Being not an ex-Muslim I have a question.
The Ramadan should start when the new moon can be spotted. Now, it is easy to reckon when that will be. Next New moon will be on July 30th at 18.40 Universal Time. It is also known how much time you will need before you actually see the new moon. I don't know how much, but astronomists will know.
I ask myself why Muslims all over the world don't start Ramadan on the same day, when it can be calculated that easily?
From what i understand it boils down to a few reaons, one reason is just genuine jurisprudence difference in terms of what country should be followed or whether they should take Makkah as the reference point,
then you have political reaons being veiled as jurisprudene reaons, so one Mosque for example would not follow another Mosque if they didn't suck their sheikh's cock,
but what is more ridiculous than this is that generally the new moon has to be sighted by the naked eye, so even if they know by scientific verification that the moon is out but yet its overcast and thus unable to see the new moon, they can't declare ramadhan has started... Others might want to correct me on this, even when i was a Muslim i found this incredibly tedious and couldn't be bothered to research it.