From: owner-seven-seas@smoe.org (seven-seas-digest) To: seven-seas-digest@smoe.org Subject: seven-seas-digest V3 #370 Reply-To: seven-seas@smoe.org Sender: owner-seven-seas@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-seven-seas@smoe.org Precedence: bulk seven-seas-digest Thursday, October 7 2004 Volume 03 : Number 370 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 07 Oct 2004 15:04:35 -0400 From: RossNTeka@aol.com Subject: Re: seven-seas Fd: OT -- Cat Stevens Looks like Cat is living under a Moonshadow Sorry, don't kill me! In a message dated 10/7/2004 1:56:58 PM Eastern Daylight Time, Rob Maher writes: > That will be interesting to see. While we're on the subject, here is a >commentary by him from the LA Times a couple weeks ago: > > > LATimes >September 28, 2004 > > >COMMENTARY >Something Bad Has Begun >* The former Cat Stevens says he hasn't changed but the U.S. has. >By Yusuf Islam, Yusuf Islam, the singer formerly known as Cat Stevens, was >deported to Britain last week after being refused entry into the United >States. > >I was flying to Nashville last week with my 21-year-old daughter to explore >some new musical ideas with a record label there. Ironically, I was trying >to remain low-profile because of the speculation that it might have raised >in the music world about a return of "the Cat." Media attention was the last >thing I wanted. But it seems God wanted otherwise. > >Toward the end of our journey from London to Washington, the plane was >diverted. The captain announced something about "heavy traffic." After >landing in Bangor, Maine, six tall, blue-uniformed officers boarded and >surrounded me and my daughter. > >"Is your name Yusuf Islam?" they asked. > >"Yes," I confirmed. > >"Do you mind coming with us and answering a few questions?" > >At that point my heart stopped, and my daughter's face turned aspirin-white. >This was the start of the nightmare. > >Three FBI agents escorted me away from my daughter and asked me questions. >At first, it sounded like they might have me mixed up with somebody else, as >they repeated the spelling of my name. > >"No. Y-u-s-u-f," I carefully spelled out. The agents looked a bit puzzled. > >As they continued asking questions, some of their queries were obviously not >related to me, so I thought this must be a matter of simple mistaken >identity. Whether it was a mix-up or not remained unclear because they >weren't under any obligation to give me a reason; the green visa waiver form >I had so neatly filled in earlier had effectively denied me any right to >appeal or answers. It was only when an immigration official read out to me a >legal reference number that he mentioned some implication with "terrorism" >no further details necessary. > >The most upsetting thing was being separated from my daughter for 33 hours >not knowing how she was or when and where we might be united. Because my >phone was confiscated, I couldn't contact my family. > >God almighty! Is this the same planet I'd taken off from? I was devastated. >The unbelievable thing is that only two months earlier, I had been having >meetings in Washington with top officials from the White House Office of >Faith-Based and Community Initiatives to talk about my charity work. Even >further back, one month after the attack on the World Trade Center, I was in >New York meeting Peter Gabriel and Hillary Rodham Clinton at the World >Economic Forum! > >Had I changed that much? No. Actually, it's the indiscriminate procedure of >profiling that's changed. I am a victim of an unjust and arbitrary system, >hastily imposed, that serves only to belittle America's image as a defender >of the civil liberties that so many dearly struggled and died for over the >centuries. > >Need I say that any form of terrorism or violence is the antithesis of >everything I love and stand for? Anyone who knows me will attest to this. I >have spent my life in the search for peace and understanding, and that was >mirrored clearly in my music. Since becoming a Muslim, I have devoted my >life to education, charity and helping children around the world. > >Consistently I have condemned the attacks of 9/11, stating that the >slaughter of innocents, the taking of hostages and coldblooded killing of >women and children have nothing do with the teachings of Islam. I've openly >and publicly repudiated the actions of groups that resort to such acts of >inhumanity whatever their names. Any allegations to the contrary are >fabricated. The Koran equates the murder of one innocent person with the >murder of all of humanity. > >Ever since I embraced Islam in 1977, people have regularly tried to link me >with things I have nothing to do with. Take the Salman Rushdie case as an >example, or the regurgitating of the accusation that I support groups like >Hamas. > >I am a man of peace, and I denounce all forms of terrorism and injustice; it >is simply outrageous for anyone to suggest otherwise. The fact that I have >sympathy for ordinary people in the world who are suffering from occupation, >tyranny, poverty or war is human and has nothing to do with politics or >terrorism. > >Thank God my daughter and I were relieved of our ordeal and delivered home >safely. I also thank all those who prayed for me and supported me through >this dark episode; I have never harbored any ill will toward people of God's >great Earth anywhere and wish the reverse was also true. > > > > >> From: owner-seven-seas@smoe.org >> Reply-To: seven-seas@smoe.org >> Date: Fri, 8 Oct 2004 05:51:33 +1200 >> To: seven-seas@smoe.org >> Subject: seven-seas Fd: OT -- Cat Stevens >> >> CNN.com - Larry King >> >> [http://i.cnn.net/cnn/images/hub2000/1.gif] >> Larry King Live at 9:00 p.m. ET >> on Thursday, October 7, 2004 >> >> CNN Tonight: Cat Stevens Speaks Out >> >> Once he was pop superstar Cat Stevens - now he's Yusuf Islam ? >> banned from the US over suspected terror ties. >> How did it happen? >> Yusuf Islam tells his side! >> >> Tonight only on Larry King Live! >> >> Visit http://www.cnn.com/larryking and e-mail us your >> questions for tonight?s guest. >> >> Larry King Live can also be seen on CNN International >> at these times around the world: >> Europe, Middle East and Africa (CET) Live at 0300 >> South Asia (IST) Live at 13:30 >> Asia Pacific (HKT) Live at 1600 >> Latin America (EST) Live at 2100. >> >> >> >> ============================ >> Bunnymen Online Presence: >> http://www.bunnymenlist.com >> * >> http://www.bunnymen.info >> * >> http://www.bunnymen.com >> * >> http://www.fotolog.net/sgtfuzz/ >> >> ============================ > > > >============================ >Bunnymen Online Presence: >http://www.bunnymenlist.com >* >http://www.bunnymen.info >* >http://www.bunnymen.com >* >http://www.fotolog.net/sgtfuzz/ > >============================ ============================ Bunnymen Online Presence: http://www.bunnymenlist.com * http://www.bunnymen.info * http://www.bunnymen.com * http://www.fotolog.net/sgtfuzz/ ============================ ------------------------------ End of seven-seas-digest V3 #370 ********************************