Honoring our Soldiers in Aghanistan

HONORING NAVY SEALS | A MINUTE OF SILENCE PLEASE

In memory of our soldiers and Navy Seals who died on Saturday, please observe a minute of silence honoring them. May God bless them and give patience to their families. May God give us the wisdom to end Wars and find solutions through mitigating conflicts and nurturing goodwill. Amen

I urge fellow Muslim Americans to pray for their well beings, Insha Allah I will pray special prayers for them after Iftaar and Maghrib prayers this evening.

TEXAS FAITH: When is it okay to apply moral absolutes to public policy?

Dallas Morning news weekly question: When is it okay to bring a faith-based belief grounded in moral absolutes to public policy debate?

MIKE GHOUSE, President, Foundation for Pluralism, Dallas

The faith-based belief grounded in moral absolutes has always been a part of the public policy debate though not postured as such. After all we are conditioned with certain beliefs and are driven by it. Most of the issues that were debated have had strong religious grounding and opposed or supported the Women's rights, Roe v Wade, the civil rights, the Catholic president, Civil Unions, GLBT marriages, immigration and other.

Despite the emerging moral absolutes, I am confident that the moderation (in terms of giving space to the other) will prevail in the long haul.
The ones who speak up in general and Teavangelicals in particular are driven by strong absolutes, while the majority of any group of people tends to be moderate and gives space to another point of view.
However, the nations, religions, politics and the communities are not driven by the majorities; the initiatives are taken by the extreme right and the left and the outcome is determined by their wrangling and is supported or rejected by the majority at the polls when things get out of handle.

Even the budget that just passed did not have the full support of all the Tea party candidates, the votes were divided and that is how things should work, we cannot stereotype the Tea Party, liberals or the conservatives, each one of us is a composition of different values. Indeed, we have come a long way to accept and respect the otherness of other without resorting to extreme solutions. That is the benchmark of civil societies.

Thanks to the wisdom of the founding fathers and the strength of our constitution for giving durable governance in the history of mankind. The extremes will fizzle out in the long haul, and moderation will prevail. I salute the checks and balances built into our system and as long as the Americans give the house and senate to different parties, America will be safe and the governance of the people will endure and the idea of live and let live remains intact.

Dallas Morning news - 8 panelists respond: http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/08/texas-faith-when-is-it-okay-to-1.html

Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker, writer and a frequent guest on Hannity show and nationally syndicated Radio shows and Dallas TV, Radio and Print Media. He presides America Together Foundation and is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. Over 1000 articles have been published on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam, India and cohesive societies. Two of his books are poised to be released this fall on Pluralism and Islam. He is available to speak at your place of worship, work, school, college, seminars or conferences. His work is encapsulated in 27 blogs, four websites and several forums indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/

SHARIA ISSUES IN 2012 AND SOLUTIONS.

www.ShariaLaws.com

Sharia will become a dominant theme in the 2012 Presidential Elections; the one who speaks the loudest earns the tea party support. I am not sure if we the Americans would gulp down their rhetoric or would have the time to question the veracity of the comments made by the candidates.

The responsibility falls squarely on us, the American Muslims to become contributors and participants in the well being, peace and prosperity of America. Muslims together, we can do it.

We are considering a Sharia conference in every major city in the US, it will be professionally developed with the help of our Imams and Scholars and those who have problems with it. We have to answer every possible question answered in the power point presentation each time a question gets asked.

If you have the will, it’s easy to do it.

Muslims together can work and build a safer and secure America for every one of the 301 Million Americans. This is your conference in your town, organized and managed by you. I hope all of us can call ISNA, CAIR, ICNA and other national organizations to take this project up.

We can do this for under $ 5000.00 per city. I have done over 40 events including the ones over 600 attendees within that budget. We should not expect the national organizations to put this event out, we have to do it on our own with their supervision to standardize the event. You’ll have to raise the funds locally- 100 Muslims $50/each or other combinations will do it. The question we have to ask is, are we willing to do it or find it comfortable to talk about our love of Islam without doing a thing.

I am a volunteer and will be happy to assist anyone anywhere.
Together we can come up with great plans and just do it.

For the starters, I have pulled a few key articles together; there are much better articles out there, Insha Allah, we will gather them all and urge Muslims to post on their sites, the more places it is published, the better off we are.

10 ARTICLES

The articles range from simplicity for a lay person to understand ( Sumbul, Nezar , Nasim, Amjad and Mike’s articles) to Mainstream press writing ( Amy Sullivan and Justin Elliott), to Scholarly presentations ( Dr. Yusuf Zia Kavakci and Dr. Mohammad Omar Farooq) . I hope to gather articles that are critical (Plenty) of Sharia as well. If you know a great article, please share, together we can complete the spectrum and add value to its understanding. I further request that you post this on your site or ask those who have a site to post. The more it shows up in search engines, the better off we are collectively.

As American Muslims we are committed to the safey, security and prosperity of every American. That's a pledge we take and act upon it.

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Sharia in one Gulp by Mike Ghouse

Sharia in its simplest form is a how-to manual based on the Qur'an and the Hadith (Prophet Muhammad's sayings). It is a human effort to understand the concept of justice enshrined in the Qur'an for day-to-day living.

- http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2011/07/sharia-in-one-gulp.html
- http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/sharia-law-not-in-america_b_653250.html

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What Sharia law actually means – Justin Elliott

Sharia is more than simply "law" in the prescriptive sense. It is also a methodology through which a jurist engages the religious texts to ascertain divine will. As a jurist-made law, the outcome of this process of ascertaining divine will is called fiqh (positive law), which is the moral and legal anchor of a Muslim's total existence.http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2011/02/what-sharia-law-actually-means.html

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Who's Afraid of Sharia? – Sumbul Ali Karamali

Hasn't the whole notion of shariah in America gotten a bit out of control? No, it hasn't -- it's gotten hugely, obscenely, ignorantly out of control. Aha! The six principles must be about killing infidels, veiling women, stoning people for adultery, honor killings and female genital cutting, right? Nope.

http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2010/09/whos-afraid-of-shariah.html

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Sharia the law system inspired by the Quraan - Wikipedia

Sharia is often referred to as Islamic law, but this is wrong, as only a small part is irrefutably based upon the core Islamic text, the Koran. Correct designations would be "Muslim Law", "Islam-inspired", "Islam-derived," or even "the law system of Muslims."This is well known to most Muslims, yet Sharia is always referred to as "based upon the Koran", hence it is the "will of God."http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2011/03/sharia-law-system-inspired-by-quraan.html

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Sharia is Not what you think it is – Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid

When some American pundits call sharia, "a growing threat to the United States," Muslim Americans wonder what in the world are they talking about. Sharia is overwhelmingly concerned with personal religious observance, not with constitutions and laws.

http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2011/06/sharia-is-not-what-you-think-it-is.html

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The Myths of Sharia Law in America – Amy Sullivan

If you are not vitally concerned about the possibility of radical Muslims infiltrating the U.S. government and establishing a Taliban-style theocracy, then you are not a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination. In addition to talking about tax policy and Afghanistan, Republican candidates have also felt the need to speak out against the menace of "sharia."http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2011/07/myths-of-sharia-law-in-america-httpwww.html

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Sharia Value – Dr. Mohamed Omar Farooq

"While Islam under the leadership of Prophet Muhammad brought liberation and freedom from human bondage and ushered in scientific, technological, economic and cultural progress as part of a dynamic civilization, the Shariah as it is being presented today seems to do (and probably promise more of) just the opposite. Why? In this essay, it is argued that one pivotal problem has to do with some fundamental misunderstanding about Islam and Shariah.

http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2008/03/sharia-value.html

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Sharia, Fiqh and Islamic Law – Imam Dr. Yusuf Ziya Kavakci Dr. Kavakci is one of the 500 most influential Imams in the world
Sharia recently became a hotly debated subject. Archbishop of England made a statement at the middle of many statements, that has given the opportunity of Islamic law and Shari to be discussed and debated by westerners and some times the discussion apparently was taken out context. It is, as I believe, a fact that Sharia, Fiqh in its early stages got established and developed in the wide area of the world, mainly where Roman law was dominant. http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2011/07/sharia-fiqh-and-islamic-law_15.html

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Demystifying Sharia - Nasim Rehmatullah and Amjad Mahmood Khan

Shariah is a misunderstood and misused concept. Critics of Islam frequently employ terms like "creeping shariah" to stoke fear amongst the masses. The Park 51 controversy and the increasing media focus on Islam provide an opportunity to educate Americans about the true teachings and practices of Islam concerning shariah.http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2011/07/demystifying-shariah.html

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Sharia law is not a threat – Nezar Hamze, Cair

You can’t turn on the news these days or pick up a newspaper without seeing or reading about Islam, Muslims or Sharia law. Unfortunately, most of what you hear is from politicians with a religious viewpoint or media outlets creating an illusion of an enemy.

http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/2011/07/sharia-law-is-not-threat.html

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LINK TO THIS ARTICLE: http://sharialaws.blogspot.com/
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Mike Ghouse committed to nurturing the pluralistic values embedded in Islam. More about him at www.MikeGhouse.net

RICK PERRY FOR PRESIDENT?

If he is sincere in representing Americans he needs to demonstrate it by inviting them all to his prayer fest. Americans see God as one, none and many and in every form; male, female, genderless and non-existent, being and non-being, nameless and with innumerable names. He has an opportunity to win public opinion if he chooses to go the middle path representing the majority of Americans.

This note is to appear in Dallas Morning News this Sunday July 10 in sounding off segment.

I do expect the Radicals among us to focus on pitting one American against the other, would that work this time? I hope not, I expect the American Public demand them to tell precisely how they'll turn the economy around, find jobs and restore the well being of the families. We cannot let them get away with weakening America with their war rhetoric and jumping to fight with every one in the world. Hell no to that.

RICK PERRY FOR PRESIDENT?

This note is to appear in Dallas Morning News this Sunday July 10 in sounding off segement.

If he is sincere in representing Americans he needs to demonstrate it by inviting them all to his prayer fest. Americans see God as one, none and many and in every form; male, female, genderless and non-existent, being and non-being, nameless and with innumerable names. He has an opportunity to win public opinion if he chooses to go the middle path representing the majority of Americans.

I do expect the Right wing Radicals among the Republican Party will dupe the Americans by creating hate for GLBT, Muslims and other instead of focusing on Job creation and making America Stronger. They are bent on weakening America by picking fights, bombing others ad nauseum.

Elections:

PERRY HAS TO PROVE HIS SINCERITY
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/perry-has-to-prove-his-si_b_874392.html

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BIGOTRY OF GINGRICH, CAIN & REPUBLICANS
http://www.opednews.com/articles/1/Bigotry-of-Newt-Gingrich--by-Mike-Ghouse-110622-717.html

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PERRY'S FEST- Dallas Morning News
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/06/texas-faith-is-rick-perrys-day-of.html

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HUNTSMAN & ROMNEY - Dallas Morning News
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/06/texas-faith-how-should-huntsman-and.html
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RESHAPING CARROLLTON POLITICS
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/06/press-release-reshaping-carrollton.html
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Rick Perry's Kingmaker, and David Brooks Wakes Up

Religion Dispatch
Post by Sarah Posner

http://www.religiondispatches.org/dispatches/sarahposner/4813/

I went missing last week to an undisclosed location—okay, Wyoming, one of our country's most beautiful states with two of its most spectacular national parks. Reentry into work is always hard, and this time it's no exception, coming back to debt ceiling showdowns and other evidence of the collapse of reason.

Last night, before bed, I read the New York Times on my iPad, and I must have caught David Brooks' column just as it went up. And I thought, ah, he has evolved, he realizes the GOP has gone off the rails. And I anticipated that he would (in Beltway journalist parlance) "win the morning" by saying what everyone else is thinking but is too afraid to say lest they get called a dick by Mark Halperin on TV.

See what I missed while I was hiking in the Grand Tetons! While I was watching geysers erupt in Yellowstone! Is it any wonder that I took a deep breath as I opened my laptop for the first time in 10 days this morning and thought, will everything seem both tiny and blown out of proportion at the same time?

Indeed. But back to work it is for me, with all the tiny and giant inanities that are our political culture. And look who's rising (Texas Governor Rick Perry, with several profiles presaging his presidential run, but not his Christian right bona fides) and who's falling (Godfather Pizza exec and Americans for Prosperity favorite Herman Cain, with campaign staff defections coming "after weeks of swirling rumors between Cain’s staff and volunteers in the Hawkeye State accusing each other of affairs, homosexuality and professional misconduct.")

While Cain's staff walkouts will surely make reporters hyperventilate for prurient, back-stabbing gossip (because even if there were no affairs or homosexuality, the idea that campaign staffers were accusing each other—or him? not clear—of such is somehow irresistible) it's Perry's machinations that are in fact more interesting.

Perry doesn't have boots on the ground in Iowa yet—he hasn't even announced an exploratory committee. And Iowa native and religious right (that's right, not Tea Party) charmer Michele Bachmann is already drawing huge crowds.

As I wrote back in May, Bachmann may be the Huckabee of 2012, wowing Iowa caucus-goers, but fizzling in subsequent states. Enter Perry, another Christocrat favorite whose willingness to substitute prayer for policy rivals Bachmann's. (Applying Brooksian logic, at what point does one deem the GOP not a "normal" party?)

In Time today, Amy Sullivan highlights Perry's ties to the religious right, and zeroes in on David Lane, organizer of Renewal and Restoration Projects, and their associated Pastors' Policy Briefings. When I wrote about Lane's activities back in 2007 and 2008, it was commonly thought (as Sullivan notes) that Lane and his associates played a key role in achieving at least the Iowa victory for Huckabee, to the chagrin of other Republicans. (Lane scoffs at the notion that his mingling of Christianity and politics is in any way inappropriate.) Looking ahead, Texas political columnist Bud Kennedy reported in May that Lane associate Laurence White may be organizing a "Draft Perry" movement by pastors. And they are undoubtedly looking for their anointed one to go the distance this time.

Happy Independence day

Happy Independence day, happy 4th
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Glen Beck in the News

Here are today's news items from Media Matters for America, click on the title or 'read more' to read the entirety of each story.

Fox's "Straight News" Campaigns For Estate Tax Repeal
While guest hosting Fox's "straight news" program, Special Report, Shannon Bream did a report suggesting that the estate tax hurts small businesses and therefore causes the economy to hemorrhage jobs. But the report failed to mention that a vanishingly small number of businesses and individuals are subject to the estate tax. Read More

Lila Rose Pushes Falsehood That Abortion Is How Indiana Planned Parenthood "Makes Money"
Appearing on Fox News to push her most recent attack on Planned Parenthood, Lila Rose claimed that abortions are how Planned Parenthood of Indiana "makes money." In fact, abortions account for only an estimated 16 percent of its total annual revenue in 2010. Read More

Seeing Red: After Decrying Communist Name-Calling, Beck Repeatedly Smeared His Opponents As Communists
In a January 2009 promo for his Fox News show shortly before it debuted, Glenn Beck claimed that he was "tired of the politics of left and right. It's about right and wrong. We argue back and forth -- 'If you haven't voted for the donkey, you're just a hatemonger.' The other side -- 'Oh, those donkeys trying to turn us into communist Russia.' Stop!" But despite this professed disgust with communist name-calling, Beck proceeded to use his Fox News show to relentlessly smear people and groups as Communists, Marxists, and Socialists. Read More

Glenn Beck's Top 5 Moments Invoking Violence As A Response To "Progressives"
Glenn Beck's tenure at Fox News was marked by exceedingly violent rhetoric as he obsessively invoked violence as a possible response to "progressives." Here are five of the worst examples. Read More

Beck's Golden Ticket: Gold Sellers Stayed Loyal While Other Advertisers Fled
Even as scores of advertisers abandoned Glenn Beck's Fox News show, it continued to attract sellers of gold and other precious metals. Meanwhile, Beck used his show to tout gold ownership as a way to "be prepared." Read More

Glenn Beck's Top 5 Failed Predictions
Glenn Beck has claimed: "I have been given the gift, the blessing, or the curse" to see "slightly over the horizon" and said that on his "big predictions, we have about a 90 percent accuracy rate." But Beck's ability to see "slightly over the horizon" certainly isn't a gift, given how wrong his bizarre predictions often are. With that said, Media Matters presents the top five failed Beck predictions from his time on Fox News. Read More

Glenn Beck's Top 5 Worst Smears
In more than two years on Fox News, Glenn Beck has repeatedly smeared those with which he disagrees. Media Matters presents a selection of Beck's worst smears. Read More

"They Think You're Stupid": Glenn Beck's Manipulation Of His Audience
Glenn Beck frequently pitted his Fox News audience against his foes, telling his viewers that progressives and the media "think you're stupid." Beck also praised his viewers' intelligence while attempting to sell them on his theories, claiming that his audience "will change the course of a nation." Read More

The 50 Worst Things Glenn Beck Said On Fox News
In light of Glenn Beck's transition from Fox News, Media Matters for America recalls the 50 worst things Beck has said on Fox. Read More

Glenn Beck's Perpetual Self-Promotion Machine
Throughout his career on Fox News, Glenn Beck shamelessly used the platform to promote a variety of his own ventures outside Fox News. Both on his own show and in guest appearances on other shows, Beck promoted his books, tours, subscriber-only Web content, and the Restoring Honor and Restoring Courage rallies. Read More

Adopting GOP Talking Point, Fox Claims That Obama Wasn't Involved In Default Crisis Talks
Following President Obama's Wednesday press conference in which he chided Congress for failing to resolve the default crisis, Fox News immediately began echoing the GOP's bogus attack that the president has been "AWOL" or disengaged from the debate over solving the default crisis. In fact, President Obama has been involved from the beginning and has repeatedly met with members of Congress from both parties to negotiate a solution. Read More

Glenn Beck's Obsession With Slavery
In the past two years, Glenn Beck has repeatedly invoked slavery to attack President Obama, progressives, and progressive policies, among other things. Here is a sampling. Read More

Glenn Beck's Top 5 Least Credible Sources
During his time at Fox News, Glenn Beck regularly turned to disreputable sources to back-up his wild and unfounded conspiracy theories. Here are five of Beck's least credible sources. Read More

Parents Shouldn't Trust Beck To Educate Their Kids
Glenn Beck has said he is leaving Fox News in part to "target the youth" and pitch his distinctive brand of right-wing misinformation to a younger demographic. But Beck's long history of misleading his viewers demonstrates why no one should trust him to educate his or her children. Read More

The Glenn Beck Shopping Network
Glenn Beck leaves behind a dubious ethical legacy: On his Fox show, he would promote companies with which he had a financial relationship, but without disclosing that relationship to his viewers. He also used the program as a forum to nudge viewers toward buying products like gold and a library's worth of books. Read More

Glenn Beck's Top 5 Most Inflammatory Moments
In more than two years on Fox News, Glenn Beck inundated his viewers with violent, inflammatory rhetoric. Media Matters presents a selection of his worst offenses. Read More

Conservative Media Shout "Class Warfare" To Defend Tax Breaks On Corporate Jets
The right-wing media responded with outrage after President Obama called on Congress to eliminate tax breaks on corporate jets in order to help stave off a default crisis -- accusing Obama of waging "class warfare." Read More

Thank God, Glenn Beck is Gone

For the first time in three years, I gathered the courage and patience to watch this buffoon for 11 minutes as entertainment. Sadly, I know people in my ambit who love him and I am trying to understand how can they like this man’s message, how can they believe in it?
If you have the time watch this idiot Glen Beck makes a fool of himself.
http://mediamatters.org/research/201106290030?lid=1171804&rid=62008551

Media Matters, Color of Change, and Jewish Funds for Justice Release Statements On Beck's Final Fox Show

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, June 30, 2011

CONTACT
Jess Levin (202) 772-8162

jlevin@mediamatters.org

Washington, DC -- Today, Media Matters for America joined Color of Change and Jewish Funds for Justice in releasing the following statements on the final installment of Glenn Beck's 5 pm show on Fox News Channel

"After two years of vitriol, the public has had enough of Glenn Beck. His ratings, relevance, and -- after more than 300 advertisers abandoned the program -- the revenue he produced for Fox were all in decline," said David Brock, founder of Media Matters for America. "However, Fox as a network is still a home for misinformation and hate. Our work is far from over."

"We are happy to see Glenn Beck's show come to an end," said Rashad Robinson, Executive Director of ColorofChange.org. "Beck consistently played racial politics by building conspiracy theories that relied on prejudice to explain problems in our society, with his actions being consistently condoned by Fox executives Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes. We're glad to see Fox end the show, although it only happened once its business interests were threatened by the departure of more than 300 advertisers, which has been attributed to the efforts of our members and our multi-year campaign.

 

"Through his own poor judgment Beck became a liability to Fox," said Simon Greer, President of Progressive Jewish Alliance & Jewish Funds for Justice. "Beck's divisiveness and hate mongering have been rejected by not only a broad spectrum of Jews, but by a diverse group of people and organizations representing all kinds of Americans who care about the common good."

# # #

Finally! After two long years of extremism, race baiting, lies, and conspiracy theories that have divided our country, Glenn Beck is ending his nightly Fox News show.

But the fight against right-wing misinformation on the airwaves is far from over. Every day, we watch the dishonesty, bias, and political manipulation on Fox News and throughout the right-wing media. And we work to prevent the destructive impact it has on every national debate from health care to immigration reform, from climate change to LGBT rights.

Now is not a time to sit back; it's a time to ramp up.

Mitt Romney, Huntsman, Mormonism and Elections 2012

All that Romney and Huntsman have to do is to understand the depth and meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance and show this understanding to Americans in their words and actions to earn their vote. Americans are willing to reward those who are inclusive and dump those who pit one American against the other for political gains.

Continued at: http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/06/texas-faith-how-should-huntsman-and.html

12 Opinions published at Dallas Morning News
http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/06/texas-faith-how-should-huntsma.html

Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker, writer and a frequent guest on Hannity show and nationally syndicated Radio shows and Dallas TV, Radio and Print Media. He presides America Together Foundation and is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. Over 1000 articles have been published on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam, India and cohesive societies. Two of his books are poised to be released this fall on Pluralism and Islam. He is available to speak at your place of worship, work, school, college, seminars or conferences. His work is encapsulated in 27 blogs, four websites and several forums indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/