Posts

Showing posts from October, 2014

Parable - a Lioness, a Cheetah & an Oryx (in Lebanon: Politicians, their client base and citizen)

Image
The following Parable is an actual simulation of the Lebanese society layers. Parable of a lioness, a cheetah and an Oryx, who had come together on a long journey, decided one day to confess their sins to each other. As queen of the forest, the lioness was the first.  "she told the others that, once, after she had finished off a big buck, a zebra came by. "it looked so sleek and tender," she said, "I had wantonly dispatched a fellow beast for no purpose," she said regretfully.   The remorseful cheetah reassured her. "why should you, queen of the forest, be remorseful about the skill that has made you the greatest hunter of us all? You are to be forgiven."   Then the cheetah told how, one day, he had spied a fat ewe and her two lambs. Hungrily he had pounced on the nearest lamb, but the mother had begged him to spare the remaining lamb and eat her instead. "I agreed", the cheetah said, "but I was so hungry I the

من كتاب "الجمر والرماد - ذكريات مثقف عربي" للكاتب هشام شرابي

Image
لفتني مقطع من كتاب هشام شرابي "الجمر والرماد" يتحدث من خلاله عن الطبقية السائدة في تلك الحقبة (وما زالت) وعن النظرة السائدة للمجتمع المخمليّ تجاه الاقل حظاً، او الأفقر: "كان جميع الذين يدرسون في الجامعة الأميركية في بيروت من طبقة غنية أو متوسطة الحال على الأقل. كنا قلة بين عشرات الآلاف من شبان شعبنا أتيح لها أن تحصل على العلم والثقافة العالية. ولم نكن، مع ذلك، نشعر بأننا نتمتع بامتيازات خاصة حرم منها الباقون. تعودنا أن نسكن البيوت الواسعة ونتمتع بالحياة كما نريد، لا نعرف للحرمان معنى، كأن السعادة حق طبيعي لنا. تعلمنا منذ الصغر ان ننظر إلى الفقراء بمنظار خاص. كان الفقر جزءً من حياتنا، ولكنه كان خارجها، بعيداً عنها كالأكواخ المتناثرة حول أحيائنا الفخمة. كان الفقراء بشراً مساكين نرأف بهم ونتألم لفقرهم لكنهم كانوا ينتمون إلى عالم آخر. وكان منظر المتسولين الذين يملأون شوارع مدننا منظراً طبيعياً بالنسبة إلينا، فلم يزعجنا أو يدفعنا إلى تأنيب الضمير ولم يدر بخلدنا أن هناك علاقة بين ثرائنا وبؤسهم." هشام شرابي  هو مفكر فلسطيني، ولد في  يافا  في

What i did not know about Ethiopia (The Barefoot Runner)

Image
I read a book about the Ethiopian Abeb Bakila, the barefoot marathon runner, whom under his belt honorable achievements being the first African to win a golden Olympic medal and the first athlete in history to win two golden medal. Apparently, there is another book narrating Bikila's life, written by a foreign correspondent Tim Judah. the later do not portray Abebe as the saint shining brightly out off Rambali's papers. the Ethiopian champion was described through Tim's memoir as arrogant and selfish who encountered a non poetic death contrary to what have been characterized very elegantly by Rambali.  Click here to see a review on the gardian After reading Paul Rambali vividly written book about the life of marathon champion Abeb Bikila, you feel that you have learned a lot about a country full of agony, pride, beauty and extremely vulnerable people. encountering Ethiopians here in Lebanon made it easier for me to grasp the root of the cultural aspect. though