An Islamic blogging hub?

Nugroho Khoironi Zahra, in his LinkedIn discussion question, “Should we respond to non-moslem’s campaign for anti-islam forums?” alerts us to a very troubling phenomenon: when searching the Internet for topics on religion, Islam in particular, the great bulk of material is sensationalist and xenophobic.  It seems the anonymity of cyberspace evokes people to the grossest outpourings of ludicrousness. 

So, I’ve just had a crazy idea: while there are many, many voices of believers and friends to Islam in the Islamic blogosphere (what I jokingly call the “Islamosphere” or “Allahosphere“), what seems to be lacking is a kind of central Islamic hub for Islamically-themed blogging, be it liberal, conservative, Sufi, Muwahiddun, Sunni, Shia, believer, friend of the faith, etc.

There already exists the blog aggregator/engine Hadithuna, but it’s not exactly what I have in mind.  Essentially, my proposition is online citizen-journalism as applied to the umma in its entirety. 

Two possible venues that already exist which could possibly serve as springboards: Sifr Nil’s cyberquran and Robert Salaam’s The American Muslim.  The former right now is focused on mystical poetry, but the author has expressed interest to me in expanding his purview; the latter focuses on the American umma, but he has announced interest in expanding, as well.  Or the community could simply start something new from the ground up, servers, website, and all.

What are everyone’s thoughts as to the feasibility and justice of such an endeavor?  Leave a comment or fill out this poll.

 

Is the shoe mightier than the pen (or postcolonial theory)?

Bush's image has been associated with shoes throughout the Arabic Middle East (photo: BBC)

There’s been a lot of debate in the blogosphere whether it is “racist,” “anti-Arab,” or “Orientalist” to claim that shoe-throwing is a distinctly Arab way of flipping a person the bird.  Consider the following exchange between readers on the Foreign Policy blog:

TheScudStud88: Er, Orientalist cliches aside, is it not an insult in the West to throw a shoe at someone?

Blake Hounshell: That one’s really not an Orientalist cliche; It really is an insult. Sure, it’s not exactly a friendly thing in the United States, but it’s not the default option.

TheScudStud88: So you agree then that [the characterization] is a taaaaaaad misleading/ wrong categorization? I mean who wouldn’t consider it an insult to have a shoe thrown at them?

kidzib: i don’t think arabs devote nearly as much symbolic value to foot-oriented insults as, say, thais. maybe there was some symbolism to it all, but it was probably the only projectile object available for him to hurl at bush. what else would he have thrown? it’s not like he could’ve smuggled in anything heavier and more dangerous…

then again, a common arabic insult translates as “may a shoe land on your head!” but do you really think the guy thought all that out before he went ballistic (literally!)?

And so on. Part of the problem is that people are confusing their particularist apples with generalist oranges.  Think about it: when was the last time you saw an American, European, African, or Asian lobbing their shoes at a political leader?  Speaking for Americans, we prefer pies.

Funnily enough, a blogger is at the center of the debate:  Asa’ad Abu Khalil, a.k.a., the Angry Arab News Service.  In 2007, Khalil wrote,

Don’t you love it when Western reporters explain to their readers differences between their culture and Arab culture?  I don’t know about you, but I really love it.  Here is from the New York Times:   “During the argument, heated words were exchanged and shoes were thrown, a severe insult in the Arab world.”

So throwing a shoe at somebody is a “severe insult in the Arab world” but not anywhere else?  How exotic.  Tell me more, o culture experts of the New York Times.

The World University Project

Last week I mentioned the World University Project (WUP), a very interesting endeavor headed up J. Nathan Matias.  Here’s their introduction:

“The World University Project will take a team of young academics to universities around the world to give workshops in their fields, connect students with their peers elsewhere, and create a digital documentary on the role of universities in the era of globalisation.

“With recent growth in international academic programs and increased emphasis on higher education in economic development, demand is growing for academics to teach and research outside their home country. In this dynamic environment of differing university settings and objectives, rising academics and administrators need to be prepared for the challenges of a career abroad, made aware of opportunities, and informed on the varied cultures, structures, and resources which define such a career.

“The global economy increasingly requires international awareness and cooperation. University life provides a common reference for students to consider each others’ unique lives. This project will make that connection possible.  By teaching workshops, the team will provide a service to participating institutions while working directly with students. The resulting digital documentary will then combine the stories of students, analyses from experts, and the team’s observations into a rich interactive resource.”

The project is in need of volunteers.  If you’re interested in helping, please contact it at worlduniversity [at] gmail [dot] com.

CyberChaikhana returns

“Success is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration,” remarked Thomas Edison, the inventor of the electric light bulb and a man familiar with the challenges of the creative process.  It takes real struggle to birth something, be it a child, a contraption, or in our case, a book.  We’ve come a long way with CyberChaikhana, and after the late-summer interlude it’s now time to leap back into the struggle.

I will begin writing the complete rough draft manuscript, chapter by chapter.  It will take me a few months to finish; as I proceed, I will release material.  Additionally, I will return to my previous habit of publishing a post in this space at least once a week.  I invite everyone to join our Google group to receive automatic updates, and most of all to spread the word — Schwartz and CyberChaikhana are back!

The Lagrangian point

Without a doubt, I’m now deep within that hurried phase of every Master’s thesis, the fifth Lagrangian point between research and preparation, and submission and defense, during which the questing student spends his days furiously typing the ever-more monstrous essay, and his nights speed-reading the books he should have read months ago.

Once completed, submitted, and graded, I will be posting a PDF version of my thesis paper in a specially dedicated webpage which you may preview by clicking on the above picture.

Also, I’ve been trying to find a server to store my interview with Mr. Grady. The *.wav files are enormous. I may have to resort to a *.wav editor to shorten them into excerpts. So, stay tuned.

In the meantime, I’d like to call everyone’s attention Everyone Has Human Rights Awards‘ human rights media contest. Also, check out this blurb about CyberChaikhana for Transitions Online’s June 2008 issue of Open Society Education News.

CyberChaikhana sample chapter and chapters list

Well, for the next ten days I’m going to be relatively out of communication as I pour myself back into my thesis work.  Rest assured, I will be getting to all of your comments and e-mails as soon as I have a free neuron.

In the meantime, I’ve published a sample chapter from CyberChaikhana: Digital Conversations from Central Asia, as well as a revised list of the chapter headings and foci’s, over at the neweurasia subsite. Additionally, yesterday I put up two academic papers from 2007, “The Search for the Historical Socrates: Was Socrates a Failure?” and “The Search for the Historical Confucius: How Knightly was Confucius?” And of course there’s “The Historian’s Theodicy.” As always, feel free to peruse my archives and comment as you please.

One more thing: for the Americanists among you, check out The Expatriate weblog. You won’t be disappointed!