Weekend News Round-Up

Weekend News Round-Up is back, and a bit smaller than usual right now. VB has links to two interesting articles about Cairo. The Internet here seems to be getting better - Inshallah. So, VB will try to get a couple of Funkengroovin posts together this week.

Below, a photo of an electrical pole, near VB's apartment, on fire, the other night. She was sure that she was going to lose electricity (the electrical box across the street was popping), but the authorities were able to put it out before any major damage was done. As usual, a policeman crept up behind VB to say, "no pictures." Yeah, we all know how dangerous it could be if photos of an electrical pole on fire got out to the public.

ARTICLES OF INTEREST:
36 Hours in Cairo
Cairo is third world and first world, Islamic world and pharaonic world, a teeming city that jars all the senses, all at once.

IN CAIRO, HORDES OF STREET KIDS, BUT NO LONGER IGNORED
The Egyptian government and nonprofit groups are stepping up efforts to help street children.

For all you Funkengroovin Deadheads (VB knows, she said she wouldn't combine Funkengroovin with politics, but this isn't Funkengroovin Wednesday - it's the Weekend Round-Up, that's different):

Dead to hold concert for Obama
Three surviving members of the Grateful Dead - Mickey Hart, Phil Lesh and Bob Weir - will reunite at 7:30 p.m. Monday at the Warfield in San Francisco for "Deadheads for Obama," a concert to support Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. Tickets for $35 sold out almost immediately after the show was announced on Friday afternoon, but those who missed out can view a live simulcast at www.iclips.net.

Puppy Lotus, encounters the feral cats. More on the cat situation later.

I Voted Today

Vagabondblogger went up to the local Town Hall and voted by Absentee Ballot Today, even though she had to deal with the clerk with an attitude. It's horrible to interrupt the daydreams of a tax leech. Isn't it enough she gets to take off at 1:00 PM every Friday? VB and The Boss Man are paying for this. And believe VB, taxes around here are not cheap! But, it was more than worth the trouble - I made sure to hold my ballot up high, and turn it over several times to show her who I was voting for. Since it was well known that she was a Lieberman supporter, when I was for Lamont, it's a good guess she's a fan of Hill too.

FOR THIS MAN:

Democratic Primary

Vagabondblogger has been obsessed by the Democratic Primary Season this year (one reason why she's been so neglectful with her own blog.) She also loves the movie, Election, with Reese Witherspoon. So, for something fun and unusual, here's:

"Hillary's Inner Tracy Flick
Don't you just hate when some upstart comes along and threatens your best-laid plans? We were struck by how well one of Reese Witherspoon's monologues from the film Election fits the narrative of Campaign 2008."

Weekend News Roundup

MUSLIMS IN AMERICA:

Samaha (Blog) - ISNA: Invasion of The ISNA Deaniacs

Around me I could hear whispers of “Howard Dean” and I watched the youth all around me, all wide eyed, explaining Howard Dean to their parents, aunts and uncles.

It was quite interesting watching these fidgety late teens and twenty-something year olds turning their heads, looking towards the door anxiously awaiting Howard Dean. This was it - this right here, this vibrant young enthusiasm was what differentiated my generation from theirs. Not because they are Deaniacs, mind you, but because within these wide eyes you can see hope. You can see the innocence and yes the good naivety that none of us should ever have lost. You can see in their eyes the hidden solutions that they all carry to all of the problems of the world. You can see the simplicity of it all but somehow, somehow you just can’t see far enough to be able to touch it or grasp it, to feel it again.

Around this room sat future congresspeople, representatives, activists, philanthopists, and maybe even a future president. In this room sat our fidgety hope for a better tommorow and maybe a not so impossible world peace.

I should make note that ISNA itself insists that it is non-partisan and had invited republicans to this event but had no takers on the republican invitees - so the panel before us consisted of democrats. ~Way to go republicans~

He asked of us for the sake of America to get into politics “For the sake of America I need you to run for yourselves.”

That my friends was “The Take Back America Rally”

Charitable Tradition in Transition

Key edicts of Ramadan, which began yesterday at sunset, are to fast and promote good conduct. The devil is said to be shackled, making it easier than during the rest of the year to perform good deeds and give charity.

Mukit Hossain, 47, a telecommunications worker and Muslim activist in Northern Virginia, said holiday charity is deliberately done more publicly because Muslims are eager to build bridges after Sept. 11.

Community Times magazine, Lady Liberty, a Fellaha?

OnFaith from the Washington Post presents:
The Muslims of Jesus Camp

ISLAM:
Islam's Up-to-Date Televangelist

Secular critics say Khaled, the son of a doctor, is fostering a religious revival rather than modern reform. Wael Abbas, a leading Egyptian blogger, said Khaled is the "first step to Islamization. He's charismatic and the girls like him. But Egypt is becoming more conservative as a result of him. More girls have started to wear veils."

The question now is whether Khaled represents a fad or an enduring trend. Khaled is most popular among the middle and upper classes. Egypt's Al-Ahram newspaper described him as a "Pied Piper" leading Arab youth "to an unknown destination -- much to the discontent of the town elders.

From Finding Radical Islam to Losing an Ideology

LONDON, Sept. 11 — For four years, Maajid Nawaz, a British Pakistani university student, was imprisoned in Egypt, enduring months of solitary confinement and the screams of those being tortured.

Mr. Nawaz left Britain on his fateful trip to Egypt on Sept. 10, 2001, for a year abroad to study Arabic. In April 2002, he was charged and sentenced by the Egyptians for spreading the beliefs of Hizb ut-Tahrir, a radical Islamic group that is legal in Britain but banned in Egypt and other countries because it calls for the overthrow of governments in the Muslim world.

Calls in Britain for the banning of Hizb ut-Tahrir usually stress that the group is a gateway for some Muslims to turn to terrorism. As Mr. Nawaz puts it, “Hizb ut-Tahrir spearheaded the radicalization of the 1990s and cultivated an atmosphere of anger.”

Mr. Nawaz is the product of a third-generation British Pakistani family. His father recently retired as an oil engineer, and his mother works in a bank; they live in Essex, a middle-class area south of London.

When he was growing up, Islam seemed like an irrelevant, “backward village religion,” he said. That attitude changed when he was 16.

On a rare visit to a mosque, he met a Bangladeshi student, a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir, who he said preyed on his confusion about his British Pakistani identity.

Miscellaneous:
Reprieve for the Pint and the Ounce

BRUSSELS, Sept. 11 — Britons and the Irish can still down a pint of beer, walk a mile, covet an ounce of gold and eat a pound of bananas after the European Union ruled today that the countries could retain measurements dating back to the Middle Ages.

Under a previous European Union plan, Britain and Ireland would have been forced to adopt the metric system and phase out imperial measurements by 2009. But after a vociferous antimetric campaign by British skeptics and London’s tabloid press, European Union officials decided that an ounce of common sense (or 28.3 grams) suggested that granting a reprieve was better than braving a public backlash.

They also feared that forcing Britain to abolish the imperial system would have damaged European Union trade with the United States, one of three countries, including Liberia and Myanmar, that have not officially adopted the metric system.

A British grocer, Steve Thoburn of Sunderland, became known as the “metric martyr” when he was convicted in 2001 of measuring fruits and vegetables in pounds and ounces instead of kilograms. A court gave him a six-month conditional discharge. He died of a heart attack in 2004 just days after learning that his appeal to the European Court of Human Rights against a conviction for using nonmetric scales in his market stall had been rejected.

Under the European Union decision, they can retain miles on road signs, and pubs may continue to serve pints of beer. Other goods must be sold in metric quantities, but retailers can display imperial equivalents.

CENSORSHIP:
'Breast-Feeding Is Obscene'

'This is a death announcement for freedom of press in Egypt'

"This is a death announcement for the freedom of press in Egypt," Eisa said.

Qandil said the "severe" verdict would not weaken him.

Hafez Abu Seada, secretary-general of the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights, said: "This is something very unique to Egypt," he said.

"I have never seen, at least in the last five years, any country that jails four editors in one day.

For China's Censors, Electronic Offenders Are the New Frontier

Prisons Purging Books on Faith From Libraries

But prison chaplains, and groups that minister to prisoners, say that an administration that put stock in religion-based approaches to social problems has effectively blocked prisoners’ access to religious and spiritual materials — all in the name of preventing terrorism.

“It’s swatting a fly with a sledgehammer,” said Mark Earley, president of Prison Fellowship, a Christian group. “There’s no need to get rid of literally hundreds of thousands of books that are fine simply because you have a problem with an isolated book or piece of literature that presents extremism.”

The lists are broad, but reveal eccentricities and omissions. There are nine titles by C. S. Lewis, for example, and none from the theologians Reinhold Niebuhr, Karl Barth and Cardinal Avery Dulles, and the influential pastor Robert H. Schuller.

Funkengroovin Wednesday - Preview

While I was perusing the submissions for the YouTube Democratic Debate last month, I happened across this video. It was not included in the debate questions, but it is an interesting video. Even though this is a Funkengroovin Wednesday "Preview" it really has nothing to do with tomorrow's post. Sorry folks, but I've been waiting for an opportunity to show this, and have an excuse called "Preview".

We thought about getting some solar panels for the roof of our van to help recharge batteries (like the one for the fridge), plus miscellaneous items (computers, that sort of stuff) that need recharging. If anyone has tried using solar panels - please let Vagabondblogger know.

Solar panels were under serious consideration with us, until we moved to Cairo last October / November, when pretty much the '87 Van and '65 Bug situation came to a standstill. That's one thing about living overseas - there's some stuff you actually enjoy working on, like your cars, and some you don't (like making a rock garden, which we delegated to Number One Son). Unfortunately, all hobbies go on the back burner for a while.

I know people read this on Wednesdays, almost only, and for once, please provide feedback on any experience with solar cells / panels on a VW Van.




Solar Powered Car

Weekend News Roundup - "Egypt really is a logic-free zone"

EGYPT:
In the desert, where nothing really matters, and everything matters

"Egypt really is a logic-free zone," said Amr Shannon, the desert guide whose five-car caravan was released after an officer finally acknowledged the obvious.

"When you go to the sea, you get prepared; you will pack your towel, your bathing suit," he said in an interview in his apartment. "When you go skiing, you pack skis. Now you are coming to Egypt; get prepared for it as well. If you expect logic to prevail, you will find your intelligence insulted 200 times a day."

Reptile Smuggler Caught at Cairo Airport

Over the weekend, the Cairo airport police confiscated an entire suitcase packed with "at least" 250 baby crocodiles, chameleons, and snakes -- including (again, at least) one cobra. The passenger, a 22-year-old man from Saudi Arabia, claimed he had no idea it was illegal to bring reptiles in an ordinary suitcase on a commercial flight, adding that he was bringing the specimens to a Saudi university for experiments.

Egyptian woman held for female circumcision

CAIRO - Egyptian police are holding a woman who conducted a near-fatal circumcision on a young girl, a widely-condemned practice the authorities are trying to stamp out, the press reported on Friday.


The victim, Naglaa Khamis, went into a coma and suffered severe haemorrhaging after the removal of part of her genitals, but was saved after being taken to hospital by her parents.

Police took the woman who carried out the mutilation in Minya, south of Cairo, into custody.

Female circumcision can cause death through haemorrhaging and later complications during childbirth. It also carries risks of infection, urinary tract problems and mental trauma.

Religious leaders, usually silent on taboos relating to female sexuality, have also started to speak out against the practice, which many Egyptians believe is a duty under Islam and Christianity.

Egyptian girl dies during female circumcision

CAIRO -- A 13-year-old Egyptian girl has died during an illegal operation to mutilate her genitalia, the Al Masri Al Yom daily reported Saturday.

A government survey in 2000 said the practice was carried out on 97 percent of the country's women aged between 15 and 45 years of age.

Religious leaders, usually silent on taboos relating to female sexuality, have also started to speak out against the practice, which many Egyptians believe is a duty under Islam and Christianity.

After the death of Shaker, chief mufti Ali Gomaa declared female circumcision forbidden under Islam.

Mohammed Sayyed Tantawi, the sheikh of Al Azhar university, the top Sunni Muslim authority, and Coptic Patriarch Chenouda III also declared it had "no foundation in the religious texts" of either Islam or Christianity.

SKYPE:
Last week I mentioned using Skype in a post about the new FISA (USA) wiretap law. Here's another way to use Skype: Learn a foreign language – over the Web

"Students are having these conversations all hours of the day and night outside of class," says Professor Sawhill. Her students have spoken in Arabic to their counterparts in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, and in Spanish with students in Mexico. (Webcams are optional at Oberlin.)

Instructors say the conversations often spark students' interest in international issues, which they see as important at a time when Americans are accused of not being interested in the rest of the world.

Instructors like Coffey say language exchanges via Skype have the potential to fling wide OPEN the doors of cross-cultural communication.

"What's happening now is that people are just getting their feet wet," she says. "As time goes on, just like e-mail, this will be at the forefront of all of our methodologies."

CENSORSHIP:

Backlash Over Book on Policy for Israel

“The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy” is not even in bookstores, but already anxieties have surfaced about the backlash it is stirring.

“Now that the cold war is over, Israel has become a strategic liability for the United States,” they write. “Yet no aspiring politician is going to say so in public or even raise the possibility” because the pro-Israel lobby is so powerful. They credit the lobby with shutting down talks with Syria and with moderates in Iran, preventing the United States from condemning Israel’s 2006 war in Lebanon and with not pushing the Israelis hard enough to come to an agreement with the Palestinians. They also discuss Christian Zionists and the issue of dual loyalty.
“One of the points we make in the book is that this is a subject that’s very hard to talk about,” Mr. Walt said in an interview from his office in Cambridge. “Organizations, no matter how strong their commitment to free speech, don’t want to schedule something that’s likely to cause controversy.”

Overall Mr. Mearsheimer said he thinks the response to their views will be “less ferocious than last time, because it’s becoming increasingly difficult to make the argument in a convincing way that anyone who criticizes the lobby or Israel is an anti-Semite or a self-hating Jew.” Both Mr. Mearsheimer and Mr. Walt pointed to the growing dissatisfaction with the war in Iraq, criticism of Israel’s war in Lebanon and the publication of former President Jimmy Carter’s book “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” as making it somewhat easier to criticize Israel openly.

CIA, FBI computers used for Wikipedia edits

The changes may violate Wikipedia's conflict-of-interest guidelines, a spokeswoman for the site said on Thursday.

The program, WikiScanner, was developed by Virgil Griffith of the Santa Fe Institute in New Mexico and posted this month on a Web site that was quickly overwhelmed with searches.

The program allows users to track the source of computers used to make changes to the popular Internet encyclopedia where anyone can submit and edit entries.

It violates Wikipedia's neutrality guidelines for a person with close ties to an issue to contribute to an entry about it, said spokeswoman Sandy Ordonez of the Wikimedia Foundation, Wikipedia's parent organization.

However, she said, "Wikipedia is self-correcting," meaning misleading entries can be quickly revised by another editor. She said Wikimedia welcomed the WikiScanner.

WikiScanner can be found at wikiscanner.virgil.gr/

Who else has been editing information related specifically to them thus creating a conflict of interest? FOX News.

ENERGY:
China, Filling a Void, Drills for Riches in Chad

China is investing heavily in poor African countries like Chad, raising Western concerns.

To some critics, the answer is clear. “China’s no-strings-attached approach is problematic, particularly if its effect, if not its intent, is to undermine others’ efforts to change situations on the ground,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “Often what is happening,” he added, “is underwriting of repression.”

But Limassou Saleh, a community organizer in Bongor, said he was deeply skeptical. “Chad is maybe the most corrupt country in the world,” Mr. Saleh said. “We have a long history of human rights violations, of lack of transparency, of exploitation. China has a reputation for corruption. They are one of the worst human rights abusers. They have no record of transparency. What would we want with a country like that? Only to make our own problems worse.”

Murray's Illinois mine has 2,787 violations since 2005

Crandall Canyon mine owner Robert Murray is fond of saying he cares deeply for his workers and "takes their safety to bed every night."
But his record at one Illinois mine in particular might cause some lost sleep.
Murray's Galatia mine in southern Illinois racked up at least 2,787 violations and more than $2.4 million in proposed fines from the Mine Safety and Health Administration over a two-year span, according to government records. That includes more than $1.4 million in proposed fines already this year.

In June, in a hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Murray angrily defended his company's safety record when it was challenged by Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.
"My employees are important to me and I take their safety to bed every night," Murray said, waving his finger at Boxer. "My safety record today is one of the best in the coal industry."

How did Robert Murray, the owner of Murray Energy get away with so many violations while the government turned a blind eye? From the Saturday Gazette-Mail, a West Virginia Newspaper:

Along the way, Murray has also become a major political player. Murray Energy ranks among the coal industry’s major donors to federal candidates. Since 1996, Murray has contributed nearly $1 million, most of it to Republicans, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Murray has also not hesitated to make use of those political connections.

In May 2002, two U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration officials were transferred after they clashed with Murray over inspections at the company's Maple Creek Mine in western Pennsylvania.

Later, West Virginia Public Broadcasting reported that Murray warned MSHA officials in Morgantown that the same thing would happen to them if they didn't let up on inspections at his Powhatan No. 6 Mine in Belmont County, Ohio.

"Mitch McConnell calls me one of the five finest men in America, and the last I checked, he was sleeping with your boss,” Murray told the MSHA officials, according to meeting notes cited by public broadcasting. McConnell, a Republican U.S. senator from Kentucky, is married to U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, whose department includes MSHA.

After that meeting with Murray, MSHA Morgantown district manager Tim Thompson was transferred.

This song came out in 198 when Number One Son wasn't even born, yet. He's now a sophmore in college, taking a semester off to intern with a political campaign. He's nineteen, and the song is twenty years old. The message still rings true. Great video, except some ass in the audience is waving a BP flag. I wonder if Little Lord Brown took a trip to Sweden with one of his rent-a-boys and attended this concert. Big Robert Murray says about his workers that he, "takes their safety to bed every night."

Really, I don't know how these people can sleep, much less live with themselves.

Midnight Oil - Beds are burning live Hultsfred -94

US Presidential Elections - Mitt Romney

Dog On A Car says, "it's a lifestyle."

If you like Michael Vick and Judi Giuliani, I'm sure you'll be crazy for the anal-retentive schedule master, Mitt Romney! Granted, Mitt's not as bad as the other two, but I'm just a little worried about his decision making process. Even Chris Wallace from FOX News asks, "What were you thinking?"

Anyway, more dog tails from the presidential trail.


Romney's Cruel Canine Vacation

The incident: dog excrement found on the roof and windows of the Romney station wagon. How it got there: Romney strapped a dog carrier — with the family dog Seamus, an Irish Setter, in it — to the roof of the family station wagon for a twelve hour drive from Boston to Ontario, which the family apparently completed, despite Seamus's rather visceral protest.

Journeys of a shared life

Before beginning the drive, Mitt Romney put Seamus, the family's hulking Irish setter, in a dog carrier and attached it to the station wagon's roof rack. He'd built a windshield for the carrier, to make the ride more comfortable for the dog.

Then Romney put his boys on notice: He would be making predetermined stops for gas, and that was it.

As the oldest son, Tagg Romney commandeered the way-back of the wagon, keeping his eyes fixed out the rear window, where he glimpsed the first sign of trouble. ''Dad!'' he yelled. ''Gross!'' A brown liquid was dripping down the back window, payback from an Irish setter who'd been riding on the roof in the wind for hours.

As the rest of the boys joined in the howls of disgust, Romney coolly pulled off the highway and into a service station. There, he borrowed a hose, washed down Seamus and the car, then hopped back onto the highway. It was a tiny preview of a trait he would grow famous for in business: emotion-free crisis management.

And it offered his sons a rare unplanned stop.

Mitt Romney puts his dog on car roof



Disclaimer: I do not belong to P.E.T.A. I would never join P.E.T.A.

I'm just a dog lover. Oh, and BTW, I have been feeding the feral cats in my yard, leftover dog food, since the recent loss of Vagabondblogger Doggie.

US Presidential Elections - Judith Giuliani

If you like Michael Vick....then you'll Loooove Judith Giuliani!

If you're a dog (or any pet) owner like I am (actually was, and will be again) sit down, because, this might upset you. Everyone knows (or at least figures) that Judi Giuliani is a "gold digger," but puppy killer?

For the complete story of Judith Giuliani go to Vanity Fair:

"If you had told me back when we were in high school that one day Judi would move to New York and marry a presidential candidate, I wouldn't have been in the least surprised," says Gemma Matteo, a former classmate of Judi's, now a special-education teacher in Hazleton. In an era of blue jeans and rebellion, Judi was a fresh-faced, meticulously groomed enigma—quiet, self-possessed, biding her time. "Very prim and proper, not a hair out of place," according to Holly Ciotola, another former classmate. "She was always in a dark blazer, white collared shirt, and dark skirt."

In 1974 she graduated from St. Luke's School of Nursing, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. As a registered nurse, young Judi spent only a few months at Sacred Heart Hospital, in Allentown, Pennsylvania. She would never care for patients after that. She had other plans. At 19 she married Jeffrey Ross, a U.S. Surgical salesman six years her senior.

In short order both Rosses were working in Charlotte, North Carolina, for U.S. Surgical (now part of Tyco Healthcare), which eventually grew into a billion-dollar enterprise marketing surgical staplers. Judi was excellent at her work, and earned $40,000 a year by the late 70s. But problems arose when animal-rights groups began investigating the way the company sold its products—problems recently pointed out by the New York press. U.S. Surgical used dogs in demonstrations to doctors and hospitals as part of its marketing plan.

"Every salesperson at U.S. Surgical was trained for six weeks with dogs at Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx, and that was really brutal," explains a former employee. "They spent days and days with dogs, taking out the spleen or stomach or the lobe of a lung. Then if the dog started moaning or fidgeted, whoever was closest would push more sedative into him from the syringe. It was horrible. Then the dog would be killed with potassium chloride."

After training, the salespeople marketed the staplers to doctors, and, once again, in many cases large dogs were used, as they had organs comparable in size to those possessed by humans. "After the stapling, sometimes they'd put a big clamp above and below the staple lines of the dog, and fill [the area] with lots of fluid," the ex-employee says. "It would fill up like a balloon, and the salesperson would say to the doctor, 'See—it doesn't leak!' That's how they marketed and sold the product." (Some years ago, former C.E.O. Leon Hirsch defended the company's practice of using dogs, claiming that there was no proper substitute.)

WABC radio host Ron Kuby, a lawyer and severe Giuliani critic, marvels at the campaign's sublime lack of preparation for the storm of fury that greeted the dog issue, in April. "Think of all the hacks and politicos who sit down and they say to Judi, 'O.K., we've gone through your background, husbands, etc.,'" he muses. "'Is there any other thing in your background, some crazy little thing, that might catch someone's attention?' It's at that point you should raise your hand and say, 'Oh, you mean when I was killing puppies?'"

But for some reason the campaign entered the ring gloveless. "I wouldn't dignify it with a comment" was Giuliani's reply when asked about the use of dogs.

The puppies are not amused.

Weekend News Roundup - Prelude

CNN is hosting a debate for the Democratic Party Presidential Nominees and asking people to submit questions: Your voice wanted in historic election debates

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- For the first time in presidential debate history, user-generated video will drive two unprecedented debates.

On July 23 at 7 p.m. ET, the Democratic candidates for president will face your questions. No journalists. No panelists. No filters.

Just the people's questions and the candidate's answers. The Democratic candidates will be confronted with the questions you send in via YouTube.

CNN's Anderson Cooper will moderate the two-hour debates and pose follow-up questions.

You will be able to submit questions on YouTube until July 22. The site includes the questions sent so far along with some tips on how to help get your video chosen

Immediately after the debate, user questions and candidate answers will be featured on YouTube and the full debate video will be available for viewing on CNN.com. Also, on both sides, people will be able to engage in community features, extending the life of the debates, and participating in the ongoing political dialogue.

So, participate and add your voice to this historic event. Watch the debates live online or on air on CNN, CNN International, CNN en Español, CNN Radio and CNN Airport Network.

Here's a sample question which mimics the iPhone ads: CNN Debate Question


On Faith' Hosts Online Dialogue With Muslim Leaders About Terrorism and Human Rights
I linked to an "On Faith" video previously, in reference to why some Muslim women choose to wear the hijab. This coming week The Washington Post, Slate and Newsweek are coordinating efforts to host a discussion about Islam, called "Muslims Speak Out." For a short description, see quotes below. For the full article, go here.

Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive announced today that several leading Muslim clerics and thinkers from around the globe will participate in an unprecedented online dialogue about their religion, terrorism and human rights on the joint washingtonpost.com and Newsweek blog "On Faith," which explores the intersection of religion and culture. The event, "Muslims Speak Out," is being presented in conjunction with Georgetown University and will run from Sunday, July 22 through Friday, July 27. http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/

The Washington Post Company will coordinate across its national media outlets to cover this critically important topic, each featuring unique stories and reporting. On Sunday, July 22, The Washington Post's Outlook section will run articles about Islam and its religious tenets; the issue of Newsweek on newsstands on Monday, July 23, will feature this in its news coverage; and the entire week of July 22 the online magazine Slate.com will cover the topic through text and photography features. Post/Newsweek television stations across the country will also participate in the event, and content from On Faith will also run in newspapers around the world that are part of The Independent Media Group.

All of the panel's participants will also be able to respond to comments and questions left by readers, creating a dialogue and a bridge to mutual understanding.

Scheduled to contribute pieces are President Jimmy Carter; former British Prime Minister Tony Blair; former South African leader Nelson Mandela; Congressman Keith Ellison (the only Muslim member of Congress); University of Chicago professor Martin Marty; Georgetown University President John J. DeGioia; and John L. Esposito, Dr. Akbar Ahmed, Judea Pearl, and Bishop John Chane who will discuss together the relationship between Muslims, Jews, and Christians.

Among the best-known prominent Muslim thinkers and religious leaders expected to take part in this event:

-- Grand Ayatollah Sayyed Muhammad Hussein Fadlallah, one of the leading Shi'ite Muslim religious authorities in the Islamic world, and a former spiritual adviser to the Lebanese Shi'ite resistance movement, Hezbollah;
-- Tariq Ramadan, professor of Islamic Studies and senior research fellow at Oxford University. Selected by Time magazine as one of the world's top 100 thinkers and scientists in 2005, Ramadan relinquished his appointment to a tenured professorship at Notre Dame University in 2004 after the U.S. government revoked his visa;
-- Sheikh Ali Gomaa, the Mufti of Egypt and a leading Sunni Muslim religious authority;
-- Dr. Mustafa Ceric, Grand Mufti of Bosnia; and
-- Sheikh Rashid Rashid al-Ghannoushi, the Muslim intellectual and exiled leader of Tunisia's Islamist opposition movement who is widely considered an Islamic radical in his native country.