Company’s Conference...by Jamil Shawwa

It is very early in the morning, around 6:30 AM, employees of the company from different locations and operations are starting to arrive at the conference location resided in a hotel adjacent to a university. The conference itself will not start until 9:00 AM but with traffic anticipation, it is better to arrive a little or too early rather than arriving late; you might miss the continental breakfast, Translation: Tea, Coffee, Juices, Croissant and pastries. The first thing after the arrival was to locate the entrance, then the room itself then the other related objects that are necessary to make the conference successful i.e.: restrooms, smoking section, etc after that think of planning the way back after the conference ends, you know, you have to think out of the box and of the traffic around the nations’ capital. In the midst of all these planning, the conference reason might become irrelevant, at least to most of the participants, they are just excited to get away from the office and have free beverages, breakfast and lunch, these conferences happen just once or twice a year, so you have to take advantage here of the seasonal corporate generosity. The attendant or the receptionist who has been doing the same exciting and challenging job for over twenty yeas -preparing the name tags, setting up the tables with the appropriate numbers, making sure that each table has water, glasses, pads and pens for those that pretend that they are actively participating and taking notes, was there trying to smile and laugh at jokes made by smart people trying to be very funny at that very early hour in the morning, already prepared the name tags, you pick yours, make sure that your name is spelled correctly, as a matter of fact, it is just psychological, even if your name is spelled wrong, it is too late to correct. Once you are done with your nametag, and placing it usually on the upper left corner of your blazer, it is business casual, no need for a tie, though some wore them, as for the female participants, mostly trousers and jackets, not many skirts today. Inside the conference room, there are twelve tables with eight seats at each one, and your tag has a number as well as your name so you know where to set, you cannot change tables if you see an exciting woman setting at a table that is not yours and you cannot throw a smart remark here or there, you have to act professionally even if you are not and pretend that you are serious and composed. The conference is starting to take place, the tables are getting filled, people saying hello to those that they know or they do not know, remember, everyone should act friendly, you cannot set alone and frown, they might think that you are not a team player, Translation: put-up with the silly stuff and pretend that you care about others and that you prefer the team over yourself- tall order here- otherwise some might think that you are politically incorrect or the worst, mentally challenged. The top executives are on table twelve, notice not table one, they arrived with their laptops, sat down, opened their laptops, their Black Berry, and acted as if they were dragged to be here and not to be bothered at least not until the conference starts, and then they can put on their motivating hats and play the game. The humming and the chatting is all over and all of sudden, number two started to talk, an introduction as why is the meeting taking place and you start hearing the clichés, new terms in the corporate words; moving the needle, do not drop the ball- Translation: the first, do above and beyond, the second, take responsibility. Might consider the other guy, Translation: the competition. Do not focus on the price, Translation: sell the company and the products. Wrap it up, Translation: not sure, but you cannot interrupt. He then introduced the big one, the top executive who before the introduction has left his seat at that famous number 12, and went at the end of the room, where I was seated- usually, my table is at the far end of the room, I have a nice view though- the big one comes running, as soon as the introduction is made, from the end to the front as if someone is after him with a stick, and he starts looking, surveying the place not believing that he has hired all these people, Translation: losers, those employees, looking at their watches and wondering what is it for lunch. Anyway, the big one starts to talk about the bigger picture, see, number two talked about the big one, but number one talks about the bigger ones. As you reach higher position, your talk focuses on big stuff and not small stuff that are left for people like me for example. The higher you are the closer you get to the sky and the smaller things look to you. Once you are on top, you really cannot see anybody but yourself, you are kind of above the clouds. So usually, the conference starts on earth and ends up on earth and the skies are in between the start and the end. The big one also has to come up with his own words of wisdom, he cannot leave the stage wide open to number two so he also starts talking about how it is all about people, Translation: the little people. And that you- the small guys- are the engine that runs the company, translation: you are nobody. That if change to be made, it has to be made by you and no one else, Translation: again, you are nobody, do not fool yourself or/and we will fire a bunch of you soon, so I am giving you a heads- up. He then got warmed up and started to critique the operations and how we are like little islands- he is correct here- that we do not talk to each other and that has to be changed, not sure when though. Once he warmed up completely, he started rolling by saying; you are the first line of defense, Translation: again, you are nobody. Keep the momentum going, Translation: otherwise, you will be fired. All sounded perfect, but what is it for lunch, whispered one unmotivated and ungrateful participant. By the time the big one finished, he disappeared from the room and left it to number two who himself started to look hungry after that big motivating speech and was saved by the bill, when the clock hit 12:15 PM, Lunchtime. As all know, you need to organize lunch, that was maybe the most challenging part of this conference, how can you organize the people's movement towards the lunch buffet next door, the stampede started to happen, the huddle started to form, when all of a sudden, number two said that it all starts and ends here, Translation: company's success and not yours and the way we organize lunch lines, so we go to lunch but we must go by the order we are seated. Again, mine was the last table, and I had to wait.

The Midnight Love Express...Thoughts by Jamil Shawwa

She looked at him, raised her head with her hair covering part of her captivating eyes and said innocently or seemingly innocently... did you call on me, are you looking for me, I thought that I heard your voice.





He just looked back, he was looking all along, but pretending that he was busy doing something, he looked left and right up and down trying to escape but there is no way, he knows that he is powerless even if he tries,






She was still looking at him; and in what seemingly innocent eyes and in what seemingly innocent looks, lies beneath the ultimate female manipulation, the ultimate female naughtiness and the ultimate female heaven.






He cannot say one thing, he cannot open his mouth and he cannot tell her anything, he only owns one part of this conversation, he owns his part, or he thinks he does, he owns his ability to look and suffer in silence.










Her looks are those of the discoverer and the explorer and his are those of the hopelessly and forever romantic coming out of a Romeo and Juliette novel.

Talk With Israel… Do not Be Afraid….. by Jamil Shawwa

Dear Arab and Muslim countries,


I have a modest request, as an Arab American, and as a Muslim and as someone who was born in Beirut- my mother is Lebanese from a Lebanese family- and my family from my father’s side is from Gaza and lived in Gaza for years, I ask you to pick-up the phone, or text message or email your neighbors and friends in the State of Israel and just say hello!

To the leaders of the Arab countries and the Muslim countries, do the same, talk to Shimon Peres, Bibi Netanyahu and Ehud Barak and all the leaders in Israel.

To the Palestinians, they are doing it daily, but why not more, do the same. Egypt’s Mubarak is doing it as well as King Abdullah II of Jordan and many, many others that do not publicize.

To the State of Israel, I know how it feels sometimes to be alone, a state and country in the midst of the Arab and Muslim countries, but do the same if you can, pick up the phone, or email and suggest a conversation.

Talk in the area, in Tel-Aviv, Jerusalem, Cairo, Amman, Damascus, Baghdad, or Haifa- oh I love Haifa, the food there is amazing- no need to go anywhere else, your destiny is already written, and you will never be able to run from it, you are all there, The State of Israel, the State of Palestine and all the other countries in the Middle East.

Use civility and the power of reason, deliberation and mind to talk, discuss, and negotiate, nothing to lose and mountains to gain.

Talking is one thing, probably, that differentiate all of us from other God’s creatures, and we are blessed with the ability to talk if we choose to.

Talk on all levels, schools, sports, politics, just talk.

Pick up the phone, all of you, and dial the numbers, and if you do not have the numbers, just go ahead and Google them, just do something useful, different, if you have to, and productive today and not tomorrow. Do not wait, do not sneak around, do not pretend, and do not stab in the back. The power of conversation is the ultimate power, because it is endless, it cannot be stopped and it cannot be fought.

Thanks but No Thanks, Ardogan; Political Inferiority Complex, the Arabs, Turkey and Iran by Jamil Shawwa

The way the Arab world and some other countries are rallying to glorify the new and coming Turkish role in the Middle East reminded me of the old days of glorifying the defunct Soviet Union so claimed then support of the so called Arab causes; both are vain, unrealistic and disillusioned. The Turkish role might be emerging, and the Turkish past connection to the Arab world during the politically and socially retarded Ottoman Empire, might be bringing some nostalgia to those that feel so depressed about their internal affairs and themselves that they forgot over 600 years of the worst political system in history; the Turkish and Ottoman Occupation of the Middle East, that are just running toward Turley because it sent a little ship with some hotheaded persons trying to get into Gaza in a very immature way. To that extend the self-disrespect of the Arab countries and many Arabs, to that extend the desperation and the self-elusion, to that extend they surrendered the mind and the brain if they had any to such act. Same thing is happening with Iran, all these desperate movements that run to Iran hoping of the so-called great help or Iran would be the one that would restore the Arab and Muslim respect in the world, amazing to say the least. Iran is the last country that cares for the Arabs or the Muslims, that is the Arab Sunni Muslims, Iran through history never been in good terms with the Arabs and it will never be unless or until the political systems in both Iran and the Arab countries change to  democratic liberal systems. We are talking thousands of years for Iran and hundreds of years with Turkey. Therefore, what has changed to make the Arabs long back to the terrible years and centuries of both Iran and Turkey. The Turks and the Iranians did not change and the Arabs did not change. All is the same if you look closely, same pattern of resorting to someone else to talk on your behalf that has been the story of the Arabs through history, negotiating by proxy, talking by proxy. It is the same inferiority complex that stained the Arab countries and the Arab world, that they cannot deal with others directly or maybe they are so proud, actually so afraid, to deal with others, they do not want the mask to slip. It is a shame what I see right now, people glorifying the Turkish role, what Turkish role are you looking for, twenty two Arab countries cannot deal with each other and are afraid to deal with Israel that they look for couple of dusty old and defected empires, Iran and Turkey, to speak on their behalf. Same when the Arabs looked towards the Soviet Union, and got the biggest defeat in modern history, the Six Days War of 1967. Even internally, poor Arabs, In the 50s and the 60s looked at the biggest deceive and the biggest joke by the name of Gamal Abdel-Nasser who promised them the Promised Land and crushed their illusions in 1967. What is going on, why the self disrespect, people changing their names to Turkish names, running to Turkey like the lost in the desert dreaming of a drop of water. Wake up, deal with Israel directly; Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority gained tremendously when they followed the conventional wisdom of just talking. Today, the Turkish prime minster, said that Turkey wants to be to the Arab world as the Ottoman Empire was; thanks, but no thanks, Ardogan, do not try to compensate Turkey's inferiority complex towards Europe by looking East.

The Water, the Nile, and The next Negotiations... by Jamil Shawwa

The Middle East -when are we going to stop talking about it, probably never- is not only the land of the three divine religions, it is not only the land of oil and source of energy and life in the world now but also the land of water. As God, who sent the three prophets of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, with the three interconnected messages in that part of the world knew that his sons are naughty and that his sons are not in-line so he created all these things for all of them to share. It is the destiny of the Arab countries including the upcoming and new state of Palestine in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip and the State of Israel to continue to live in an internal state of negotiations and cooperation. The three divine religions were born there and that is it. All stop and start there. No way to run from it and no way, for any party to ignore the other, it is just not possible. In the same time, the cousins and the brothers cannot fight and if they fight, they will not win and if they win, then they will fight again. So why not take the short cut, the wise cut and set together. I love setting around, you can learn from me. Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt have water issues, and have challenges that they have to meet soon to ensure a normal flow of supplies and to ensure taking advantage of the water resources that exist in these countries and around including Turkey to both Syria and Iraq; it is amazing if they just share, no one will ever be thirsty again, no drought, nothing, just prosperity for all. We teach our kids to share from the start, we teach them to play together and though protecting their own things, they can still have other kids enjoy playing. The Dead Sea between Jordan and Israel is actually dying if not already started the process, other rivers, Elyarmouk, Ellitani, ElAsi, and then you have in Iraq the Euphrates, in Egypt the Nile. Now, I am practical, I am not a dreamer; maybe this is bad, but anyway, I see channels branching out and running from rivers between Israel, Jordan- oh, I forgot the Jordan River, Palestine, Syria and Lebanon. I see those countries setting together, on the experts’ level, I do not want to see politicians ruining everything- at least not in the start, they can screw up later as they usually do, and just talk scientifically and fairly on how we can create win- win situations that will benefit all. Now, you have to talk, there is no other way. Egypt- read further on how it is more involved- is another story, as it does not deal for water directly with any other country in the Middle East, except for Sudan that it shares the Nile River. The river Nile comes from Uganda and through Ethiopia to Sudan and Egypt. There are agreements that give Egypt its share as it is with Sudan the best and the most important clients of the river. The African countries involved are looking to establish their own Dams on the river to benefit. Now, the approach should be not to accuse, and charge the emotions but talk sensibly, though not easy in the Middle East, where the word hypocrisy was created and invented. As for the Nile and the looming conflict looking between Egypt, Sudan and other countries that the Nile runs through, as I mentioned above, let the countries meet on the technical level and talk with an open mind. Egypt is a pioneer in negotiations and Egypt is the pioneer with Israel about much bigger issue, which is the Arab Israeli peace process. Egypt as well can share the Nile to supply Israel, Palestine, Jordan and even parts of Saudi Arabia with fresh water. Now, of course, I am talking general here but it is for the technical experts to make things happen and it could happen based on various analyses. Water as many experts believe might the next big one in the Middle East, and you as a country cannot be stubborn or talk about certain privileges or state things from just a very narrow angle, you must take into account the evolving needs of the other concerned countries and see how you can get a win-win situation, it is not difficult. The negotiations with the State of Israel, the new State of Palestine and countries such as Jordan and Syria will be over water resources as well. The water is there, the technical expertise is there, the talents are there, all you need to do is set and talk, period. Read related articles about the business peace of the Middle East and the art that I wish I were clever at, Negotiations.


Read my pieces on negotiations and the business peace of the Middle East:

http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2005/10/business-peace-of-middle-east.html
http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2010/02/negotiationsby-jamil-shawwa.html

Maps: Source: MidEastWeb and WikipediA
Map below in green for Lake Victoria, the main or one of two sources for the Nile River

Mosaic.... by Jamil Shawwa

* I have compiled a bouquet of my comments and opinions of discussions that I had with different friends on Facebook and from http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/  in this portrait of thoughts I call Mosaic.


النقاب On Elniqab- Veil- It Should be banned, it is not normal, not human. Now freedom of religion might require that we respect the rights of those wearing it however, when you cover your face, you are covering your identity, yourself, you are afraid, you are surrendering your rights, you are telling the society that I'm not part of you and I do not want you to see me but I want to see you. In my book, this is the ultimate selfishness. Another angle is whither these women are free or forced to wear it. A woman’s face is a gift from God; no human should delete it.

Root of the issue and wither it is relevant:


The reason, the premise and the intent do not and should not apply here; the action speaks volumes. The question is do we or we do not agree with such behavior, and if we agree to let these women cover their faces in free societies or even not so free societies, do or are we supposed to allow for example women, locals or visitors, to walk the streets of Cairo, Amman, and Riyadh warning Hiphugger and underwear only- I understand that this is unacceptable to both women and men, but I’m just making a point. See, the argument can go both ways. Elniqab can be considered an unacceptable behavior and it could be considered against public manners as same as going out in the streets wearing just underwear.


Comment on news that little girls are forced to wear elhijab-headcover- in some government schools in Egypt:

If this news is true, then I have a bigger problem with Egypt than the problems that I have mentioned before. If this is true, then I will go as far as accusing the political system in Egypt of complete weakness and despair. No respected country on earth would allow such things that are outside the system or not authorized. The minister of Education, instead of fining the garbage people or the cleaning people for not collecting papers from the schoolyard, should refer these teachers to investigation immediately. The Arab World is famous of hypocrisy, poor the new generations; I really feel the pain of these innocent creatures. If I were a practicing lawyer in Egypt, I would have filed a lawsuit now against the education minister and subpoenaed him to court to tell us what is going on.

On an administrative court decision in Egypt to ban marriage between Israelis and Egyptians:

Jamil's Comments: The Supreme Administrative Court" of Egypt approves or upholds a lawsuit that was brought before the court by a deranged lawyer to withdraw the citizenship of those Egyptians that marry Israeli women and that the government of Egypt-imagine the retardation- has to approve each case of marriage on a case by case basis case. What else shall I say except for the feeling of sorrow to the status of ignorance and complete and utter blindness to any logic or sense. I have no doubt that Egypt which lead and still lead the Arab and Muslim worlds towards the historic peace and reconciliation with Israel will soon wake up again. Egypt is going through hard Labour in the last fading years of President Mubarak. The Egyptians are confused, lost, they do not know what to do and who they are any more. Still, Egypt has the talents and the history on its side to correct and advance.


On Marriage and Divorce:

Marriage is good of course but if it does not work, then divorce is good too.

People missing with the Original Teachings and the original scripts of the three divine religions:

Some say that if people miss with the original scripts, then this could affect the religions themselves.
Jamil comments: if billions miss with the original recipes that does not take anything away from the original messages. The original is well known and preserved, the fake, the modified, and the tainted, are as well all over. Now, the choice, if you choose to do so, is yours, either you follow the original or the fake or the modified or you do not follow anything at all. It is not for me or any other human to tell another human what they should do, or whom they should believe.
Now, if I were running for a political office, then we would have another story

On garbage piling in the streets of some countries:

The problem is not with the garbage, or the companies or the recycling, the problem is in the people who cause the piles of garbage. The humans feel that their country, their streets, is a big garbage can. Reform the people, and those countries will be clean.

On the nationalization of the press in Egypt and the quality of the government run papers in the Arab world.

Since the nationalization- Eltameem- of the press in 1964, the late Egyptian president Abdel-Nasser nationalized Egypt's spirit and mind as he did to the whole Arab world.

On communications between Israel and Palestine:

One- The Palestinians need to continue to work closely with their Israelis counterparts to slowly buildup the economy of the new Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The voices of reason are working well. The Palestinians must remember and I think they do that their livelihood depends on mutual respect and good and cooperative relationship with the State of Israel.

Two- The two factions Hamas, and Fateh, though Fateh is the Palestinian Authority, want to punish journalists for meeting with their neighbors in Israel to discuss matters of mutual interests. Well, the Palestinian Authority president meets with his ...Israeli counterparts; the Egyptian president does the same and the king of Jordan. Why these leaders can meet with their Israeli counterparts and other layers of the society cannot. Is it because the Arabs say no to normalization until final solution is reached. I say break the barriers, meet with your neighbors in the State of Israel, and if anyone protests, tell them, Tough.

On Hamas:

The players need to find a way to bring Hamas to the table, I think. Like it or not, some sort of coordination has to take place there. But again, we are talking about the Middle East, the holy land, the land of the three divine religions and the ultimate land for the ultimate historic compromise and agreement among the sons of Abraham, Ibrahim.

On Iran:

One-It is very interesting to analyze Iran, not sure what to say. I know one thing, I think Iran is an annoying little bully, who got spoiled, as I said before here, who got used to the attention, who thinks that it is smart, maybe Iran is, who Am I to pretend that I know anything about world politics. I wrote few pieces on Iran on http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/ check them out when you have a chance.
Two- The Iranian president: This demagogue needs to focus on creating the environment for the people of Iran to thrive. Iran, what a great history, geography, oil, wealth, and rich culture has been for generations under rulers who never connected to the people, The Shah and then this group of cartoon religious scholars. Both The Pahlavi family an...d the current regime really have just made Iran the country it is now; an outlaw nation, a corrupt society with no respect. Read few pieces I wrote about Iran.
http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2009/06/rise-and-shine-and-revolt-iran-by-jamil.html   http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2007/03/iran-hostage-diplomacy.html

On the Turkish Ship going to Gaza:

If I were Turkey, I would have asked Hamas, to open a dialogue with it’s neighbor, the State of Israel, and I would have asked Hamas to recognize Israel as it actually does by the fact that it participated in the political process that resulted from the Oslo agreements and it participated in the elections under the auspices of the Palestinian Authority that recognized Israel and established normal relations with it and itself, the Authority, is the product of the Oslo agreements.
If I were Turkey, I would not have sent a ship in the pirate manners trying to put another country on the spot.
If I were Turkey and it has relations with Israel, I would have coordinated some sort of a humanitarian symbolic gesture.
Read the whole thing, again, if needed on: http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2010/06/if-i-wereby-jamil-shawwa.html

Afternoon thoughts:

She was setting next to him, a butterfly in a ponytail. He was staring, she was ignoring, and all of a sudden, she turned around, looked at him, and ...coughed. Pathetic, maybe, it depends on how you look at things.

On Angels:

You can be an angel and cry, but to be an angel, you also have to smile.

On being madly in Love:

As long as it is both ways, otherwise, it would be really ...out there :)))


Last but not least, on America:

One-The great thing about America is we confront things, we do not run away from realities, we do not fool ourselves, and we continue to find ways and means to correct things. This test has been on going on and off for generations. The way this child felt- preferring lighter color toys over darker ones- does not exist only here in the US but almost anywhere in the world. As the world evolves, behaviors and concepts will continue to evolve, and stereotypes and prejudices will at some point be less obvious or less mentioned as they are now. The media- showing great examples across the board, the family- race really should be irrelevant and the school- does not stereotype kids, or in the name of diversity make kids so self- conscious about their differences, have the biggest burden in leading the transformation. Read my pieces on race: http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2010/02/americas-obsession-with-colorby-jamil.html
http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2010/05/visit-to-southby-jamil-shawwa.html  http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/ 
Two-This is America-Rescuing an American teenager in high seas - its hands can reach its people anywhere in the world. This is the country that you call your country, when its citizens are protected wherever they go, when they know that there is something strong and solid that they can lean on, talk to, and have their voice heard. Any country to its people should be... the same, each individual, no matter who he or she is, must feel important, protected and heard. Of course, if you are so reckless, then this is another story, your country still will protect you but then a lesson and procedures must be taken to ensure the safety and the common sense of those that are either underage or very reckless and so adventurous.
Three-Only in America, a theme we hear repeatedly, and it is true. In some countries and cultures when people get rich and famous, they try to pretend that they were never anything but rich. In America, there is pride in showing the road less traveled, the hard work, the modest beginning, the poverty-sometimes, that was, when becoming rich and accomplished.

Jamil


* with some modifications here and there.

If I were Turkey..........by Jamil Shawwa

If I were Turkey, I would not have sent that ship to start with, and if I decided to send it, I would have coordinated with Israel.


If I were Turkey, I would have asked Hamas, to open a dialogue with its neighbor, the State of Israel, and I would have asked Hamas to recognize Israel as it actually does by the fact that it participated in the political process that resulted from the Oslo agreements and it participated in the elections under the auspices of the Palestinian Authority that recognized Israel and established normal relations with it and itself, the Authority, is the product of the Oslo agreements.

If I were Turkey, I would not have sent a ship in the pirate manners trying to put another country on the spot.

If I were Turkey and it has relations with Israel, I would have coordinated some sort of a humanitarian symbolic gesture.

If I were Hamas, I would have released the kidnapped Israeli soldier; I would have stopped and seized all terrorists’ activities and suicide bombing once and for all. I would have stopped the brain washing of the desperate and the innocent, I would have stopped coordinating with Iran, why Iran, not sure...

If I were the Palestinian Authority, I would have asked Turkey not to send the ship, or coordinate a trio, Israel, Palestine and Turkey and put the pressure not on Israel but on Hamas, My God, people, Israel withdrew from Gaza, and Hamas is the occupier now and not Israel.

This insane action is making Israel think ten thousand times before completing the withdrawal from the West Bank. Maybe I am ignorant; maybe this is what Hamas, Iran, Hezbolla and the rest of those who help them want or do not want, maybe they do not want to see a Palestinian State in the West Bank and Gaza. Democracy and peace blind them, eliminate the purpose of their existence. Ok, finally, I may have got it.

If I were the Arab countries, I would have advised Turkey to coordinate with Egypt and Jordan, which have diplomatic relations with Israel.

If I were the State of Israel, I would have warned clearly that I will not allow the ship to cross the waters, I think Israel did that but the message might have been lost in the midst of this craziness from the fanatics and the opportunists in the Middle East whom caused this incident to happen and caused the loss of lives.

Israel is not to blame here; it is the same people, the same countries, the same mentality that caused the Arabs to continue to be defeated for the past 60 years. The mentality of hypocrisy and self-elusion, and arrogance.

The strong do not try to trespass, rent a ship and try to cross into another country with no permission, the strong do not kill innocent people, do not send suicide bombers, do not burn flags, do not step on flags of other countries, do not open the radio high on all these meaningless patriotic songs that would charge the emotions and kill the mind.

The strong and the confident talk, discuss, negotiate, and confront using all the legal and diplomatic means. The weak are those who sneak, smuggle, and kill.

That ship marked the ultimate humiliation for Turkey and for those who participated. I am very disappointed in Turkey; I thought its democracy could be an example for the Arab countries that might be ready to open up their political systems to religious parties that call for secular political and social systems.


There is only one-way to deal with Israel which is dialogue and -I thought that everyone has learned it by now- negotiations, dialogue, unless you are afraid.

Good bye my Dull, No good, Cheap, Chinese Resturant..... by Jamil Shawwa

The time has come-finally- for that place, one of my favorite hangouts to surrender to the forces of time, the economy and the improving taste of people, and declare that it cannot stay in business anymore. Actually, my cheap and dull Chinese restaurant was sold. The other day I went there around dinnertime, early dinner, and there it was, as usual, empty except for a table or two. The head waitress/manager was there, a very smart Chinese Vietnamese woman who is not the owner but related to the owners and has been running the place. The place was sad, and dull, of course, as I said earlier. The workers there told me that the place changed hands and that the previous owners can no longer afford to have it, I am not surprised, it was terrible, and that they sold it-poor new owners- to another family. The other server, originally Spanish, left the place after a fight with the cook in the kitchen where that cook lost his temper, and in the same day, he lost his job, and pushed her. That girl left the place after- as my Vietnamese head server told me-ten years of services. The only reason that I used to go to that place is that they allowed smoking- I mentioned it in another piece in this blog- but since Virginia banned smoking in restaurants, I stopped going there. See, if it was not for the smoking and the multiple free refills of soda, I really would not have gone even close to that place; the food was horrible, I mean the buffet, menu orders were a little better. That other day when I went, I ordered something and the wrong plate came, again no surprise, had to return it, got an apology but did not get a discount, see another reason that this restaurant is no good. Any way, that server told me that if the new owners do not treat her well that she will leave, of course, why stay. Sometimes you can read the writings on the wall, meaning that you can tell what will happen before it happens. The signs could be there, the warning signals could tell you not to do something or do something but we just do not look, do not want to look or maybe we are so arrogant that we choose to ignore those signs. For that restaurant, I knew that there is no way that it can stay in business with that cooking and cooks fighting in the kitchen and empty tables. I must say though and maybe that was another reason for me going there; the service has always been very gracious and welcoming- not generous though besides the fact of the multiple refills. One thing I like about America is that you can usually get multiple refills of coffee, soda, soft drinks, at almost any establishment. That is it for me this morning, nothing more to say.