Archive for June 6, 2009
Lebanese overkill coverage
As soon as the polls were opened at 9:00PM my time, Lebanese TV coverage started with a vengeance. Correspondents (including weather people) were sent to every corner of the country: they are providing detailed descriptions of cars moving, and people …
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Bet
I placed a bet with my sister today for $100 worth of Arabic sweets (but she said that she wants cash and not sweets). I said that the opposition will lose, and she said that opposition will win.
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Hummus toes
In Iraq, voters were asked (by the American occupiers) to dip their thumbs in purple ink to authenticate their vote. In Lebanon, all voters are required to dip their toes in Hummus and to show them as they leave the voting booth.
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Saudi-American intervention
Just as Jeffrey Feltman felt the need to threaten and intimidate the Lebanese people two days before the election in a rushed interview with Al-Hayat when he said that it would be “naive” if the Lebanese did not think that they would be punished if the…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Who paid the most money to influence the Lebanese election?
I don’t have evidence and I don’t have data but I can speculate–pure speculation on my mind–that: Saudi Arabia paid the most money (one source in Lebanon mentioned $300 million of Saudi funding and the withdrawal of candidate Emile Nawfal in Jubayl t…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Lebanese elections
Lebanese elections serve a purpose. They merely determine the duration of truces before civil strife or sectarian clashes erupt. They are also opportunities for the Lebanese to prove how sectarian conscious they are (overwhelmingly but not totally).
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
`Awn versus the Maronite Patriarch
The feud between Gen. `Awn and the Maronite Patriarch goes back to this event. When supporter of `Awn in 1991 “roughed up” the Patriarch and “mildly” humiliated him. They even removed his hat. The Patriarch never forgave `Awn for that.
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Reckless journalism
I am going to Oslo next week. I am participating in a (closed) conference that is partly sponsored by the Norwegian foreign Ministry. It has several speakers and Joseph Massad, Ali Abunimah and I were separately invited. All three of us are opposed …
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Electoral Advice
I don’t vote: I never voted in the US and I never voted in Lebanon. Some people in Lebanon (and some of them are people I don’t know–readers) have asked me for electoral advice. I explained that I don’t belong to March 14 or March 8 and I would not g…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Jimmy Carter
I don’t vote and I don’t consider elections to be dramatic human events. Hannah Arendt was not big on voting either. But one of the things that bother me about elections around the world is the sight of Jimmy Carter and his teak “monitoring” the elec…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Chief Buffoon of the PA
Sa’ib `Urayqat is the official buffoon of the Palestinian Authority. In fact, he wears a hat with that title. After Obama speech, he gave different opinions of the speech depending on the media outlet: he considered the speech a great and most dramat…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Illegal organization
On May 1st of this year, Mr. Mohammed Zaki, the president of a local union of petrochemical workers was summoned to a meeting by the General Manager of the Petrochemical Company in Basra. In this meeting – citing labor law from the era of Saddam Hussei…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
What did he do?
“Saudi Arabia’s central bank has ordered the kingdom’s banks to freeze the accounts of Maan al-Sanea, the Saudi billionaire who owns a stake in HSBC Holdings, Bloomberg has reported, citing people familiar with the instructions.” Any one has informa…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Sampling royals
“Top earning Arabs and regional decision makers prefer CNN over Qatari rival Al Jazeera for their English language news, according to a new survey.” I have the feeling that the sample comprised five Saudi princes. And why do I have the idea that a …
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Bush…and Obama
GW Bush, Rose Garden, 24 June 2002: “It is untenable for Palestinians to live in squalor and occupation. And the current situation offers no prospect that life will improve… My vision is two states, living side by side in peace and security.”BH Ob…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Zionism-is-racism
“Members of “Achoti” (my sister), a feminist organization representing jews of color (Mizrahim-Jews who emigrated from Arab countries) and members of the Democratic Mizrahi Rainbow, came to the Jerusalem Theater this week to demonstrate a convention…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Non-violence
“During the weekly non-violent demonstration against the wall in the village of Ni’lin, in the central West Bank the Israeli army killed a 36-year old Palestinian man and wounded a Palestinian boy, who was taken to the hospital in critical condition…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
How polite
“Mindful that the Cairo speech could cause a stir among American Jews, senior White House officials held a conference call Wednesday night from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with three to four dozen American Jewish leaders, to alert them to the president’s m…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Robert Worth on Saudi Arabia
“Saudi Arabia, which supports the current government majority, has provided tremendous support to Lebanon, including at least $2 billion to Lebanon’s central bank since 2006.” “Provided tremendous support for Lebanon”? Are you talking about Lebanon…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad
Robert Worth on March 14
Robert Worth defines the March 14 camp in Lebanon: “a secular and pro-American political alliance.” I mean, how in accurate is that label? Of course, neither of the two sides in Lebanon are secular: Hizbullah is sectarian, Hariri Inc is sectarian, t…
Posted on June 6, 2009 by As'ad