Poverty in America? One of the richest countries in the world? Yes, poverty is a reality in America, just as it is for millions of other human beings on the planet. According to the US Census Bureau, 35.9 million people live below the poverty line in America, including 12.9 million children.
According to the US Department of Agriculture, up to one-fifth of America's food goes to waste each year, with an estimated 130 pounds of food per person ending up in landfills. The annual value of this lost food is estimated at around $31 billion.
With a world food crisis around the world, it is more important than ever to cut waste. Hold a family meeting this weekend and hammer out a weekly meal plan with everyone, taking into account likes and dislikes. Then shop and cook accordingly.
There is a clear consensus among scientists that human activity is changing the earth's climate and it is the most pressing problem facing humankind today. Our lifestyle is threatening life.
Waste and a lifestyle characterized by it, is behind many of the environmental problems we face today. Waste is something Allah hates. He says in the Quran: "Lo! the squanderers were ever brothers of the devils and the devil was ever an ingrate to his Lord."
For the Prophet, peace was not a strategy he employed, it was the goal of his peace movement. He preached peace and justice leading to the establishment of a peace sanctuary in the city of Madinah where even animals cannot be harmed, hunting unless for food was forbidden and trees cannot be cut.
I could not believe my eyes and ears as I watched vice-president Dick Cheney saying "so?" There was a look on his face which said a lot. He was responding to an ABC News reporter who told him, "two-thirds of Americans say it's not worth fighting." Cheney's response came before the question even finished: "So?"