Monday, May 12, 2008

Sex and the City - Rant 1

What's the big deal with Sex and the City? I mean, Brian Griffin (Family Guy) apparently summed it up best after watching it with some gay friends: "... so it's a show about three hookers and their mom?"

I admit I watched a few episodes - no, I didn't follow it - just watched it when I switched on the TV and it happened to be on. It's a funny, witty show but if you listen to women everywhere, it has been made out to be some ... Movement ... something bigger than what it is, really.

At it's heart, Sex and the City is no feminist manna - the girls are obsessed with guys and their life is defined by who can successfully get which guy, and if all else fails, you can cure your heartache by buying an expensive pair of stilettos.

For me, Friends was more of a realistic portrait of 30-somethings who are single or leading single life. At least they didn't pretend to be happy and proud of their "love life is DOA" at 30.

In the end, Sex and the City is just another TV show, more often than not funny and entertaining, but just a show nevertheless. It is not meant to be an ideal of how 'professional' women should be.

For pure fun, take a look at the Sex and the Matrix parody.

Friday, May 09, 2008

If You Are Reading This ...

Dear C,

By the time you read this, I will have been long gone. I am sorry for doing this, but you have left me no choice. I know it will come as a bit of shock to you, especially because you have been such a materialistic self-absorbed bitch, but I am sorry - I just needed a change. I think you are pretty cool, but I just don't think we are right for each other.

First of all, I am compatible with Cancer and Leo, while you are cool with Capricon and Aquarius. I like long walks on the beach, you like making snowmen. I like action blockbusters, while you like Christmas feel-good movies. As for my favourite sport - do you even know what my favourite sport is?

This is not about you or about me "winning or losing", or about one of us being wrong - it is about two ways of being ... which do not fulfill each other, or go together. Though I had been open to having you visit with the thought that possibly we could 'try' again, after thinking about it a lot, I realize that it is not a good idea. I am very clear that we are not 'right' for each other.

Sincerely,

S.

Note: C = Canada, S = Summer.

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Google A Fatwa

So you want to know some fact about Islam (for example is A equal to B). You decide based on severity of the question and the urgency, that an online fatwa site is the way to go. So you ask.

This will be how the typical reply seems to be composed.

Dear Brother / Sister in Islam,

We are very pleased/satisfied/impressed that you have chosen to further your knowledge of the deen and may Allah keep you always on the rightly guided path.


That is, of course, salutation. You expect that, and read on, wanting them to now answer your question. But the content will be slightly different.

To look at your question, is A = B, first we must understand where A and B are coming from. Before Islam, the root of the word A was from the A'ramic word 'Aaa'....

What?!

Now we look at historical contexts where A = D. Now D is slightly different from B, but we have the 2nd Caliph of the 4th Sultanate in the 1201 AD when ...

On and on ...

In the great work of Ahlan Wa Sahlan the great jurist Saqlain Al Karim has stated that A and Z are opposite in empirical terms ...

Finally,

So we can conclude that a majority of the jurists are of the opinion D may be equal to E in some situations, while a minority of the ulema are of the opinion that D can never be equal to E.

As for A = B?

Allah and His Messenger Knows Best.

Seriously, while the Internet is great for research and expanding one's knowledge and quick lookups, I have had too many people telling, "Look! This is Islamic! Here's a fatwa site" (and from the link you can see they have followed the first Google link to some keyword searches). Is that Islamic? And second, why don't these Fatwas ever get straight to the point?