Consulate Distributions
Presidential Ramadan Greeting
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
Ramadan 2008
I send greetings to Muslims observing Ramadan in America and around the globe.
The holy month of Ramadan is a special time of prayer, fasting, and service. For Muslims, these days commemorate the revelation of God's word to the prophet Muhammad in the form of the Qur'an.I thank the men and women of the Muslim community for their contributions to America. Your love of family, and gratitude to God have strengthened the moral fabric of our country. Our Nation is stronger and more hopeful because of the generosity, talents, and compassion of our Muslim citizens.Laura and I send our best wishes. Ramadan Mubarak.GEORGE W. BUSH Muslim Life in the USA
U.S. Muslims Observe Ramadan in Supportive EnvironmentColleagues, neighbors accommodate Muslims’ faith requirements
Muslims in the United States typically observe Ramadan and fulfill their other religious obligations with the encouragement and support of non-Muslim friends, colleagues and neighbors, say U.S. State Department officials Seema Matin and William Lawrence.“I have always found that my non-Muslim colleagues and friends are very supportive during this [holy] month of Ramadan,” Matin told America.gov. She recalled that when she was in college, many of her non-Muslim classmates expressed solidarity with her by joining in the daytime fasting that Ramadan requires. “At work, many of my colleagues will try not to eat or drink around me, and … I am always touched by their thoughtfulness,” she said. (more) (بالعربية)
Muslim Filmmaker Looks at Social Issues with Humor, WarmthLena Khan directs award-winning short films, music videos, commercials
Khan won $5,000 for Bassem is Trying, a one-minute short that humorously demonstrates how a Muslim-American man tries to fit in -- for instance, by blasting hip-hop music on his car radio. Her three-minute short A Land Called Paradise, essentially a music video set to a song of the same name by Muslim country singer Kareem Salama, won a $20,000 grand prize from One Nation, a Muslim advocacy group that sponsored the film competition. Khan directed dozens of men and women of diverse backgrounds to hold up handwritten signs that express messages they would like the world to know about them as Muslim Americans. The statements are as whimsical as "I, too, shop at Victoria's Secret," or as serious as "My sister died on September 11." (more) (بالعربية)
The Qawwali InfluenceSufi Muslim mystical singing shapes world music
The track “The Face of Love” is a different sort of collaboration, featuring the lead singer for the Seattle-based alternative rock band Pearl Jam, Eddie Vedder, and the great Pakistani musician Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and produced by Ry Cooder. Khan was a leading performer of qawwali, a genre of mystical singing practiced by Sufi Muslims in Pakistan and India. Qawwali singing is accompanied by a double-headed drum called the dholak and a portable keyboard instrument called the harmonium, which creates a continuous drone under the singing. In traditional settings the lead singer alternates stanzas of traditional poetic texts with spectacular and elaborate melodic improvisations, in an attempt to spiritually arouse his listeners and move them into emotional proximity with the Divine. (more)
U.S. Treasury, Muslim Charities Intensify Dialogue on Safe GivingMuslim organization launches an initiative to validate groups’ transparency
Masood Alam Khan witnessed the other side of the huge international humanitarian effort in the aftermath of the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan. Among groups actively engaged in bringing relief to the victims were terrorist organizations. They used every opportunity to solicit support for their cause and recruit new members. Khan, the chairman of Islamic Help, a United Kingdom-based charity, said it was a wake-up call for him and other charity representatives who witnessed it. (more)
U.S. Elections
U.S. Election Helping America’s Image WorldwideExperts offer insights on U.S. public diplomacy efforts
The U.S. presidential race, with “the spectacle of democracy at work,” is a great thing for America’s image worldwide, and historically has given a boost to U.S. public diplomacy, Nicholas Cull, a professor of public diplomacy, tells America.gov.Cull, director of the public diplomacy program at the University of Southern California, says both presumed presidential nominees, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, have mentioned the possibility of a “radical reform of U.S. public diplomacy, and there are multiple studies in progress to suggest what this might look like.” (more)
Presidential Campaigns Try to Garner African-American VotersIncreased turnout, preference for Democrats, could swing close election
Both political parties are courting African-American voters in a 2008 presidential election that, pollsters and pundits agree, is likely to be extremely close. The Democrats appear to enjoy an advantage: Blacks have been a key component of the party’s base for more than four decades, and that tilt likely will be increased by the Democrats’ selection of Barack Obama as the first African-American presidential nominee of a major U.S. political party. (more) (بالعربية)
Barack Obama’s Acceptance SpeechIllinois senator accepts Democratic nomination to the presidency
On August 28, Illinois Senator Barack Obama formally accepted the nomination of the Democratic Party to be its candidate for the presidency of the United States. (See “Barack Obama Accepts Presidential Nomination.”) Barack Obama
Democratic National Convention
Denver, Colorado
Thursday, August 28, 2008
To Chairman Dean and my great friend Dick Durbin; and to all my fellow citizens of this great nation;With profound gratitude and great humility, I accept your nomination for the presidency of the United States. Let me express my thanks to the historic slate of candidates who accompanied me on this journey, and especially the one who traveled the farthest -- a champion for working Americans and an inspiration to my daughters and to yours -- Hillary Rodham Clinton. To President Clinton, who last night made the case for change as only he can make it; to Ted Kennedy, who embodies the spirit of service; and to the next Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden, I thank you. I am grateful to finish this journey with one of the finest statesmen of our time, a man at ease with everyone from world leaders to the conductors on the Amtrak train he still takes home every night. (more)
McCain’s Acceptance of Republican Nomination to PresidencySpeech in St. Paul, Minnesota, outlines candidate’s vision for the nation
On September 4, in St. Paul, Minnesota, Senator John McCain formally accepted the nomination of the Republican Party to the presidency of the United States.The full text of McCain’s acceptance speech is posted on the Web site of the Republican National Convention.Senator John McCain
St. Paul, Minnesota
September 4, 2008Thank you all very much. Tonight, I have a privilege given few Americans -- the privilege of accepting our party’s nomination for President of the United States. And I accept it with gratitude, humility and confidence. In my life, no success has come without a good fight, and this nomination wasn’t any different. That’s a tribute to the candidates who opposed me and their supporters. They’re leaders of great ability, who love our country, and wished to lead it to better days. Their support is an honor I won’t forget. (full text)
Barack Obama Selects Delaware Senator Joe Biden as Running MateLong-serving leader brings years of foreign policy experience to ticket
Presumed Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama has selected Delaware Senator Joe Biden to be his running mate, saying, “Joe won't just make a good vice president -- he will make a great one.”In a presidential-campaign first, thousands of supporters learned of Obama’s selection via text message -- which was sent at 3 a.m. EDT August 23. The announcement was followed by a joint appearance at a rally attended by about 30,000 in Springfield, Illinois. Springfield is the capital of Obama’s home state and the site where he launched his presidential campaign. (more) (بالعربية)
John McCain Chooses Alaska Governor as Running MateSarah Palin will be first woman on Republican national ballot
Republican presidential candidate John McCain has chosen Sarah Palin, currently the governor of Alaska, as his running mate.Palin, who would be the first woman to run on a Republican presidential ticket, also would be the first Alaskan to appear on a national ballot. In 2006 she became the first female governor of Alaska after serving six years as mayor of Wasilla City, Alaska. Standing with McCain at a Republican political rally in Dayton, Ohio, August 29, Palin said she was taking the podium almost 88 years to the day since American women won the right to vote. She credited Hillary Clinton and Geraldine Ferraro as having led the way in “cracking the glass ceiling” that has kept women out of the nation’s highest leadership positions. (more) (بالعربية) Recent Official Statements on Peace Process
Secretary Rice's Remarks en Route to Tel Aviv, Israel, August 25, 2008
“… both sides continue to have work to do on the Roadmap. And General Fraser and I have been talking on this trip about the importance of both sides accelerating their progress. I will say that there have been a couple of major – well, let me call – use the word “significant” checkpoints that have been lifted. That’s a good sign. Obviously, there is more that needs to be done. But that’s a good sign. And I think the Jenin project continues to mature. That’s also a good sign.” (full text)
Remarks by Secretary Rice, Palestinian President Mahmoud AbbasThey discuss Jerusalem refugees, borders, settlement, water and security, Ramallah, August 26, 2008
“Thank you very much for welcoming me here. I’ve had a series of very good discussions here, also earlier today in the trilateral with the chief Palestinian negotiator, Abu Ala and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. We have discussed the progress that the parties are making in the negotiations toward a two-state solution. We’ve also had discussions of how to move other aspects of the Annapolis process forward, including improving life for Palestinians, the Palestinian people on the ground, as well as the Roadmap obligations. General Fraser is here and, in fact, as the Roadmap monitor, and General Fraser will stay on for a couple of days to continue the work on the Roadmap implementation.” Secretary Rice (more) (بالعربية)
U.S. Policy – Libya
Rice Makes Historic Visit to LibyaVisit demonstrates U.S. will respond when countries make strategic changes
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice becomes the highest-ranking American official to visit Libya in more than a half-century, opening the way for renewed political and economic relations between Libya and the United States. "It is a historic moment. And it is one that has come after a lot of difficulty, the suffering of many people that will never be forgotten or assuaged, Americans in particular, for whom I'm very concerned," Rice said September 5. She flew from Portugal, where she had been meeting with Portuguese officials, for her meeting in Tripoli with Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi. "I also am looking forward to the opportunity to talk about a number of issues," Rice said. (more) (بالعربية)
Current State of U.S.-Libyan Bilateral RelationsUnited States seeks expanded cooperation with Libya in multiple areas
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
September 2, 2008
FACT SHEET
The U.S. has full diplomatic relations with Libya and opened its Embassy in Tripoli in May 2006. Libya established its People’s Bureau (embassy) in Washington the same month. In July 2007 the President nominated career diplomat Gene A. Cretz as U.S. Ambassador to Libya. The U.S. seeks normalized relations and expanded cooperation with Libya in multiple areas, including: education and culture, science and technology, commerce, security, and human rights and good governance. (more) (
بالعربية)
Economy
Harnessing Creativity Vital to Economic GrowthWashington-based center teaches ways to foster innovation
Developing countries that enable citizens to prosper from their creative and innovative work will defeat poverty, according to a Washington-based scholar. Life-saving drugs will be developed, memorable movies will be produced, valuable books will be written if the people who create them are able to earn money from them, said Michael Ryan, the director of the Creative and Innovative Economy Center (CIEC) in Washington.CIEC researches and teaches how developing countries can harness the brainpower of their people to raise the standard of living."While writing my book Knowledge Diplomacy: Global Competition and the Politics of Intellectual Property in the 1990s, I realized that knowledge and technology are the keys to economic development," Ryan said in a recent interview with America.gov. (more)
For Women, Starting a Business Is the Same WorldwideEntrepreneurs Robin Chase and Ilham Zhiri overcome challenges and succeed
When two entrepreneurs examined the limited transportation options available to people living in U.S. cities, they not only saw a business opportunity, but also imagined a way to help the environment. Together they founded Zipcar Inc., the world’s largest car-sharing business.Halfway around the world in Morocco, another entrepreneur saw an opening in the marketplace and started a printing and publishing business. Using hard work, determination and business savvy, the entrepreneur turned the fledgling company into a successful enterprise. (more) (بالعربية) Education in the USA
International Students Getting More Graduate Program OffersNumber of international collaborative programs also growing
For a third consecutive year, the number of international students receiving offers of admission to master’s and doctoral programs at U.S. colleges and universities has risen, with a 16 percent increase in admission offers to Chinese students leading the way, according to a new study by the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS).Applications from students in the Middle East rose 14 percent and offers of admission 17 percent. (more)
The $100 LaptopA broad-based consortium works to deliver computers to every child
In January 2005, at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, a man named Nicholas Negroponte announced a plan to design, manufacture, and distribute laptop computers inexpensive enough to give every child in the world better access to knowledge and modern forms of education. Access to computers and the Internet is a major barrier to closing the global digital divide, and the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) nonprofit organization [http://www.laptop.org/], which Negroponte and others founded to develop the affordable laptop, seeks to bridge that gap. The goal is to price the laptop at about $100 initially, and to steadily lower the cost as the technology continues to evolve. (more)
