I don’t know, i’ve been perusing the SDMB for over 3 years now. It’s not a perfect place but it’s very useful and quite entertaining.
Is that a realistic concern that should be obvious in a modern, industrialized country with knowledge of safe handling and food inspection?
I suppose I just don’t understand why it’s still adhered to.
Same question as above: is it still practical considering what we now know about pork and the widely available trichinella-free pork?
Also, I know that there are some Jews, such as a friend of mine who is a Reform Jew, who will eat pork. Is there such a thing in the Muslim world?
(I know I seem to have a weird obsession with pork. I suppose that is because of my Polish heritage where we loves us some kielbasa with our pierogies.)
I have a very thick skin , no need for disclaimers.
Tobacco is considered harmful but it is not an intoxicant. Your change in behavior is negligeable while smoking or after smoking. It isn’t recommended to smoke. (but it’s so hard to quit…)
The status of any substance is easy to find out:
-How much harm will it cause to you?
-How much harm will it cause your family, friends and fellow humans.
As you can see, alcohol is clearly A Bad Thing ™. Pot, much less so. Heroin or crack would probably be trailing closely behind alcohol, etc.
As to your second question: I’m not sure why you think of it as punishment. Alcohol is not that great. on top of that, You’re not going to hell just for drinking alcohol. Remember what I said earlier. Allah the merciful and forgiving.
Hahaha. On some superficial level, yeah. It’s always nice to be the first producer in the world (whatever the product is)
The bastards caused me to wait 15 days for my student visa! Seriously though, killing innocents (whether it’s in Morocco, the U.S, Turkey or Spain) is the greatest sin of all.
Nothing noticeable. no.
I did read parts of the qur’an and I do plan to read all of it eventually. Most muslims have not read the qur’an in its entirety either. I have as much knowledge of Islam as an average moroccan. I didn’t name this post “ask the islam expert” or “ask the imam” or anything like that. If I come across as a typical and normal adult with liberal ideas, it’s because I am!
I’m answering all questions in a rigorously honest fashion. I have only one agenda and it is to give you the straightdope about “a” muslim man, namely myself.
Of course, you have no particular reason to trust me and I can’t prove a negative so I won’t try.
Aren’t you losing nuance in this? Moderate alcohol consumption (1-2 glasses of wine/day) decreases risk of stroke and dementia, and is associated with improved cognitive function. And I quoted the figures to show that a minority of drinkers have problems with it. Alcohol is neither clearly A Good Thing nor clearly A Bad Thing. In fact, hardly any drug is. It’s how you use it. Doesn’t promoting stereotypical attitudes hamper cultivating good risk management skills?
Well, if alcohol is prohibited, doesn’t it risk ostracizing/segregating Muslims who otherwise are sincere?
Agreed, much better and safer options out there.
recurriman, I’ve copied my post from the ‘Ask a moslim woman’ thread and added one of Rune’s questions.
What do you think of the Fatwa on Salman Rushdie, and the killing of Theo van Gogh and other such Islamic religious killings?
[/QUOTE]
1- I believe humanity would be better off if the dude(s) who issued it went to meet his maker. I have stated a few posts ago what I think of fatwas in general.
The killing of Van Gogh is tragic and his murderer should be sentenced to the chair. I agree with what the U.S. constitution says about freedom of speech.
1- Of course.
2- Shock? Anger? Denial? A psychologist could probably give you a better answer to that. I think it’s highly unlikely that a discovery like that would be made now after so long and even more unlikely that the differences would be non-negligeable.
I’ve been eating pork for quite some time now for the reasons you mention But if I had to go the rest of my life without eating it, it wouldn’t bother me. It’s not that good anyways…I prefer beef and lamb.
1- Yeah, i’ve read about how half a glass of wine a day can be beneficial to you and whatnot. I have to disagree with you though. If you put all the benefits of alcohol on one side of the balance, and all the detriments on the other, the balance will markedly tip towards the detriments.
Do I believe a country should prohibit its citizens from drinking alcohol? no. For the same reason I am in favor of total legalization of drugs.
In morocco, people who drink alcohol are not ostracized or anything like that. I speak from vast experience on this. You can buy alcohol in supermarkets over there.
Ok, seems i’ve answered all pending questions. I will take a break now and be back to answer any new questions in a few hours. Oh, and hi Tamerlane!
Is God a big part of your life? Or are you Muslim for mostly cultural reasons?
Which just strengthens my belief that nuance is lost. A person doesn’t accrue all benefits and suffer all detriments, just by the fact that they drink. Your figurative balance is tilted towards one side or the other, or nearly balanced, depending on how you approach drinking. A 4 glasses/week drinker’s net health is not affected the same way, or even in the same direction, as that of a 40 glasses/week drinker. A blanket disapproval only encourages black & white thinking. Anyway, this issue is not specific or limited to Islam, so I’ll let it be.
How do you groom your body hair? What do you shave? What do you pluck?
Well, while I don’t think about God a lot. I do try to live my life as a good muslim. Don’t steal, love thy neighbor, help your fellow man, be a good friend and whatnot. When I’m scared for my life, I say the chahada and it calms me down. Sometimes, when something important to me is at stake, I pray. And it has worked every time so far. Is it God answering my prayers or am I just lucky? I don’t know.
I’m not sure I understand your second question. Maybe I already answered it. If not, please try to dumb it down for me 
Hey yourself, oh long-time lurker :).
- Tamerlane
Finally! I’ve been waiting for this question since the beginning of this thread.
I shave my facial hair every few months. I don’t do it more often because:
a- I’m lazy
b- Razors irritate my skin a bit.
c- My electric shaver stopped working and I’d rather spend the money on videogames and computer parts.
I have thick eyebrows and my SO will pluck the middle from time to time.
I’m fortunate not to have too much body hair. I use scissors for my pubic hair (tried shaving it once and it itched like hell afterwards)
I think that’s about it.
Was it not obvious that my post was a joke?
It was to me.