text:
Are gardeners doing monarchs more harm than good by planting Mexican milkweed?
By Make Way for Monarchs February 28, 2015
Mexican milkweed is safe to grow for monarchs in North Texas, experts say, but from San Antonio southward, it could harbor spores dangerous to monarchs over the winter.
Monarchs have been in the news a lot lately, most of it grim.
Numbers have dropped dramatically over recent years from various causes, including climate change, illegal logging at the insects' overwintering sites in Mexico and new practices in the agricultural industry. A major factor is the widespread use of GMO crops that are Round-Up resistant, allowing U.S. farmers in the monarch's summer breeding grounds in the Corn Belt to spray the herbicide on their fields to kill weeds. This relatively new practice eradicates the monarch's host plants, milkweed.
To counter this trend, butterfly enthusiasts, conservation groups, garden clubs and, just last week, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service are urging citizens — and not only gardeners — to plant milkweeds. In 2014, Dallas-area retail nurseries had difficulty keeping Mexican milkweed — far easier to cultivate and grow than native milkweeds — in stock because the urge to help monarchs was so widespread.
But last month, there were headlines about how gardeners are harming monarchs by planting this widely available, non-native tropical milkweed (Asclepias curassavica). A recent study by monarch researchers Dara Satterfield, John C. Maerz and Sonia Altizer showed that where this species of milkweed stays green during the winter, and in locations with winter-breeding monarchs, increased levels of infection by a protozoan parasite called Ophryocystis elektroscirrha, or OE, can occur.
OE spores travel on infected monarchs and are inadvertently transferred onto milkweed plants, usually by females when they are depositing eggs. Caterpillars hatch and ingest the spores when they feed on leaves. The damaging protozoa develop inside the growing larvae. (OE is known only to infect monarch and queen butterflies.)
If the number of spores are high enough on the plants, it can have devastating effects on the butterfly-to-be, weakening it to where it may not be able to emerge from its chrysalis. Even in cases where the OE spore load is low enough for the butterfly to emerge and appear healthy, it will fly off and infect other monarchs and milkweed plants.
Dying back in winter
To clear up some of the initial confusion that resulted from the reporting of the study, Monarch Joint Venture released a statement on some of the key points of the research. There is nothing inherently bad about tropical milkweed, it emphasizes. What seems to have gotten lost in the reporting of the recent study is that this is only an issue where tropical milkweed stays green and where monarchs are present in the winter, allowing for a buildup of spores.
For Texas butterfly gardeners, this applies only to the state's coastal areas and roughly San Antonio southward, where hard and prolonged freezes do not usually occur to kill back Mexican milkweed. In the Dallas-Fort Worth area and, in fact, most of the country, tropical milkweed dies to the ground after the first hard freeze, and there are no monarchs found here in the winter, so it is not an issue.
Even where it might stay green all winter, Mexican milkweed can be used as a host and nectar plant in spring through autumn as long as its stalks are cut back to the ground and discarded.
If native milkweeds were for sale at retail nurseries and big-box stores like Home Depot and Lowe's, monarchs would benefit greatly. Natives naturally go dormant by late summer and therefore don't provide a surface for a fatal buildup of OE, but native milkweeds are not a quick or easy crop for wholesale growers to produce. Mexican milkweed, however, is easy to germinate and quicker to develop, which is why it is the prevalent species for sale locally.
Reason for optimism
There was also some good news in January about monarchs, researchers say. The estimated numbers at the overwintering sites in Mexico have increased. The colonies covered an area of 1.13 hectares (2.79 acres), up 69 percent from the winter of the 2013-14 record low population of only 0.67 hectares (1.65 acres). While this increase is good news, it is still the second lowest number since population estimates have been kept.
What should North Texans do to help maintain the monarch migration? Plant milkweed this spring. Plant native milkweed species if you can find them, but, if not, plant tropical milkweed. It's perfectly safe for monarchs migrating through the region in spring and fall.
Dale Clark is a butterfly farmer in Dallas County.
The two most common species that grow in the Dallas area are green milkweed (A. viridis) and antelope horns milkweed (A. asperula).
Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park plans to sell young, native, pesticide-free milkweeds, raised from seeds in its greenhouse, at its spring plant sale April 17-19. Watch Thursday's Garden Calendar for details closer to the date.
Monarch Watch, a national organization based at the University of Kansas, started selling mail-order native milkweed plants in 2013. This year it has contracted with native plant nurseries to help fill more orders. On monarchwatch.org, it cautions Texas buyers that the appropriate native species will not be ready for shipping until late April or early May.
Order now, because inventory is limited. Monarch Watch says it will not cash customers' checks until the flat of plants ships.
Native American Seeds in Junction sells the seeds of milkweeds that occur in North Texas, plus several other species. Its website also has a link that explains how to germinate milkweed seeds. seedsource.com
Reference: http://www.dallasnews.com/lifestyles/home-and-gardening/headlines/20150225-are-gardeners-doing-monarchs-more-harm-than-good-by-planting-mexican-milkweed.ece
EPA Ordered to Take Fresh Look at Whether Herbicide Harms Butterflies
A Ninth Circuit panel ruled against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday, finding the agency must take a…
The Impact of the Individual
My mantra has always been "the impact of the individual, the impact of the individual…" I have had great teachers in my life that made sure I realized that we indeed make a difference – but it's up to us to choose if it's a positive or negative one.
This all started with Gary Nabhan and his wonderful, heartwarming idea for Make Way for Monarchs to sponsor a "Day of Action and Contemplation"…
A Letter for President Enrique Pena Nieto, President Barack Obama, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Among the countless organisms that have evolved during the history of life on earth, monarch butterflies are among the most extraordinary.
Sadly, their unique multigenerational migration across our large continent, their spectacular overwintering aggregations on the volcanic mountains in central Mexico, and their educational value to children in Canada, the United States, and Mexico are all threatened. Monitoring of the butterfly population over the past two decades indicates a grim situation.
How Obama's 'butterfly highway' paves way to save embattled monarchs
The Obama administration is hatching a plan to establish a 1,500-mile butterfly corridor along US Interstate 35 connecting Minnesota and Texas to protect the monarch butterfly.
The majestic North American monarch is well known for both its trademark orange and black stripes as well as its epic annual migration from Canada to Mexico.
Monarch butterflies are threatened in Ontario — but they're not the only species at risk
For more than a decade, Margaret McRae has raised monarch butterflies in her east-end Toronto home. Every two years she applies for permission from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, then scans the milkweed that grows plentifully in her gardens.
When she finds a leaf bearing an egg, she brings it inside to protect it from parasites. Within four days, she has a monarch caterpillar, covered in white, black, and yellow stripes.
José Andrés: Why We Need to Protect Monarch Butterflies
I have a special connection to monarch butterflies. If you've been to my Mexican restaurant in Washington, DC, you may understand.
You see, the beautiful mobiles of butterflies twirling from the ceiling represent this forest located in Central Mexico filled with Oyamel fir trees, which is also the name of my restaurant. Every year, several hundred million Monarch butterflies make a journey to this very unique place located high up in the mountains of Michoacán.
North American Leaders Urged to Restore Monarch Butterfly's Habitat
Hoping to focus attention on the plight of the monarch butterfly at a North American summit meeting next week, a group of prominent scientists and writers urged the leaders of Mexico, the United States and Canada to commit to restoring the habitat that supports the insect's extraordinary migration across the continent.
Calling the situation facing the butterfly "grim," the group issued a letter that outlined a proposal to plant milkweed, the monarch caterpillar's only food source, along its migratory route in Canada and the United States.
Planting a future for monarch butterflies
I have a confession to make. A few years ago, on a farm I own in eastern Nebraska, I took 44 acres out of production, on purpose. That's a lot.
Where corn and beans once grew, I planted tall, native grasses and wildflowers. Among area farmers, this was seen as nothing short of scandalous.
Weed Whackers
On a Friday evening in January, a thousand people at the annual California Native Plant Society conference in San Jose settled down to a banquet and a keynote speech delivered by an environmental historian named Jared Farmer.
His chosen topic was the eucalyptus tree and its role in California's ecology and history. The address did not go well. Eucalyptus is not a native plant but a Victorian import from Australia. In the eyes of those gathered at the San Jose DoubleTree, it qualified as "invasive," "exotic," "alien" — all dirty words to this crowd…
Fasting for monarchs?
I will be on a LIQUIDS-ONLY FAST until December 20th, until Monarch butterflies are ensured enough milkweeds to lay eggs on and eat; THEN I WON'T EAT!
Today begins a season of fasting in remembrance of the fact that after a year of hand-wringing about monarch butterfly and milkweed declines, there is no substantial reorientation in our use of agricultural chemicals impacting them, no fewer acres going out of milkweed habitat and into ethanol production or urban development, and far less than 1000 acres of new milkweed habitat has been planted this year to offset the damage and deferred maintenance of healthy habitat that monarchs have suffered the last 15 years.
Migratory Monarchs as Messengers of Climate Change
Monarch butterflies: They are the iconic symbols of international cooperation in North America in the face of climate change.
Because of their long distance migration across a variety of climates and habitats, monarchs serve as a messenger of the collective global effects of climate change interacting with a variety of other stressors, natural and human-triggered.
Wildlife foundation unveils $3.3 million in monarch butterfly grants
A national wildlife group awarded $3.3 million in grants Monday in its initial push to stem the worrisome decline of monarch butterflies, hoping the effort helps restore as much as 33,000 acres of habitat for the black-and-orange insect.
The 22 grants announced by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation will be matched by more than $6.7 million from the recipients, who are in more than a dozen states and among 115 applicants for funds in the conservation effort launched earlier this year.
Butterfly Immigration Reform? Make Way for Migrating Monarchs Between the U.S. and Mexico
This last year, tens of thousands of children across the Midwest watched IMAX film Flight of the Butterflies on the…


Perform a more complete cooling system service very quickly.
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Flushes contaminated fluid from radiator, engine block, heater core and hoses.
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Most mechanics have been trained extensively on the mechanical side of automotive engineering whilst modern electronics through various reasons have received too little attention. The extremely fast evolving electronic technologies used in the automotive field demand highly skilled and motivated people for jobs like diagnostic mechanics, the main stay of any workshop that wants to be more than an oil change outfit. Regular training and excellent diagnostic equipment are imperative as the diagnostic mechanic has to be able to LISTEN to the customer, to be able to make exact MEASUREMENTS, to have access to excellent DATA and to be able to COMBINE in order to DIAGNOSE a problem in a professional way. Some intermittent failures can be so difficult to trace that even the most experienced diagnostic mechanic would like to steer away from them. The ATS-5000 allows us to turn the trend around & stop diagnostic work from leaving our workshop and grow above the rest.
The top-of-the-range display balancing machine, the EM8040 is designed for intensive use and is ideal for tire specialists.
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Designed to work on large alloy wheels and low profile tyres, this machine version's key features are its user-friendliness, precision, functionality and versatility. This is the concept behind the A2030: an automatic tyre changer with pneumatically operated tilting column and 26" turntable, ideal for demounting car, SUV, van and motorcycle wheels.
The machine's new technical and ergonomic characteristics ensure unrivalled speed and convenience during mounting and demounting operations. Amongst the main working units on this machine version, the turntable and wheel bead breaker are particularly important. The turntable installed as standard uses a patented system allowing the working range to be changed from 10"- 22" to 14" - 26" by a simple operator procedure (2 turntables in 1). Its new shape is designed to assure users working on large-diameter wheels easier, quicker wheel positioning during bead breaking. The bead breaker installed on the machine as standard is equipped with two special new functions: the fixed arm shoe can be lengthened; ideal for large-size and SUV wheels, and the shoe support arm position can be adjusted (patented). This adjustment function means that the bead breaker arm is always at the right working angle to the wheel, making it more effective, easier, quicker and above all safer in terms of avoiding tyre and rim damage. What's more, the dual-position telescopic rim support (CORGHI patent) is extremely useful for breaking the beads of all types of wheel up to a maximum width of 14".
We stock a full range of GT Radials, Goodyear, Kuhmo, Dunlop & Hankook tyres that we can fit to your specific requirements. Our technicians can advise you on the best tyre to use on your vehicle depending on your needs & budget.


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Home/News/Florida Keys Coral Restoration Efforts Highlighted During World Oceans Day
Florida Keys Coral Restoration Efforts Highlighted During World Oceans Day
Damian HoltJune 8, 2021
KEY WEST (CBSMiami/FKNB) – World Oceans Day is to be celebrated Tuesday, June 8, and in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary a major effort to restore seven prominent coral reefs is well underway just 18 months after officials announced a program dubbed "Mission: Iconic Reefs."
Some $10 million of the planned $100 million program has been amassed. A portion of it is already funding efforts being accomplished by outplanting more than 60,000 fragments of nursery-raised coral at Eastern Dry Rocks Sanctuary Preservation Area off Key West.
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New plantings on outer reefs in the Upper and Middle Keys are soon to begin following disbursement of more than $2 million in grant money from the United Arab Emirates, via the United Way of the Florida Keys.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the sanctuary's parent agency, is partnering with three Keys-based reef restoration organizations, including Coral Restoration Foundation, Mote Marine Laboratory and Reef Renewal USA, to accomplish the work, according to Sarah Fangman, superintendent of the Keys sanctuary.
"Reefs all around the world have been suffering for decades," Fangman said. "There's a lot of challenges they have been facing."
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Those challenges include tropical cyclones, heat-induced coral bleaching, cold snaps and coral disease events.
"The goal of Mission: Iconic Reefs is to get these corals to the place where they can reproduce on their own," Fangman added. "These corals are really critical to this community, and to our economy and to this ecosystem."
Fangman reported that Keys-based coral scientists are using the latest restoration methods to restore corals.
"Nothing like this has been done anywhere before, but we lead the world in terms of technology developed here," she said.
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(©2021 CBS Local Media. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Florida Keys News Bureau contributed to this report.)
cbsnmiami florida keys florida news local local tv miami news news syndicated local world oceans day
Damian Holt
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: C function for converting text to morse code I'm trying to write a program where the morse code of the given text by the system is required. About the converting text to morse code, I wrote them all in main (separately from the program file itself). And now, my aim is to write it as a function in order to use it in the other functions of the program. Whenever I try, it gives a segmentation fault. Can anyone help me to construct the function itself from scratch?
#include<stdio.h>
#include<string.h>
#include<stdlib.h>
#include<stdint.h>
#include<ctype.h>
#include <time.h>

char * fileName1 = NULL;
char * fileName2 = NULL;

int main(int argc, char * argv[]) {
  int n;
  for (n = 0; n < argc; n++) {
    // printf("Argument %s\n",argv[n]); // prints options  delete this in the end,just for debugging
    if (strcmp(argv[n], "-text") == 0) {
      //text to morsecode
      int c, v = 0;
      char * str = (char * ) malloc(v);
      str = (char * ) realloc(str, (c + strlen(argv[n + 1])));
      strcat(str, argv[n + 1]);
      strcat(str, " ");

      char *alphamorse[]={".-","-...","-.-.","-..",".","..-.","--.","....","..",".---","-.-",".-..","--","-.","---",".--.","--.-",".-.","...","-","..-","...-",".--","-..-","-.--","--.."};
      char *nummorse[]={"-----",".----","..---","...--","....-",".....","-....","--...","---..","----."};

      int i;
      char str1[1000];
      i = 0;
      while (str[i] != '\0') {
        if (str[i] != ' ' && (!isdigit(str[i]))) {
          printf("%s ", alphamorse[toupper(str[i]) - 65]);
        }
        if (str[i] == ' ') {
          printf(" ");
        }
        if (isdigit(str[i]) && str[i] != ' ') {
          printf("%s ", nummorse[str[i] - 48]);
        }
        i++;
      }
      printf("\n");
      // end of text to morsecode
    }
    if (strcmp(argv[n], "-o") == 0) {
      //output = concat(output, argv[n + 1]);
      n++;
      continue;
    }
    if (strcmp(argv[n], "--") == 0) {
      if (n + 1 <= argc) {
        fileName1 = argv[++n];
        printf("    fileName1=%s\n", fileName1);
      }
      if (n + 1 <= argc) {
        fileName2 = argv[++n];
        printf("    fileName2=%s\n", fileName2);
      }
    }
  }
  return 0;
}

A: You really don't need or want to be copying the parameters.  It seems easiest to just do something like:
#include <stdio.h>
#include <ctype.h>

char *alphamorse[] = {
        ".-", "-...", "-.-.", "-..", ".", "..-.", "--.", "....", "..", ".---", /* A - J */
        "-.-", ".-..", "--", "-.", "---", ".--.", "--.-", ".-.", "...", "-", /* K - T */
        "..-", "...-", ".--", "-..-", "-.--", "--.." /* W - Z */
};
char *nummorse[]={
        "-----", ".----", "..---", "...--", "....-",
        ".....", "-....", "--...", "---..", "----."
};

void
text_to_morse(char c, FILE *out)
{
        if( islower(c) ) {
                fputs(alphamorse[c - 'a'], out);
                fputc(' ', out);
        } else if( isdigit(c) ) {
                fputs(nummorse[c - '0'], out);
                fputc(' ', out);
        } else if( isspace(c) ) {
                fputc(c, out);
        } else {
                fputc(' ', out);
        }
}

int
main(void)
{
        int c;
        while( ( c = tolower(getchar())) != EOF ) {
                text_to_morse(c, stdout);
        }
        return 0;
}

Don't even bother with code for manipulating the output file.  The shell exists for a reason, and there's no need to reimplement the wheel.

A: I don't know if this is the bug that's causing an issue, but it is a bug:
int c, v = 0;
char *str = (char *)malloc(v);
    str = (char *)realloc(str, (c + strlen(argv[n+1])));

First, c is uninitialized.  It could be any value, including a negative value.  Hence, undefined behavior in your program.
Also, that malloc followed by a a realloc call isn't needed. Just allocate once and be done with it.
I think this is what you intended to do
size_t len = strlen(argv[n+1]);
str = (char*)malloc(len + 1 + 1); // +1 for space char to be appended, +1 again for null char
strcpy(str, argv[n+1]); // copy string
strcat(str, " ");       // append a space

But there's an even simpler solution.  You don't even need to copy argv[n+1] into str. Just declare str as a pointer and reference argv[n+1] directly.
const char* str = argv[n+1];

Now str and argv[n+1] reference the same string. And str is valid for the entirety of the program.  The rest of your program remains the same.
This looks suspicious:
  i = 0;
  while (str[i] != '\0') {
    if (str[i] != ' ' && (!isdigit(str[i]))) {
      printf("%s ", alphamorse[toupper(str[i]) - 65]);
    }
    if (str[i] == ' ') {
      printf(" ");
    }
    if (isdigit(str[i]) && str[i] != ' ') {
      printf("%s ", nummorse[str[i] - 48]);
    }
    i++;
  }

You are redundantly calling isdigit and evaluating to make sure str[i] is not a space. No point in checking if its a space if you already know it's a digit. Either it's a digit, a letter, or something that can't be converted.  Your code will errneously treat puncutation marks as values to lookup in alphamorse.  The following will skip over punctuation marks and just treat those characters as spaces.
  i = 0;
  while (str[i] != '\0') {

    if ((str[i] >= 'A' && str[i] <= 'Z') || (str[i] >= 'a' && str[i] <= 'z')) {
      printf("%s ", alphamorse[toupper(str[i]) - 'A']);
    }
    else if (isdigit(str[i])) {
      printf("%s ", nummorse[str[i] - '0']);
    }
    else {
        printf(" ");
    }
    i++;
  }

Everything after that, I don't know what it's for. General advice is that you parse the arguments from argv[] first.  Then do the text conversion outside of the loop that iterates over the command line arguments. Then do your save to file code.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Buckets, watering cans, vases… Zinc rustic ornaments are a must in country décor. Look for some you like and include them in your decor, they'll look amazing.
Zinc objects used to be present in all houses, but they were used as daily tools, not as decorative elements. Today we can use them as elements to give a lot of personality to our homes. Putting some zinc objects give your home a rustic and romantic look, specially is you add them some flowers.
What are the most common pieces in this kind of décor? The pieces that remind us to the pieces we used in the past: buckets, watering cans, baskets… They now have a place in the most important decorating brands. Here you have some keys to decorate with zinc ornaments.
Things that remind us to past times.
It could be its uncolored and rustic aspect or the fact that they are things that have been used by our mothers that makes this kind of objects look so vintage and special. As they also have that interesting and neutral color, they can combine perfectly with all color combinations. If you combine them with white, you can create very elegant and personal spaces.
There are some people that use this kind of elements decorated or painted with flowers, bikes or letters to create a vintage décor. Roses are normally the main thing we use combined with zinc elements.
Zinc objects, that were used in our daily routine, are now part of our décor. One awesome idea is putting some flowers inside a zinc basket or an aromatic plant, like lavender.
Although zinc is a really taught material and it is perfect for outdoor, it can be also used inside. They will look awesome indoor, using them for storing things, in your kitchen, or as vases to put some flowers.
One of the most special things of zinc objects is that they look more beautiful as they get older. You can combine them with old pieces of wood, the result is amazing.
Its maintenance is not a problem because it is not a delicate material. For cleaning it you just need to use water and soap and then dry it well. Be careful with acid substances like vinegar or lemon, because they can affect the surface of these objects.
Zinc furniture can seem unusual, pieces that we are not used to see, but they used to be common some years ago.
They are mainly tables and chairs and some furniture for the bedroom that had some parts of zinc so that they were better protected. Although this kind of furniture is not frequently used, they can look awesome in the garden or the terrace. Rustic ambiences look even better with this kind of furniture, both indoor and outdoor.
Do you have zinc ornaments in your house? How do you use them?


text:
M.I.A.: Full Interview | House Of Strombo
Channel: Consequence Of Sound | Visit site | 14564 views | 0 comments
The Strombo Show presents M.I.A. in an intimate conversation from the House Of Strombo.
Follow George:
On Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/strombo
On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/strombo
From the 1-2-3-4 to the 808's and beyond. Radio, television and digital. For over two decades, George Stroumboulopoulos has been playing the best records in the best order. Finding those songs that'll get you through the night. Interviews, intimate sessions and out-of-its-mind full blown house concerts. The Strombo Show and House of Strombo reflects the beautiful and the badass of Canada's diverse cultural landscape. There are no boundaries, with the gamut running from Aretha Franklin to Slayer and everything in between.
Some of the wonderful people who have been on the show include international artists like A.R. Rahman, Against Me!, Alice Cooper, Ani DiFranco, Anthrax, Beastie Boys, Bjork, Bonnie Raitt, Charles Bradley, The Cult, De La Soul, Diana Krall, Dinosaur Jr., Dolly Parton, Elvis Costello, Ghostface Killah, Grandmaster Flash, James Hetfield of Metallica, The Kills, Little Stevie Van Zandt, Loretta Lynn, Maynard James Keenan of TOOL, Megadeth's Dave Mustaine, Missy Elliott, Mix Master Mike, Moby, The National, Neko Case, Patti Smith, Queens of the Stone Age, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Robbie Robertson, Robert Plant, Saul Williams, Slowdive, Steve Earle and Vampire Weekend; Canadian talent such as A Tribe Called Red, Alexisonfire, ARKELLS, BadBadNotGood, Barenaked Ladies, Blue Rodeo, City And Colour, Coeur de pirate, Death From Above 1979, Gordon Lightfoot, Joel Plaskett, Rheostatics, RUSH, STARS, Tegan & Sara and The Tragically Hip; emerging acts that include Courtney Barnett, Dilly Dally, Father John Misty, Jazz Cartier, Kate Tempest, Leon Bridges, Lowell, The Lemon Twigs, Margo Price, Pussy Riot, Sampha and The XX.
Director: Alex Narvaez
Camera: Alex Narvaez, Sam Iannicelli
Editor: Sam Iannicelli
Recorded by Todd Macdonald
Mix by Todd Macdonald
Photo Credit: Vanessa Heins
2018 Son House Productions
M.I.A.,George Stroumboulopoulos,Strombo,Interview,Conversation,Documentary,Origin,Long-Form,Length,Long,MAYA,Mantagi,MIA,Data,Science,Identity,Activism,Politics,Superbowl,Consumer Culture,Netflix,Filmmaking,Privacy,Technology,Social Media,Artificial Intel


text:
Islam has an image problem. To an increasingly secular West, most religions do. Unfortunately for Islam, not only does it carry the usual tropes and criticisms of religion but it is more closely and more publicly associated with fundamental religious terrorism than its Jewish and Christian forefathers. This representation and association, in turn, no doubt leads to reactive and dangerous nationalism in Western states. Much like the tango, representation takes two, in this case, the contents of Islam itself and Muslim media visibility, and by addressing these two factors, we might be able to propose a better image of Islam.
The Structure of Islam
If we can ignore the tit for tat arguments surrounding Islam that usually pits Qur'anic doctrine – frequently and conveniently ignoring the Sunnah and Hadith –against real world examples, and instead look at the structure of Islam, we may find some answers. Unlike Christianity, Islam has no ecclesiastical hierarchy. Imams – whilst leaders of their religious communities- don't answer to bishops or popes who would direct doctrine. Imams are Qur'anic scholars who provide religiously educated guidance for Muslims, but Islam as a whole is to be considered to be one's personal relationship with Allah without dictation from another. This makes interpretations in Islam diverse if not ambiguous. The same grounds on which conservatism and fundamental extremism within Islam are justified are also the same grounds in which the seeds of a moderate, secular and prevalent Islam can be sown.
Muslim Media Visibility
Extremism is the most widespread and difficult appearance of Muslims in the media and as such we should address and dismiss this first. We can't sufficiently take on this representation on its own grounds for a number of reasons. The first is the most difficult to consider. Though Muslim communities do condemn terrorist attacks it is impossible to divorce these instances from Islam. Without an appointed leader who decides what is and isn't a part of the religion, Islam cannot separate itself these atrocities. To be clear, this is not to say that Islam necessarily leads to this behaviour, it means that fundamentalist interpretations of Islam, in fact, the whole sliding scale of interpretations of Islam from moderate to extremist are sufficient and non-discreet factors in such behaviour.
This renders arguments framed around the idea of extremism "not being Islam" or "falsely in the name of Allah" as well as the notion that Islam breeds terrorism hollow and ineffective. Ironically, either argument is open to interpretation and unlikely to quell fanatic belief in or against Islam.
The Media Is Prone to Sensationalism
The media plays its part too. It does indeed shamelessly under-represent Muslim condemnation and affliction, which in turn vilifies and isolates Muslim communities from their host cultures and countries. Though journalists should make a greater effort to bring balance to their reports, the emotional impact of the images that accompany such news often outweighs the discourse. On top of which, an intelligent public knows now that the media is prone to sensationalism. This comes from both a need to make money as well as the fact that news is those events which by their nature are extraordinary. Ideally, we like the latter unsullied by the prior but in order to do so, we would need either heavily regulated news or simply less news. Both are undesirable.
Given the difficulty of eliminating these factors, we need to reframe how we approach this problem. If we can't stop extremism being associated with Islam nor stop the media's febrile reporting of such events, we should instead aim for a starker, more elaborate contrast between the representation of the average, modern Muslim and the representation of religious extremists.
It would seem obvious to state that there could be no starker contrast between two individuals if one uses terror as a means and another condemns it but the problem is more complex than we give it credit for.
The Theocratic Middle-Eastern States
The sliding scale of interpretation I mentioned above lends itself to a sinful association if you'll pardon the expression. Whilst it's true that fundamentalists make up a statistically insignificantly small proportion of the global population of Muslims, the secular West still takes moral issues with a considerable chunk. Even if we could isolate the fundamentalist factions from the rest of Islam, the ethics and political actions of the theocratic Middle-Eastern states are still an issue. Here, there are struggles surrounding women's rights, homosexuality, law and violence, freedom of speech and freedom of religion. It's an obvious chain of assumptions that follow, condemning a Muslim in the West to be the same as his cousins in the hyper-conservative East, condemning them both to association with murderous fundamentals.
As many scholars point out, this vast section of Islam is often interpreted as the whole of Islam, when, in fact, there are many schools of thought. Once again it's a position that waxes both ways and the downside to condemning this body of Islam is that one catches western Islam in doing so. Again the media's role is difficult to challenge. Certainly, more balance is required and where western interference has been unjustifiable, as well as hate attacks on Muslims both home and abroad, the Media has a duty to keep the public informed. A duty it regularly fails to uphold. But the actions of Islamic theocratic states must be reported on, and the difficulty of sinful association continues.
Reactionary Xenophobia
In order for the media to play a more positive role in the representation of Muslims, in order for it to combat reactionary xenophobia, in turn softening entrenched, isolationist and defensive communities that provide potential breeding grounds for fundamentalist preaching, the media has to starkly separate Muslims as individuals from the vast body of Islam the religion.
In order to do this, more attention has to be given to secular people of Muslim descent and those visible individuals for whom their religion is the secondary aspect of their public persona. And not just in matters relating to religion and Islam either. The benefit of this would be two-fold. Firstly, it would help to remove our chain of association of Western Muslims to the Middle East as secularist representation would dissolve the religiosity of representation. The concept of what Islam does and doesn't condone would become less of an issue given as doctrine would not be the focus.
Inspirational Figures Outside of Islam
The second benefit to this approach would provide inspirational figures outside of Islamic religious communities for the young and, second and third generation Muslims. This would further integration; displaying new roles and societal positions that previously they may not have considered moving into. The arts and entertainment have already begun this process with more Muslim creators and entertainers coming through and talking about their religion and its perception. Though beneficial, particularly in the role of broadening horizons for Muslims, this media is not likely to be accessed by those with racist or bigoted views. To address and change these views, if that's even possible, we need this secular representation in our news and information media as well.
Secular Representation of Muslims
An increase in the secular representation of Muslims helps to demystify the complexity of Islam and dissociate western believers with its archaic and cruel counterparts. One doesn't need to be a theologian – though religious education is important for just this reason – to engage with Muslims on a human level. There are two recent examples of Muslim leaders acting with secular ethics, or at least with ethics that align with a non-religious specific philosophy that has gone under reported (in likelihood, there are more, but the fact they aren't visible in the media lends weight to my argument).
In Germany, Muslim MPs voted in favour of gay marriage, and here in Britain, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan argued against faith based schools. These stories, demonstrate Muslims putting their societies before their faith. Or perhaps they don't. There are likely teachings in Islam that promote these kinds of ethics, but from the outside, whatever doctrinal reasoning for these actions don't appear to the same reasoning that condones theocratic rule. And that's largely the point, how Islam appears.
Reporting on and representing more stories like these two can only be beneficial, further, the myriad nature of interpretations of Islam means that there must be more examples such as these. Islam, like all religions, is a messy, problematic set of philosophies and rules open to interpretation with no real governing body. For this reason, Muslim Scholar Tariq Ramadan, argues that it cannot undergo a reformation, instead Muslims have to reform their thinking. Though it's a semantic argument, I agree but need to add that those of us without a religion have as much a stake in changing thinking about religion as those with a faith. Secularism and Humanism can't stand by if conflict and hate is being propagated whilst the media, can and should be used as a tool to combat that and we can find examples of Muslim leaders who demonstrate the existence a newer, better and more integrated interpretation of Islam, that are more distinct and distant from the elements that poison its image.
AllahChristianChristianityConservatismDoctrineFundamental extremismHumanismIslamJewisghJournalismMediaMiddle EastMuslimsPreachingReligionSadiq KhanScholarsSecularSecularismTariq RamadanTerrorismTheocraticWestWestern MuslimsXenophobia
by Richard Worth
Richard is a Philosophy and Theology graduate from the North of England. He also writes comics, short stories and is a self-professed terrible magician.
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Pretoria – Streets near Solomon Mahlangu Road are lined up with items such as refrigerators, beds, music system, television sets and couches as the Red Ants evicted people.
Residents have been accused of occupying flats near the Heatherly Cemetery illegally.
The residents said they could not wait any longer for the city to allocate the houses, which they added were empty and being vandalised, or sold to foreign nationals.
Scores of evicted occupants are lined up on the street with their belongings scattered around them. Children as young as two years sat on mattresses as parents they salvage their belongings.
The houses are still incomplete and have no taps or basic services such as electricity meters and running water.
Community leader known as George said they demanded that the Department of Housing addresses the problem. "In 2016, they promised us these houses, and now they are allowing outsiders to take over houses. He said people from other provinces were occupying what rightfully belongs to the people of Mamelodi," he said.
The 500 units flats were believed to still belong to the province and were yet to be handed over to the City.
They have vowed to make Mamelodi ungovernable until they are addressed.