The civility of a Revolution…Passing Thought by Jamil Shawwa

Are revolutions supposed to be civil, by the name itself, it means and indicates chaos or uprisings against a system or governments or tyrants or to seek independence, so how can they be civil. The historic facts though contradict that contrast. All revolutions in the past two hundred and fifty years starting with the mother of modern revolutions, The American Revolution, in 1779, have debuted peacefully. The American was peaceful and turned confrontational when they the Americans did not have any other choice. The French revolution followed in 1789, and in the beginning it was a civil- kind of, the French had deep-rooted hatred against a rigid rotten class system in France at that time- but not until the bloodthirsty, Robespierre and his mates took over that the French became extremely violent. Same during the Russian revolution in 1917, not until the Bolshevik took over that the revolution became bloody. The Indians led by Gandhi gained their independence through peaceful revolution, and they sat an example for people around the world that a universally considered just cause could have a chance to flourish peacefully. The Iranians in 1979 revolted peacefully against a naive and an idiot Shah, the clerics took over and they started executing everyone that was not in line with there menacing motives and hypocritical goals. In the pre 1948 historic Palestine, both the Jewish people and the Arab people resorted to violence to achieve their goals of independent state when the politics at that time did not support the demands, and when politics agreed with the demands, the Arabs in Palestine did not agree with the United Nations resolution 181 to form two independent countries, the Jewish agreed, and since then, they- the Jewish people- have had a flourishing country; the State of Israel, and the Palestinians are still trying- since then- to get their act together and build a state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The problem in the West Bank and Gaza is that the politics there has been connected and chained to a political system that has been and still corrupt- The Arab political system- so their- the Palestinians- only hope is that they look inward and focuses on them and decide regardless of what the other Arabs decide and regardless of what Iran wants. I think the new country based Arab political system- in formation right now- will result in normal democratic countries that no longer feel the need to adopt the Palestinians as a cause, or no longer need to manipulate, this is a better description, the Palestinians to justify their own dictatorships. The bottom line is this; democratic Arab countries will make peace with the State of Israel, will help with Israel, the United States, and the world community in transitioning the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza into a democratic and civil country that lives in peace with all its neighbors including the State of Israel. Finally, the peaceful revolutions in the Arab countries will prove to be the best barrier against the ultimate terrorist’s organizations led by Al-Qaeda and other mini wannabes, hypocritical, showy, extremist fractions, like Hezbollah and Hamas.

A Deranged Beast….Updates From Jamil Shawwa

He is no longer just a joke, a sick joke,

He is no longer just a clown, a terrible clown,

He is no longer just a “mad dog” as Reagan once described him and he is no longer just the “crazy boy of Libya” as Sadat of Egypt many times called him,

He is no longer just a Jackass and a psychopath as your obedient servant here honored him with such titles- I got a call from “The Iraqi Donkeys Association” protesting him calling him a donkey; they are right, they felt insulted.

He is a criminal, a terrorist, a deranged beast, an animal that is spreading havoc and death all over Libya.

The Libyans probably will be paying the highest price humanity has not paid for a long time, and they have the noblest task to get rid the human race from such a crazed person, but the Libyans feel that it is worth paying; they are doing the world a great favor and we are returning the favor by writing about this saga of triumph.

A View From America…and a View from the Middle East.....Jamil Shawwa

*What! A Web site blocked, here in America! Check my post below from Saturday. The demonstrations are spreading through out Wisconsin, Ohio and the Midwest. It seems that we in America are getting some vibes from The Middle East. But America is the grand democracy and when people go to the streets, they protest against programs and against elected politicians and not tyrants and they know that they can change them in the coming elections. In America, there are already programs to remove governors through due process, referendum, impeachments, and even presidents through impeachment by both Chambers of congress. Nixon was going to be impeached and Bill Clinton was impeached in the House but got away in the Senate. America does not usually protest persons per se, but protest laws and programs as it is happening right now. In America, there is hope and this is what America preaches all over the world, hope. The republicans are playing the same game they played with Bill Clinton in 1995 when they shut down the federal government over budget. They lost then, and they might lose again with Barack Obama. The republicans love to lose, it seems. It happens in politics when you do not have leadership or when you do not have smart leadership. What do you expect from a party that adores a pinhead by the name of Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, Ron Paul and others.




* From CNN: “A left-leaning website that union supporters used to rally protesters in Wisconsin was partially blocked as demonstrators gathered in the state Capitol over a controversial budget bill.”

From Sigmund Freud to the Arab Heads of State and Iran…by Jamil Shawwa

I am sure that Sigmund Freud was foreseeing and thinking of the future when he wrote his famous cycle of grief, Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and then Acceptance. He must have been thinking of that part of the world that would have bunch of dictators that believe that they were given divine authority to suppress and oppress their people and enslave them. Sigmund Freud was genius not only in foreseeing the tragedy of the Arab leaders or should I say the tragedy of the Arabs and the Iranians for having such tyrants running their affairs but also in providing those leaders with the Elixir, psychoanalysis that will help once time comes, and it came, to handle the situation of being kicked out of office, out of their palaces of fear and out of their golden cages. Sigmund Freud was probably thinking mostly of the new Nero, Qazzafi, and his sons and he knew that the Middle East would have someday psychopaths like Qazzafi that could benefit from his landmark analysis. The signs then were there, the Turks were in the Arab countries so the puzzle is solved and the signals were clear as to who would succeed them. I have a question for Sigmund Freud, is it possible for someone like Qazzafi to recognize this cycle of grief on his own and will the Libyan people give him the chance to get through it, or will they take a short cut and kick him before he gets into the fifth part, Acceptance.

A Psychopath in Libya….by Jamil Shawwa

The psychopath is killing his people left and right and the world is watching, but what can the world do, the psychopath has been in power there since 1969. He has been torturing, abusing, and kidnapping people since then, many of whom were not Libyans. Fortunately, the world can do something and it is doing right now. The smart communication, the technologies are exposing the tyrants all over the world. The cell phones and the text messaging are flowing like the ocean waves and like the rivers running deep. Technology is the tyrants’ worst nightmare and Qazzafi of Libya is one of humanities worst nightmares. He is the butcher of Libya- new title added to his cartoonish titles- and he is the new Nero that burned Rome. Mubarak, Bin Ali, and Kim Jung IL are angels in comparison to him; ok, maybe Kim Jung IL is an exaggeration here but still. A low life and a sick joke, Qazzafi, a piece of political trash that societies could have from time to time through out history. The Libyans are on their own, but the whole world is supporting through what we are doing right now, writing, exposing, and showing and stripping the human animals like Qazzafi from the last tiny piece of leaf that they are behind, hiding.

Help Yourself and America will Be there For You, Part II, "The Palestinians and The Veto Game” by Jamil Shawwa

The United States- I am pretending that I know something about the US policies- cannot go along every time the mood strikes the Arabs or the Palestinians and decide to send a request to the UN Security Council for a resolution on a situation in the Gaza Strip and The West Bank. Since 1947, there has been numerous resolutions and hundreds of requests from all parties, especially the Arab countries and the Palestinians, and sometimes, be amused, by the big wannabes like Iran, for resolutions to handle either the overall problem and the establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza or for “baby resolutions” for issues relate either directly or indirectly to the Palestinian-Israeli issues, such as the *settlements in the West Bank. Again, all the permanent members of the Security Council including The United States adopted all the main resolutions such as 181,242, and 338. America however cannot  slice it’s polices according to the moods of this group or that, or according to an event that took place somewhere else or for the purpose of rescuing or saving the face of Abbas or other people. The Palestinian authority as the news reported is sending to the Security Council a resolution about the settlements in the West Bank. Ok, they and any other entity can do that, but do not except the United States policy to be at the service of your moods and internal political situations or to settle internal accords within your own country. So continue to do what you are doing if you wish and America will continue to act according to its established policies. The policy of the United States, I claim again to know, is for the establishment of a Palestinian State in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and for the continuation of either direct or indirect, secret or open communications among all the parties to reach that goal.

Read related:

*Settlements...by Jamil Shawwa http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2010/09/settlementsby-jamil-shawwa.html

Moammar Qazzafi--------The Cartoonish Leader...a note by Jamil Shawwa

Someone has to do something with this jackass, Moammar Qazzafi of Libya. I hate it when I use this term, Jackass, but I am really by doing so, honoring Qazzafi and insulting the donkeys all over t...he world. He has humiliated his people and the human race by just attaching his name to his country and by considering himself a president and a leader. I am sure that the Libyans will wake up one day, soon, and realize that they have a donkey as their president. It is no longer a laughable matter to have this person as head of state in the era of smart democracy and smart communications.

Libya’s demography Is tribal, so it might be difficult to topple him, however he, in 1969, imagine, he has been a brutal, tyrant since 1969, toppled a weak king, so it is feasible that something could happen and end this sick joke. Qazzafi can take to exile with him his cute Ukrainian nurses; I do not see a problem in that.

  

"A Word To the Wise Guy"….Another Detour by Jamil Shawwa

The Grand and Supreme Idiot of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is trying to get credit for something that is going on in Egypt that has nothing to do with what took place in Iran in 1979. After 32 years of the clerics revolution in Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is saying that finally, Iran is getting some traction and people in the Arab countries are learning from it. Those Iraninas never stop to amaze me, you have though to admire their thick skin, I wish I have thick skin, they do not give a damn how retarded they sound, and they keep going like that battery ad, keeps going and going and if we are lucky….they will be gone…gone soon:)


Go to http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/  and type Iran in the search tool for a history of articles about it.

No more, دي بلدهم* ..........by Jamil Shawwa

No more, دي بلدهم*

The Egyptians have dropped this one and dropped other stigmas that have been attached to the Egyptians reputation for thousands of years. The Egyptians however continued to have two things that they have maintained for thousands of years, civility and peace. They uprooted the dictator with class, and tact.

* Translation: “their country” always referred to the ruling class.

Mubarak’s Last Hurrah, Part III, The Last Dance...by Jamil Shawwa

President Mubarak is playing it as he planned it and is working according to the plan; basically he is going to drive the Egyptians nuts before he leaves, he is gone, again, he is done, and he is out, but the formal announcement has not been yet delivered. Its‘s ok, let the Egyptians and Mubarak dance the last dance, let Mubarak work his way and his style and let the army announce their prepackaged declarations and announcements, and let Suleiman, the VP, continues to show the respect to his president. The bottom line, let everyone continue to do what they are doing, it is a  political symphony, watch and learn. 



Check the previous Mubarak’s Hurrahs here and on http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com

"Morality, Purity and Virginity"..An Afterthought by Jamil Shawwa

Where, we, humans, can start when talking about morality, maybe the Ten Commandments is a good place, also the same teachings that are found in Al-Quran and The Bible and other religions and beliefs and philosophies. But what if we do not want to use or cite the divine religions and others, where should we go and is it that important, I mean we already have established teachings as to what is considered moral or not and these principles more or less are found in every nation on earth and embodied in every political system imagined, regardless of course if these teachings are applied always or not. So where else would we go, the laws is a good place, the constitutions of the countries, again, even if they are there for decoration  and façade purposes or not. The big question I have after that long ambiguous introduction, to me at least, is why do we equate morality with virginity and why do we equate purity with it. I do not think they are related and if there is any relation, I do not think it should be mentioned because there is no direct connectivity or link or an unbroken process or experiences that can establish without any reasonable doubt that there is such connection. The obvious answer is virginity equals not touched but is a virgin better than a “tested person”, and if it is the case, who is qualified to decide. Maybe personal experience, probably, a good start, but most dangerously, we equate the three, morality, purity and virginity because we are raised to believe this way, we were raised, all humans, these are human trends and not related to any particular culture, that virginity is purity. It could be but why do we just pinpoint to that part in the human body, the reproduction area, and make it equal to either good or evil, why that human function is equated with virtues. I think one might say that I just answered myself, because it tied the area that keeps the human race going. What about other behaviors, or not, what if I meet a wonderful woman who has few experiences in life, same of course applies to the male, meaning a woman meeting a man who has few experiences in life, does it mean that these persons are not virtuous. Now, I am not going to involve the religions directly here although they are in the conscious and subconscious of most humans on earth. However, even the divine religions, they, and I am so scared to venture here, equate virginity with purity but they did not ignore other virtues. Therefore, the man or the woman, the girl or the boy, could be virgins until married, as religions require, but in the same time, they could be as far from purity and morality as the sun from the earth. I can meet a divorced woman for example or a single woman; this woman, same can be applied to a man, can have the strength of solid steel to resist anything that she considers immoral or not appealing. See, to her, if she loves someone, then she can practice what she feels a moral thing to do; she is not hurting anyone, she is not breaking a law, and she is not committing a crime- take into account that certain places in the world could criminalize what is considered in other places as personal freedom. I also could meet a topless woman in a topless beach or regular beach, it depends on the country and the laws, that woman could have more morality than a woman that is covered from head to toe. See, the bottom line here is that we can have many sets of morals and virtues and we can have all kinds of people, and we can have all kinds of behaviors, and accordingly it is not up to us, humans, to just set back and render that this person is virtuous or not, it is not up to us, unless we are in a position of judicious nature or law enforcement, in a democratic society, to decide on a case that is presented before us, we are not qualified, no one is. Even then, courts, depends on the society might not apply these human virtues to the case, it will or should apply the law, which is sometimes has nothing to do with the definition of virtues, there is a difference between legal and moral, they can be the same but also they might not be related. To conclude, the above are general statements and thoughts, if you represent a certain political or religious or social domination or party or agendas, then your views of morality, purity and virginity would for sure differes and usually, you would apply that scope to your views, some people nevertheless could be part of an agenda, but they still can have broader views of things. Those are the pragmatic, the practical and usually the leaders in their societies.

“The West Bank and The Gaza Strip…..Rise”….detour by Jamil Shawwa

The Palestinian people in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip need to revolt as the Egyptians and the Tunisians. But they need to revolt not against the State of Israel; Israel is not part of the problem and Israel is not the oppressor. They need to revolt against the historic dictatorship of the PLO and the emerging dictatorship of the famous hypocrisy, Hamas. They need to demand the elections in the West Bank and Gaza of reliable and credible leaders that can set side by side with the State of Israel and work a final, realistic, and practical solution for the establishment of a Palestinian State in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian and Arab leaders so far and by large and in general have manipulated the Palestinians to serve their own narrow and selfish needs. The Palestinian question has fed into creating excuses for the oppressive regimes in the Arab countries to stay in power. In the name of Palestine, The Arab leaders have caused millions of their people to live like subhumans, no more, let the Palestinians learn the lesson of the Egyptians, and just rise, go to the streets and demand elections and demand leaders who can negotiate without pretentious and hypocrisy the final solution. Oh, one more thing, and they, the Palestinians, need to send a message, a strong one, to Iran, to butt out of their business.


Go to http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/   and type Israel and Palestine in the search tool for more information and articles.

"A Word To the Wise Guy"….Another Detour by Jamil Shawwa

 The Grand and Supreme Idiot of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is trying to get credit for something that is going on in Egypt that has nothing to do with what took place in Iran in 1979. After 32 years of the clerics revolution in Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is saying that finally, Iran is getting some traction and people in the Arab countries are learning from it. Those Iraninas never stop to amaze me, you have though to admire their thick skin, I wish I have thick skin, they do not give a damn how retarded they sound, and they keep going like that battery ad, keeps going and going and if we are lucky….they will be gone…gone soon:)


Go to http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/  and type Iran in the search tool for a history of articles about it.

Mubarak's Last Hurrah...Part II The Muslim Brotherhood is On The Line

by Jamil M. Shawwa on Thursday, February 3, 2011 at 1:52pm

 It is very interesting to watch how Mubarak’s departure evolves; in his style to say the least. Check my posts below. Now, he basically divided the Egyptian street, and playing the Muslim Brotherhood card. When the uprising started, the Muslim Brotherhood were nothing or nowhere to be found.  Mubarak is giving them a momentum they only dreamed of….. Will continue with  Mubarak’s Last Hurrahs.

Egypt Under Suleiman.... a quick Detour by Jamil Shawwa

Internally:

A transition of power that could result in a Turkish/French style political system, with the prime minster- the majority in the parliament- and the president as the executive authority.

Externally:

Continuation of Egypt’s role in leading the Arab countries in the peace process with the State of Israel and the efforts to establish a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.  The peace with Israel is as solid as the pyramids.

Continuation of Egypt’s role as a moderate country with the continuation of the special relations with the United States. I heard the other day a wannabe by the name of Tamim Barghouti- identified himself as a Palestinian poet in Al-Jazeera- who claimed that and I quote “America lost Egypt forever” end of Quote. I think that guy is lost himself, he does not know what he is talking about and he better off just focusing on growing up, read a book, two, or something.

The democratic reforms will extend to other Arab countries and will affect every single Arab country one way or the other.

Basically, Egypt is on the right track and the talk is now the future and not the past; Mubarak is the past.

Mubarak’s Last Hurrah… By Jamil Shawwa

I wrote before on “Arab American Wire” on 01/03/2011 “Why Egypt Will Not Revolt” which is yet to be seen if wrong or right- the measure whether it is true or not will be if the people directly will force the ruler out of power. I still think that president Mubarak is in his way out but not in the style of the Tunisian president, running away. Mubarak will not run away but will transition to his vice president who might form a national unity government or attract opposition figures in the government. According to news reports, ElBaradei, the Egyptian international figure who headed the IAEA might also have a role, some even said he might form the national unity government under “president Suleiman” The bottom line is that Mubarak is a thick skin but not an idiot, he very cleverly have built a momentum to show the chaos, and he is playing the fear factor, he is scaring the Egyptians of what might happen if he disappears all of a sudden; the looters and the outlaws and some say the bullies of his regime, his own peoples, in the streets. He ordered the police to run away, he ordered guards and police at prisons to just abandon posts; he intentionally let thousands of convicted felons and criminals to breakout. Mubarak is scaring the Egyptians, he is playing it smart- according to his way of thinking- and some might say playing it harsh, but he is playing the game and he is telling the Egyptians that it is ok, fine, I’m leaving but not so soon and only on my own terms. Mubarak hold grudges, no doubt about it. This is Mubarak and this is how he has been all along. He knows his people; he knows that the Egyptians used to say” It is better to be called a coward rather than to be called May Rest in Peace” meaning, live and not die for any cause or nothing is worth dying for. But the Egyptians are breaking away slowly form that stigma and they are revolting. Mubarak -years ago- would not have cared about all this and would not have blinked but not anymore, the world has changed 360 degree since the time he took power in 1981 after the assassination of President Sadat. The Soviet Union just collapsed in days, Eastern Europe disappeared, and the bills of freedom are ringing all over the world. Smart communications as I like to call them are everywhere, it is now Mubarak vs. Facebook, and Mubarak vs. Twitter and Mubarak Vs. the internet, and you have guessed it, they, the media the smart ones, are winning. Mubarak is leaving, he is gone already, but the actual departure will not be a coward one, again, according to how he thinks, it is not his style and probably there is no rush for him to be kicked out or for the US to demand it without due diligence, so and accordingly, he wants at least to leave like King Farouk left in 05/26/1952, when the Egyptian military saluted him while he was dressed as the sea admiral on board of his yacht “El Mahrousa” the translation, “the protected” a term which is the Egyptians usually refers to their country.

*"The Palestinian Papers"...A View from Jamil Shawwa

The leaked, it is so fashionable now to have things leaked, about the alleged “Palestinian Papers” in regard to Jerusalem and the refugees looks like that leak in the 1990s about a proposed Golan Heights deal, “The Rabin document” which states a preparation from the side of the State of Israel to withdraw from the Golan in exchange for full relations with Syria. First, again, Syria is nothing to worry about, it will oblige as needed as it did when the order came to withdraw from Lebanon in 2005. As for the Palestinians, you have to worry about few things; lack of credibility, lack of representation, lack of transparency, and of course the ultimate Palestinian stigma; cowardness. The issues of Jerusalem and the Palestinian refugees are so simple, and in my mind, they are resolved and they just need Palestinian politicians who are elected properly or bold enough to spell them out. All these leaks are just test balloons to prepare people mentally to things that might be coming their way. Usually such things happen and in that magnitude in societies where hypocrisy is paramount and where people like to fool themselves and where the defeat is called "Nakba" and "Naksa", and accordingly, there is one place so far on earth that fits that criteria; The West Bank and the Gaza Strip. I saw excerpts from that Al-Jazeera in English report that talked about that deal from the Palestinians negotiators. See, here is another problem, Saeb Erekat and Yaser Abed Raboh and others are no body, they have as most of the Palestinian politicians, no credibility and no substance and no respect. You listen to them, of course this includes Hamas, and one thing comes to mind, forgive my Korean, the bathroom. The solution is easy, go and talk to the people in the West Bank and Gaza, Jerusalem is an open city, no need to dismantle any settlements anywhere, which is administered by the State of Israel and the State of Palestine, each within and with modifications around the 1967 line. If settlements fall within the State of Palestine, then they are residents of the state and it applies to any Arab population that falls within the State of Israel. The refugees issue is resolved, No Return, it does actually defies logic, unless they go back to lands in The West Bank or the Gaza Strip. If the Palestinians have a bold leader that for once would level with them and spell it and talk about it with the courage and the humility that it requires, the Palestinians will no longer continue to feel the victims that they are not, will not continue to cry and weep and will stop cursing everything and every body. See, the Palestinians are so lucky right now, the world including the State of Israel want to give them a state in the West Bank and The Gaza Strip, although they are the most expert in trying to tell the world not to give them a state. Two idiots run the show in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, the PLO and Hamas. Can you imagine any nation on earth as unlucky as the Palestinians, their history by large, is a history of idiots running their politics.

* Search here under Israel and Palestine for more related articles.

*Divorce Socrates Wife, Part III....by Jamil Shawwa

He deteriorates anytime he is around her.

He feels that he loses part of his humanity anytime she opens her mouth.

She is not evil but evil would be scared of her.

The best communication they have together is when they do not talk to each other; silence with her is heaven. Once she talks, it is hell on earth.

She is selfish, obnoxious, and rude, with an inferiority complex to compliment them. No tact, no finesse, no class and she likes herself that way, or maybe she thinks that being all the above protects from the outside world, gives her some shield or cover so people cannot see the scared human that she is.

He is not much better, probably, he is not perfect, far away from perfection for sure, he does not want an equal in selfishness, he does not want an equal in other things that he despises, he wants something different, but he is lazy.

She is completely wrong for him and he is completely wrong for her.

What brought them together is the worst human trend, just the worst; laziness, settling for the easiest, accepting the available at a moment of despair, and a moment of weakness, not following the guts, not following that inner radar that never fails, not following that big No that came looming across his eyes as soon as that female showed him the real person she was and it was in the first two days of their meeting. See, she did not hide it, she did not pretend to be someone else; it was not her fault; it was his. And it was not too late; it is never too late to correct the wrong, to drop the bad, to open a new page, a new window, a new door. He did not do it then, he did not see it, he thought it was something normal, a regular human trend. He was blind, it takes so long for this human to realize his surroundings, maybe laziness blinds him, or maybe he thinks that the universe revolves around him.

It is never too late, even for that lazy person. To him, nothing equals the companionship and the courtship of a woman.

*Human observations, for entertainment purposes only. Type Divorce in the search tab on Arab American Wire to read the first two parts.

*Lingerie...Part II, The Sequel...by Jamil Shawwa

No candlelight; they are not into candles, roses, or flowers. They are into warm setting, cozy surroundings complimented by the natural heat of the body traction. They are together, she is staring and he pretends as if nothing has happened, he is playing it cool, but in fact, she is the cool one. Her eyes are so comforting that he cannot look at them. They are so confident that he melts from just passing by her sight. She is a dangerous creature; she can contain him in a second. He thinks that he controls the action but she in fact is the predator and he is the prey, she never makes him feel it, he thinks that he scored, but he did not, he made love. Lingerie is no longer anywhere to be found, they are something from the past, no one thinks of them any more, and no one wants to leave the setting to search for them; maybe they vanished, in their minds at that moment. He must leave the location, temporarily, for a cigarette, the idiot, how could he leave such a treasure for just a cigarette. No drinks around, just two small bottles of mineral water. It was not a battle but a symphony, she calmed him down, no rush she said, he looked baffled after these words, as if she had caught him in the act. Maybe he did not expect her to be so direct or so in control. Basically he is there managing something, but she is the conductor. He was the instrument, but she was the gatekeeper, the bed of roses and a gate it was, well done, well trimmed and so smooth that a mountain of butter could melt on it, and well positioned as every part of her landscape. Everything was well put and prepared, it is not a beauty per say, but everything was just right. It was not a job that they had to finish, it was not a mission that they had to accomplish, and it was not a process that they had to complete. It was a discovery, an exploration; every location needed to be touched on, and every hill and river needed to be climbed and crossed, but the sailing and the climbing were simultaneously, natural and not constructed. The river is hugging the sailor and both are indulged. In the shower, the water was dancing and singing, and all they did was to move to its tunes, and to comply with its rhythms. Nothing more, just the water under that little shower telling a story that never ends.

 

* For entertainment purposes only.

Breathe Tunisia Breathe….by Jamil Shawwa…

The winds of change and freedom are blowing all over the Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa. Iraq was the first and now Tunisia with a popular uprising that within less than a month forced the brutal dictator "Bin Ali" to flee the country. Few demonstrations ended a rule of almost quarter of a century. Nothing stopped the people; the army could not shoot at the unarmed, the poor, the hungry, the suppressed and the oppressed. The voices of the hungry in the streets of Tunisia was as thunder that no military apparatus could have stopped, and even if they could, they would have not. On a Facebook post dated 01/10/2011, just four days shy from Bin Ali’s departure, I wrote the following-In the mid 1980s the ailing late Tunisian president Bourgeba appointed Bin Ali to be minister of interior, few months later in a coup d'état, Bin Ali removed the historic yet senile leader and appointed himself president. It is time now for Tunisia to remove Bin Ali, hold elections and appoint a new president. North Africa is crying for reforms, and it is just the beginning of historic reforms in the Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa. It is time for those corrupt dictators to retire- and to my surprise, the dismissal of the dictator came much sooner than I expected. I knew that he is gone, but not that fast. Tunisia is starting to breathe fresh air that it never had before, it kicked out a manipulative dictator. The rest of the Arab countries are watching, and learning and reading the story of courage to apply it and copy it to their own versions of Bin Ali. The Arab kings, presidents, princes and oppressive commanders are now scared, contemplating in their palaces of fear about their next step or planning an exile, they are hoping to escape and be as lucky as Bin Ali and run rather than be put on trial- if they are that lucky- and be exposed on their crimes against their people. The hungry have spoken, the oppressed are talking and the deaf are listening. The world is watching a story that consists of twenty two chapters, the number of the Arab countries, and so far two chapters have been completed and in the process of getting finalized, the Iraq chapter and the Tunisia chapter. Not long, the whole story will be done, and the whole twenty-two or twenty-four chapters will be completed. The big domino effect has started and there is no way to stop it or go back to business as usual.