A Few Heresies in Honor of the Ramadan Season!

Ramadan. The most hedonistic time of the Muslim year. So, hedonistic, in fact, it might as well be called the Muslim Christmas or Hanukah. Indeed, human nature, when given the chance, tends to bastardize all rituals and observances meant to celebrate our loftier desires and yearnings. So be it. I really don’t have much problem with this particular human contradiction. I much rather the heterogeneity of individualized bastardization than the homogeneity of collective ritualistic observance.

Continue reading “A Few Heresies in Honor of the Ramadan Season!”

Diversity and Turmoil

First posted on my short-lived blog Tharwalizations. 

Diversity in our region creates certain dynamics that are simply too complex to be tackled through some facile generalizations. In this regard, and while Arabs across the region and the world seem to stand in solidarity with Hezbollah, the Bedouins in Israel seem to have a different opinion on this matter. Indeed, the Bedouins seem to “bitterly resent Hezbollah,” since of its Katyusha rockets tend to fall at them. Also, and contrary to how many Arabs feel with regard to the US, the Bedouins of Israel “don’t think the U.S. is engaged in a war against Muslims in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine and elsewhere. They think Arab anger around the world can be laid at the feet of dictators who spread misinformation to distract people from inept rule.”  Continue reading “Diversity and Turmoil”

The Arab Freedom Rally 2006!

Much has been taking place behind the scenes with regard to my call in a previous post for a rally designed to help support the cause of human rights and democracy activists in our unfortunate part of the world. Indeed, we are now ready to announce a tentative date for the rally, and to open the floodgate for any suggestions in this regard, suggestions that can help the organizers in making this event a success. The rally will focus in this initial phase on the situations in Syria, Lebanon and Egypt, which are very serious indeed, as we all know. But the invitation for participation is open to people from all over the region. Continue reading “The Arab Freedom Rally 2006!”

Free Ali! Free Alaa! Free Ramin! Free Fateh! Free US All!

And the list goes on. It’s pretty depressing really. The backlash against civil rights activists in the region seems to be in full force these days. Why is it a backlash? Because I believe it is closely connected to the US continuing troubles in Iraq and to the fact the Bush’s second term in office is drawing to an end. The regimes are taking a defiant stand in resonance with Ahmadinejad’s own stands. Continue reading “Free Ali! Free Alaa! Free Ramin! Free Fateh! Free US All!”