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Topic: We Were Told to Vote for Bush in 2000 - Was he the lesser of two evils?
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 Moosaa
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Abul-'Abbaas Moosaa ibn John Richardson
(Jeddah, Saudi Arabia)
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Member
Posts: 1280
Joined: Sep 2002
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Dr. Safar al-Hawali mentions that he advised the Muslims to vote for George Bush in 2000, and claims to have proof that the Muslim votes are the ones who gave him the victory:
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...We Muslims desired to see you (George Bush Jr.) elected and we have proof that the votes which gave you victory were our votes, and I personally advised Muslims to vote for you. Some of them hoped that you would be fairer than the Democrats although others clearly stated that the matter was no more than choosing the lesser of two evils...
- Dr. Safar al-Hawali's Open Letter to President Bush, Oct. 15, 2001
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Some questions for thought:
[1] Has George Bush proven to be the lesser of two evils or the source of fairness in his dealings with the Muslims over the last seven years, as it seemed obvious to some Muslims at that time that he was clearly the better of the two choices, having an opponent with a Jewish running mate...?
[2] Do the Muslims who had set up voter registration sites at the masjids and Islamic centers throughout America, and campaigned (thinking to be working for the benefit of the Muslims) for George Bush, based on the advice of some callers (like Dr. Safar), some of them even declaring it a religious obligation from the Friday pulpits, and that those who do not vote for Bush are sinful... Are they pleased with their actions after seven years of George Bush?
[3] And do they (the [ex-]campaigning Muslim supporters of George Bush) still believe that the Muslims who wanted NO PART in voting for George Bush that year are still sinful and blameworthy for not taking action to "gain benefit" for the Muslims and that they are blameworthy for "not helping Islaam"?
Moosaa ibn John Richardson
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سبحانك اللهم وبحمدك
أشهد أن لا إله إلا أنت
أستغفرك وأتوب إليك
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| laronssis
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Umm Abdul-Haleem unspecified
(sharjah UAE)
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Member
Posts: 15
Joined: Dec 2006
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Bismillah
As salaamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuhu,
I am not a knowledgeable therefore I ask this question to be clarified for me.
The things that I have read before say that we should not vote for anything that opposes that Shariah.
There may be some knowledge here that didnt reach me yet.
Is it permissable to vote for someone or something that opposes the Shariah?
If so can you please explain to me, and anyone else who is without the knowledge, the conditions?
Jazaaka Allah khayrin,
Wa as salaamu alikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuhu
Al-Fudayl ibn Iyyad (Rahimahullaah) said: "Man's fear of Allaah is equal to his Knowledge of Him and his renunciation of worldly pleasures is equal to his desire in the Hereafter."
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| Moosaa
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Abul-'Abbaas Moosaa ibn John Richardson
(Jeddah, Saudi Arabia)
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Member
Posts: 1280
Joined: Sep 2002
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wa 'alaykumus-salaamu wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh -
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| The things that I have read before say that we should not vote for anything that opposes that Shariah. |
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I believe you mean we should not support anything that opposes the Sharee'ah.
Anyway, the scholars, like Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have Mercy on him) and others, who gave verdicts in favor of voting under a number of important conditions (*) and within certain situations (*) mention that the Muslims would be trying to choose between the lesser of two harms in such a case, not that they approve of the beliefs, religion, or position of the one being voted for, or that they endorse the system of elections in the first place.
This is what I have understood about this issue, and Allaah knows best.
(*)The conditions of those verdicts must be considered carefully and with deliberation, and only applied when each and every one of them are met, by people of Islamic knowledge and insight into the what is going on in the political activity of the non-Muslims, with consultation of the scholars, so that we do not become like those who make open claims that "Islam supports elections" or "voting is permissible" without the slightest attention or concern for the conditions the scholars who spoke in favor of it have mentioned, those conditions that are vital in order to successfully accomplish the goal of "reducing the harm" or "gaining a benefit" for the Muslims. And the examples of people implementing these verdicts without proper attention to the conditions, and the evil resulting in such negligence can be seen among many of the Muslims who enter into politics, and with Allaah is our safety.
Moosaa ibn John Richardson
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سبحانك اللهم وبحمدك
أشهد أن لا إله إلا أنت
أستغفرك وأتوب إليك
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| laronssis
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Umm Abdul-Haleem unspecified
(sharjah UAE)
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Member
Posts: 15
Joined: Dec 2006
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Jazaaka Allahu khayrin
Al-Fudayl ibn Iyyad (Rahimahullaah) said: "Man's fear of Allaah is equal to his Knowledge of Him and his renunciation of worldly pleasures is equal to his desire in the Hereafter."
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| laronssis
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Umm Abdul-Haleem unspecified
(sharjah UAE)
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Member
Posts: 15
Joined: Dec 2006
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jazaaka Allah khayrin
This message was edited by laronssis on 2-17-07 @ 10:59 AM
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10-02-2007 @ 10:30 AM
10-02-2007 @ 10:57 AM