₦airaland Forum

Of course all eyes will be on this team all season long. The trio of stars hooking up on the same team is becoming a theme in the league. The Celtics did it a while back when KG and Shuttlesworth decided to take their talents to Boston to help out P.P. The surprise of Rondo really put them over the edge. KG said he wished he had made that move early in his career, and now LeBron and Bosh will get that opportunity. Of course, it is the starting five, not three, so the other guys have to step up. Chalmers is a better option than they had last year with Alston, and big Z at Center knows how to play with LeBron.

Even though Yao will be limited to just 24 minutes per game this year, it is nice to see him get back onto the court. Brooks was one of the most improved players a year ago, and Kevin Martin is a solid offensive weapon. Battier is still a great defensive leader, and Scola is one of the best power forwards in the game today. With a healthy Yao, Houston should see some quality wins this year.

Derrick Rose is one of the best young point guards in the league today, and he has some new toys to play with. Carlos Boozer (among others) has made the move to Chicago, and will provide them with an inside presence. Brewer may not be one of the best shooting guards in the game, but he will fit perfectly in this system. Deng is a slightly underrated player who will flourish in this environment with the new additions. Noah is there to play scrappy defense and pull down rebounds, something he does very well.

Pretty hard to leave these guys off the list. Fisher is another year older, but with the signing of Steve Blake, look for Fisher to provide more veteran leadership. He could use a push in training camp from Blake. Bynum is still very young, and if he can stay healthy, he will be a major force in the paint. Gasol is one of the best big men out there, no worries with him. Artest is still a pesky defender, one of the league's best. His offense has improved, and overall he is a better player. I don't really need to tell you about Kobe Bryant.

Obviously this all depends on how two things go over in Portland. The first is the health of Greg Oden. His career is well documented with his injuries, and all anyone wants to see is him healthy, out on the floor. Andre Miller isn't one of the top point guards in the game, but he is a solid passer and takes care of the ball. Brandon Roy is still one of the most underrated players in the league. LaMarcus Aldridge is a solid player inside and out, no worries with him. Oh yea, the other thing that will depend on Portland getting a surprising spot in this list, is the play of Wesley Mathews. If he can win the starting job in training camp, he should be a solid contributor for this team next season.

Religious leaders gathered in Houston on Saturday to condemn a Florida church's campaign to burn hundreds of Qurans later this week.

Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, Christian, Sikh, Zoroastrian and Muslim clergy spoke to about 120 people at an interfaith symposium held at the Baitus Samee Mosque in northwest Houston. They discussed the sanctity of scriptures and denounced the ill-treatment of religious books.

"Even if it is a human document merely inspired by encounters of the divine, or generations of my people's wisdom passed down and kept sacred, it is still sacred," Rabbi Jonathan Siger told the audience.

Notorious past

The symposium was held in response to the Dove World Outreach Center's announcement of a "Burn a Quran Day" on Sept. 11 at their church property in Gainesville, Fla.

The non-denominational church gained notoriety in 2009 for its "Islam is of the Devil" signs posted on the church's lawn.

"Islam is a very oppressive religion, and the Quran is definitely a dangerous book," said Terry Jones, pastor of the Dove World Outreach Center. "We want to send a clear message to radical Muslims, that in the U.S., we are not interested in shariah law and shariah courts. We have a Constitution, and we hope to uphold it."

Though the church was denied a burning permit by Gainesville authorities, members still plans to burn "a couple hundred Qurans" on the evening of Sept. 11 to commemorate those killed in the World Trade Center attacks.

A radical response

Jones agreed that burning books may be perceived as radical, but it is the only way to get their message across, he said.

"The radical Muslims are not interested in dialogue or peace," Jones said. "Their religion is so radical that they are willing to die for the cause, so our message has to be this radical in order for them to understand."

The campaign has gained more than 7,000 fans on its Facebook page, and organizers expect several hundred participants at the event.

Many panel members at the interfaith symposium expressed personal and religious disapproval of the church's actions.

"I'm absolutely horrified and beyond disgusted at their behavior," said Siger of Congregation Jewish Community.

Siger, a former Gainesville resident, likened the burnings to the Holocaust.

"The Jews, particularly, are very familiar with book burnings," Siger said. "First they burn books, then they burn people."

Pastor Dale Inman of Calvary Road Baptist Church said not only will the burnings cause hate, but the event also goes against biblical teachings.

"The words of the Bible says that 'All men shall know whom are my disciples because of your love, one for another,' and I don't find burning the Quran a way of promoting friendship and unity amongst people," said Inman, a panel member at the event.

Similar texts

The irony of Christians burning the Quran, he said, is that the Quran and Bible have many similarities.

"Many Christians don't know that there are many stories in the Quran that can be found directly out of the Bible; the stories of Adam and Eve, Noah, the flood," he said. "There are areas that are different, but there are a lot of the same stories."

While the Muslim community condemns the actions of the church, symposium co-organizer Dawood Munir said he doesn't believe burning the Quran will devalue the book in any way.

"The burning event is promoting bitterness, but it will not hurt the Quran," said Munir, president of the Cypress chapter of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. "By burning a paper and burning a book, it only hurts the emotions, but it cannot burn the teachings which are in the heart of the people."

Central to the belief of Muslims, Munir said, is that the Quran is the literal word of God and therefore God himself will protect his book. "So we're not too worried," Munir said.

Siger told participants that he's pleased the Houston community rejected the bait of hatred and came together to share their love of scripture with mutual respect.

philip0906:
we only read it on d pages of d newspaper and thats where it ends. . .

Dis Guy:
Babapupa, what happened to the 'alternative' route why is that suddenly being tolled as against the earlier announcement/agreement