By Khadija Gulamhusein
Do you ever feel guilty about spending money on luxuries you don’t need? Do you ever think: ‘Am I justified in splurging on myself when there are people in the world who are dying of hunger or some easily curable disease as I pay for something I can survive without?’ Do you ever wonder the extent of your moral obligation to other human beings?
In a world where information flows are nearly instantaneous, claiming ignorance is no longer an option. So what’s the solution? Should we live in a perpetual sense of guilt every time we spend money on items we don’t require? Toby Ord, a professor at the University of Oxford, describes his own internal wranglings and provides a solution to the problem.
“When it began, I would be down in the supermarket agonising about whether to buy a more expensive cereal or not but I realise [sic] that’s a road to a nervous breakdown and that it was much more sensible to work out at the start what you can live on [give away the rest in a lump sum] and then after a year readjust – can I live on less, am I pushing it too hard – instead of perpetually agonising about it.”
Initially he vowed to give away any income over £20,000. Now he’s revised it down to £18,000. But he lives a pretty comfortable middle class life, in his own words. Every fortnight he goes out for dinner and once a week, he treats himself to a visit at a coffee shop. Arguably, he has fewer expenses than most people. With no children to speak of, it’s just him and his wife. He spends approximately £5,000 on rent a year and £4,000 on day-to-day living expenses. The rest goes to savings and an annual week-long holiday in Italy and France.
While most of us have higher mortgages or children to cater for, arguably the principle remains the same. Is there some level of income that we require to satisfy our basic needs and a few luxuries in life, without giving into our every desire? Sometimes, I feel that life loses some of its meaning when I get everything that I want. Part of the enjoyment is waiting for something. It’s like waiting for presents on Eid or birthdays. If we had everything we wanted, life would be a whole lot less exciting. And there’s the moral dimension of it as well. Should we satisfy our every desire, when there are people (many of whom we are aware of) struggling to survive on a daily basis?
In March 1993 award winning photographer Kevin Carter made a trip to Sudan. The sound of soft, high-pitched whimpering near the village of Ayod attracted Carter to an emaciated Sudanese toddler. The girl had stopped to rest while struggling to a feeding center, whereupon a vulture had landed nearby. He said that he waited about 20 minutes, hoping that the vulture would spread its wings. It didn't. Carter snapped the haunting photograph and chased the vulture away.
Posted in: Feature.
By Khadija Gulamhusein
Bernie Ecclestone, the 80 year old F1 boss who was violently beaten up in a mugging for his possessions, has become the new face of an advert for a Swiss watch company, Hublot. The tagline of the new advert reads: “See what people will do for a Hublot.”
My first reaction to this initial piece of information was: “Poor guy; his plight is being exploited by the unfeeling, profit driven, money-minded corporation.” But as I read on, I learnt that the advert was actually Ecclestone’s idea.
Now I’m all for giving people the freedom to do what they want in life, but this struck me as particularly distasteful, if not bordering on wrong. Ecclestone’s motivation for the advert was to stand up to his attackers and to show courage in the face of their crime. It may be a distasteful way of showing courage but his actions are understandable all the same. What isn’t understandable is the Swiss company’s agreement to his proposal. While the CEO of the company is arguing that the advert is a “protestation against violence that we are all afraid of today,” only the naive would assume that this is the company’s main motivation behind the advert. It is an advert after all.
The BBC article I read got me thinking. In the advert, Ecclestone looks pretty badly beaten up. If I was walking through a tube station or down the street, and saw his face displayed on a billboard, I’d probably have looked twice. Isn’t that the whole point of good advertising? To grab the attention of passer-by’s, long enough to feed them just enough information about the company or product being advertised?
But what does this say about the state of mind of consumers? Have we been bombarded with so much advertising, that the mediocre and the normal no longer appeal to us, even if they invoke the same message? Are we only attracted by the shocking, the distasteful, and the abnormal? I see it as similar to the Lady Gaga phenomenon. While she may be musically talented, part of the public’s fascination with her and her rise to fame stems from her complete defiance of everything normal.
Let us know what you think about the state of advertising in this day and age. Have we become desensitised to everything normal and only respond to the abnormal and shocking?
Posted in: Uncategorized.
Have you got a story to tell?
emel is looking for some stories to feature in our Real Lives section. If you, or anyone you know, would be ideal for the following sections, please get in touch with us:
Marriage – a couple that have had an interesting relationship, perhaps met through strange circumstances and have funny stories. Click HERE to see examples.
Kith & Kin – two close friends or relatives that have a special relationship, with lots of funny stories and quirky characteristics. Click HERE to see examples.
After Hardship Comes Ease – a story of someone that has gone through something traumatic, but managed to get through it and make positive steps (we can have anonymity for this). Click HERE to see examples.
Week In the Life Of – a typical week of someone that is involved in a range of activities or has an interesting job, with a few funny anecdotes. Click HERE to see examples.
Watch This Face – up and coming young Muslims, who have achieved a lot in their field and can inspire others. Click HERE to see examples.
Food From My Childhood – a personal account of someone’s memories of their childhood with relation to food
Please drop us an email at info@emel.com with a brief description of the story and we will get back to you.
Posted in: Uncategorized.
Salams and Greetings All,
Our friends over at Ciné lumière at the French Institute in London are always coming out with a whole range of interesting films across a variety of thought provoking subject areas. The latest film to catch our eye is ‘Slackistan’, directed by Hammad Khan who describes the film as a “very personal film”.
Slackistan is a film about a group of university graduates who waste their lives away in the capital city of Islamabad. They struggle to face their life decisions as the country outside of their own small bubble begins to fall apart.
The director also states -
“There is this intense focus on terrorism in the news, but that didn’t gel with my experience of living in Islamabad, and I felt it was important to get a different image across. Whatever the circumstances, young people are kind of the same all over the world: they get up, have relationships and try and figure out what to do with their lives, and I wanted to reflect that.”
emel have two pairs of tickets to give away to the screening of Slackistan at Ciné lumière in London. The Competition is now closed and winners will be notified by email.
Posted in: Announcements, Feature.
For one of its future issues, emel is looking to dedicate a feature to the families of converts. Generally, in the Muslim community across the world, converts are welcomed with open arms, but the reality for family members is often very different, some of whom may feel a sense of loss or bereavement. emel is looking to explore how family members come to terms with the conversion of someone close to them. Its main focus is on their perspective, reactions, emotions, and thoughts, and how this changes as the news becomes less shocking and a mutual sense of understanding begins to develop.
If you are interested in speaking to us about your experiences or know of someone who would be, please send an email to: khadija.gulamhusein@emel.com
Posted in: Announcements, Office Stickies.
Written by Khadija Gulamhusein
We’ve heard it all before; Madrassahs are the perfect environment for cultivating extremist tendencies. But usually the finger is being pointed at Madrassahs in Pakistan or Afghanistan, where young boys and girls are seen to be indoctrinated into the Taliban’s ideology. But according to the BBC’s Panorama, aired tonight on British Television at 8:30 pm on BBC 1, more than 5000 pupils are being taught the official Saudi national curriculum at Saudi Students’ Schools and Clubs in the UK. The curriculum is seen to be anti-Semitic and negatively affecting the ability of young Muslims to integrate into British society.
I can only speak from personal experience, but my Madrassah was definitely not extreme in what it taught. Apart from being open, and questioning of established religious opinions, we had student-led current affairs lessons and rigorous and analytical history lessons. There was no shortage of healthy debate, and in fact, it was these lessons that inspired me to go to study Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at university and pursue a career in journalism.
While I’m not suggesting that all Madrassahs are the same as mine, and I’m sure there are Madrassahs out there that will have curriculums that most Muslims find distasteful at the very least, I don’t believe this to be the majority tendency. My fear is that Panorama’s exploration will simply add to the suspicion that every Islamic school is somehow a breeding ground for extremism.
The interesting thing is that as a result of this documentary, Ofsted is looking into possible regulation and inspection of out-of-hours clubs and schools. Personally, I’m stuck in two minds; I don’t think that all Madrassahs should have to be inspected simply because a few are perpetuating unsuitable and inaccurate content. But then again, as a Muslim, I fear the spread of this ideology just as much as any non-Muslim. Should I be imbibing the ‘if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to lose’ mentality?
Posted in: Uncategorized.
Written by Nada Mansy
Just imagine rolling out of bed to step into your office just a 10 second stroll away. That’s exactly what is about to happen for some of Google’s employees, as today a huge expansion of its California headquarters was revealed, including new homes for its growing workforce. Talk about work being a bit too close to home.
But it’s not really that special to Google. We saw a few articles today including this one at the BBC which talks about how tasks traditionally left to home-life are being carried out at work. From breakfast and exercise to email writing, face booking and online shopping. Sounds like a weekend break to me. And likewise, work is being taken back home – and why not when we have blackberries and laptops that give us that key remote-email access. A few studies indicate this work-home two-way shift started by the introduction of such technology. And perhaps more so in the current climate of job insecurity as workers try to take everything with them, never totally switching off from the office or from the home.
So this all prompted some interesting thoughts at the emel office, whilst we were listening to our iPods and munching on our brunch. (Okay, a little artistic license from me)
Is this greater flexibility good news, where sitting at our desks all day doesn’t just mean work, work, work? Or is it time go back to a strict separation of work and home life?
We’d like to hear from you. Please leave your thoughts and comments below.
Posted in: Uncategorized.
Salams and Greetings All,
It’s Monday evening and here at emel HQ we’re all looking forward to what’s set to be a great week inshAllah. It’s Eid week, and Muslims around the world will be getting together to celebrate the occasion of Eid ul Adha.
To mark this, we thought we’d share some of our Eid plans and hopefully inspire you to share with us too.
Robi, Web Editor - After the initial mosque run in the morning (not a local marathon.. I mean the Eid Prayers), I’ll be spending some time with the family helping distribute meat to our extended family members.
Fatema, Lifestyle Editor – I’ll be getting together with family over a good meal. Eid-Al-Adha is usually a time when people in the family will be reflecting on their past Hajj experiences, which is always pretty interesting.
Iram, Administrator – We’re holding a family talent contest at home. All the cousins will be turning up and as for the cooking; the parents will be putting up their feet whilst the kids rustle up some Eid food.
Ali, Editorial Intern – Eid for me is just a family occasion – a time to catch up with cousins over plates of delicious food!
Steven, Creative Director – It means a day off for me! I can reflect on the goodness of life.
How are you spending Eid this year?
To celebrate, emel is offering a special limited edition offer for this week only (ends Friday). We will be offering 13 issues for the price of 12 issues, that’s 13 issues for the usual price of £29.95*
To receive this special offer, get in touch by contacting us on +44 (0) 207 328 7300 or drop us an email at info@emel.com. Quote the reference “Eidgift10” Alternatively you can subscribe here.
Eid Greetings from everyone at emel HQ.
Peace Out,
Fatema & Robi
*£29.95 for direct debit subscribers, and £35.95 for online, cash, card and cheque.
Posted in: Uncategorized.
New additions to the magazine in the new year
Having achieved so much in 2010, we have a lot to look forward over the forthcoming issues:
Dr Joel Hayward, Dean of the Royal Airforce School joins us as a Comment writer with his reflections on political and social issues.
We are introducing a brand new Sports section, highlight upcoming tournaments and featuring exclusive interviews with high profile sports personalities.
‘Diary of a Beardless Rumi’ will also be a new addition to the magazine, telling the tale of one man’s search for the meaning of life.
Highlighting the great contribution made by our elders as they migrated to foreign countries, we bring you ‘Generation Story’.
And last, but definitely not least, a historical piece entitled ‘Looking Back’ will highlight important events throughout Islamic history.
Posted in: Announcements, Comment, Feature, Uncategorized.