Quiet Summer Days - Good For Reflection

Most of us welcome summer for it's fun. It is good to have fun and even better to have lots of it. By the same token it is not a bad idea to also take time out during these pressure-free quiet days of summer season to reflect. 

One of the issue that parents and young adults are generally found to be discussing during summer holidays, is the future academic and career pursuits. Although Islam does not define the fields of education and career a person should choose but clearly offers a value system. And that is (1) we must recognize that the Ultimate Knowledge of everything belongs to Him alone (2) our choices should serve larger good in addition to our own, and (3) such choices should not conflict with the Islamic value system, also known as Sharia.

It is our fervent hope that we draw the attention of parents and young adults to consider an area largely ignored by Muslims, the Media, in their academic and career planning.  Neither we find Muslims as Journalists nor are there any Muslim media institutions today. In absence of both, it is not fair to blame others for their biases.

In today's globalized communications environment it is neither possible to silent the sender of the message nor to stop the recipient. Satellites do not recognize borders. Case in point is the MTV enterprise that reaches 1 billion people in 18 languages in 164 countries and 8 out of 10 of it's subscribers live outside the United States. It is only logical then that Zaid in Cairo dreams for Michael Jordan shoes, Siddiqa in Jeddah chows on McDonald burgers and Ahmed keeps gulping the Pepsi & Coca Colas in Kuala Lumpur.

US Administration is not shy in recruiting American media and marketing talent to perpetuate this campaign with even more urgency. Late last year the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee introduced Initiative 911 requesting half a billion dollars for a channel to 'compete' with al-Jazeera. The chief aim of this channel is to target young Muslims in the Middle East offering American and Arabic pop music along with a mix of current events and talk shows. This represents a new phase of the propaganda war and a third prong for the US in the media onslaught upon the world.

The vision of the US Administration is crystal clear - (1) a clear strategic mission and vision for U.S. international broadcasting, (2) to provide the financial resources to get the job done, and (3) use the talent that the United States has, all of it, to communicate that vision to the world.

Words may not do justice to record the importance of media for Muslims today. The tiny infant al-Jazeera is not challenged by the peers but monstrously huge US Government itself. And, when a State decides to fight a meagerly funded small private enterprise, the result is obvious.

Young Muslims and parents must begin to think above and beyond themselves and for the larger good. Young Muslims must prefer to pursue the discipline of media as their primary choice and Parents must discourage them to become Doctors and encourage them to become Writers, Broadcasters, Producers and all else.

Let us ask Allah to bless us enjoy our summer and also to give us time and wisdom to reflect and listen to the silent cries of the world and wipe her tears and free her from the bondage of man and the pangs of hunger and pain of injustices so brutally inflicted upon her.