My BeoBle !
"It is very important for an Arab and a Muslim to get this prize at this moment — a time when the image of Arabs and Muslims is in ruins," Ezz Eldin, Egypt's ambassador to Austria, told state TV.
- Ahmed Zewail won the chemistry prize in 1999.
- Naguib Mahfouz won the literature prize in 1988.
- Late President Anwar Sadat won the peace prize in 1979.
I think it's an awesome thing to receive such an award at this specific time and place, relating to the Arab world, that is. I think these distinguished "personalities" should be documented and their biographies should be taught in Arab schools. I'm sick and tired of teachers fueling low self-esteem into students. All you hear, growing up in the Arab world, is about the dark future that everybody's going to have, lack of jobs, lack of progress, lack of hope and so on. I guess "terrorists" got an easy pass because that's all they were taught, then they took all that crap and started preaching about it. I believe these Nobel Prize winners have sent a slap to these "thugs", as Donald Rumsfield calls them. :p
To my Arab Beoble..I love you with all my heart, keep up the good work. We need some ladies on the list, get to it..get to it...Salam.
WORD!
Posted by Marcy Newman | 12:36 AM
Well-deserved honor.
My BeoBle ROCK :p
Posted by Ancient Poem | 12:51 PM
Deedee: He's smart mashallah..
Reincarnated: Hurry up then :p
Marcy: Always a pleasure :)
Ancient: They sure do..
Noor: Weird taste, but sure :p
Posted by Sami | 5:44 AM
we will get there. Trust me!
How is school?
I am not sure if you remember or not but I was thinking to visit home in this christmas....is it easy to renew the visa from home now? Ahh I hope so 'cause I am not done from here, yet.
Please let me know anything you know or you think you do (sorry:) I know this sounds pushy..but for some reason , i am not really finding anyone to ask around here...darn it :( ....)
Maha
Posted by Anonymous | 12:19 PM
Maha: ahleen hun, everything's fine, thanks..I don't really know about alvisa thingi but I have a few friends who went back in the summer and got it renewed right away. I heard the embassy in Jeddah is more lenient. I don't know why. I think the U.S. State Department fears that a lot of "Wahabis" are coming from Riyadh or something :p But I guess Farah's sis can help. Sorry :)
Farah: What's ub baby? I'm a hardcore pan-arabist. I show it, too. We need to come up with some wrist band or something. What color do you think we should have it in? And why?
Posted by Sami | 12:20 AM
Dearest Saudi friends, Sami and Fara7,
Thank you so much for your generousity and I really wish that things are better now than what it used to be. I am in the middle of my degree and I will just be crushed into pieces if I can't come here again. However, I need to go back home because I can't stand being away from mama all this time...
I will e-mail Reema; thank you in loads for your kindness ya fara7 :)
Please give her the heads up for me:)
Maha
Posted by Anonymous | 3:04 PM
Maha: Everything's going to be fine inshallah...don't worry about it..
Posted by Sami | 3:09 AM
The Angry Arab http://angryarab.blogspot.com has some interesting comments about the list of Arabs that have won the prize. He points out that all but one, Mahfouz, are either silent or vocal in their support of Israel. Coincidence? I wonder.
Posted by أبو سنان | 8:36 AM
I read the comments on The Angry Arab blog concerning Arab Nobel Prize winners. I admit it made me think a little about the whole thing. But then again, I personally don't think an Arab country's "relationship" with Israel, in this case Egypt, is a major determinant for its citizens to be considered candidates for the Prize. Nor comments made by Arab Prize winners, prior to receiving the award, concerning Israel.
I'll take the spin side of it and say that Egypt has historically been the leading Arab state when it comes to education. It has also been the leading state in film, as well. Other than Anwar Sadat, I believe the other three to be devoted to their cause, whether it was in science or literature, even though their achievements aren't in any way directly related to the state of Israel. In fact, Mohamed ElBaradei has been highly critical of the U.S. in the past and he had probably said a thing or two concerning Israel's "nuclear energy" program.
I also believe that public criticism of Israel coming form Arabs, who know nothing about politics or international relations, isn't going to take us anywhere. We've been doing it for more than a quarter century now and it hasn't done us good. I'm not really sure about whether any of the Arab Nobel winners have criticized Israel in the past or not. But counting Sadat out, I believe the other three are people of science. they're devoted to their cause, like I said before, and they probably see talking about certain issues as a waste of their time and efforts.
I always get criticized when I say "this" whole issue of Israel is a waste of time. I don't mean it in that sense. I'm referring to the approach we're taking. And don't ask me for "resolve" answers because I don't have any. And I don't have to have any either because it's not my field. I have all the love in the world for Palestine. It's my land, my history. But resolving the issue of occupation goes outside fighting and blaming. Almost every Arab blames the U.S. for its support of Israel. But hardly anybody asks how all this support came about, the history of this relationship, and so on. I always say, let's do what the people who had interest in Israel did when they first came to the U.S., how they emerged themselves into U.S. politics. And how all that in the end paid off. Why can't we do the same? We can but we don't want to. Even our own people, who blame Israel for all their unfortunates, criticize us when we major in political and social sciences by saying..where's that going to take you?
Posted by Sami | 7:06 PM
Why does it always come back to Israel. Most people in the Arab world give them way to much credit. Anyway the post was well put.
Karim Elsahy
onearabworld.blog.com
Posted by Anonymous | 12:34 PM
Thanks Karim...I totally agree..welcome to the blog :)
Posted by Sami | 1:35 PM
Farah: How about green? Green represents a lot of things, peace for one.
Posted by Sami | 6:08 PM
Libya's green, too :p
How about dark yellow. I don't know what you chicks call it cause we guys are color blind, we only know the main colors. Anyway. The color represents the deserts. The world sees us as barbarian bedwins. I guess we have to make sure they're right.
Wallah abad ya Farah...anti wish a5barits?
Posted by Sami | 3:28 AM
Farooha you are an absolute riot and I have been in love with your artwork since I first saw your site. I have an idea for both you and Sami as you both seem to be as naive as I am when it comes to Arabism. I’m not sure if you have gotten a chance to check it out before but there is this guy that started a collaborative blog on Arabism and he has been looking for more people to contribute posts on Arabism.
The site is http://nasser101.blogspot.com/ check it out.
Don’t forget to blogroll onearabworld.blog.com ;)
Oh and if I may? I like white.
Peace
Karim
Posted by Anonymous | 12:57 PM