An informal poll at Al-Arabiyyah website showed that a little over 23% of the voters, totaling around 50,000, believe that Hezbollah’s activities have had a negative impact on the region. This is a very significant, if not too scientific, indicator. There is indeed a rising current in our midst that is becoming more and more willing to challenge the traditional nationalistic jingoistic consensus. For all their lingering appeal, and despite the emotionally charged moment we are going through, the nationalists and the Islamists are being challenged on their very holy grounds. The idols may not be falling yet, but they are getting chipped and cracked and are beginning to sway and tatter. There might be some for us yet.
Tag: Islamists
Of Cats and Guilt
First posted on my short-lived blog Tharwalizations.
The cat-and-mouse game between regular armies and “resistance” fighters has always had a heavy toll on the civilian population and the basic infrastructure of the countries involved. It has always served to undermine the potential for democracy as well. Still, a democracy did emerge out of the rubble in Germany and Japan following WWII, and one hopes that this may still be the case for Lebanon as well, albeit all indications point to the possibility that the wrong elements might end up running things in Lebanon, once the dust settles. The elements will lord over a virtual desolation, but they will be the lords. Continue reading “Of Cats and Guilt”
Getting it Right!
First posted on my short-lived blog Tharwalizations.
Getting the right to vote is not a guarantor of anything, except a peaceful transfer of power. Women will not necessarily vote for women, and the best candidate in character and message do not necessarily win. Elections are above all about organization. Kuwaiti elections have been a mixed bag, reformist candidates won, but so did Islamist candidates, while not a single female candidate got elected, despite the fact that women were voting for the very first time in Kuwait history. All in all though, another important step on the path of democratization was just taken in Kuwait, but there is still much to learn.
A few thoughts on modernity
First posted on my short-lived blog Tharwalizations.
Many if not most of the main problems facing us in the region and hindering the process of change and modernization therein are psychological in nature. One such problem is the inability of our people to reconcile themselves with the necessity of making that crossover from the traditional to the modern. Instead, most seem to believe that they can keep one leg in each world thus maximizing their benefit, that is, they think that they can avail themselves of all those advantages that modernity has to offer while holding on as hard as they can to traditional values. Continue reading “A few thoughts on modernity”
The Ammar Abdulhamid Archive 