortive "chemical bomb" raid on a house in east London last summer. He criticised those who fuelled this distrust by claiming police operations were politically motivated to justify British foreign policy. The public was not being informed of the true nature of the terror threat, said Mr Clarke.

Unearthing The Lost Literary Heritage Of West Africa
Kelly Izdihar Crosby, Alt.Muslim
As the International Museum of Muslim Cultures enters its sixth year of operation, this unique museum in the South has brought yet another world class exhibition to Jackson, Mississippi. Drawing from the success of the previous exhibit, Islamic Moorish Spain: Its Legacy to Europe and the West, the museum's newest exhibit The Legacy of Timbuktu: Wonders of the Written Word reveals West Africa's lost literate heritage. Opening in November 2006 to positive reviews from local and national media, this exhibit details the rich history of the great African Islamic empires.

And check out:
Muslim women glad Hirsi Ali quit Netherlands (Islamophobia Watch)
Is it cos I is Muslim? (Rolled Up Trousers)

Tuesday April 24 2007/06 Rabiul Thani 1428
Fascist America, in 10 easy steps
The Guardian, Naomi Wolf
Last autumn, there was a military coup in Thailand. The leaders of the coup took a number of steps, rather systematically, as if they had a shopping list. In a sense, they did. Within a matter of days, democracy had been closed down: the coup leaders declared martial law, sent armed soldiers into residential areas, took over radio and TV stations, issued restrictions on the press, tightened some limits on travel, and took certain activists into custody. They were not figuring these things out as they went along. If you look at history, you can see that there is essentially a blueprint for turning an open society into a dictatorship. That blueprint has been used again and again in more and less bloody, more and less terrifying ways.

Let Me Tell You About My Brother...
Hesham Hassaballa, Alt.Muslim
In the Name of God, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. Let me tell you about my brother. As the blogosphere was aflame with intense speculation (and it was just that: speculation) about Cho Sueng-Hui's possible connection to "Islamic terrorism" because of the words "Ismael Ax" tattooed on his arm, the Virginia Tech Muslim community was mourning the death of one of their brightest stars. Waleed Shaalan, 32, was a graduate student in the Civil Engineering Department at Virginia Tech. He first came to VT in August 2006 from northern Egypt. He took on an assistantship position, choosing to leave his Ph.D. track which he started in Egypt. He was known for "his broad smile and wave that he gave everyone."

First UK law firm opens 'virtual' office in Second Life
Michael Herman and Alex Spence, The Times
Solomon Cortes greets his guest at reception, shakes hands and makes small talk about his firm's new floor-to-ceiling tropical fish tank before leading him into a meeting room and offering a chair. There is nothing unusual in this scene - except that it is taking place at a virtual law firm, and Solomon Cortes is in fact the sunglasses-wearing digital alter ego of David Naylor, an intellectual property partner at Field Fisher Waterhouse. Thanks to Mr Naylor and his team of tech-savvy lawyers, FFW yesterday became the first major UK law firm to open an office in Second Life, a fast-growing online community with more than 5 million inhabitants and a self-sustaining economy worth $2 billion (Ł1 billion) a year.

And check out:
BBC Radio 4 - I'm a Muslim, Get Me out of Here! (Indigo Jo)

Flight of middle class Muslims
By Navid Akhtar and Mukti Jain Campion
Many Muslims, fed up with what they see as Islamophobia, are upping sticks and heading for the Middle East. At Nuzhat al-Sibassi's family home in south London, the contents are being packed away in boxes, ready to be shipped to the United Arab Emirates. Mrs al-Sibassi was born in Britain to Pakistani parents, raised and educated here. She's worked as a senior hospital manager in the NHS, but is now moving with her family to the United Arab Emirates. "Living here is not how it was. The politics and the environment has changed and people's perception of Muslims has changed dramatically. A number of incidents in UK over past 3-4 years have marred life for decent Muslims living here."

Saturday April 21 2007/03 Rabiul Thani 1428
The sheikh is back in town - and auction prices are soaring
Chris Hastings and Beth Jones, Sunday Telegraph
Two years ago, he was under house arrest and at the centre of an international controversy involving the alleged misappropriation of public funds. Now Sheikh Saud Al-Thani of Qatar, the world's biggest art collector, is back in London and thought to be single-handedly fuelling the lucrative market in Islamic Art. Sheikh Saud, who is famous for paying massively more than the estimated prices for items that he likes and who once bought a Mughal fly whisk for 113 times its asking price, last week attended an Islamic sale at Bonhams as well a preview show at Sotheby's.

Morocco's turning tide
Jason Burke, The Observer
An empty square in front of the ferry docks in the northern Moroccan port city of Tangiers. It's after midnight on a fresh spring night and scruffy teenagers fight and shout under a palm tree. The narrow lanes leading up to the old town - the medina - with its shops, winding passageways and windowless walls, are silent but for the footsteps of the occasional shift-worker hurrying home. A dog barks, the waves slap on the dockside and beyond the gravel of the long beach a ship's horn sounds dully in the darkness. To the north, across the nine mile-wide Straits of Gibraltar, is Europe. A sign in Arabic and French points the way to the docks serving Italy, France and Spain. To the east, beyond the curve of the bay and the rows of half-constructed apartment and office blocks, and the new railway station, lies the southern coast of the Mediterranean, sliding away towards the heart of the Arab and Muslim world.

And check out:
Antisemitism in Second Life (Kafka's SL World)

Saturday April 21 2007/03 Rabiul Thani 1428
Trees come down no more
Eloise Pasteur, Second Life Insider
Second Chance Trees offers a unique opportunity to do something about this. There are 10 types of rainforest trees you can buy for L$300 each, and plant on the island - mine's on the right of the picture. So what? Well for each pixel-and-prim tree you plant, Plant-It 2020 will plant one, matching your chosen species, in an appropriate part of the real Earth. The sim offers you the chance to find out more about rainforesets, their contributions to our lives and so on. Given my background Azadirachta indica was an easy choice. Why? NEEM TREE Also called a margosa tree, the Neem tree is a fast-growing broad-leaved evergreen, Azadirachta indica, native to India and Myanmar.

Catholic Church buries limbo after centuries
Reuters, via Yahoo! News, UK
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Roman Catholic Church has effectively buried the concept of limbo, the place where centuries of tradition and teaching held that babies who die without baptism went. In a long-awaited document, the Church’s International Theological Commission said limbo reflected an “unduly restrictive view of salvation.” The 41-page document was published on Friday by Origins, the documentary service of the U.S.-based Catholic News Service, which is part of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Pope Benedict, himself a top theologian who before his election in 2005 expressed doubts about limbo, authorized the publication of the document, called “The Hope of Salvation for Infants Who Die Without Being Baptised.”

Friday April 20 2007/02 Rabiul Thani 1428
'I felt more welcome in the Bible belt'
Manal Omar, The Guardian G2
One Sunday last month I went for my afternoon swim at my local David Lloyd's fitness club wearing the Islamic-style swimsuit I have been wearing for years. The swimsuit has recently been celebrated by media outlets from Newsweek to National Geographic as an innovative way for Muslim women to become more active. As an American-Muslim woman, I have always been determined to be active without compromising my faith. I have been swimming in capital cities across the world from Rio de Janeiro to Washington DC to Kuala Lumpur, and now London. Although I get curious stares, I have never had any awkward moments when I head out for a swim.

Growing up confused
Dominic Casciani, BBC News
It all started to go wrong for Imran Ahmad at the Karachi Bonnie Baby competition. Despite his raised eyebrow and suave suit (see picture above) he is devastated to be placed second by the judge, who has given first prize to the competition organiser's child. "It's absolutely typical of the third world," recalls Ahmad, referring to the inherent low-level corruption. And fortunately for him, his family soon take a chance on a new future in England. Years later, and now a very grown up Home Counties professional, Ahmad has published his memoir of a 1960s and 70s childhood and coming of age, Unimagined.

The Complete Rebuttal For Second Life Sceptics
Mitch Wagner, Information Week Weblog
Second Life expert Wagner James Au provides the final rebuttal to sceptics who think that the virtual world is just a fad, or are baffled why it's getting so much attention. Au, a journalist who specialize in gaming and Second Life, is the subject of an interview by Henry Jenkins of MIT Media Lab at the blog Confessions of an Aca-Fan. Au was the first "embedded journalist" in Second Life, back in 2003, working for SL developers Linden Lab. He stopped working for them, but continued providing SL coverage on his blog, New World Notes. He just finished writing a book of the same title. Au says there are two "conversations" going on about Second Life.

What the Internet will be like in the future
Robert Hof, BusinessWeek
Ever since Neal Stephenson published Snow Crash in 1992, the virtual world he described in his seminal dystopian novel has been the Holy Grail for a generation of tech whizzes. The metaverse, as Stephenson called it, was essentially the Internet. But in place of the flat, two-dimensional World Wide Web that had just been invented, he imagined a completely immersive and highly social 3D online world. People's avatars, or virtual representations of themselves, could interact using facial expressions and body language so richly textured that for many the metaverse became more compelling than the real world. Now, 15 years later, the glimmers of a real metaverse are coming into focus.

And check out:
Church's services 'loud as a nightclub' (Daily Telegraph)
The Germans are coming! (Kafka's SL World)
Introducing: Estate Level Governance (Official Linden Blog)

Wednesday April 18 2007/29 Rabiul Awwal 1428
People feel more insecure - Blair's legacy will be a divided kingdom
Philip Johnston, Daily Telegraph
In the third part of our series in which ordinary Britons describe life under Tony Blair, Tariq Ahmad talks about being a Muslim who long ago passed the 'Tebbit test'. In 1997 I was working with the NatWest group. I had joined the Conservative Party a few years earlier and it was not, to be frank, the best time to be a Tory. Friends and colleagues thought I was insane. They told me I was a member of the wrong party, that I was going against the grain. "You guys are haggard, exhausted and rotten," they said. "What are you doing staying with them?" The Conservative Government was deeply unpopular and it is true that Blair did look very different, like a man of the people. I feared we were being left behind. New Labour and Blair seemed to have captured not just the popular vote but also the public's imagination.

And check out:
Muslims can claim cash for their harems – shock revelations (Islamophobia Watch)

Tuesday April 17 2007/28 Rabiul Awwal 1428
Universities 'targeted' by Islamic extremists
Philip Johnston, Daily Torygraph
British universities will be warned this week that they are being targeted by Islamic extremist groups looking for recruits. A conference of chief security officers will hear that religious radicals remain active on campuses and have infiltrated at least 20 institutions. Prof Anthony Glees, of the Centre for Intelligence and Security Studies at Brunel University, will say the threat must be "urgently addressed". The Government has issued guidance to universities over how to deal with the threat. Bill Rammell, the higher education minister, said it was "real, but not widespread." But Prof Glees will tell a conference of the Association of University Chief Security Officers in Exeter that there is a danger of complacency.

SL residents mourn student deaths at Virginia Tech
Marvel Ousley
Yesterday, after the news that at least 30 students at Virgina Tech in Blacksburg, Va., had been shot by a gunman who eventually killed himself, Second Life residents began to set up memorials to the victims. Forcythia Wishbringer, head of Elf Circle, a high fantasy group with more than 600 members, turned the lights off in her sims starting at 7:22 p.m. for 24 hours in respect for those who died. At Info Island, a memorial was erected, where people could take a candle and leave flowers. A sculpture of a man on his knees, and arms raised in the air as if he were asking "why?" was created by Darrien Lightworker.

"Learning Island" Launched for Second Life Educators Community
Digital Communities
A cooperative effort between the product development team at Angel Learning and the SLED (Second Life Educators community) has produced a virtual experience within the popular Second Life virtual world designed for educational experimentation. The Island, known as "Angel Learning Isle," will open to the public May 15th. "Angel Learning Isle was built specifically for experimentation in the use of virtual collaboration technologies in online learning," said Ray Henderson, chief products officer, Angel Learning. "Our first goal was to create a place for faculty and learners new to Second Life to get their bearings and practice new navigational and communication skills."

And check out:
Pipes in search of 'moderate Muslims' (Islamophobia Watch)
Religious Web Sites Ape MySpace, YouTube (RN Blog)

Monday April 16 2007/27 Rabiul Awwal 1428
It isn't all pretty in cyberspace
Mel Campbell, Sidney Morning Herald
How ugly are you? Whether you are just a little plain or you make small children cry in the street, join the online community Uglynet.com. There you'll meet people all over the world who oppose the idea that beauty equals social power. "About 90 per cent of people feel ugly, but no one ever talks about it," says the website's mission statement. "Fight for your right to wear plus-sizes, have crooked teeth, go bald with a comb-over, have skin issues and a succession of bad-hair-days!" Ugliness doesn't mean unhappiness, it says, and the aesthetically challenged should wear their lot as a badge of honour...

Talking Politics
Willow Caldera, SL New Network
Platon - Saturday afternoon saw some of Second Life's prominent political thinkers gather for a Political Campaign Panel Discussion, focusing on the present and future of SL political campaigning. Making up the panel were the SL campaign organizers for US Senators Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John Edwards, as well as a reporter, a blogger, and a Second Life strategist. The debate was moderated by Miranda Tibbett, formerly of PBS. The panel acknowledged that the current big players in online campaigning are YouTube and MySpace, but that this may change very quickly as platforms like Second Life grow in importance.

And check out:
Abdul-Hakim Murad: the churches and Bosnia (Indigo Jo Blog)

Sunday April 15 2007/26 Rabiul Awwal 1428
Bodhi is Online
The Milarepa Land Trust
Bodhi is a virtual island in the online world of Second Life dedicated to the teachings of Buddha. Bodhi is a public commons dedicated to Dharma and for the benefit of all. Although Bodhi is under construction, you are welcome to explore the sites, structures and texts found on the island. In Second Life, Bodhi is here. Bodhi can found on the web at: The Bodhi Sim Blog And the Bodhi discussion forum. The island takes its name from the ancient word for "awakening," for it was under the Bodhi tree where Gautama Buddha achieved enlightenment, an awareness of the true nature of life and the world around him.

Muslims will not waver over veils
Jonathan Wynne-Jones, Sunday Telegraph
Britain's Muslim community overwhelmingly believes that women should be allowed to wear the veil, despite fears that it presents a barrier to integration, a study has found. Almost nine in 10 Muslims think that any government moves to ban the veil would hurt social cohesion. Schools already have the power to ask pupils to remove the niqab - which covers the entire face apart from a slit for the eyes - to improve safety, security and learning. There have been calls for a wider debate on whether it is appropriate for the full veil to be worn in public at all. But a Gallup Poll to be published this week found most Muslims firm in the belief that Islamic women should be free to wear it.

Widow pins hopes on fresh evidence in jail cell killing
Jamie Doward, The Observer
Britain's prison system faces scrutiny this weekend over its treatment of ethnic minority prisoners as new evidence is revealed about how an Asian inmate was killed by his white cellmate. The inquest into the death of Shahid Aziz, 30, will pose new questions about the role of staff at Leeds prison and raise fresh concerns about overcrowding in Britain's jails. Aziz was murdered within minutes of being locked in the same cell as Peter McCann, who had twice been caught in possession of an object with a blade in the weeks before the killing and had attacked fellow inmates on two previous occasions. Despite his history of violence, McCann, 25, was considered a 'low risk' threat to other prisoners.

Multiracial Britain confuses Poles
Anushka Asthana and Mary Fitzgerald, The Observer
It is a difficult social and cultural problem: what to do when tens of thousands of immigrants from an almost wholly white country arrive in a nation that has a fierce pride in its multicultural mix? It is an issue affecting the many Poles coming to Britain, who are being warned to be ready for a country where being black or Asian is not unusual and it is wrong to react 'negatively' to people of different races. The message has been spread through Catholic priests in Poland and is aimed at families moving to the UK from all-white towns and villages. The Polish Educational Society of London approached the priests following claims of racist behaviour among Polish children and their parents.

Soaring Beyond Physical Challenges in Virtual Worlds
Tom Peters and Lori Bell, Computers in Libraries - Technewsworld
Recently, 3-D online multiuser virtual environments (MUVEs) have become very popular. In these online worlds, users have avatars (digital surrogates) that move around within the virtual world, interact with others and the virtual environment, build things, etc. The Wikipedia article on MUVEs lists "Second Life", There.com, "Activeworlds" and "Neverwinter Nights" as the most popular existing MUVEs. Within the related universe of MMORPGs (massively multiplayer online role-playing games), "World of Warcraft" has more than 8 million users. During the past year, the number of registered avatars in "Second Life" has mushroomed from a few hundred thousand to well over 3.3 million, and the number of avatars active in-world in the past 60 days exceeds 1 million.

And check out:
"Inshallah" on the BBC: a cultural cringe? (Indigo Jo)
About the Milarepa Land Trust (The Milarepa Land Trust)
Sunday Morning Blues (Craig Murray)

Saturday April 14 2007/25 Rabiul Awwal 1428
Ghost Exhibit Shut After Islamic Clerics Protest
AP, via SFGate.com, USA, via RNBlog
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — A Malaysian state has closed down a museum exhibition on ghosts, ghouls and supernatural beings after Islamic clerics claimed it was detrimental to Muslims’ faith, newspapers reported Saturday. The exhibition at the state museum in southern Negeri Sembilan has drawn some 25,000 visitors since it opened March 10. But it has also attracted criticism from religious scholars who charged the show was un-Islamic and based in fantasy, the New Straits Times reported. Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Rais Yatim also disapproved of the exhibition, saying it was not beneficial to the community.

And check out:
Exactly Who Is Creating Radicals: Muslim's or The Government? (MPACUK)
A new frontier of ministry (Brownblog)

Friday April 13 2007/24 Rabiul Awwal 1428
Aussie hosts Seder in cyberspace
Joshua Levi
WHY was this Seder night different from all other nights? And does virtual maror have the same sting? Sydney resident Jeremy Finkelstein has the answers to those – and many other – questions about celebrating Pesach in cyberspace, after hosting the world’s first Seder on online virtual world Second Life last Monday. Finkelstein, who is known on Second Life by the name Cryptomorph Lake, is among the millions of people and corporations, including Reuters, Nike, Sony and Dell computers, to have embraced the phenomenon, where people’s characters, known as avatars, live a virtual existence, work in virtual jobs and support a virtual economy.

World mourns Kurt Vonnegut
Diago Quaranta, SLNN
People all over the world mourned the loss of writer Kurt Vonnegut this week, as the 84 year-old author of "Cat's Cradle," "Slaughterhouse Five," and "A Man Without a Country" died Wednesday in Manhattan. News agencies remembered Vonnegut for his witty and influential writing, and here in SL residents look back to the last broadcast interview with Vonnegut, which was streamed live in SL in August. The interview was hosted by The Infinite Mind, a U.S. radio program with an estimated 1 million listeners. The program focuses on the art and science of the human mind and human behavior. The interview was the last in a series which launched The Infinite Mind's virtual broadcast center in SL.

Wednesday April 11 2007/22 Rabiul Awwal 1428
The blogosphere risks putting off everyone but point-scoring males
Jonathan Freedland, The Guardian
So you're at a public meeting on, say, the war in Iraq and the main speaker has just sat down. Someone in the audience rises to declare the speaker is talking crap, but that's typical of him because he knows nothing and it's a scandal that he's paid for the rubbish he turns out. A second man agrees that the speech was trash, but tells the first man he should crawl back under his stone because he never says anything worth listening to. A third man wonders why the speaker didn't mention Israel, especially given his Zionist-sounding last name.

UK Hospital banned hot cross buns to avoid offending non-Christians (only they didn't)
Daily Mail, UK, via RNBlog
Hospital staff claim they were banned from handing out hot cross buns this Easter in case they upset non-Christians. The decision disappointed patients at Poole Hospital in Dorset and angered catering staff. In an email to their local paper, sent on Good Friday, catering staff said: ‘We the kitchen staff of Poole Hospital were disgusted to find that the patients were not getting hot cross buns this morning. “The manager of the catering department said he was worried about the ethnic minorities that work here.” The workers, who did not want to be named, said they had been inundated with calls from nurses on the wards asking why there were no buns this year.

Artists invited to submit entries for Arts Plus residencies
Diago Quaranta, SLNN
ARTS PLUS - Arts Plus, a real world organization created by the French Ministry of Culture seeks Second Life artists to participate in the first real and virtual world exhibition and a new virtual residency program. Arts Plus brings artists together to produce exhibitions and works on various themes. For their latest project: the exhibition Les Femmes Heroiques, they teamed up with the Computer Band to bring the show to life in the virtual world. Residents are invited to enter avatars based on the 11 heroines depicted in the show, and the best ones as decided by the jury will be given free land in Arts Plus for one year to use as a virtual workspace and will also be involved in any future Arts Plus projects.

Second Life ploy for Paris garden
BBC News Online
A Paris residents' association is using the virtual world of Second Life to get the town hall to press on with plans to redevelop a central area of the city. Residents have until 1 June to suggest ideas for a new garden for Les Halles in the centre of the French capital. Mayor Bertrand Delanoe revealed plans in 2004 to revamp the area. Les Halles was the central wholesale market for the Paris region until the 1970s when it was razed to the ground to make way for a shopping centre. It is also a major underground hub and redevelopment plans for the area include renovating the garden. But local residents' association Accomplir (Accomplish) says residents have not been consulted over the gardens which they say are at the heart of local life.

Tuesday April 10 2007/21 Rabiul Awwal 1428
Tokyo flooded as Second Life suffers climate change
PC Advisor
Second Life is increasingly being used by major brands and advertising agencies to promote their products – allowing Second Lifers to buy virtual Nike trainers from Niketown in Second Life, lattés in their ‘local’ Starbucks and to have a beer or two in Heineken-branded bars in the virtual world. So it was a refreshing change to discover that a UK-based charity, Adventure Ecology, last week partnered with the advertising agency Ogilvy for altogether more altruistic reasons. With the co-operation of Anshe Chung, Second Lifers awoke last Tuesday morning to discover that their favourite haunts were submerged under water.

Howls of protest as web gurus attempt to banish bad behaviour from blogosphere
Ed Pilkington, The Guardian
Perhaps it was inevitable. When two leading internet pioneers came together this week to propose a set of guidelines that would filter out offensive and abusive comments from blogs, they were met by a torrent of offensive and abusive comments. Images of excrement were abundant amid the reaction yesterday to the proposed "bloggers' code of conduct". The anonymous blogger bynkii (motto: because misanthropy is fun) likened the idea to "troll faeces, specifically designed to create a special group of self-satisfied, smug, condescending dingalings looking down their noses".

Monday April 09 2007/20 Rabiul Awwal 1428
Religious Diversity in SL
Diago Quaranta, SLNN
Religion and belief are an important part of many people's lives, and they also have a place in the virtual world. In Second Life residents are not only celebrating their own religions, but helping people learn about others, as well. Religion in SL life has recently been publicized in mainstream culture, with an article in USA Today about faith in SL. While every major religion has established some presence in SL at this point, there are locations which attempt to bring every religion to one place, or provide information on all the different faith centers in SL. One such organization is Second Faith, a non-profit group operated by Drown Pharaoh. The Second Faith building in Chebi and the group's Web site

Sunday April 08 2007/19 Rabiul Awwal 1428
In Second Life, nobody knows you're a lapsed Catholic
Stephanie Simon, LA Times
If all goes well, the naked lady won't show up this morning when Pastor Craig Groeschel preaches his Easter service. But several cats will probably drop in. A horned dragon might perch on the crimson seats. There could even, perhaps, be an emu strolling in. Groeschel will deliver his sermon in an Oklahoma City church. It will also be streamed over the Internet to the virtual world called Second Life — a world populated by 5 million pixilated characters of every description. In this three-dimensional metaverse — a vivid, ever-changing universe created by gamers — characters can buy virtual clothes from real-world manufacturers, hold virtual rallies for flesh-and-blood politicians, and now, increasingly, worship in sync with the congregations in bricks-and-mortar churches.

Hospitals would be guarded in wake of attack
Laura Donnelly, Sunday Telegraph
Security guards could be posted at hospitals to stop casualties gaining entry and contaminating other patients in the event of a "chemical" terrorist attack, government plans show. Guidance published last week instructs every hospital to "retain control of access to its facilities" following a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear incident. The advice is part of the Department of Health's planning framework for dealing with "mass casualty incidents" - whether from terrorist attack or infectious diseases, such as a flu pandemic.

Friday April 06 2007/17 Rabiul Awwal 1428
Scholars present paper on more than 150 SL museums
Childs Writer, SLNN
Two PhD students and a college professor visited more than 150 museums and art galleries in Second Life as part of their research for a paper entitled: A Second Life for Your Museum: 3D Multi-User Virtual Environments and Museums. Though their study was not a comprehensive one, it is by far the most detailed and characterized list of SL museums to date. Aethalides Kukulcan (Richard Urban in Real Life) is a doctoral student at the University of Illinois Graduate School of Library Science. In 2005, Kukulcan stumbled upon SL while studying the use of games and learning.

A second look at school life
Education Guardian
The first day at a new school is never easy. You've bought new clothes for the occasion - although you're not sure if the astronaut helmet matches the kilt. You watch your teacher hovering above the floor, waiting for the final stragglers to arrive. At last, your missing classmate appears on the roof, apologising for her tardiness: she was trapped in a cloud of bubbles. Welcome to school life - in Second Life. More than 100 pupils aged between 13 and 17, all members of the National Association for Gifted and Talented Youth (NAGTY), are being taught in virtual classrooms in the popular giant 3D computer game...

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dihliz	empire	abu dharr	A.D. archive April 2007