Dionysos' world...

#Jan25 Egypt Uprising…

2011-02-05T03:18:00.001+02:00

Uprising – MuseThe paranoia is in bloom, the PRThe transmissions will resumeThey'll try to push drugsKeep us all dumbed down and hope thatWe will never see the truth around(So come on!)Another promise, another scene, anotherA package not to keep us trapped in greedWith all the green belts wrapped around our mindsAnd endless red tape to keep the truth confined(So come on!)ChorusThey will

Another Sleight of Logic…

2011-01-28T08:45:00.001+02:00

Safwat El-Sharif – the Secretary General of Egypt’s ruling NDP [National Democratic Party(sic)] – echoed Biden’s wisdom in an article posted on the regime’s mouthpiece Al-Ahram. The article is no longer accessible but a cashed version can be found here. El-Sherif in a rather laughable sleight of logic asserted that what is currently happening in Egypt was inspired not by the Tunisian revolt but

On Dictators…

2011-01-28T06:24:00.001+02:00

Joe Biden decided to weigh in on the situation in Egypt. Asked whether he considered Moubarak a dictator Joe Biden replied: “Mubarak has been an ally of ours in a number of things. And he’s been very responsible on, relative to geopolitical interest in the region, the Middle East peace efforts; the actions Egypt has taken relative to normalizing relationship with – with Israel. … I would not

Back From Hibernation…

2011-01-27T10:00:00.000+02:00

Quite a few things happened during my extended nap: Wikileaks, after the “Afghan War Diary” and “The Iraq War Logs” opened yet another can of worms with its “Cablegate” release – a collection of more than 60,000 US Embassy cables exposing four decades of US diplomacy, Al Jadeed TV followed suit by airing audio recordings of the secret depositions of Lebanese politicians to International

St Maron's statue... An Update

2010-11-12T10:06:00.001+02:00

A few months ago I wrote about my skepticism regarding a press release from the Lebanese Maronite Church about what it called at the time a "Momentous event for the Lebanese Maronite Church and for the whole of the Catholic Church" that was supposed to take place on October 31. The event relates to the placing of a 5 m statue of St. Maron in St. Paul's Basilica in Rome in a big ceremony to be

March 14 Ideology...

2010-11-12T09:39:00.000+02:00

And yet now Aoun claims that because PM Saad Hariri did not bend to the will of the opposition, that he didn’t “do a Jumblatt,” that within his premiership there still remains some vestiges of the March 14 ideology that since 2005 has won him two parliamentary elections (and two votes of confidence by the majority of the Lebanese people), that he still believes bringing to justice those who in

The 1.5 Million Dollar Mark...

2010-09-15T04:20:00.002+03:00

Animals, using various means, mark their surroundings in an attempt to repel any competitors from encroaching on their self-proclaimed territories. Humans, especially those of religious/tribal tendencies do exactly the same albeit at a slightly heftier price; in this case, the price tag was 1.5 Million Dollars. Yes, a full 1.5 Million Dollars was squandered erecting a Gigantic fully illuminated

Jones Backs Down… Bummer!!

2010-09-10T04:01:00.001+03:00

Apparently the Florida religious crank, Pastor Terry Jones, caved in to the International uproar and decided to back down. Bummer, that would have made for an interesting show. I mean seriously, this latest episode of the stupid saga makes me even more pissed off. First AFP, Fox News, and other news outlets decided to exercise self-censorship in their coverage of the planned book burning event.

Google Voice...

2010-09-09T06:20:00.000+03:00

I just love all Google products. I love their minimalistic interfaces, their simplicity, and their functionality. I'm a consistent user of Google Search, Gmail, Google Docs, Google Translate, Google Maps, Google Reader, Google Talk, Google Transliterate, Google Checkout, and Google News. I'm also a big Android fan and bought a Nexus One 3 days after launch. And that is how I discovered Google

Burn the Koran Day and other news…

2010-09-08T08:14:00.001+03:00

Terry Jones, the Pastor from the Dove World Outreach Center is preparing to burn Korans on September 11 as part of his “Burn the Koran Day” campaign. I just love religious crackpots of all faiths. On the website is an entry that lists 10 Reasons to Burn a Koran paraphrased below: Jesus is not God and was not resurrected The Koran is unholy and does not have an eternal origin The Koran teaches

Lebanese Racism, Activism, and Crappy Journalism…

2010-09-07T03:38:00.001+03:00

IPS carried an article by Mona Alami a few weeks entitled "Lebanon: Racism Legitimized by Law (I believe it was also featured in the Daily Star). I had starred the article to comment on it but got distracted and never did. From the flashy title one would expect reading that Lebanon enacted new laws intended to institutionalize the already rampant racism existing in Lebanese society or at least to

Zeitgeist and its Addendum…

2010-09-06T20:46:00.001+03:00

Zeitgeist was recommended to me by a friend a few months back but I never got around to actually watching it. Yesterday, while surfing the internet, I stumbled on a site that had a link to the movie. Bored as I was, I decided to watch it. I actually started by watching Zeitgeist II Addendum before going back and watching the first installment. I recommend everyone interested in sociology,

Customer Support: Bangalore Style...

2010-09-01T04:27:00.001+03:00

A few months ago, I bought a top of the line Sony Vaio. It's a slick, light, and elegant piece of equipment with some serious power under the hood. I have spent most of my teenage and adult life in the company of computers - starting with my dad's Commodore 64 - and never have I suffered any security breaches or virus infiltrations. This is attributable mostly to good prevention ethics using open

The Ground Zero Mosque...

2010-08-31T06:46:00.001+03:00

The debate is still raging over the Ground Zero Mosque - shorthand for the Islamic Cultural Center that will be erected a few blocks away from what used to be the World Trade Center. Interestingly, I came across two articles today attempting to show the contrast between Lebanese religious tolerance - as exemplified by the completion of the restoration project of the Maghen Abraham Synagogue in

Lebanese Mythologies…

2010-08-29T23:39:00.000+03:00

Today, while sifting through my reader account, I stumbled upon a blog post about Lebanon’s identity crisis written by a Lebanese-Canadian who goes by the name of Seif (You can read it here). As is well known, the Lebanese suffer from an acute case of collective Multiple Personality Disorder that has rendered them unable to adopt a common identity. Instead, the Lebanese have resorted to a host of

The Compliant Minority: Smokers…

2010-08-06T04:20:00.001+03:00

Minorities are usually comprised of vocal, loud, defiant, activist, and enthusiastic lobbyers for whatever it is that defines the minority in question. The majority is silent, uninterested, and generally unconcerned. This is the common norm in modern societies – in societies of past ages, minorities offered excellent target practice. Bakers protest loudly whenever the government tries to

Resumption of service…

2010-07-31T23:10:00.001+03:00

I just realized it’s been quite a while since I last blogged; a huge disappointment for a bunch of you I’m sure. Let me recap some of the events of the last 2 months that have kept me away from blogging: Made three trips to Lebanon in a span of 5 weeks including a full 2 week stay. How pleasant would Lebanon be without the Lebanese? Played 68,688 hands of online poker equivalent to around

In Praise of Passion…

2010-05-24T22:38:00.001+03:00

Yesterday I was having a meaningful discussion with a young smart lady – who happens to be quite pretty as well – about our values and perceptions in life. She is strong willed, determined, and purposeful – all qualities I value deeply. Then disagreement emerged when the discussion veered towards the passions versus the intellect and how one ought to stimulate and direct one’s instincts – the

Psychological Mumbo Jumbo…

2010-05-13T21:34:00.001+03:00

I do not normally trust psychological assessment tests as I always think I can beat them and steer the results to a predetermined outcome – I’m smart like that you know. In any case, it does not matter how the results come out for at the end of the day we’re all screwed up; some a bit more than others. Anyhow, I took an extensive DISC (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, Conscientiousness)

Playing Tourist in Lebanon…

2010-05-12T23:38:00.001+03:00

And it’s been decided. I will be playing tourist in Lebanon this weekend. If you see a person in a Guy Fawkes mask doing fancy tricks in slow motion with kitchen knives while downing tequila shots please do not feel intimidated. I might be repulsively drunk and physically dangerous but I still am very approachable… My dislike of the Lebanese has waned a bit since my last exposure five months ago

Lebanese Pride; reclaimed!

2010-05-12T22:08:00.001+03:00

And the great Lebanese can wallow in their pride by again claiming the official Guiness record for the largest Hummos dish and retaining the unofficial record for the most annoying, repulsive, and uninteresting waste and joke of a culture. I mean, for hummos’ sake, can’t this bunch of baboons endowed with the collective IQ of a bowl of plums engage in an endeavor less worthy of their cumulative

Three Months Later…

2010-05-12T20:51:00.001+03:00

And the blog lives on. Chaotic, cluttered, disorganized, unstructured, purposeless, pointless, cynical, sarcastic, and absurd but enjoyable nonetheless – at least for me. Come to think of it, that’s exactly how I would describe my own existence…

And The Agony Continues…

2010-05-04T20:25:00.001+03:00

After several attempts to reach the bank, a lady by the name of Hanin finally answered. After taking the time to explain my plight she said: “I’m sorry Sir – I hate being called Sir – but in order to activate your card I need an email from the local branch requesting me to do so.” “But I was at the Branch two days ago and was told that an email was sent the day I picked up the card then in front

The Debit Card Ordeal…

2010-05-03T08:13:00.000+03:00

Six weeks ago, the stupid bartender at the joint where I was having a drink mixed up my Debit Card with that of another customer. I only noticed the next day when the ATM would not allow me to withdraw any cash. Taking a closer look at the card I learned that it belongs to a certain Ahmed. I immediately called the manager of the joint to check whether my card was still with them or they had given

Human Rights Activism… A La Libanaise!!!

2010-04-30T20:51:00.001+03:00

And our famous Human Rights Activist turned Interior Minister commented again today on the lynching of AL Msallem by describing his murder as a “Legal crime” – or a crime in the legal sense – all the while conclusively asserting that Al Msallem is indeed behind the murder of the Abu Merhi family as proven by a DNA test performed on a piece of bloody cloth found at Al Msallem’s home. The human