How to help yourself manual;

1. tell people you read the bible
2. quote a verse or two to illustrate
3. give an interpretation to further illustrate
4. solicit, preferably start only with opinions, there is room for growth

Auntie - Akowally has asked a useful question and this is your contribution? Nktest!

There is a solution: Look at the value in Islam.

I'll give you an example of Somalia.
The problem with Somalia, the drought is disaster.
The reason it is a disaster is not because of resources. Do you know we have enough calories in this universe to feed about 12 billion people in this planet?

Why do 10million people in America die from obesity?
But in Somalia they die because of lack of food!
The issue is about distribution.
That is the number one economic problem.

And Islam gives solution for this in a humble way.
It says look:
1. We have the zakat system: 2.5% of the wealth of people and distribute to the poor.
2. Sadaga, give charity
3. Removal of interest, because interest is the impediment to the distribution of wealth.
- Because if you put too much interest compounded on an individual, then they have less money in their hands.
- But if they have more money by removing the interest, then they have more money in their hands to engage in the society enterprenuirships.
So this creates a unique model.
4. Resources in Islamic paradym belong to the people, not to the government.
It is said: natural resources are people not the government
The government delegate the authority to use the resources and give it back to the people.

This is why Saudi Arabia is very unjust!
Because in Saudi Arabia, goverment takes the whole for themselves.
But their own traditions say give it back to people.

So Islam has so much to say about economics
So much and economic values originating from Islamic traditions are actually solving some of these issues.

Example 1:
if you look into Islamic banking, when credit crash happened, they are th eonly banks that came out strongly! And you saw many banks introducing or started talking about Sharia compliant products to show the stability of Islamic systems.

Example 2:
If you look at money in capital model, money is free floating and is not in gold and silver.
Therefore, if you have more money in the society, does not mean you have more wealth. But in Islamic tradition, money has to be contingent in gold or silver or something substantial.
This stabilizes money.

Example 3:
Take Otoman period between 14th and 15th century (read book "Constantinople" by Philip Mansel).
He wrote a letter to some brethren in Europe inviting them land of Islam.

Example 4:
If you look at a story from Turkey. There is big beautiful mosque. When you go inside, you will see two huge baskets made out of marbles.
What used to happen is, they used to fill in with Gold.
So people used to dip their hands really deep, and if you're rich you leave money, if you are poor you take money.
So people do not know if you are taking or you are leaving.
And majority of the time, the baskets were always filled with gold in there.
And this was the first time in history where people had food, shelter and clothing because of this economic porinciple.

And these are values I think we can see in Islamic societies.

But come back to secular societies like ours, the rich take all the resources. They control 80% of the resources

@Kaka, actually this is in the Bible

1 Tim 5:8

Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

You were not an intelligent 7 year old. Why didn't you turn and run? You had the light, running would have been easier for you.

@Mukiri give us a break, do not pretend as if you do not understand what goes on in the mind of 7 year old. You can pretend to be this brave man, but we all know that kids are always kids. You say you should have run, run where? There is no way a 7 year old can outrun a fully grown man in a sprint, especially at night. Intelligent or not.

Back to our discussion:
- there is there is so much money around, but you know what, there are millions of people starving!
- The systems we have in secular soieties are faulty.
- We lack the systems of wealth that focuses on meeting the needs of the people.

I think helping is something we need to rethink in Africa because we seem not to find best ways to help or atleast we are so preoccupied with our own lifes to even think about the plight of people living around us or atleast our own plight.

About three weeks ago, I was enjoying my holiday with a bunch of good friends in a popular spot at the heart of the city and I run into two drunk beautiful white girls, both age 24 yrs and after a couple of drunk people hi5s we exchange numbers and later decide to take the drinking back to my place, me being greedy I decided to ditch my friends so that I can have two girls for myself( I have always wanted a threesome).

The night did not end in a threesome but in a complete reflection of who I am and what is really important in life. These women had spend more than 6 months of their life in poorest part of Africa, including Nairobi, Rwanda and Uganda helping. They were amazed by my life and livelyhood, infact I was embarrased because there I was and I couldn't tell them a single thing I have done to help. I was even more embarrased when they ask me how much I pay for the apartment I was staying in, yes $3500 a month they both are renting an $800 apartment in their home country so that they can travel all the way to help in my country and I am paying $3500 yet my country is starving? Something is not right.

You are not alone @ mawinder, tuko wengi hapa.

The chained thing that Bruce Lee swings in the movies.