What’s the American Muslim Agenda?

​What is that Americans Muslims want? How close are they to what you want? What can they do about it? What are your issues with each other? If you are a conservative, grudgingly, you'll see the value in this book, and if you are a moderate, you'll dance and sing along with joy.

You and I have a responsibility to create a world where, you, me, and our grandchildren can live without apprehensions. No matter we go, we should feel secure about faith, race, ethnicity, culture and our political and sexual orientation.

Would the book American Muslim Agenda bring attitudinal change among Muslims?  Yes, it will, it’s akin to planting seeds and nurturing it to give the beneficence to the next generation. I know most American Muslims will wholeheartedly subscribe to the refreshed understanding of Islam, we need to expand it to more Americans.

Some of the reservations we have about Muslims and Islam are based on what we have heard from our parents, teachers, clergy, favorite media people and others.  We need to find the truth on our own and find freedom from misunderstandings. It is a blessing to be free.

Muslims have shied away from confronting difficult issues about their faith, and most of them don't even have a clue about the essence of Islam, it was never articulated before in the history of Islam. 

A few medieval scholars have reduced Islam to rituals, five pillars, dhimmi, jizya, sharia, externalities, and enforcement of your rules on to others. That is not Islam, and most Muslims can recite verses that Islam is about free will. God uploaded free will into Adam’s DNA, and emphasized it in the Quran, the prophet practiced ‘freewill’ and established examples for it. Sadly, Muslims know the truth but were bullied into silence with fatwa bombs. All I have done is articulated what Muslims believe, but dared not say it. The book is the voice of the majority of ‘American’ Muslims.

This book is a product of twenty years of research and thousands of discussions in which Muslims, non-Muslims, and “Islamophobes” have participated in it, including debates on Fox News with Sean Hannity, Stuart Varney, Pamela Geller, Brigitte Gabrielle, Robert Spencer, Jamie Glazov, Raymond Ibrahim, Walid Shoebat, Wafa Sultan, and several others.  

Islam is about living your life and letting others live theirs. Islam is about building cohesive societies where all of God's creation lives with dignity and freedom. In God’s universe, we are merely a speck, and no one is more privileged than the other. If you are a moderate individual of any faith, you will find the book in tune with you.

It is time to go beyond the five pillars of Islam, and I hope the Imams and Muslim scholars who are free thinkers would appreciate the contents of the book. This book may indeed become a reference manual for teaching Islamic values that contribute to creating a better world for all humanity.

The American Muslim Agenda offers guidance to Muslims to be one with all, and it voices what Muslims believe and live with and empowers them to live their lives and let others live with free will.  The book opens the door to people of other faiths to shed their biases and join hands in creating a world of safety, security, and harmony for all humanity.

Islam is a public religion, and Muslims don't own it exclusively. You are invited to participate in discussions, including your faith.  The book is expected to initiate conversations about the nature of Islam and fellow humans. I welcome your criticism (after reading the book).

You can get the book by calling 1-888-795-4274 x 4528 or get it from Amazon online or a book store. You can find the talking points at www.AmericanMuslimAgenda.com.

Dr. Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. His new book, the “American Muslim Agenda” is about everything you wanted to know about Muslims. The book is available at Xlibris and Amazon. Mike is a public speaker, author, interfaith wedding officiant, and the executive director of the Center for Pluralism in Washington, DC. More about him at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeghouse/

Today, Pamela Geller, Sean Hannity and Mike Ghouse squaring off on free speech on Radio

Today on syndicated radio show about Free Speech. Please read my article below and respond with one liners... may use it, but won't be able to quote you in the short time. but will be quoted in my blog right here.

Find your radio at: http://www.hannity.com/pages/find-a-station/

Take a look at this article- Pamela Geller is not for free speech  http://thearabdailynews.com/2015/06/05/pamela-geller-not-free-speech-serious-question-donors/

You can leave you comments here

Thank you

 

Mike Ghouse, Speaker
(214) 325-1916 text/talk
........................................................................................................
Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism, Islam, India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film " Sacred" to be released on 9/11 and a documentary "Americans together" for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com - Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. 

Pamela Geller, free speech and our choices

Available to speak about the incident and solutions. Updated information at http://americatogetherfoundation.blogspot.com/2015/05/pamela-geller-and-garland-shooting.html

 

Thank you
mike
Mike Ghouse, President
America Together Foundation
(Foundation for Pluralism)
Dallas | Washington
(214) 325-1916 text/talk
MikeGhouse@aol.com
SpeakerMikeGhouse@gmail.com
...............................................................................................................................
Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism, Islam, India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film ” Sacred” to be released on 9/11 and a documentary “Americans together” for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com – Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

Pamela Geller and Garland Shooting, a breach of public safety with gratuitous defense of freedom of speech.

I was interviews on six TV/Radio stations today about the issue, notes follow the press release:

 Mike Ghouse, PresidentAmerica Together foundationFoundation for PluralismWorld Muslim CongressDallas, TX | Washington DCMikeGhouse@aol.com(214) 325-1916 
http://americatogetherfoundation.blogspot.com

PRESS RELEASE

Pamela Geller and Garland Shooting, a breach of public safety with gratuitous defense of freedom of speech

Dallas, Texas – “Here we go again at the game of provoking and getting provoked, causing undesirable public safety nightmares.”  Mike Ghouse, president of America Together foundation said in a statement released today.

“We condemn the shooting at Garland, Texas at ‘'Muhammad Art Exhibit’ intended as an expression of free speech by drawing cartoons of Prophet Muhammad to provoke Muslims for no reason.  We do realize that we have no control over those who tease people, and those who get irritated and resort to violence. Both are nut cases causing public safety concerns tearing the cohesive fabric of our nation.”

There is no doubt, we have to defend the freedom of speech, that is the God given right of every human, indeed, I have defended Pamela Geller’s right to speak when United Kingdom banned her speech in London. We have defended the rights of Pastor Terry Jones to burn copies of the Quran in Florida, and have defended Sheikh Rachid al-Ghannouchi's right to free speech at Yale which Pamela Geller opposed.

We need to care about our nation and do those things that build a cohesive America, where fellow Americans can come together with respect and dignity for each other rather than irritate and provoke each other.”

The organizers of 'Muhammad Art Exhibit' at Garland ISD facility “said they were exercising their freedom of expression. The district's decision drew criticism from critics and Islamic groups who said the event was an attack on Islam.” Dallas Morning News.

The Muslim community was very well prepared, and had decided to stay out of it and not even pay attention to it. However two stray men fell to the provocation and took it upon themselves to shoot out.  The Muslim community condemns that action. Indeed, Imam Zia Sheikh is concerned about the after effects, “Media and right wing will have a field day with this. Just what we didn't want.” We regret the whole incident.

We do support the decision of Garland ISD to rent the facility, and urge the FBI and Police to do a thorough investigation and the find out who else was involved with the shooters, so we can take corrective action.

I urge Pamela Geller to continue to defend freedom of speech and I will stand with her as I have, however, there is no need to provoke fellow Americans and cause safety issues for the public, we have enough problems to deal with and don’t need any more of these incidents.

Criticism of Islam, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and free speech

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2012/11/criticism-of-islam-prophet-muhammad.html

# # #

NOTES FROM MY TV and RADIO SHOWS
This was the theme of conversation in all media -  uncompromising support for freedom of speech, breach of public safety with gratuitous defense of freedom of speech.

I am glad the media has been fair in giving the time to express the issues clearly and succinctly. Please refer to the press release link and the link about freedom of speech below, I pretty much stayed with it and had an opportunity to add a few additional points at Al Hurra TV, Fox Radio Network (250 Stations) and NPR (160 Stations).

11:00 Voice of America Urdu Service

11:30 Voice of America English Service

12:45 Turkish Radio

01:00 Local Radio in Louisville

02:35 Fox Radio Stations affiilates across America with Hannity Geller

03:25 Al Hurra Arabic TV

05:30 NPR

-----------------------

Al Hurra TV

After the theme of conversation in all media -  uncompromising support for freedom of speech, breach of public safety with gratuitous defense of freedom of speech.

I responded strongly to the question, what should Muslims do to change the situation? Get out of the Mosques and build relationships, Prophet Muhammad did that, he laid the foundation for cohesive societies by making friends with people around him from Jews,  Christians, pagans and others. We stick around too much in the mosque, we need to get out and be with the people, that should be our priority. The more we know each other, the lesser the problems we would have. Most Americans don't know what we are, and  to change the perceptions about us,  we have to get out and be with the people, we need to go to he mosque, but also allocate time to follow Prophet's foundational Sunnah - to be the Amins. We live in self imposed silos and it is time to change.

-------------

Fox Radio

After the theme of conversation in all media -  uncompromising support for freedom of speech, breach of public safety with gratuitous defense of freedom of speech. It will be rebroadcast at 5:00 PM in 250 Radio stations across the nations.  We ended speaking it out loudly...

Pamela Geller or ISIS or radical Muslims do not represent the views of mainstream Americans or Muslims - why give credence to such comments? - Just finished the talk with Hannity and Geller.

I stand by freedom of speech, but this was an useless provocative event to tease the extremists among Muslims. 2 People have died and one injured who should be responsible?

There is no problem with Islam or Quran, the problem is with a few Muslims, just as Geller there are her counterparts among Muslims. I have offered her the Quran challenge and told them the formula - read three verses before and after the given supposedly maligned verse.

Hannity asked the age of the prophet's wife - I said 15, Pamela jumps all over me calling it deception. She is deceiving with the false information.

Islam stands for free speech, yes, we do have a few radicals among us, just as others have their share. .

I invite criticism of the prophet, Islam etc. Criticism of Islam, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and free speech

-----------

NPR

It was a good 15 minutes interview. Ian Smith is certainly a good interviewer - he brought out the influence of Pamela Geller - legislation in 22 states to ban Sharia, even though it does not exist. I will have to take her on boldly.

Spoke within the lines of the press release and then extensively on Sharia Laws. This will be rebroadcast tonite at 9:30 in 160 Stations across America.

-----------Dear Mike, 

As a rabbi, Jew, and Fellow American who believes in free speech, I believe it is crucial for all Americans of good will to join together against those who would misuse their right of free speech to deliberately provoke or scapegoat other faith groups. As a Jew, coming from a people who have historically been singled out for persecution, Pamela Geller should be ashamed. There is a religious tradition in our faith that shaming another human being is compared to "spilling their blood," God forbid-- why? Because when another person, who is made in God's image, is embarrassed or made to feel ashamed, they blush. Jews and Muslims are cousins in faith, going back to our shared foreparents, Abraham and Sarah. 

We must always be "lovers of peace and pursuers of peace." I am proud to call you a friend and a builder of bridges.

Sincerely,

Rabbi David Hartley Mark

-----------

Dr. Robert Hunt wrote this and sums up what I have said in my show with Hannity, "This wasn't about free speech, it was about selling hatred as a therapy for anxiety and fear. A band of insignificant losers sought to offend people in the most obnoxious possible way and succeeded in getting a violent reaction from two equally insignificant losers. The group holding the event proved nothing about free speech, and the two shooters died defending nothing but their unjustified anger."  

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Imam Zia Sheikh kept the same line on CNN - free speech

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Jewish community is embarrassed with Geller's antics, and here is a good piece at Daily Beast about it - http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/05/04/je-suis-pamela-geller.html?via=desktop&source=facebook 

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Mike Ghouse Quoted in Islamophobia isn't a Muslim problem, it hurts all religions
http://www.albawaba.com/editorchoice/islamophobia-isn%E2%80%99t-just-muslim-problem-it-hurts-all-religions-691094

Mike Ghouse, President

America Together Foundation

(Foundation for Pluralism)

Dallas | Washington

(214) 325-1916 text/talk

...............................................................................................................................

Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism, Islam,India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film ”Sacred” to be released on 9/11 and a documentary “Americans together” for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com – Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.