*Peace/War- The eternal battle for Good vs. Evil *

Hi blogville, it's been an awfully long time. I have become a ghost on most of your blogs, but hardly leave comments. It's what life does to you sometimes. ;).

I was in the process of writing about the recent bombings in India (Mumbai). In fact, I was almost done with my research until Christmas day when I heard about Umar Farouk. At first, we laughed it off. We said the dude could not have been Nigerian. He either found a way into the country and somehow acquired our passport or is plain crazy. I mean what Nigerian would actually plan to blow himself off. Right? I tried to shake off the feeling of dread every time I looked in his face. He sure looked like a random dude I would have seen at Luxe lounge on a Friday (Lots of Nigerians there on Fridays). Although he looked a little 'butter-ish', something about his face filled me with dread. When he was confirmed to be Nigerian, I shed a few tears. In addition to all the names we have been called through history, we have added Terrorists to our resume. I am no longer filled with Pride in talking about Dbanj, or just Nigeria/Nigerian Music... our rich culture. I want to throw my hands up in surrender and cower with shame at my Nigerian heritage. (I wonder what a befitting Western name would be good for me. LOL. J/K).

Prior to my Pakistan/India investigation (I did some research as well as conducted interviews with several indegenes of the two countries), after seeing the CNN special "Terror in Mumbai", my schizophrenic side confirmed that all middle easterners are terrorists. But the realist/Idealist waged war on the schizophrenic. Armed with a determination to better understand the reason behind their mutual hatred, I started talking to colleagues, classmates, store owners etc from the two regions. One thing struck me (Please note that I put all prejudices aside before embarking on this journey). The Pakistanis I spoke to (mostly Muslims) were very harsh in their criticisms of the West/India. They hate the west with every ounce of their being. It was so scary to me, that I had to ask one particular 7-11 manager why he didn't just go back to Pakistan. His response, I quote "Because everywhere I look, America is there. They are either funding India to kill my family members in Pakistan, or trying to force their way of life down my throat...". This he says with a lot of fire in his eyes. I can see a lot of angst on his face. This is from a man who drives a Ford escape, studied and graduated from a local HBCU, and speaks English fluently. I was taken aback. For the most part, the stories from all the Pakistanis I spoke to were the same. They hate Indians, but they hate the West even more. When I spoke with the Indians, I was given specific accounts on how and why they were at war with Pakistan. Basically, they played Big-brother to a starving portion of Pakistan controlled state, their actions were misunderstood by the Pakistanis, hence the war. The Indians feel like that's fine. If you (The Pakistanis) feel like you can come and take over our land because we helped you, we will 'Kill just as you kill'. They enlisted the help of big brother US, further perpetuating the general mistrust and hatred of the West. When I was done with my research, and I began typing the old post, I noticed my tone was leaning towards a particular side of the equation, so I packed it up, and vowed to understand more about the religion of Islam. I had been doing my research on the Genesis of Islam, the nature of the prophet Muhammad, and the history that ensues. I was doing that until this Umar bastard pour sand-sand for im papa Garri.

While I have nothing against Muslims (People- At least the ones I know), I realize I don't know a whole lot about the Religion of Islam. Are there particular verses that back these Terrorists up? I didn't have to look far. In a follow up documentary, One of the two dudes that use the streets of New York to perpetuate this message of hate, quotes the quoran as saying (Loosely quoted) 'The quoran beseeches us to terrorize (He interject the Arabic translation of the word terrorize) the infidels until they have fear in their heart or until they are no more'... I am asking any devout Muslim who reads this to please clarify this for me. Is this actually written in the Quoran? All the Muslims I've ever known are really easy-going, and peace loving people. I find this quote from the heretic particularly disturbing. Does this mean that if there was to be some kind of misunderstanding between us, that you would terrorize me, an Infidel? I don't want to believe so. My Parents tell me I'm too much of an idealist to understand that Muslims are evil people, but I beg to differ. In my mind, there are two kinds of people- Good and Evil. The fact that I practice Christianity doesn't automatically guarantee my way to heaven or make me better than a Muslim. Infact, I think the bible actually states somewhere that faith without works is futile. (Ermm, writefreak, Nyja beauty, Rita, Aloted. e ya mi ni bible verse yen...lol). My first boy friend was a Muslim. One of the sweetest people I've ever known. His mother is a devout Muslim. I love the woman dearly, and cannot fathom them scheming harm. These are just a few of the people I know.

I also realize that the West is not without it's faults and neither is the 'Religion of Christianity' (Please note I said religion). Numerous atrocities have been committed in history under the banner of Christianity. My question rather is for my personal enlightenment of the religion of Islam. Due to the rash of suicide attempts, acts of terrorism carried out by individuals under the banner of Islam, I am left wondering if I am missing something. Does Islam teach these things? Would the world be a better place if we didn't have religion (which I believe is a moral compass), and our decisions and actions in life actually boiled down to the individual? I tried to find my answers from a face book group condemning the acts of Umar Farouk, but instead of gathering knowledge, I learned a whole new slew of vocabulary on how to insult other people's intelligence or throw stones back at other people's religion. Said by both Christians and Muslims. Christians pointing fingers at Muslims, and Muslims aggressively throwing their own stones. I quickly realized why there are a lot of issues in Nigeria. Ignorance and a lack of understanding being number one. Our generation is poised to take on the baton of our forefathers. Why will the killings, civil wars and discord ever end?

A note of warning to anyone (Muslim or Christian) who might want to use this forum as a platform to launch insults at either religion, persons or on my intelligence, Please be warned! I will not hesitate to delete any derogatory comments. If you have information that will impart knowledge, please feel free to share without exchanging insults. If you read my blog, you will know that I rarely do posts like this, and I have a very sharp tongue that is not afraid to spit fire and brimstone. LOL. NO DEROGATORY COMMENTS will be tolerated. Pessin wey get ears make im hear o! ehen.

I invite Muslims and Christians alike to share and clarify aspects of our respective religions that fundamentally breed hate and discord amongst us. First as world citizens but more as Nigerians concerned with this new 'Terrorists' addition to our 'Resume'.

*e ya mi ni bible verse yen- Loosely translates to 'Bring the bible verse to my remembrance'