Monday, April 28, 2008

Re3'ef el 3esh ashal wla 7amam el seba7a?!



To those of you who do not already know, there is an add that has been becoming very popular the past few days. The add is for "swimming pools", describing how easy it is to install a swimming pool in your Villa as if it’s the only thing that’s missing in the average Egyptian's life !!

I personally believe that this add would provoke anyone listening to it regardless of the social standard. It reflects how the media can sometimes seem as far as can be from the people. I mean we are facing a bread crisis "azmat re3'ef el 3esh" a real life crisis that without an exaggeration can be threatening to the security and stability of our country so excuse me if the talk about swimming pools bothers me.

The time has come that the average Egyptian citizen is unable to get a decent piece of bread. That’s a crisis that relates to the flour and wheat crisis because we don't grow our own food and that’s the result.

Its not that the world prices have grown very high or the global market fluctuations or whatever you might have heard or read in the newspapers; we don't grow our own food that’s it. That’s the real cause of the crisis. Lack of central planning and a national project to start growing our own food and that’s the result hungry people and with no exaggeration I can say millions of hungry Egyptians.

By now I guess you know why such an advertisement would aggravate me. We are not talking about poverty, poverty is a sad fact that we must live with. I am talking about hunger that would tear apart our society, a problem that we cannot just fix its superficial symptoms by blaming the bakeries. The real solution is embarking on a national project to start growing wheat to produce what we need.

It seems like an idealistic dream of mine, dreaming of the day we will be growing our own bread.

Honestly if you ask me re3'ef el 3esh ashal wla 7amam el sba7a?! I'll answer without hesitation that the swimming pool would be installed and your kids would be taking a swim while you would still be standing in the infamous "taboor el 3esh" so definitely the right answer is "7amam el seba7a"!!

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

There is the sun and moon..Watch them when dawn is due..Sharing one space..Moonlighting strangers..Who just met on the way


Don’t you change

Some walk by night
Some fly by day
Nothing could change you
Set and sure of the way

Charming and bright
Laughing and gay
I’m just a stranger
Love the blues and braves

There is the sun and moon
They sing their own sweet tune
Watch them when dawn is due
Sharing one space

Some walk by night
Some fly by day
Something is sweeter
When we met along the way


So come walk by night
Come fly by day
Something is sweeter
‘Cause we met along the way

We’ll walk by night
We’ll fly by day
Moonlighting strangers
Who just met on the way




So don't you change
Although we are so different..world's apart..I'd never want you to change

You are just how the song describe you..always sure of your way

And even if we are as different as the sun and moon..when the dawn is due we can always share one space..

Something was different..definetly sweeter when we met along the way
Who would expect..two worlds like ours would collide and then we met..unexpected..unplanned along the way

I fly by day
You walk by night
Never meant to meet
Yet happened anyway
And something was sweeter when we met along the way

But as any opposites meet..attraction that’s true but it was followed by tension..the kind that would tear you apart..the differences are too great

The sun and moon share one space for only moments..it can never last longer

Is harmony overrated?!!!

It doesn’t matter..i couldn’t walk by night and it was impossible for anyone else to fly with me by day

Yeah..I have my regrets..still I am glad that in one strange day..two moonlighting strangers happened to meet along the way

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Democracy, Secularism and Censorship.. Go get your own definition!


It seems like nowadays we are being dictated some concepts in our lives. Some of the key concepts that define our philosophical beliefs, political thought and consequently our choices in life. Vital concepts like democracy, secularism and censorship.

Dictated by who doesn’t really matter. Be it our education, parents, peers, society, religious leaders, media or all the above. The thing is we don't process anymore, we don't experience anymore. We take their word for it. The word of the people who experienced, who read, who learned and who now know. They may as well live for us our lives ba'a wla eh?!

What I am trying to say is don't get for granted what everyone tell you, what ever happened to good old questioning and skepticism?! For instance important concepts like the aforementioned ones cannot go by you unnoticed because believe me sooner or later the idea you form about these notions would affect your own decisions in life, the important ones.

Democracy is being preached to us nowadays through the media, the educated elite and the western countries. But for some reason it is being put in the frame of institutions. Its definition is being strictly adhering to the political part not only that but also to the institutional part of democracy.
That’s why the common guy would easily loose interest in the concept of democracy because he would never know how to relate to it.

Democracy to me is not only fair elections or free press; Democracy to me is the increase of choices in life.
As simple and clear as that, when you have the choice to be who you want to be and the choice to get to where you want to be and take the way you want then you have yourself a democratic community. The more choices the more democratic and vice versa.




Since I have been a little girl before I could ever begin to fathom what secularism is I knew it was a bad thing. A corrupt notion that would lead to the disintegration of the Muslim world.
A sneaky concept the western countries are importing to the Muslim world. That was my first impression of this word.

Later on I dug deeper into the underlying meaning of that word. Secularism is the separation of religion from politics for a lot of reasons among them_ and in my opinion the most important_ to make sure that religion is not used as a tool in the hand of the state. In order to ensure the sacred nature of religion and religious leaders and that political leaders wouldn't use religion to manipulate the masses.
That's why to me I believe it’s a favorable concept which I would advocate. When I processed it I found a whole different definition from what I have been spoon fed.



Almost like Secularism, Censorship has always been and still is advocated in our society. The control and monitoring of the state in all walks of life even over ideas has been seen_ even by me_ as something that would keep the morality of the society and the religious orientation.

A revisit to that concept changed my perception. At least for now censorship to me should be as limited as it can be and in exceptional cases only. I personally believe that Censorship suffocates creativity and regulates knowledge which should flow freely for the well fare of society. The exposure of the people to all kinds of knowledge leads to their maturity.

My own opinion now might be very different from the one I have been meant to believe in through my socialization process. And a lot of people may differ with me and even my own views may change over the years but at least I make my own!

Anyway these are just my views..right or wrong..my own line of thought..my own definitions.. Go get your own!!



Sony Ericsson VS. Nokia! Men..They want it ALL..!



Those of you who know something about Sony Ericsson mobile phones would know that this company categorizes its phones.
The music phones_ W series_ for those who love music. The K series for those who are into taking pictures. The P series for business men or business men wannabes. So each phone is designed to meet your interests which is something I really admired.

The problem is Men do not want something to meet their interests or desires, they just want everything! I am talking based on an experience, they would come around ask about the features of the mobile and they are always disappointed about the missing feature even though they know quiet well that they don't need it, want it nor know how to use it!

But they know this..they just want it !

They want the best camera, the best sound, the most elegant and whatever else a mobile has to offer. They are not willing to make any compromises. They were so confused at the thought that mobiles are categorized. You want the best camera then your mobile wouldn’t be the most elegant. You want the best sound then your mobile wouldn’t have the best camera. They couldn’t understand why?! Why can't they just have everything?!
But the real question is Why would you want everything?! Because you sure as hell don't Need everything. And when they are asked this question they are even more perplexed!!

Why want everything?!!! Because you can..because you should!




Aside from that, they are constantly comparing. Its not as easy as you see a mobile you examine its features ,you like..you buy..NOOO! God forbid! You have to compare it to all the other models of the same company and then compare what all the other companies have to offer and after all that you won't buy what you want.
You are a Man, you don't just settle for what you want..You absolutely have to get the Best, the Most and the Greatest mobile. So that when you sit with your mucho friends and compare mobiles..yours win. And again it doesn’t matter whether it's what you want or not.
That's why they prefer Nokia. Nokia also categorizes its phones but still a phone that is from the music edition you would find that it has other features out of the understanding of the nature of men.

I know that how men buy their mobile phones may seem kind of trivial to you, that’s true. But the reason that it's not to me is that it also applies strongly on how they choose women nowadays. Read the article again and you'll find the resemblance yourself..enjoy!

The "C" word w "el do2won el taweela"




What does communists and men with "do2won taweela" have in common?!

At first you'd think this question is some kind of a joke because they'll never have anything in common..what would it possibly be?! Well its not a joke..the answer is a deeply distorted image over the years.

" Dah sheyo3y"!!! These words would make any parents worried, your friends skeptic and have the power to alienate almost anyone.
This is not a recent phenomenon. Since the 60s in the western world and the 80s in Egypt if the word spread that you are a communist or someone in your family is or even someone who passed you in the street..prepare yourself for the consequences.

In the 60s in the United States of America _the so called leader of the free world_ you would loose your job, you have a god chance of losing your wife, your church, the community you live in would desert you and most probably you would be thrown in jail. Being a communist which is simply adopting a political belief became a crime back then..and this is no exaggeration.

I must admit that now it's not that extreme but the distorted image still lives. People can't get over the fact that one day being a communist was a crime.
The western media over the years portrayed communists as big haired people who smell and are uncivilized. And the image got stuck creating a stereotype.
In the Muslim world communists are seen as non-believers who would corrupt the minds of young men by their ideas and so called ideology.

On the other hands we would find that fighting Islamic fundamentalism in the Arab region through the media has created another stereotype. Women in "nekab" and men with "do2won tawela" are porteyed as fanatics or even as terrorists in the Arab media.

Series that we all watched and loved like "el 3a2ela" and movies like "el erhaby" enhanced that image to an extent. Not to forget the terrorist attacks that were carried out by people who may look like your neighbor or one of your brother's friends made us believe that this is how a terrorist would look like. Adding to all of that the western media who made sure we have this image imprinted in our heads. And the result is whenever we pass by someone with "da2n taweela" in the street or a girl in "nekab" its either we are skeptic, scared or we may crack a joke!

This is not about my own political beliefs or religious views. This is to take note of the fact that two opposite thoughts or beliefs are being persecuted worldwide and my rejection to that. We allow the media to create stereotypes and we believe them without processing, automatically acting upon them and making judgments.

No one deserves being judged whether it's because of what he wears or what he believes in..This is my own humble opinion anyway.

There is discrimination on basis of gender/race/sexual orientation and now ideas and of course the way you are
dressed! We are seeking the abolition of discrimination on any basis, instead we are adding to them! I personally believe we should think twice before using the word "communism" as a swear word or crack a joke about someone's dress code.