Ramadan begins
Among some groups, and in some parts of the world, Ramadan has already begun; among other groups and in other parts of the world, it's still a day or two off. See Reuters article "Politics, technology can decide timing of Ramadan" and Wikipedia's articles on Ramadan (the religious observances) and Ramadan (the calendar month) for more info about the holiday and the timing.
I mention this partly 'cause I find Ramadan an interesting holiday in general, and partly 'cause I think the impact of modern technology on religion is interesting, and partly to keep reminding myself of the heterogeneity of world cultures, world religions, and Islam itself. (Despite regular mentions of the word "Sunni" and "Shi'ite" in the news, I think it's easy for non-Muslims to fall into the trap of thinking that Islam is one monolithic religion, in which everyone believes the same thing.)
Also partly because I know a lot of Americans think that Ramadan always happens in or around December, that it's a "winter holiday" corresponding to Christmas. In fact, I often get the impression that the greeting "Happy holidays!" (in December) is intended to be faith-neutral, under the supposition that all religions have some sort of holiday around that time of year, when in fact Ramadan overlaps with December (even slightly) in only about a quarter of all years.
So: happy holidays to those who celebrate Ramadan!
