It is just what I think based on what I've read

Muhajabes - Allegra Stratton

A book by Allegra Straton, Muhajababes, reveals lots of issues regarding the youth of the Middle East which is also relevant to the Malaysian context (e.g. Muslim Brotherhood, Prince Alwaleed etc.)One thing I've discovered is the importance of the media and the impact that it has on youth. The Amr Khaled phenomena in Egypt and the rest of the middle east is one good example. Through his TV show, The Life Makers, the young people of the middle east feel the urge to make changes and transforms their life in accordance with the religion. Why Amr Khaled is so greatly accepted by this group of people (below 25 yrs) which makes up 2/3 of the middle east population? According to Stratton based on her interviews with few Arabic teenagers, it is simply because he doesn't have the image of the typical preacher (long beard etc.) but looking modern instead (he's an ex-accountant) and he usually put things in a nice way and avoiding to sound harsh which is appealing to teens. E.g. If young people ask him about love before marriage he won't say that it will lead him/her to hell, but instead suggesting he/she should get married. In educating these young people, he did it in stages from the adolescents' personal improvement (spritually, physically) to how they can contribute to their country, the Ummah even through simple thing like opening a photostating bussiness. This example makes me think that media is not harmful but it is a tool for dakwah. What we really need now perhaps, an Amr Khaled, Malaysian version. One who is open-minded (to those teens) and not rigid and understand these young people.

And of course, Muhajababes is another issues that arouse out of this Amr Khaled phenomenon. Btw, go and read the book to find out more especially teachers-to-be and other daie and anyone out there.

p/s: Muhajababes is originated from the word Muhajabah (one who veils). Muhajababes is a veiled but sexily dressed women.

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I haven't finished reading this book, Clash of Civilization and the remaking of word order, actually but being a linguistic student, I'm so excited to share with people something I've read in one of the chapters of the book, the fact that language by no means will not make someone to reject his/her own culture/value. It actually hurts to see people frown or make curious faces when you tell them that you are a TESL student. In The Malay Dilemma, Dr M said Malays often have a bad perspective when it comes to learning something Western like English. However, according to Huntington, English is only the lingua france for intercivilizational purposes not make ones to change who he or she is. E.g. People in the middle east may eat MacDonald, wear jeans or rap in English but most of the time they rap about jihad and some of them may be the ones who bomb buildings in their war against the enemy. Thus, the numbers of people speaking English is declining but that doesn't mean we should stop learning it for most information and knowledge is in that language. During the peak time of Islamic Civilization, most information are in Arabic and the Western scholars who at that time started to have appreciation towards knowledge (renaissance), translated those to their own knowledge . And we should do the same or at least understand it so that we can translate the information straight away on our own.

I will, iA, make a review on it further once I've finished reading it. It is actually something you can relate with ISK. It is about Huntington's view on the the future political affair of the world. According to him, the clash is no more among nation-states, but civilizations (Islam, The West, China, etc.).