[Vision2020] Gates , Fallen Soldier’s Mother Share Ramadan Meal

[Tom Hansen]

Courtesy of the US Department of Defense at:

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=55700

---------------------------------------------

Gates, Fallen Soldier’s Mother Share Ramadan Meal
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Sept. 2, 2009 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and the
mother of a fallen soldier were among dozens who gathered last night at
the White House for the annual Iftar dinner.

President Barack Obama hosted the meal that marks a break in fasting
during Ramadan, the Muslim holy month.

Among the ambassadors, members of Congress and other guests was Elsheba
Khan, whose 20-year-old son, Army Spc. Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, was
killed in Iraq on Aug. 6, 2007.

Khan was among four U.S. soldiers killed by a roadside bomb that day in
Baqubah. They were assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division’s 1st Battalion,
23rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team at Fort Lewis, Wash.

Khan grew up in Manahawkin, N.J., and was 14 when terrorists struck the
United States on Sept. 11, 2001. He joined the military after high school,
and went on to receive the Purple Heart and Bronze Star, and, Obama said
last night, “the admiration of his fellow soldiers.”

Khan is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, where a Muslim crescent
marks his grave, just as crosses and stars mark the graves of fallen
Christian and Jewish heroes, Obama noted. “These brave Americans are
joined in death as they were in life -- by a common commitment to their
country, and the values that we hold dear,” he said.

The president recognized during last night’s Iftar that similar
observances were being carried out throughout the United States during
Ramadan.

“For well over a billion Muslims, Ramadan is a time of intense devotion
and reflection,” he said. “It's a time of service and support for those in
need. And it is also a time for family and friends to come together in a
celebration of their faith, their communities, and the common humanity
that all of us share.”

Obama recognized contributions Muslims have made to the United States, and
the importance of people of all backgrounds to work together with mutual
respect to achieve shared goals.

“Tonight, we celebrate a great religion, and its commitment to justice and
progress. We honor the contributions of America's Muslims, and the
positive example that so many of them set through their own lives,” Obama
said. “And we rededicate ourselves to the work of building a better and
more hopeful world.”

---------------------------------------------

Why does a certain local blog continue to hold such strong animosity
against the Muslim religion, a religion whose presence is reflected  in
crescent-marked graves at Arlington National Cemetery.

Seeya at Farmers' Market, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to change
and the Realist adjusts his sails."

- Unknown