Humanity First: DR MUNTASIR MIR"S EXCELLENT REVIEW ON THE VERSE OF...

Humanity First: DR MUNTASIR MIR"S EXCELLENT REVIEW ON THE VERSE OF...:                   The Light Verse of Surah An-Nur Dr. Mustansir Mir        The 35th verse of the 24th surah of the Qur’an, an-...

DEVIANCE IT IS THE CALL FOR CHANGE

Deviance is any behavior that violates social norms, and is usually of sufficient severity to warrant disapproval from the majority of society. Deviance can be criminal or non‐criminal. The sociological discipline that deals with crime (behavior that violates laws) is criminology (also known as criminal justice). Today, Americans consider such activities as alcoholism, excessive gambling, being nude in public places, playing with fire, stealing, lying, refusing to bathe, purchasing the services of prostitutes, and cross‐dressing—to name only a few—as deviant. People who engage in deviant behavior are referred to as deviants.

The concept of deviance is complex because norms vary considerably across groups, times, and places. In other words, what one group may consider acceptable, another may consider deviant. For example, in some parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Muslim Africa, women are circumcised. Termed clitoridectomy and infibulation, this process involves cutting off the clitoris and/or sewing shut the labia — usually without any anesthesia. In America, the thought of female circumcision, or female genital mutilation as it is known in the United States, is unthinkable; female genital mutilation, usually done in unsanitary conditions that often lead to infections, is done as a blatantly oppressive tactic to prevent women from having sexual pleasure.

A number of theories related to deviance and criminology have emerged within the past 50 years or so. Four of the most well‐known follow.

Differential-association theory

Edwin Sutherland coined the phrase differential association to address the issue of how people learn deviance. According to this theory, the environment plays a major role in deciding which norms people learn to violate. Specifically, people within a particular reference group provide norms of conformity and deviance, and thus heavily influence the way other people look at the world, including how they react. People also learn their norms from various socializing agents—parents, teachers, ministers, family, friends, co‐workers, and the media. In short, people learn criminal behavior, like other behaviors, from their interactions with others, especially in intimate groups.

The differential‐association theory applies to many types of deviant behavior. For example, juvenile gangs provide an environment in which young people learn to become criminals. These gangs define themselves as countercultural and glorify violence, retaliation, and crime as means to achieving social status. Gang members learn to be deviant as they embrace and conform to their gang's norms.

Differential‐association theory has contributed to the field of criminology in its focus on the developmental nature of criminality. People learn deviance from the people with whom they associate. Critics of the differential‐association theory, on the other hand, claim the vagueness of the theory's terminology does not lend itself to social science research methods or empirical validation.

Anomie theory

Anomie refers to the confusion that arises when social norms conflict or don't even exist. In the 1960s, Robert Merton used the term to describe the differences between socially accepted goals and the availability of means to achieve those goals. Merton stressed, for instance, that attaining wealth is a major goal of Americans, but not all Americans possess the means to do this, especially members of minority and disadvantaged groups. Those who find the “road to riches” closed to them experience anomie, because an obstacle has thwarted their pursuit of a socially approved goal. When this happens, these individuals may employ deviant behaviors to attain their goals, retaliate against society, or merely “make a point.”

The primary contribution of anomie theory is its ability to explain many forms of deviance. The theory is also sociological in its emphasis on the role of social forces in creating deviance. On the negative side, anomie theory has been criticized for its generality. Critics note the theory's lack of statements concerning the process of learning deviance, including the internal motivators for deviance. Like differential association theory, anomie theory does not lend itself to precise scientific study.

Control theory

According to Walter Reckless's control theory, both inner and outer controls work against deviant tendencies. People may want—at least some of the time—to act in deviant ways, but most do not. They have various restraints: internal controls, such as conscience, values, integrity, morality, and the desire to be a “good person”; and outer controls, such as police, family, friends, and religious authorities. Travis Hirschi noted that these inner and outer restraints form a person's self‐control, which prevents acting against social norms. The key to developing self‐control is proper socialization, especially early in childhood. Children who lack this self‐control, then, may grow up to commit crimes and other deviant behaviors.

Whereas theory also suggests that people society labels as “criminals” are probably members of subordinate groups, critics argue that this oversimplifies the situation. As examples, they cite wealthy and powerful businesspeople, politicians, and others who commit crimes. Critics also argue that conflict theory does little to explain the causes of deviance. Proponents counter, however, by asserting that the theory does not attempt to delve into etiologies. Instead, the theory does what it claims to do: It discusses the relationships between socialization, social controls, and behavior.

Labeling theory

A type of symbolic interaction, labeling theory concerns the meanings people derive from one another's labels, symbols, actions, and reactions. This theory holds that behaviors are deviant only when society labels them as deviant. As such, conforming members of society, who interpret certain behaviors as deviant and then attach this label to individuals, determine the distinction between deviance and non‐deviance. Labeling theory questions who applies what label to whom, why they do this, and what happens as a result of this labeling.

Powerful individuals within society—politicians, judges, police officers, medical doctors, and so forth—typically impose the most significant labels. Labeled persons may include drug addicts, alcoholics, criminals, delinquents, prostitutes, sex offenders, retarded people, and psychiatric patients, to mention a few. The consequences of being labeled as deviant can be far‐reaching. Social research indicates that those who have negative labels usually have lower self‐images, are more likely to reject themselves, and may even act more deviantly as a result of the label. Unfortunately, people who accept the labeling of others—be it correct or incorrect—have a difficult time changing their opinions of the labeled person, even in light of evidence to the contrary.

William Chambliss in 1973 conducted a classic study into the effects of labeling. His two groups of white, male, high‐school students were both frequently involved in delinquent acts of theft, vandalism, drinking, and truancy. The police never arrested the members of one group, which Chambliss labeled the “Saints,” but the police did have frequent run‐ins with members of the other group, which he labeled the “Roughnecks.” The boys in the Saints came from respectable families, had good reputations and grades in school, and were careful not to get caught when breaking the law. By being polite, cordial, and apologetic whenever confronted by the police, the Saints escaped labeling themselves as “deviants.” In contrast, the Roughnecks came from families of lower socioeconomic status, had poor reputations and grades in school, and were not careful about being caught when breaking the law. By being hostile and insolent whenever confronted by the police, the Roughnecks were easily labeled by others and themselves as “deviants.” In other words, while both groups committed crimes, the Saints were perceived to be “good” because of their polite behavior (which was attributed to their upper‐class backgrounds) and the Roughnecks were seen as “bad” because of their insolent behavior (which was attributed to their lower‐class backgrounds). As a result, the police always took action against the Roughnecks, but never against the Saints.

Proponents of labeling theory support the theory's emphasis on the role that the attitudes and reactions of others, not deviant acts per se, have on the development of deviance. Critics of labeling theory indicate that the theory only applies to a small number of deviants, because such people are actually caught and labeled as deviants. Critics also argue that the concepts in the theory are unclear and thus difficult to test scientifically.

REFERENCES :

CLIFFs NOTES

MAVERICK APPLE's NEW STRATEGY FOR PRESSURIZING MICRO SOFT(courtesy of apple insider

THE GIANTS ARE AT IT AGAIN 

On the eve of  22nd october ,apple launched it's latest upgrade of it's OS system. The "MAVERICK" it's first ever free upgrade

Apple releases OS X 10.9.1 Mavericks with focus on Mail

By AppleInsider Staff

Apple on Monday released the latest maintenance update for OS X 10.9 Mavericks, with a number of changes and enhancements to email handling, as well as tweaks to VoiceOver and the Safari Web browser.

After months of beta testing, Apple has pushed out its Mavericks update to end users, which brings anticipated fixes for the operating system's Mail app and system-specific performance and stability enhancements. Apple seeded the first 10.9.1 beta to developers in November and released the last build on Dec. 3.

For its first Mavericks point update, Apple concentrates on fixing issues with Gmail, Smart Mailboxes and group name handling in the built-in Mail app. When OS X 10.9 Mavericks first launched, users complained that the new Mail app did not support a number of Gmail functions. Apple quickly issued a standalone patch for the problem.

Improvements were also made to Smart Mailboxes and Mail search, while an issue that prevented contact groups from working properly has been addressed.

Outside of Mail, OS X 10.9.1 brings a fix for VoiceOver that prevented the service from speaking sentences containing emoji characters, resolves an issue that prevented iLife and iWork apps from updating on non-English systems and a bug that would cause multiple prompts to unlock the "Local items" keychain.

Finally, the release includes Safari 7.0.1, which brings fixes for filling out text fields and adds periodic updating to the Shared Links sidebar.

Full release notes:

The OS X Mavericks v10.9.1 Update is recommended for all OS X Mavericks users. It improves the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac.

This update includes:

• Improved support for Gmail in OS X Mail, and fixes for users with custom Gmail settings Improves the reliability of Smart Mailboxes and search in Mail
• Fixes an issue that prevented contact groups from working properly in Mail
• Resolves an issue that prevented VoiceOver from speaking sentences that contain emoji
• Fixes an issue that prevented iLife and iWork apps from updating on non-English systems
• Addresses an issue that may cause multiple prompts to unlock "Local items" keychain
• Addresses an issue that may cause Japanese keyboards to retain a previously used language
• Resolves issue that prevents a Contact group name from populating the address field
• Includes Safari 7.0.1
  
  • Fixes an issue that could cause Safari to become unresponsive when filling out forms on fedex.com, stubhub.com, and other websites Improves Credit Card
  • Autofill compatibility with websites
  • Improves VoiceOver compatibility with facebook.com

Updates Shared Links periodically when open in the Safari Sidebar

Apple's latest OS X 10.9.1 can be downloaded via Software Update or Apple's Support Downloads webpage. In addition to the general OS X 10.9.1 release, Apple has also issued a system-specific version for the late 2013 MacBook Pro with Retina display.

DR MUNTASIR MIR"S EXCELLENT REVIEW ON THE VERSE OF LIGHT

  
  
  
  
 

The Light Verse of Surah An-Nur

Dr. Mustansir Mir

   
 

The 35th verse of the 24th surah of the Qur’an, an-Nur, is known as the Light Verse (ayat an-nur). The verse is so called because of the remarkable parable of light---Divine Light--it contains. Here is a translation of the verse, followed by commentary, which is based mainly on the interpretation of Amin Ahsan Islahi in his "Tadabbur-i-Qur’an" (8 vols.; Lahore, 1973-80), 4:538 ff. Translation Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth! His light, in terms of a similitude, is like a niche in which there is a lamp--the lamp is in a glass, the glass as if it were a brilliant star--that is being kindled by [the oil of] a blessed olive tree that is neither [of the] eastern nor [of the] western [side]: its oil would all but light up, even though no fire touched it. Light upon light! Allah guides to His light whomever He wishes. And Allah strikes similitudes for people. And Allah has knowledge of everything. Commentary 1. The parable is made up of five elements: niche, lamp, glass, oil, and fire. Of these, the lamp oil, and fire are basic to the parable, the niche and glass are--important--ancillaries. A lamp is a device for lighting an area; oil is the material needed for combustion; and fire lights the lamp. The niche, a recess at a certain height in the wall, is meant to diffuse the light of the lamp widely in the house. The glass encasement, besides helping in the diffusion, makes the light bearable. Already, we can see that such a lamp must give bright light. It is to such light that the light of Allah is likened to. 2. Another detail needs to be considered. The tree from which the oil comes is said to be one that is neither of the eastern nor of the western side, and also one whose oil would, it seems, start burning even if no fire touched it. This is a description of the purity of the oil. To the Arabs, the best trees in a garden were those which stood in the middle of the garden and, unlike the trees on the outer sides--east, west, north, or south--were not exposed to excessive heat and were safe from flood water, receiving just the right amounts of sun and rain. Such trees were prized for the high quality of their yield. In the parable, accordingly, the oil of the tree, it is implied, has such a high degree of purity that it would catch fire even when fire is at some distance from it and has not made contact with it. 3. We have, as the verse says, a parable before us. The parable is not meant to be a static picture so that the verse does nothing more than establish a likeness. The notion of ‘guidance’ becomes important here: ‘Allah guides to His light whomever He wishes.’ The parable, in other words, makes a point about guidance, and this must now be explained. To begin with, let us look at the opening statement, which serves as a topic sentence: ‘Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth.’ The meaning of this statement becomes clear when the closing statement is kept in mind: ‘Allah has knowledge of everything.’ ‘Light’ and ‘Knowledge’ are the two keywords we get from these two statements. The verse is saying that Allah is the source of all true knowledge, and that it is knowledge drawn from this fount that lights up the heavens and the earth, dispelling the darkness of ignorance, and doubt. Conversely, the verse is saying that without Allah the world does not make sense and remains a dark enigma. 4. In this context of guidance, the ‘brilliant star’ may mean one of the bright stars that guide travellers on their way, or it may refer, if indirectly, to the North Star (which also guides). The epithet ‘blessed’ also acquires the twin meanings of ‘useful’ in a straightforward material sense (oil of the blessed tree lights the lamp) and ‘beneficial’ in a spiritual sense. 5. In such a context, again, to belong to an eastern or a western side would mean to be attached to partial truth. It should be remembered that, to the Christians, the eastern side of the Temple of Jerusalem was sacred because Mary took up residence in that part of the Temple (see Qur’an 19:16), whereas the Jews, in opposition to the Christians, came to regard the western side of the Temple as sacred. As such, the tree that is in the middle may be equated with Islam, for, the verse would be suggesting, Islam does not suffer from any imbalance or lopsidedness. 6. What does the phrase ‘Light upon light!’ mean? It might mean ‘layers of light,’ in the sense that the light of Allah is so intense that it can only be conceived of as two or more layers of light, one on top of another. But it might also mean ‘one kind of light upon another,’ in which case we shall be dealing with two kinds of light, one of which would be the light of Allah. But what would be the other light? Again, bear in mind that the context of the verse is that of guidance --- Allah providing guidance to humans. If so, then the other light must belong to humans, and must refer to that innate sense of the right path with which, according to the Qur’an, Allah endows all humans, and which has been called fitrah in the Qur’an and the Sunnah. This innate sense of the right path constitutes, then, man’s ‘internal’ light of guidance, as opposed to the ‘external’ light of guidance that comes to him from Allah. The preposition ‘on’ would thus imply reinforcement: a person who has preserved his inner flame of guidance and saved it from being extinguished is further confirmed in his guidance of Allah through His light. 7. Now we are in a position to state the essential thesis of the verse: Those who guard the light of their fitrah, come to possess an internal light which is reinforced or argumented by the external light of revelation, the result being light upon light. 8. But this is an important thesis of the Islamic philosophy of religion. To borrow a scientific image, we can say that, according to Islam, revelation that comes from Allah is like a positive current that comes into contact with the negative current of the pure human heart and thus produces the electricity of faith, or, to revert to the terms of the parable, the flame of faith. Since the lamp is enclosed in glass, the flame is steady and is not moved or put out by the wind, which is to say that the good man is always content, possessing as he does the nafs-i-mutma’innah, the ‘steady soul’, and is not swayed by difficult or trying circumstances, but remains patient and grateful under all kinds of circumstances. The glass, moreover, is clear and shiny, and thus helps to spread the light in all its abundance, which is to say that the true faith of a good man becomes a source of guidance to others, enabling them to share in its light. The oil which feeds the lamp is said to be extracted from an olive tree that was planted not at the edge of the garden --- ‘neither of the east nor of the west’ --- but right in the middle of it, so that, being source against the fury of the elements, it has yielded the purest kind of oil. The tree, or its oil, represents the uncorrupted human fitrah, and such fitrah, because of its purity, is quick to catch the fire when it is presented with the divine message. And so when the oil --- that is to say, the inner goodness of a man’s heart-does come into contact with fire --- that is to say, with divine guidance --- the result is ‘light upon light.’ Possessing this ‘double light,’ one sees the heavens and the earth lit up, acquiring the master key to all knowledge and understanding, for, as the opening part of the verse says: ‘Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth.’

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