Swine flu proves wisdom of Islamic teachings

This makes me laugh really..

britexpat..you are a hope in cross cultural communication...had you not been around..it may have been difficult to state that people condemnning the Imam in this post were over reacting which is clearly the case..

Not only that, but questiong Quran, education system and god only knows where this ends.

I guess we would not appreciate light had there not been darkness :)

One Imam putting his views on what he thinks and some of you fully attack showing some excellence in logic and independent thought based on this Imam's views!

Why can't you show some respect and professional critique! but instead putting jokes and irony.

I believe the English language has enough vocabulary to avoid using low words.

P.S.

ummjake,

Your friend refer to why some muslims..etc. Did she know about G. Bush's claim (that God told him to invade Iraq) who was voted for by masses of American citizens!

Probably worth adding to her blog!

Was in Abu Dhabi at the weekend, they had shut down all the Pork outlets but at the same time it was on the news that they now know it does not come from pigs and therefore should not be called swine flu.

should've guessed though, was at my friends place on friday morning and the mosque guy was angry about something.

Don't worry back to normal tomorrow.

it must be sunday, the idiots are allowed out.

Loads written about it. Especilly in the early 90's when fresh juices were in fashion.

No but I a bit suss about the yellow fur in some parts.

and certainly wont be the last time, someone has lied for their faith - just think about it;in order to keep the masses faithful they have to be fed misinformation and lies to placate them, as bothering to do some research might actually burst the whole 'religion bubble'.

"Deaths in the Bible. God - 2,270,365

not including the victims of Noah's flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, or the

many plagues, famines, fiery serpents, etc because no specific numbers

were given. Satan - 10."

Another myth.. Have you ever seen any yellow skinned rabbits ??

They can cause your sking to turn yellow if eaten in quantity. Who's with me on this BAN THE CARROT BID?

Isn't it the jewish who started first not to eat pork?

Islam came much latter.

The Egypt health ministry have announced that the cull of pigs is not a measure to combat swine flu, but is just a general health measure; http://www.qatarliving.com/node/486020#comment-888645

My hubby actually told me to count the hours for swine flu and Muslims to be used in one sentence... and VOILA! not predictable at all.... Nooooooooooo....!!!

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/firm-offers-patented-machine-to-kill-flu-virus/356765/

For this to happen. Even though there is no direct link.

Funnier still is Egypt Culling all their pigs even though the WHO and every other health body specifically said PIGS are not the transmission source.

Still these cleric are very good at blaming EVERYTHING in the world that goes WRONG on the "WEST" or "WESTERN INFLUENCES"

Doesn't anyone in the Mosque shout out "CHANGE THE RECORD WE HAVE HEARD THIS BEFORE" :)

... infected chicken... then infected cows... now infected pigs. It's ok to blame the poor pigs. But keep eating cow and go mad, or chicken and die?

Some things are better left unsaid - specially my thoughts at the moment!

avishai ssshhhh... religion ssshhhh...

^_^ hihi

CAPITAL A M E N ......LOL!

angel16, being silly?, that's for god to decide, would it be best to just leave the imam alone and leave the issue to our muslim friends to ponder on.

it's just not nice to make wrong impression on some people (what more of religious figure) even if what they say is wrong, it's only part of what people have spoken and not the whole character though.

oh, these people are also god's representatives, would it also befitting, insulting them you may have insulted god in a way? btw, it's still god who'll make the justification in the end...

^_^ IMHO.

or something.Going back further..Did Noah have a pig on the Ark?Imagine if it had caught the flu!

priest(mutawa) is talking only on his thoughts.what he knows?he is lecturing people in the name of GOD?silly people.....

I predicted this dammit! Back when I was chillin in the Holy Land wit my hommies JC and John the Baptist and this cool Mary chick. I said "Dudes, watch it, someday there will be an outbreak of swine flu in Mexico. 160 people will die and some religions will talk about how this is an excuse not to eat pork."

JC was eating a plate of bacon and drinkin a beer at the time and he thought I was being humerous.

Well, look who's right now JC. :P

had predicted this .

Both sides are perfectly acceptable brit. It's when it's taken further and the Quran is made out to have predicted the future or something similar.

respect everyone's religion.. whatever beliefs we had,its our faith that guide us.. to those who are not in the same faith with me or with you, just respect it... No one can tell who will be save at the End.. only God knows it...

I think the swine flu virus was not named to offend any religion or whatsoever....JUST Some people misinterpreted it.

Let us just all pray that this disease will be treated and will not create a huge damaged to the life of mankind...

" Successful people are not Gifted, they just worked hard and Succeed on Purpose...."

As an aside..

the problem usually occurs that we find it acceptable for one religious group to say "there's no problem with eating shellfish, but we don't because the bible says not to?"

However, if a Muslim says "We do not eat pork because the Quran says not to ", then people start getting into discussions about the cleanliness of the animal etc etc.

Both sides should be acceptable - prely for religious reasons.

Critical thinking should be taught to everyone, but just religious zealots.

Sorry truthful. I just thought it provided a suitable response to this is well, plus I think your comment was referenced in the original post.

PM: you'd think that "someone would challenge this guy "

you ARE joking, right?! Challenge him???!!!

And, while I am flattered my post is reproduced and deemed worthy of reading, I would point out that it was in response to someone who had actually written:

"Pigs should be wiped off the face of the earth".

all but what I know ... God created the pig for a reason. It does not matter if it causes diseases, the cause of swine flu, birds flu, aids or whatever.

It's beyond our vision and way of thinking why things are like that. You would look at the ants, flies, cockroaches, snakes and the other harmful animals (that is what some would think) or creatures that you see around you and ask ... Why would god create those? It's useless to have these ...

Sorry but god knows better than me and you ... only him knows the reason ... the reason behind creating us all so leave it to him.

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. (Gautama Buddha)

guess it's us who're getting mislead...

for one, it was only address on muslim faithfuls it's for their own self indulgence (any other religious leader not just in islam faith would ride on to current events, what more of that imam just to address his brothers in faith?)

it's only news exaggeration and misinformation, if one knows the truth, would it be better to just keep it where it should?, remember it's not us (non muslim) whose being address with in the first place.

lack of information leads to lack of understanding, if we bite whatever we get, sooner or later we may regret...

^_^

vegetarians !

Yes cause we all know how much money the Egyptian government has to throw around :P

I bow to your logic..:)

I believe in Egypt though, the government took the steps to "pacify" the public and is "supposedly" compensating the farmers..

this debate ?

Misinformation, no matter who from Brit, can have lasting negative effects. Look at the Egyptian case, thanks to mis-information, more then likely coming from these imams, hundreds of thousands of pigs will be slaughtered needlessly and people will lose their livelyhoods.

All governments use misinformation as well Brit, does that make Bush's invasion of Iraq any less right or devastating.

The H1N1 also contains genetic elements from Avian flu.

What does the Koran say about birds?

All are outdated laws from the stone age. The Dos & Don't won't be of much applicable to many of us. Pigs, like any other domestic animal don't possesses bad spirit or any condemation spell in them as what most religious books describe them. Swine Flu, like any other Flus is just one of its kind that comes and goes. Its just our zealous interpretation. And afterall, we are already in space age, aren't we

I agree with you, but my point was "so what"..

preachers all over the world and in all religions do the same to "push their own agenda" and bring the flock to their way of thinking..

Aye Aye tallg you got it..

brit - the cleric is making out that one of the reasons the Quran bans pork is because of this case of swine flu. It's misleading and wrong.

Oi Vey.

Yes, but do they accept that actually there's no problem with eating shellfish, but they don't because the bible says not to?

no bloody coffee.....

they adhere to Kosher laws from the old testament

so no oink oink either

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seventh-day_Adventist_Church

HOW SWINE FLU OUTBREAK EMERGED

Flu viruses mutate over time causing small changes to proteins on their surface called antigens. If the immune system has met particular strain of the virus before it is likely to have some immunity; but if the antigens are new to the immune system, it will be weakened. The flu currently making headlines is a strain of H1N1 influenza A virus, which affects birds, some mammals and humans.

The influenza A virus can mutate in two different ways; antigenic drift, in which existing antigens are subtly altered, and antigenic shift, in which two or more strains combine. Antigenic drift causes the slight mutations year on year in the flu strains that normally affect humans. As a result humans have partial, but not complete, immunity. By contrast, the new strain of H1N1 appears to have originated via antigenic shift in Mexican pigs.

The name "swine flu" is a slight misnomer as it is believed pigs acted as a mixing pot for several flu strains, containing genetic material from pigs, birds and humans. Some of the antigens involved in the new strain have never been seen by the immune systems of almost all humans, so the new strain has the potential to cause a pandemic.

The new virus has made the jump from pigs to humans and has demonstrated it can pass quite easily from human to human. This is why it is demanding so much attention from worldwide health authorities. The virus passes from human to human like other types of flu, either through coughing, sneezing, or by touching infected surfaces. However, not much else is yet known about how the virus acts on humans.

Infection control experts are scrambling to respond to outbreaks of swine flu in Mexico and the US , and suspected cases elsewhere.

What is swine flu?

Swine flu is a respiratory disease, caused by influenza type A which infects pigs.

There are many types, and the infection is constantly changing.

Until now it has not normally infected humans, but the latest form clearly does, and can be spread from person to person - probably through coughing and sneezing.

What is new about this type of swine flu?

The World Health Organization has confirmed that at least some of the human cases are a never-before-seen version of the H1N1 strain of influenza type A.

SWINE FLU

Symptoms usually similar to seasonal flu - but deaths recorded in Mexico

It is a new version of the H1N1 strain which caused the 1918 flu pandemic

Too early to say whether it will lead to a pandemic

Current treatments do work, but there is no vaccine

Good personal hygiene, such as washing hands, covering nose when sneezing advised

H1N1 is the same strain which causes seasonal outbreaks of flu in humans on a regular basis.

But this latest version of H1N1 is different: it contains genetic material that is typically found in strains of the virus that affect humans, birds and swine.

Flu viruses have the ability to swap genetic components with each other, and it seems likely that the new version of H1N1 resulted from a mixing of different versions of the virus, which may usually affect different species, in the same animal host.

Pigs provide an excellent 'melting pot' for these viruses to mix and match with each other.

How dangerous is it?

Symptoms of swine flu in humans appear to be similar to those produced by standard, seasonal flu.

These include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, chills and fatigue.

Most cases so far reported around the world appear to be mild, but in Mexico lives have been lost.

How worried should people be?

When any new strain of flu emerges that acquires the ability to pass from person to person, it is monitored very closely in case it has the potential to spark a global epidemic, or pandemic.

FLU PANDEMICS

1918: The Spanish flu pandemic remains the most devastating outbreak of modern times. Caused by a form of the H1N1 strain of flu, it is estimated that up to 40% of the world's population were infected, and more than 50 million people died, with young adults particularly badly affected

1957: Asian flu killed two million people. Caused by a human form of the virus, H2N2, combining with a mutated strain found in wild ducks. The impact of the pandemic was minimised by rapid action by health authorities, who identified the virus, and made vaccine available speedily. The elderly were particularly vulnerable

1968: An outbreak first detected in Hong Kong, and caused by a strain known as H3N2, killed up to one million people globally, with those over 65 most likely to die

The World Health Organization has warned that taken together the Mexican and US cases could potentially trigger a global pandemic, and stress that the situation is serious.

However, experts say it is still too early to accurately assess the situation fully.

Currently, they say the world is closer to a flu pandemic than at any point since 1968 - rating the threat at four on a six-point scale.

Nobody knows the full potential impact of a pandemic, but experts have warned that it could cost millions of lives worldwide. The Spanish flu pandemic, which began in 1918, and was also caused by an H1N1 strain, killed millions of people.

The fact that all the cases in the US and elsewhere have so far produced mild symptoms is encouraging. It suggests that the severity of the Mexican outbreak may be due to an unusual geographically-specific factor - possibly a second unrelated virus circulating in the community - which would be unlikely to come into play in the rest of the world.

Alternatively, people infected in Mexico may have sought treatment at a much later stage than those in other countries.

It may also be the case that the form of the virus circulating in Mexico is subtly different to that elsewhere - although that will only be confirmed by laboratory analysis.

There is also hope that, as humans are often exposed to forms of H1N1 through seasonal flu, our immune systems may have something of a head start in fighting infection.

However, the fact that many of the victims are young does point to something unusual. Normal, seasonal flu tends to affect the elderly disproportionately.

Can the virus be contained?

The virus appears already to have started to spread around the world, and most experts believe that containment of the virus in the era of readily available air travel will be extremely difficult.

Can it be treated?

The US authorities say that two drugs commonly used to treat flu, Tamiflu and Relenza, seem to be effective at treating cases that have occurred there so far. However, the drugs must be administered at an early stage to be effective.

Use of these drugs may also make it less likely that infected people will pass the virus on to others.

The UK Government already has a stockpile of Tamiflu, ordered as a precaution against a pandemic.

It is unclear how effective currently available flu vaccines would be at offering protection against the new strain, as it is genetically distinct from other flu strains.

US scientists are already developing a bespoke new vaccine, but it may take some time to perfect it, and manufacture enough supplies to meet what could be huge demand.

A vaccine was used to protect humans from a version of swine flu in the US in 1976.

However, it caused serious side effects, including an estimated 500 cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome. There were more deaths from the vaccine than the outbreak.

What should I do to stay safe?

Anyone with flu-like symptoms who might have been in contact with the swine virus - such as those living or travelling in the areas of Mexico that have been affected - should seek medical advice.

But patients are being asked not to go into GP surgeries in order to minimise the risk of spreading the disease to others. Instead, they should stay at home and call their healthcare provider for advice.

After the WHO raised its alert level over swine flu, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office began advising against all but essential travel to Mexico .

What measures can I take to prevent infection?

Avoid close contact with people who appear unwell and who have fever and cough.

General infection control practices and good hygiene can help to reduce transmission of all viruses, including the human swine influenza. This includes covering your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, using a tissue when possible and disposing of it promptly.

It is also important to wash your hands frequently with soap and water to reduce the spread of the virus from your hands to face or to other people and cleaning hard surfaces like door handles frequently using a normal cleaning product.

If caring for someone with a flu-like illness, a mask can be worn to cover the nose and mouth to reduce the risk of transmission. The UK is looking at increasing its stockpile of masks for healthcare workers for this reason.

But experts say there is no scientific evidence to support more general wearing of masks to guard against infections.

Is it safe to eat pig meat?

Yes. There is no evidence that swine flu can be transmitted through eating meat from infected animals.

However, it is essential to cook meat properly. A temperature of 70C (158F) would be sure to kill the virus.

What about bird flu?

The strain of bird flu which has caused scores of human deaths in South East Asia in recent years is a different strain to that responsible for the current outbreak of swine flu.

The latest form of swine flu is a new type of the H1N1 strain, while bird, or avian flu, is H5N1.

Experts fear H5N1 hold the potential to trigger a pandemic because of its ability to mutate rapidly.

However, up until now it has remained very much a disease of birds.

Those humans who have been infected have, without exception, worked closely with birds, and cases of human-to-human transmission are extremely rare - there is no suggestion that H5N1 has gained the ability to pass easily from person to person.

Where can I get further advice?

Further information and advice on swine flu can be found at websites of leading health and research organisations around the world. The World Health Organisation gives background information on the virus. The UK 's Health Protection Agency advises the public about what to do if returning from an affected area. NHS Choices outlines how swine flu is different from other flu. The US government's Centre for Disease Control is counting the number of cases in the US .

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Nope they use yummy lobster to fish for sh*tty fish

nor do they dance or drink

I felt really sorry for 7th Day Adventists kids when I was in Mexico...as music is such a huge part of latino culture

I wonder if we're getting a bit over the top here..

The "clergy" in all religions use events to try an guide the flock to the path of righteousness.

This guy is using the swine flu outbreak to do the same..

I have heard similar sermons within different faiths. Should it really bother us that much ????

Nothing is more relaxing than flying like an Eagle in Heaven !!

people stop this shit.u r waitin somethin to happen in this life to proove for people that islam is right? who cares if it is right or no? if u r muslim u r sure already..if u r not muslim u will never be convinced. all this bullshit bla bla bla is useless. we respect all religion.. and swine flu is like bird flu is like any other advanced flu that hit any kind of animal. so it is so far from what u r tryin to proove. QL .. WAKE UP! BLA BLA BLA .. ISLAM IS RIGHT.. BLA BLA BLA CHRISIANITY IS RIGHT... KEEP UR RELIGION FOR URSELF. IT IS UR RELATION WITH GOD NTO WITH PEOPLE AND STOP JUDGING OTHER BASED ON THEIR RELIGION. ... and they wonder why the arabic people have diffculties to reach success!!

Yep donoso.. some people just can't think with their heads and have to use the religion to justify their actions.

Thanks Oryx. Do the 7th Day Adventists now accept that it is actually safe to eat shellfish, but they don't eat them because that's what the bible says? Or do they go round trying to prove that the bible was right and we still shouldn't be eating them?

I should point out I was just re-producing truthfulvisitor's comment. I'll go back and try to make that more clear

but as a Mexican, that offends ME! ¬¬'

lo que faltaba......

Great, can he ask God what he forbids so we don't die of Cancer??

May be this guy is related to the Rabai who urged not to use the word swine flu as it offended their faith and replace it by Mexican flu.

Well thats where they get their Friday's Prayer lessons from

guess they dont have enough time to read now.

I liked the bit when they listen in awe........

DaRuDe.. Your funny man.. Yes right what else do these Preachers watch to warn their followers?

7th Day Adventists do not eat shellfish

so on the Pitcairn Islands they use lobster as bait for really boney yuckky local fish....

and i thought imaams are never supposed to watch TV.

hmm makes me think whats else he could be watching on TV or plus is it a local station or is he using satellite.

Oh, yeah, and you are not going to catch an airborne virus by eating cooked meat ;P

I think this is the QL comment referred to in the post. It seems a suitable response to the clerics sermon;

truthfulvisitor said SHELLFISH must be wiped out from the face of the earth, too ...

See, that's the trouble with religion.

It even makes people hold extremist views about animals.

But what your viewpoints illustrate (unless of course you are being ironic, which I really doubt) is this: some Muslims need to resort to trying to "prove" that pork is "scientifically shown" to be unsafe, even though 1) it isn't and 2) millions upon millions eat it every day without any ill-effects, so CLEARLY IT IS NOT.

Rather than just follow a religious instruction, their fanaticism and fundamentalism needs to show the world "proof" that their 7th century religion in fact is literally centuries beyond its time. By needing to prove their religion as though it were a science, they move from being followers of a faith to proponents of an alternative, higher discourse of scientific knowledge. In a sense it is like trying to prove that Islam has more validity than science - wow, this really is fundamentalism - and that every aspect of the Koran which is not true, has simply 'not come true - yet'.

The Jews, on the other hand, are so much more pragmatic : they simply don't eat pork because it's "instruction from God", not because they're on a mission to show the world how they are the Only True Religion.

They, and others like them, understand that there is context which influences religious teaching, dogma and ritual - not that every instruction in the religion is based on some scientific precept which simply has yet to be discovered. This kind of Islamic insistence on 'proving' things which aren't true but which are written in the Koran really questions the credibility of Muslim scientists, harms the religion's claims to be one which seeks knowledge and truth.

It also shows how utterly unable its followers are to place religion into a context - to see that pork could be banned for sensible, practical reasons related to the time, rather than metaphysical and eschatalogical ones for all times and all places, even the decadent generation of Veterinary Science, Commercial Agriculture and Refrigeration. As we know, both chicken and beef both have illness associated with them, but pork is by far the most problematic in 40 degrees of heat. In addition, Muhammad prohibited pork as a way of converting Jews to Islam living in Medina (I believe it was) who were obviously following the same prohibition.

The equivalent would be the fact that Christians eat shellfish despite being told in the Old Testament not to. Imagine how stupid they would sound if they said "shellfish have been scientifically shown to pick up toxins from the sea and that's why God forbade them - he knew what he was doing." This is really a rather primitive and, frankly, stupid thing to say; (a far more nuanced explanation is that the shellfish thing is part of the Mosaic code which was a specific set of cultural impurities but not held applicable to outsiders.)

Oh dear. Another one doing more harm than good for the image of Islam.

can someone tell the idiot that the first case was of human infecting a pig, not the other way around