Islamosphere.com

Umm Yasmin of Dervish blog is relaunching Islamsosphere.com as an extended blogroll service. Take a look!

Talk Islam v2.0

I am very pleased to announce the relaunch of Talk Islam, an experiment in conversation between the members of the Islamic blogsphere.

Talk Islam was originally conceived as a "frequently asked questions" resource to combat public mis-perceptions about Islam, analogous to the Talk Origins archive on evolutionary theory. However, for various reasons, that goal was not realistic in its original form. The relaunch of Talk Islam is intended to be a long-term project, with a focus on promoting stories and initiating discussions that are relevant to our concerns.

This goal is achieved in numerous ways. First, the main page of Talk Islam is a group blog, that hosts a running discussion between leading bloggers in the Islamosphere. This conversation is open to all, and we are actively seeking participation from muslim bloggers to participate.

Second, Talk Islam hosts the Carnival of Brass, which highlights key posts by muslim bloggers throughout the Islamsphere. Anyone can submit links to the Carnival, and posts that are linked appear not just at Talk Islam but at dozens of other muslim blogs around the web.

Third, any regular participant of Talk Islam may request a free blog, at (username).talkislam.info. These user blogs are powered by Wordpress and equal in functionality to free blogs hosted on the Wordpress.com hosting service - except the URL is far cooler!

All in all, Talk Islam is an experiment in progress. The goal is to promote the entire Islamic blogsphere and forge stronger connections within it. Do stop by and take a look! We hope you join us.

electronic intifada

At Nation-Building, I look at how the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has opened a new front - on Facebook.

Meanwhile, Tariq Nelson promises to return, with a jihad on his agenda.

Tariq Nelson on hiatus

Tariq Nelson is one of the most consistently professional muslim bloggers in the Brass Crescent. He was nominated for Best Blog in the 2007 Brass Crescent Awards and won the category of Best Thinker in 2006. His perspective as an African American muslim is that of a major fraction of practicing muslims in America, though also one that is under-represented within the community itself. As such, his is a voice that we in the Islamsphere can ill-afford to see silenced.

Unfortunately, silent Tariq will be, for a short while at least - he is taking his blog on hiatus. I for one pray that he will be back soon and that the time off brings a sense of renewal and rest so that when he does return, he will be invigorated enough to shrug off the slings and arrows that wear all of us down over time.

Here is a list of Tariq's popular past posts worth checking out if you are unfamiliar with his writing.

the Eteraz Mutiny

Ali Eteraz picks a fight with Sepia Mutiny, arguing that while they are not biased against Pakistan, their perception (and blog coverage) is stale and rooted in outdated political theory:

I think SM suffers from two major problems when it comes to Pakistan.

a) SM does absolutely no outreach to the Pakistani or Pakistan-American blogger groups.... even when Benazir Bhutto was assassinated the main SM thread about it didn’t manage to include a single Pakistani blog? Oh: but Belmont Club, the ultra-right wing American blog made it! It is, in fact, not until comment #57 that a Pakistani voice is linked to.
...
b) SM’s analysis about Pakistan runs somewhere between George Bush and John McCain, not just problematic (we can disagree politically), but out of touch.

Take, for example, SM’s post about the Pakistani elections. It is entitled: “Victory for the Pakistani People?” It goes onto make the generous prediction: “Eventually the new general in charge of the army will be forced to take over, just like Musharraf did eight years ago. But hey, I don’t mean to be a party pooper.”

Nevermind that the current General — Kiyani — has refused to permit the military to partake in civil society, but what the hell is up with the question mark? Landmark elections, praised by three US senators, which rolled back tyranny, crushed music-banning Islamists, brought a secular resurgence, and in terms of voter turn out were equal to or exceeding previous elections, where even the tyrant’s party was gracious in defeat, get a question mark?
...
the SM posts, with their unhealthy obsession with the Zakarian idea of “Illiberal Democracy” are tired and stale, reflective of an analysis that no longer applies. Not only that, the application of the principle of Illiberal Democracy is not even Zakarian, since Brother Fareed himself says mostly good things about where Pakistan is headed.

I think this is a fair critique overall, but as I pointed out in comments, Zakaria’s analysis of Pakistan has evolved over time; SM might be lagging him a bit but then again, while process is progress, I note that herr general Mush still wont step down from power even after the election. Zakaria is right to point out how far pakistan has come - it certainly is no Zimbabwe! - but there are miles yet to go before Pakistan is, ahem, on par with India. (and lets be fair, India still is a poster child for Zakaria’s thesis of illiberal democracies as well).

I am also not clear about the “outreach” issue. More links to the pakistani blogsphere? A better route would be for Pakistani bloggers to make use of the News tab and submit stories to sepia directly - that way you are participating in sepia on its own terms. SM is not just a blog but a behemoth, it’s the Desi Daily Kos. They are not under obligation to outreach to you, you need to do the legwork to reach in. As you said, they aren't inherently biased, just less aware of the nuance - so join the mutiny and lend your macacas.

At anyrate, it would be cool if sepia had a pakistani voice on board. I nominate Zack Ajmal.

The Brass Crescent Awards

It is that time of year again for the Brass Crescent Awards, the annual celebration of the best of the Islamsphere:

What are the Brass Crescent Awards? They are named for the Story of the City of Brass in the Thousand and One Nights. Today, the Islamsphere is forging a new synthesis of Islam and modernity, and is the intellectual heir to the traditions of philosophy and learning that was once the hallmark of Islamic civilization - a heritage scarcely recognizable today in the Islamic world after a century's ravages of colonialism, tyrants, and religious fundamentalism. We believe that Islam transcends history, and we are forging history anew for tomorrow's Islam. These awards are a means to honor ourselves and celebrate our nascent community, and promote its growth.

The nomination phase is now open, so vote for your favorite blogs in each of the following categories:

BEST BLOG: This category honors the most indispensable, Muslim-authored blog there is. Period.

BEST NON-MUSLIM BLOG: Which blog writen by a non-Muslim is most respectful of Islam and seeks genuine dialogue with Muslims?

BEST DESIGN: Which blog has the most aesthetically pleasing site design, appealing to the eye, evoking Islamic themes, and/or facilitating debate and discussion?

BEST POST OR SERIES: Which single post or group of posts in the Islamsphere was the most original and important, above all the others?

BEST IJTIHAD: What blog post provided the best rebuttal to arguments of extremist ideology, and in so doing expose how those who commit evil in the name of Islam are actually profaning the faith?

BEST FEMALE BLOG: The woman's voice in Islam is equal to the man's, and in the Islamsphere we seek to make sure the female perspective is highlighted and given its rightful due. Which Muslim woman's blog has done the most to explore the role that women play within Islam and society?

BEST WRITER: Who is the most stimulating, insightful, and philosophically wise among us? This category is intended to highlight a blogger who may not post daily, but when they do post, they really make an impact.

MOST DESERVING OF WIDER RECOGNITION: Which blog is a true diamond in the rough, one that everyone should be reading but who most just haven't heard of (yet)?

BEST GROUP BLOG: Which multiple group blog in the Islamsphere has the best diversity of writers and the most interesting debate on Muslim issues?

BEST MIDEAST/CENTRAL ASIAN & BEST SOUTH/SOUTHEAST ASIAN BLOGGERS: The Islamsphere is truly a global phenomenon. In Iraq, despite the chaos and uncertainty, there is a sea change of free speech and expression, the vanguard of which are blogs. There are also bloggers in India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Palestine, Jordan, and most other countries that host Muslims, all of whom have their own perspectives on faith, culture, and politics.

As always, I am honored to co-host the Brass Crescent Awards with my friend Shahed Amanullah of AltMuslim.com. Shahed has worked tirelessly to create the voting mechanism and design the graphics for the Awards this year and every year. However, as usual, please note that neither altmuslim.com nor City of Brass are eligible for any Awards.

Islamicate

I don't read it as often as I should, but it's worth noting that Islamicate is an excellent blog. The author, Islamoyankee, is a Nizari Ismaili muslim which makes him as sort of blood cousin in faith to me. It's a great blog and I recommend it highly.