Btw, from wikipedia "Some Muslims leave the name "Allāh" untranslated in English. [28] Sometimes this comes from a zeal for the Arabic text of the Qur'an and sometimes with a more or less conscious implication that the God that Jews and Christians worship is not really true in it the full sense."
Those are the key words. LOST and CONFUSED. He kept looking over to Bill like a kid looking to take candy from an older sibling.
What did Les make his money in? I can't believe a man that successful not being able to speak in front of a crowd.
I don't think Les was going to make a speech. He was gonna introduce Olajuwon and forgot/didn't know about the rafters thing. Bill wanted to get that in before Olajuwon would speak.
I think he was speaking fine. It was the fact that Bill came and nabbed his Mike that bothered him. Anyway, I think Les is a good owner, and he wants the Rockets to win a championship even if it costs him money. By the way if you read robbie's thread, you'd know that Marblehead is doing terrible right now. He's lost most of his net worth in the subprime debacle.
Umm...what the heck are you talking about? That's quite a reach there. He said "God" because it means the same thing. "Allah" is Arabic for "God"...literally. Arabs of different faiths also refer to God as "Allah". Hope that clears it...
The word Allah comes straight from the Islamic faith. They have always used it. It wasn't part of the Arabic language for a long time but eventually Islam became so prevelent in the Middle East that 95% of people were Muslim. Thus Allah just came to mean God in Arabic. The word comes from the Islamic faith and not the other way around.
You're absolutely correct. Allah is the name of God used by most non-Arab Muslims as well. Persians say Khuda to address God but they use the term Allah for all prayers as the Islamic prayers are always said in Arabic.
You're both wrong. That's not true at all. The term "Allah" was used by pagan Meccans in Pre-Islamic Arabia as a reference to the creator-god (in fact, it was often the word of choice to describe the 'moon god'). The word was merely adopted and redefined by muslims of the day -- redefined to mean the 'One, Supreme' God in the tradition of monotheism, and in stark contrast to how the term was used by the pagan Meccans of the day. Jewish and Christian Arabs today still refer to God as 'Allah'. And how individual people choose to refer to 'Him' is besides the point, that's personal preference and in some cases muslims might feel that it's more 'authentic' to use the term 'Allah', but it really isn't. I studied pre-Islamic Arabian poetry (which the Arabs had always been known for), and in their literature/poetry the term 'Allah' was used, although it meant something different to them, and in many cases 'Allah' was just one of the gods, they had other names for other gods (sort of like the Greek gods).
You mean like Clyde referring to Shaq as the Big Aristotle on at least three occasions during the game on Friday night? Yes, Clyde, Shaq is a huge, super-sized version of a Greek philosopher. I was begging for Bill to at least lean over and say "Don't you mean Adonis?" Ah, well, either way I am sure in Clyde's mind that Shaq is a consumate professional.
You are correct the term Allah was used by Pagan Meccans,in the context you mentioned however there a large number of Jewish and Christian Arabs who do not use the term Allah for God.
I understand, again, personal preference. There are some who might feel it more 'authentic' to refer to Him in the language of the scripture they adhere to. It's really besides the point, I am just debunking the myth that Islam somehow 'coined' the word. The word was used in pre-Islam and is more "Arabic" than "Islamic"...just wanted to clarify.
I don't mind Bill being the one to introduce the Hall of Fame jersey, but i thought it was rude of him to take the mic and interrupt Les Alexander AS he was shaking Olajuwon's hand. I'm sure Les wanted to say something to the Dream, but he didn't get a chance because that's when Bill took the mic AND said something to Les. Very unprofessional and uncharacteristic of Bill...but what can you expect from a guy that spends half of the season alongside the commentator Clyde Drexler.
I have to disagree.This was a once in a lifetime moment that was defined by a period of time that began looong before Les came on the scene.From UH on through the Rocket years....It didn't need to be butchered by a guy that isn't a pro and a native Houstonian......Good job Bill!
even if bill rightfully deserves the honor, kinda rude and unprofessional to insert himself in the moment. les always looks confused, but that was definite WTF reaction from him
Why are people talking about religion? I think Les' awkward moments are funny. During the Mutumbo speech, he walked up to Dieke while he was speaking and shook his hand to walk away during the speech, but Mutumbo thought that he had to wrap it up when he clearly wasn't ready yet.
