Archive | July, 2007

katching!

I’m not going to bother to write too much about this as it happens again and again and they never learn, or maybe they actually do and it is the price they have to pay in order to keep their seats. Proof really that the US President and his whole government enchilada are simply the best salesmen and women the world has ever known.

We give them oil at preferred rates, they allow us to buy their weapons which we can’t use but are very adept at obsoleting before we even learn they are actually in our stores and someone (or more) keeps a fat commission – which is a wholly legitimate business practice of course.

This sales cycle this time has been aided and abetted by our dear beloved big neighbour to the East with dickheads like Shariatmadari fanning the flames and the pipers shriek and point their fingers across the swamp dancing frantically about like lunatics: “see they want to take us over, we have to protect ourselves from those Safawi turbaned mad men!” Completely forgetting that the best way to solve perceived problems with neighbours is discussion and engagement, not buying more useless weapons which will undoubtedly escalate mistrust and lead to an arms race the only winners of which are the arms manufacturers.

“Yeah,” they say, “look they are supporting Hamas, Hizbollah, Nahr Al-Bared, Al-Qaeda, and more that we don’t know about. They want to topple our governments, we have to prepare for them attacking us!”

You fools! They don’t have to attack us. They are not the danger. The real danger is your geriatric autocratic non-participatory and exclusionary rule!

What “they” might to do is just egg our people on by simply (and ironically) pointing out that we should demand that our regimes be made more democratic. Come on admit it, the prospect makes you shake in your Jesus boots, doesn’t it? Well, get used to it guys because inclusion and sharing power are the only factors that will allow your tenuous rule to last.

So what are we to do? Beg the Americans to arm us to the teeth, completely and docilely acquiescing to their requests, or should we think for a change and apply logic to our relationships, or should just plonk down our and future generations much needed funds to buy weapons of no use? That’s always the easiest well trusted option isn’t it? Throw money at a problem and hope that it will go away; if it doesn’t, just throw more money at it.

Shouldn’t that money be used for infrastructural projects, for education and health, save it for the future generations who will not enjoy the benefits of the oil dollar?

Nah, throw it at Mr. Bush and Co. and beg like dogs with tongues lolling about, paws up, waiting for that absent minded scratch on the head and the occasional pat with the soothing growl: “good boy, down, stay!”

Why is it so difficult for grown men – those we choose to call “our leaders” – to engage, sit around a table with a genuine will to solve problems rather than exacerbate them? Is it too difficult to comprehend that discussing regional problems sincerely provides lasting peace much more than whatever weapons could provide?

Didn’t we have enough of wars in this God forsaken region?

Bloggers’ Gathering this Thursday

A quick reminder that the gathering is happening this Thursday evening (Aug 2nd) at 7pm in Al-Bareh Café. On the agenda this time is a suggestion to move the meetings from Thursday evenings to Saturday mornings and any other thing you wish to talk about.

Congrats Iraq!

Iraq’s captain Younis Mahmood header clinched the Asian Cup championship to a well-deserving Iraq!

The final (which I did not watch but just as happy for the result) between two Arab giants Saudi and Iraq must have been a nail-biter, but as we are all rooting for some good news for Iraq and Iraqis I am very happy for their win which undoubtedly will unite a chaotic country and people. I just hope that the terrorists will at least give Iraqis some respite to celebrate this victory, but knowing the bastards, their motive is anything but unity. I pray that they will be overcome and give Iraq back her soul.

Hard luck to our Saudi neighbours too. They undoubtedly have played a good match too.

The Iraqi team celebrating
I know this picture looks very gay, but there is a better one after the break! :lol:
Continue Reading →

Divided Island?

Al-Jazeera English’s Abdulrahman Al-Shayyal produced a short documentary to explore the sectarian divide in Bahrain. He came and interviewed me amongst many other Bahrainis to find out the underlying reason that these tensions exist.

Here’s the segment he produced:

Bahraini wins Miss Arab World contest!

Bahraini Wafa Yaqoob crowned Miss Arab World 2007 in Cairo

Bahrain’s Wafa Yaqoop beat 19 other candidates to win the Miss Arab World 2007 title on Friday.

Yaqoop is Bahrain’s first ever contestant in the event.

Candidates to the contest held in Egypt came from 16 Arab countries, including Egypt, Lebanon, Sudan, Iraq, Libya and Palestine.

The jury consisted of fashion, beauty and tourism experts as well as academies and the finalists were chosen from more than 10,000 participants who registered through internet.

The first Miss Arab World Contest was held in Egypt’s Red Sea resort of Sharm El Shaikh last year.
Gulf News

Good on ya Wafa! Much congratulations and onwards to better and bigger things.
Continue Reading →