sexual revolution

""...during the last 20 years or so Turkey has ingested so much American culture that it has experienced a sexual revolution that most of the Arab world hasn’t..."" (thanks Louay)

arab oil money

"WOLFGANG PUCK is in town from Beverly Hills to cook for YOUSEF AL OTAIBA, ambassador from the United Arab Emirates, where more U.S. Navy ships are ported than any other foreign country. The ambassador (who was G’town classmates with Norah O’Donnell and knows the Morrells) hosted 14 young Washingtonians for dinner and convo at his McLean home, followed by Game 7 (and a life-size Kobe) on his 103-inch TV screen. What Puck whipped up: 1) terrine of foie gras with toasted brioche, seared foie gras with cherry chutney, and mousse on apricot tartlet (Riesling, Hirtzberger, “Singerriedel,” Austria 2004); 2) seared wild salmon with cucumber raita and sweet pea puree (Chardonnay, Littorai, “Mays Canyon,” California 2006); 3) risotto with porcini mushrooms (pinot noir, Clos De Tart, “Grand Cru,” Burgundy 1995); 4) veal Milanese (Barolo, Oddero, Italy 2000); 5) slow braised Kobe short ribs and grilled Kobe New York (cabernet sauvignon, Beaulieu Vineyard, “Georges de Latour,” Napa 2001); 6) strawberry shortcake, chocolate raspberry soufflé and peach cobbler (Grüner Veltliner Eiswein, Anton Bauer, Austria).
GUESTS INCLUDED Bill Burton, Laura Burton Capps, Helene Cooper, Josh Earnest, Betsy Fischer, Jonathan Karl, Ryan Lizza, Norah O’Donnell, Rep. Aaron Schock, Jamal Simmons, Jim VandeHei, Natalie Wyeth and Jessica Yellin. " (thanks Khelil)

The Nation magazine hosts opposition to boycott of Israel

This is a comment under the article: "I am surprised that the author claims Israeli academia is progressive. The reason Mr. Avivshai does [not] name a single progressive Israeli academic organization that opposes the occupation is because there are none. This is why Israeli academia should be shunned on the institutional level across the board." (thanks Richard)

Recruiting terrorists

The Israeli terrorist army is recruiting terrorists from around the world. (thanks Sellam)

Racism, harassment, and persecution of Sudanese in Lebanon

What the Lebanese Public Security Department did to a Sudanese charity benefit. (thanks Farah)

Hajj Amin and Hitler and Gilbert Achqar

My weekly article in Al-Akhbar: "When Gilbert Achqar Invaded the hearts of Israelis"

Israeli propaganda rag is mad at Al-Akhbar

This Israeli propaganda rag is mad at al-Akhbar, and to get back at Al-Akhbar it refers to it as "Hizbullah affiliated." Maybe they will publish a picture of editor-in-chief, leftist Khalid Saghiyyah, meeting with Hitler. I take what I said back. I don't think that they referred to Al-Akhbar as Hizbullah-affiliated to be mean. Oh, no. Israeli experts on the Middle East are just dumb and ignorant. And they are sincere in their ignorance and stupidity. I mean, they can't help it. Furthermore, their Arabic always sucks. When they see "workers" they read Iran. (thanks Lidia)

corruption and sectarianism and Hizbullah

Critique of Hizbullah in As-Safir (thanks Rami)

banned in Beirut

"A month ago in Beirut, Lebanon, a place I supposedly think of as my home, Eileen Khatchadourian’s song Zartir Vortyag was banned from the airwaves. Goodness forbids the Lebanese to offend the Turks. The song is a call of a mother to go fight the enemy, the enemy is not named but the Lebanese general security feared that the Turks might consider it as an Armenian uprising, pathetic to say the least, and no I am not surprised none of you haven’t heard of this." (thanks Nadine)

Racism is cute in the Israeli press

Why this country should not be supported--according to the Jerusalem Post: "The Ivory Coast is 60% Muslim." Can you imagine the uproar if an Arab wrote that about a country with a Jewish segment of the population? (thanks Paul)

Flash: the Israeli lobby discovers the Armenian genocide

I mean, there is no more immoral, cynical, opportunistic, hypocritical and deceptive movement like Zionism. Really.

Introduction to Israeli terrorism

"Imi introduced the discipline to Israel in the late 1940s after initially developing it on the streets of his Jewish neighborhood in Bratislava, a city in Eastern Europe that saw increasing anti-Semitic violence in the 1930s. He eventually immigrated to Israel and became a physical training instructor for the Israel Defense Forces. Krav Maga soon gained prominence and became the official hand-to-hand combat technique used by the IDF." (thanks Sarah)

Al Akhbar contaminated by Nahar silliness

"Ibn Rushd" sent this to me under the above headline.

Repression that does not bother the West

"A law passed by the Tunisian parliament this week is designed to silence government critics and human rights activists, Amnesty International has warned."

If these were Muslims...

"The Ashkenazi students of the ultra-Orthodox Beit Yaakov girls' school in Immanuel stayed home on Wednesday, yet again, as part of an organized protest against the decision by the Education Ministry and High Court to end the segregation between Sephardi and Ashkenazi students." (thanks Melani)

What do Lebanese think

"In perhaps Pew Research Center's most shocking finding, Obama earned a 35 percent approval rating in Lebanon, while 39 percent expressed support for suicide bombings. The contrast was first highlighted online by Josh Rogin."

If he were Muslim....

"A Cornell doctor is performing partial clitoris removal on young girls and then using a vibrator to test their sensation in follow-up tests, a shocking column by syndicated columnist Dan Savage asserted Wednesday.Dr. Dix P. Poppas has been performing the procedure on girls older than five for several years, according to 2007 paper (PDF) documenting the research. The doctor and patients' parents allegedly believe that the girls' clitorises are too large and create too much sensation". (thanks Olivia)

The Jerusalem Post figures Obama out

"Led by US President Barack Obama, the West has cast its lot with Hamas. It is not surprising that Obama is siding with Hamas. His close associates are leading members of the pro-Hamas Free Gaza outfit. Obama’s friends, former Weather Underground terrorists Bernadine Dohrn and William Ayres participated in a Free Gaza trip to Egypt in January. Their aim was to force the Egyptians to allow them into Gaza with 1,300 fellow Hamas supporters. Their mission was led by Code Pink leader and Obama fund-raiser Jodie Evans. Another leading member of Free Gaza is James Abourezk, a former US senator from South Dakota."

Aljazeera's Ziyarah Khassah

I taped more than 2 hours and a half for a profile/interview show, Ziyarah Khassah on Aljazeerah Arabic channel. The program dealt with my childhood and my views. I will let you know about airtime. Al-Jazeera's production team couldnt find baby pictures of me at my mother's house. I suggested that they use baby pictures of mini-Hariri.

Orientalist cliches

Such Orientalist generalizations about the natives find currency in Western media. The writer is annoyingly arrogant and feigns a morally superior position. He alone, he tells you, understtands what freedom means: "Sadly, much of Egyptian society operates this way. The entire concept of having the "personal freedom" to do what you wish, provided you don't harm others, is nonexistent. Even those who claim to be proponents of individual liberty misunderstand the concept. It's about time that a debate on individual liberties started, for we live in a society where social repression and hypocrisy have risen to sickening levels."

AUB

I will offer concluding remarks at the workshop on the Quest for Peace in the Middle East. It is next Tuesday (check details to the right.)

Ahmad Fatfat

Comrade Khalid on Ahmad Fatfat.

Gilbert Zuwayn

Comrade Khalid writes on Lebanese MP, Gilbert Zuwayn.

another genius in Lebanon

"Artistic genius of Lebanon celebrated in New York" (thanks Khelil)

when Israel investigates itself

""This committee is on such a low rung I hesitate whether it can be called an investigation committee at all," said Moshe Negbi, a legal commentator on Israel Radio.He questioned whether the committee, which will not be permitted to question soldiers or commanders involved in the raid, will be able to determine whether top military or political leaders acted properly." When you read "painful soul-searching" in an article on Israel, u know where the article is heading.

I mean, the label killer is most likely literally true, as he had served in the Israeli killing army

"The University of California at Irvine has suspended its Muslim Student Union for one year and placed it on disciplinary probation for an additional year after 12 of its members called Israel's ambassador to the United States a "killer" during a speech on Campus in February." (thanks Layali)

questioning the widow

"Israeli security services Monday summoned for questioning the widow and three young daughters of the Palestinian man killed last Friday by Israeli Border Police at a “flying checkpoint” they had set up in Wadi Joz."

queer Arab organizations against Zionism

"We, the undersigned queer Arab organizations, are appalled by the US Social Forum’s decision to allow Stand with Us to utilize the event as a platform to pinkwash Israel’s crimes in the region. Stand with Us is cynically manipulating the struggle of queer people in the Middle East through its workshop entitled “LGBTQI Liberation in the Middle East.”Stand with Us is a self-declared Zionist propaganda organization which describes itself as “an international education organization that ensures that Israel’s side of the story is told in communities, campuses, libraries, the media and churches through brochures, speakers, conferences, missions to Israel, and thousands of pages of Internet resources”" (thanks Wissam)

Cute: a small army

"The State Department is quietly forming a small army to protect diplomatic personnel in Iraq after U.S. military forces leave the country at the end of 2011, taking their firepower with them." (thanks Dina)

slavery in Lebanon

"Lebanese employers confiscate the passports of their foreign wards and subject them to the spectrum of abuse, from beatings and sexual harassment to the withholding of wages and confinement. A number of nongovernmental organizations have released countless reports – entirely verified and credible reports, we should add – of foreign workers driven to attack their employers, to flee unbearable conditions and even to commit suicide." (thanks Olivia)

Autocratic monarchies that you like

"The case was brought eight months after Bouachrine received a four-year suspended prison sentence over publishing a cartoon that depicted the wedding of Prince Moulay Ismail, King, Mohammed VI’s cousin. The police shut down Akhbar al-Youm in September 2009 after the cartoon was published. Khalid Gueddar, the cartoonist, was also given a four-year suspended sentence. The newspaper was re-launched in December 2009 under a new name, Akhbar al-Youm al-Maghribia, but it is still referred to popularly asAkhbar al-Youm. “The Moroccan authorities are clearly using criminal charges to silence Taoufik Bouachrine,” said CPJ Middle East and North Africa Program Coordinator Mohamed Abdel Dayem. “This is yet another in a series of politicized verdicts against the independent press. We urge the appeals court to show that there is no place in a democracy for such misuse of the courts by overturning Bouachrine’s conviction.” (thanks Rima)

humane killers

"Speaking at a Haifa University ceremony Tuesday, where he was given the Haifa University Board of Trustees Leadership Award Ceremony, Peres said that "the soldiers were beaten just because they did not want to kill anyone."Any other army would have immediately used their guns. What we saw was an exemplar of troops who preferred getting hurt over hurting someone else." So according to this war criminals, the victims wanted more of them to be killed. (thanks Christopher)

human curve

"General Patton reports that the Egyptian capital as of December 1943 is "really a disgusting place. ... The Egyptian peasant, who abounds in large numbers, is distinctly lower than the Sicilian whom up until that time I considered the bottom of the human curve." (thanks Nir)

Legal action against Israel is not enough

"A UK-registered charity said on Tuesday it was planning legal action in Britain on behalf ofactivists who were detained by Israel after a deadly raid on their Gaza-bound aid flotilla last month.Mary Nazzal-Batayneh, president of the Palestine Legal Aid Fund (PLAF), told AFP her group would represent those passengers "wishing to assert their rights through legal action against Israel."" (thanks Yasmine)

The Lebanese Army

As I was driving in South Lebanon, i kept running into checkpoints of the Lebanese Army. Somebody needs to tell me what that Army is doing in South Lebanon. I mean, will it stay and resist and defend next time Israel attacks Lebanon?

Daily Star versus Al-Akhbar

I started my day yesterday by running at the beach into Jamil Mroue, the publisher of the Daily Star. I told him my views of the Daily Star and he told me his views of Al-Akhbar. The conversation was off the record.

Lebanon and Saudi Arabia

Nothing cracks me up more than when some Lebanese think that Lebanon is more enlightened on the gender question than Saudi Arabia.

When Zionists preach to Palestinians

"As'ad Abu Khalil ("Palestine gains little from diplomacy," Webviews, May 24) complains that the "new" Palestinian strategy -- diplomacy -- "has yielded few tangible results." Considering the evidence of 1,200 years of Islamic history, that is not surprising."

The poor at AUH

I asked a medical technician at AUH today: do you ever see poor people here? She said: we do, but infrequently. She explained that most people (upper classes) come here for preventive reasons, while the very poor come with very advanced stages of disease. She said that they tend to be very obese and very heavy smokers too.

US AID in Lebanon

A medical technician at the American University Hospital told me this today. She said that all medical machines in her section carry a sticker of "US AID: From the American People" stickers. She said that the AUH paid at least 50% of the amount and yet the US embassy insisted that all stickers be placed and that a team of photographers take pictures of the "US gifts" with the entire medical team.

Children of Gaza

"“Gaza” is an abstraction to most Israelis, including [partisans of Israel like] Sen. Charles Schumer of New York. A majority of the 1.5 million Gazans is not even from Gaza, but rather is from what is now Israel." (thanks Olivia)

Those poor Israeli....war criminals/killers/occupiers

"Shmuel the gunner, Assi the commander, Herzl the loader and Yigal the driver are the tank’s crew, four 20-something boys who have never fought in a war and are now operating a killing machine. Though trying to remain brave, the boys are pushed to their mental limits as they struggle to survive in a situation they cannot contain, and try not to lose their humanity in the chaos of war...The cathartic process of writing and directing LEBANON allowed Maoz to finally free himself of the events that he had experienced twenty-five years earlier." (thanks Robert)

Anti-Semitic I-Phone

"But many Israelis, here and in the U.S., took deep offense and accused Apple, the company that makes the iPhone, of "political propaganda."One Jewish advocacy group, American Israeli Action Coalition, called the changes "extremely hurtful to the American Israeli community" and said they "smack of anti-Semitism." Israel's U.S. ambassador reportedly sent a letter of protest to Apple chief Steve Jobs and Yahoo chief Carol Bartz." (thanks Dina)

Prince Muqrin

US/Saudi- supported Shi`ite personalities and organizations are as popular as George W. Bush among Arabs/Muslims.

Secularism

Secularism (or some mild version of it) is on the rise among youths here. Some secular oriented youths--or youths inclined to "sin"--flee Hizbullah towards Amal Movement.