Dear friends,
I think the game of cricket is absurd. I know I will get a lot of stares and weird looks, but I honestly think it is a long drawn out affair to watch a game of cricket. Of recent, Pakistan is playing with Sri Lanka. I could barely get through the One Day matches, and now they are playing Test match, which lasts for five days. Why would anyone dedicate their time to watch a game that lasts for five whole days is beyond my comprehension!! I can never get through a game of cricket. If I watch it, I'd rather watch the highlights, which show the entire game in 30 mins or less!
A game of cricket is so long, with 50 overs, and each over has 6 balls, so that means that a spectator has to watch 300 balls being bowled. Each ball being bowled takes about a minute. Now, I know there are some people who get all obsessed with the condition of the ball, whether it is worn out or not, whether it is scratched or not and how fast the ball is bowled. They get all uptight about the speed of the ball and talk about how fast the particular bowler is. What I dont understand is why the bowler has to rub the ball on his groin each time he is ready to bowl? Does that give the ball some extra power? Does that make the ball go faster? I think it is such a funny sight to see bowlers rubbing the cricket balls on their groin!
Ok, and what is the deal with this obsession of screaming out loud that a player is out? All bowlers think that each of their ball is lbw and scream out loud OOOUUUTTTT! And when it is not out, they grumble and moan. Also, what is this lbw thing? Once the batter is not out, the tv screen suddenly put these graphics up to show how good or bad a decision the umpire made of not giving out or out. You see this huge strip of red bar leading from one set of stumps to the other where the batter is standing, and you see replay in slo-mo of how the ball did not hit the leg. LBW-- what does that stand for?
Sometimes I am amazed at how much analysis is given to the game. Someone could probably do a PHd research on the game of cricket. With the latest graphics on screen, showing where each and every ball was shot, in what direction, and how far it went. They show us how many runs were made in each over, and compare it to the other teams. We get statistics on each player, their best score, when and where. Why do you want to see so much analysis. Even the commentators talk about the game of cricket, commenting on each and every ball, how well it was thrown, talk about the pitch, the conditions, brief anecdote here and there. Gosh-- information overload!
Then you have this mumbling and grumbling by the team when they lose a match. They blame every thing, from the weather, bad umpiring, light conditions, team mates, bad coaching when they lose a game. When they win, they give all the credit to the players, and suddenly the weather, umpiring etc are all thrown out of the window. And who cares who made the fastest 50 anyway?
I really dont understand how some people can watch a Test match-- gosh, a game of cricket for five days. How much more slower can you get? I know of some people who get obsessed, and watch the entire game, so much so, they watch each and every ball, and discuss the ball as if it were the only ball ever thrown in the game!
I am talking about cricket in general and not talking about any one nation or tournament. I can only watch a game of cricket when Pakistan plays. When we win, everyone says Pakistan is a great team. When we lose, everyone bad mouths the teams and blame the players! Cricket is really a funny game...and I still have yet to learn to like it. Most people, when they find out I dont really like cricket, think I have something against Pakistan. Its like mirchi (chili)-- I dont like mirchi nor cricket, and both these things are very popular in Pakistan. Mansur, are you sure you are a Pakistani? How can you not like cricket? Dont you support your team?
Cricket: What Is It Good For? a PHd Research soon published in the near future by Mansur!
Bye for now,
Mansur
Friday, October 29, 2004
Monday, October 25, 2004
The One about the Massacred Iraqi Soldiers
The bodies of some of the executed men who were ambushed and shot in the head in Iraq.
It is with a note of sadness that I write this entry. 49 Iraqi men were butchered by insurgents, who now claim to be a group led by Al-Zarqawi. What I did not understand was how an Iraqi group could choose to kill Iraqi men. I am hearing from different people that the insurgents are angry that the Iraqi soldiers were working with the US forces and were being trained with them. In other words, these Iraqi soldiers are working with the enemy. That may be an arguent and a justification purported by the insurgent group, but I dont agree with them.
These Iraqi soldiers are merely making a living. They have families to support. Jobs are scarce. There are women and children and parents to feed. They need money to have electricity, food, water, clothes and shelter. The conditions are such in the country that people are willing to work at whatever job they can get. So if the Iraqi men want to work for the National Army, what do the insurgents have a problem with? If the insurgents are not keen on having men work for the National Army, then they should support them! Groups like Al-Zarqawi should give these men an alternative jobs or money, instead of discouraging them to work for the National Army. Sure, these groups would love to have these men join their group to kill the invading coalition forces. But not every single Iraqi men is willing to do such a thing. There are some desperate people who are desperate to make money.
For sure, the country is in a mess. Even the higher authorities are admitting that the crisis has worsened. More people are dying. More bombinbgs are taking place, and one person even went as far as saying the the number of attacks on such groups of soldiers will increase in an effort to discourage voters to vote for Bush in the United States.
Lets all hope for a better future.
Take care friends,
Mansur
Friday, October 22, 2004
The One About The Sunnis, The Shias and The Sufis
Hello all,
today we had someone over from Pakistan. He had come here with his wife to perform umrah at Makkah and Medina. He was here for just a short while. The conversation steered towards the Sunnis, the Shias, the Sufis and Mystical Islam.
How did it all start? It all started when we asked our guest where his wife was, and he said that his wife was asked by her "sheikh" that she should not distract her pilgrimage by leaving either Makkah or Medina. She she went directly to the aiport, since she was not allowed to go anywhere else. What is this "sheikh" and how could he prevent her from coming to Jeddah?
Our guest started off by saying that she is a part of a group called "Silsila" in Pakistan. These are groups where people meet once a week and have a discussion on Islamic topics, and have a question-answer session. It is not like the religious lectures where people are usually criticized and judged by the lecturer. The Silsila group stress mostly on Love and Tolerance. This was for the first I was hearing something like this. Almost always, I hear of meetings and lectures by apparently learned scholars who do a good job of making the people feel guilty and strum fear into their hearts to start doing Islamic things to avoid hell fire. They spend too much time criticizing and judging others, making people feel guilty, making them fearful of the afterlife, and reminding them again and again of the hellfire that awaits them! It was with surprise when our guest said that Silsila are a growing group of people in Pakistan, who are moving away from the more rigid style of teaching into the kind of teaching which is based on Love and Tolerance.
I did not know what to say. Or guest continued to talk about how God wants for us to connect to him through our souls, and not through our strict intrepretations of the Quran. While he was talking, I realized that our guest was into the Sufism branch of Islam. Sufism are those group of Muslim who believe that God is basically love and that we can connect to God through spiritual devotion of prayers, music and love. I admired his boldness to share all this with us.
I asked him if this particular belief was deviated from the main branch of Sunni and Shias, and he said that it has not deviated, but rather is more closer to Sunni. He said that he did not understand how he could see five people in Medina praying in five different ways. He was put off by the different intrepretations by different people. He felt that prayer was something that should be common in all different schools of thoughts in Islam, but here he was seeing five different ways. Someone in the room said that the differences are minor, and that ticked our guest off. He started talking about how radically different Sunnis are from Shias. I myself got a better idea. I thought the Shias were only different on a few accounts, but it turned out, they are following a completely different religion; with a different creed and a different Quran and a different prayer!
He got me really interested into Sufism, and I plan on checking it out on the internet to see what it is that is drawing people to Sufism in Pakistan. Our guest said that his life has changed dramtically four years ago when he met his Sufi saint. He came across as a very open minded person, as a caring and intelligent person. Surely, his belief in this particular branch of Islam changed him.
I am now going on the net to do more research on this Silsila group. Our guest promised me to show the group when I am in Pakistan next. However, in his words, he said "Silsila works in mysterious ways, and are bit secretive about their group."
Here are websites for further reading: (The first one is the best)
http://www.geocities.com/pak_history/sufi.html
http://www.alwaiz-arts.com/sufism.html
http://www.sabiree.com/introduction.htm
Till then, take care friends,
Mansur
today we had someone over from Pakistan. He had come here with his wife to perform umrah at Makkah and Medina. He was here for just a short while. The conversation steered towards the Sunnis, the Shias, the Sufis and Mystical Islam.
How did it all start? It all started when we asked our guest where his wife was, and he said that his wife was asked by her "sheikh" that she should not distract her pilgrimage by leaving either Makkah or Medina. She she went directly to the aiport, since she was not allowed to go anywhere else. What is this "sheikh" and how could he prevent her from coming to Jeddah?
Our guest started off by saying that she is a part of a group called "Silsila" in Pakistan. These are groups where people meet once a week and have a discussion on Islamic topics, and have a question-answer session. It is not like the religious lectures where people are usually criticized and judged by the lecturer. The Silsila group stress mostly on Love and Tolerance. This was for the first I was hearing something like this. Almost always, I hear of meetings and lectures by apparently learned scholars who do a good job of making the people feel guilty and strum fear into their hearts to start doing Islamic things to avoid hell fire. They spend too much time criticizing and judging others, making people feel guilty, making them fearful of the afterlife, and reminding them again and again of the hellfire that awaits them! It was with surprise when our guest said that Silsila are a growing group of people in Pakistan, who are moving away from the more rigid style of teaching into the kind of teaching which is based on Love and Tolerance.
I did not know what to say. Or guest continued to talk about how God wants for us to connect to him through our souls, and not through our strict intrepretations of the Quran. While he was talking, I realized that our guest was into the Sufism branch of Islam. Sufism are those group of Muslim who believe that God is basically love and that we can connect to God through spiritual devotion of prayers, music and love. I admired his boldness to share all this with us.
I asked him if this particular belief was deviated from the main branch of Sunni and Shias, and he said that it has not deviated, but rather is more closer to Sunni. He said that he did not understand how he could see five people in Medina praying in five different ways. He was put off by the different intrepretations by different people. He felt that prayer was something that should be common in all different schools of thoughts in Islam, but here he was seeing five different ways. Someone in the room said that the differences are minor, and that ticked our guest off. He started talking about how radically different Sunnis are from Shias. I myself got a better idea. I thought the Shias were only different on a few accounts, but it turned out, they are following a completely different religion; with a different creed and a different Quran and a different prayer!
He got me really interested into Sufism, and I plan on checking it out on the internet to see what it is that is drawing people to Sufism in Pakistan. Our guest said that his life has changed dramtically four years ago when he met his Sufi saint. He came across as a very open minded person, as a caring and intelligent person. Surely, his belief in this particular branch of Islam changed him.
I am now going on the net to do more research on this Silsila group. Our guest promised me to show the group when I am in Pakistan next. However, in his words, he said "Silsila works in mysterious ways, and are bit secretive about their group."
Here are websites for further reading: (The first one is the best)
http://www.geocities.com/pak_history/sufi.html
http://www.alwaiz-arts.com/sufism.html
http://www.sabiree.com/introduction.htm
Till then, take care friends,
Mansur
Sunday, October 17, 2004
The One about Imran Khan (not my cousin!)
Hi all,
I recently had the privilege of having Imran Khan-- the world famous cricketer-- stay at our house in Jeddah for couple of days. He was actually passing through Jeddah to perform Umrah to go on to London to spend time with his two sons.
I remember when it was way back in 1993, right after my O'Levels, that I was excited like a little boy when Imran was here in Jeddah. It was a dinner party, and I excitedly took a piece of paper and went behind the sofa he was sitting on and asked for his autograph. Neither him nor I realized that 11 years down the road, we would meet again face to face in my home! I did have several chances to meet him again in person in Pakistan when I was at high school there, but it was not as personal as it was now.
There was one time when I was upset from him. My class had wanted to invite Imran to speak at our commencement ceremony when we were in 12th grade. Since my father knew Imran, I had decided to take the responsibilty of officialy inviting him. The class president wrote out a letter as an official invitation. I had called Imran's house and got an appointment. By the time I got there, his servant had answered the door. I was led in to his drawing room, which was in the process of being renovated. I sat there for about 30 minutes, during which time I was not offered anything, and had to endure his dogs. He came down from his shower, and I introduced myself and handed him the letter and verbally invited himt o speak at our commencement ceremony. He did not even sit down, and instead started to walk towards the main door. I had no choice but to follow him, and in less than a few seconds, I found myself out on the street getting into my car. What? Gosh! How did this happen? After this time, I thought to myself that Imran is so arrogant and proud and that he talks to only those people who he knows can help him.
God, was I wrong about that!!
At that time, I was very upset! How can Imran act like this? If he wants to be a politician, he has to be accessible to people! I chose to stay quiet about the whole experience. I wanted to give him the benefit of doubt. People around me would ask me again and again to recount my experience. I stopped talking about it after a while. At that time, he had also married Jemima and that created waves in the media and political circles. Of course, as we all know today, he has divorced Jemima.
I know I can get bogged down into the personal life of Imran, and talk about all that is going on in his personal life, but I will make a deliberate choice to not do that. Instead, I want to take this opportunity to write about all that he has been doing for the nation of Pakistan. I truly admire all that he has done for the poor people of Pakistan who suffer from cancer. The time and energy he devotes for this particular cause is unbelievable. The zeal and fervor he has for his cause to serve the poor of the nation is a great source of encouragement for me. The numerous trips and traveling he makes to raise funds for the hospital is so amazing. The number of people he has to meet is more than I can list on top of my head. He is one person, who I can honestly say is a hard-working, honest person who is doing something for the nation of Pakistan.
There are always some people who like to discredit the good others are doing. There will always be someone out there who will talk about his marriage and the divorce. But very few will actually talk about the good he is doing. I want to take this opportunity to say that I have faith in Imran, and I believe that he will continue to do wonders. You get a whole new perspective when you get to talk to the person himself as opposed to the picture of the person that has developed in your mind through the media.
His hospital is one of the world's best, and I have yet to see another hospital which would treat its patients for free!
http://www.shaukatkhanum.org.pk/
Warmly,
Mansur
I recently had the privilege of having Imran Khan-- the world famous cricketer-- stay at our house in Jeddah for couple of days. He was actually passing through Jeddah to perform Umrah to go on to London to spend time with his two sons.
I remember when it was way back in 1993, right after my O'Levels, that I was excited like a little boy when Imran was here in Jeddah. It was a dinner party, and I excitedly took a piece of paper and went behind the sofa he was sitting on and asked for his autograph. Neither him nor I realized that 11 years down the road, we would meet again face to face in my home! I did have several chances to meet him again in person in Pakistan when I was at high school there, but it was not as personal as it was now.
There was one time when I was upset from him. My class had wanted to invite Imran to speak at our commencement ceremony when we were in 12th grade. Since my father knew Imran, I had decided to take the responsibilty of officialy inviting him. The class president wrote out a letter as an official invitation. I had called Imran's house and got an appointment. By the time I got there, his servant had answered the door. I was led in to his drawing room, which was in the process of being renovated. I sat there for about 30 minutes, during which time I was not offered anything, and had to endure his dogs. He came down from his shower, and I introduced myself and handed him the letter and verbally invited himt o speak at our commencement ceremony. He did not even sit down, and instead started to walk towards the main door. I had no choice but to follow him, and in less than a few seconds, I found myself out on the street getting into my car. What? Gosh! How did this happen? After this time, I thought to myself that Imran is so arrogant and proud and that he talks to only those people who he knows can help him.
God, was I wrong about that!!
At that time, I was very upset! How can Imran act like this? If he wants to be a politician, he has to be accessible to people! I chose to stay quiet about the whole experience. I wanted to give him the benefit of doubt. People around me would ask me again and again to recount my experience. I stopped talking about it after a while. At that time, he had also married Jemima and that created waves in the media and political circles. Of course, as we all know today, he has divorced Jemima.
I know I can get bogged down into the personal life of Imran, and talk about all that is going on in his personal life, but I will make a deliberate choice to not do that. Instead, I want to take this opportunity to write about all that he has been doing for the nation of Pakistan. I truly admire all that he has done for the poor people of Pakistan who suffer from cancer. The time and energy he devotes for this particular cause is unbelievable. The zeal and fervor he has for his cause to serve the poor of the nation is a great source of encouragement for me. The numerous trips and traveling he makes to raise funds for the hospital is so amazing. The number of people he has to meet is more than I can list on top of my head. He is one person, who I can honestly say is a hard-working, honest person who is doing something for the nation of Pakistan.
There are always some people who like to discredit the good others are doing. There will always be someone out there who will talk about his marriage and the divorce. But very few will actually talk about the good he is doing. I want to take this opportunity to say that I have faith in Imran, and I believe that he will continue to do wonders. You get a whole new perspective when you get to talk to the person himself as opposed to the picture of the person that has developed in your mind through the media.
His hospital is one of the world's best, and I have yet to see another hospital which would treat its patients for free!
http://www.shaukatkhanum.org.pk/
Warmly,
Mansur
Thursday, October 14, 2004
The One About My Loss of Wisdom
Hi,
I am losing wisdom nowadays. The first time when I sensed that I was losing wisdom was back in 1993. The second time was when I was in London, in summer of 2002, when I realized that I am about to lose some of my wisdom. That same year, in October, I lost some more wisdom! Now, tomorrow, I will lose more wisdom! How do I realize how I am losing wisdom? By losing wisdom, am I making bad judgments? Is my thinking and reasoning screwed? Am I basically becoming more dumb as my age progresses?
I can honestly say no to all the above answers, despite losing my wisdom!
The dentist will take out my last wisdom tooth tomorrow. Why they are called wisdom tooth, I have no idea. I wil have to do some research into it.
Here is a website that I found useful:
http://www.umanitoba.ca/outreach/wisdomtooth/wteeth.htm
In-anticipation-of-losing-wisdom,
Mansur
----------UPDATE--------- 14-10-04-------------------
My wisdom tooth is out now. So now I am totally, completely, absolutely widsom-less. The procedure took more than 30 minutes, with two injections and many grunts and shoving taking place inside my mouth. The gripping device was battling with the nerves holding down my tooth in my jaw. The dentist won the battle. The nerves had a strong grip on my tooth, rendering it immobile. It was as if the tooth was stuck in my jaw with superglue. Two gripping devices later, the nerves loosened their grip, and the tooth started moving. Huge shoves and pushing and grunting later, the tooth came out smoothly into the grip of the device. It was covered in blood, about several centimeters long. Now, there is a cavity at the back of my mouth. I cannot believe that all four my wisdom tooth are out!
I am losing wisdom nowadays. The first time when I sensed that I was losing wisdom was back in 1993. The second time was when I was in London, in summer of 2002, when I realized that I am about to lose some of my wisdom. That same year, in October, I lost some more wisdom! Now, tomorrow, I will lose more wisdom! How do I realize how I am losing wisdom? By losing wisdom, am I making bad judgments? Is my thinking and reasoning screwed? Am I basically becoming more dumb as my age progresses?
I can honestly say no to all the above answers, despite losing my wisdom!
The dentist will take out my last wisdom tooth tomorrow. Why they are called wisdom tooth, I have no idea. I wil have to do some research into it.
Here is a website that I found useful:
http://www.umanitoba.ca/outreach/wisdomtooth/wteeth.htm
In-anticipation-of-losing-wisdom,
Mansur
----------UPDATE--------- 14-10-04-------------------
My wisdom tooth is out now. So now I am totally, completely, absolutely widsom-less. The procedure took more than 30 minutes, with two injections and many grunts and shoving taking place inside my mouth. The gripping device was battling with the nerves holding down my tooth in my jaw. The dentist won the battle. The nerves had a strong grip on my tooth, rendering it immobile. It was as if the tooth was stuck in my jaw with superglue. Two gripping devices later, the nerves loosened their grip, and the tooth started moving. Huge shoves and pushing and grunting later, the tooth came out smoothly into the grip of the device. It was covered in blood, about several centimeters long. Now, there is a cavity at the back of my mouth. I cannot believe that all four my wisdom tooth are out!
Wednesday, October 13, 2004
The One about Christopher "Superman" Reeves' Death
Dear friends,
Today, Christopher Reeves passed away. Christopher Reeves was forever immortalized as the Superman. Whenever Reeves’ name is mention, images of Superman come up in people’s mind. I still remember watching the first Superman movie—that made me believe that a man could fly! I dreamt of flying myself at that young age, and would pretend to play Superman: flying, using my vision to cut through steel and blowing hard to blow away the villains!
Reeves carried on his persona of a superman into reality when he fell off his horse during horse-riding. He broke two of his vertebrae and was paralyzed from neck downwards. He was bound to a wheelchair. He simply could not move. That was a drastic change from a man who made the world believe he could fly to a man who was made immobile. However, as we all know, Reeves kept his hope, courage and determination high. He was very optimistic that he would be cured. He rallied for the cause of paralysis world over and initiated a foundation – Christopher Reeves Paralysis Act and was set up to carry out research. Reeves became a role model world over for people who suffered from paralysis, but I feel that Reeves was also an inspiration to others who suffered from even the minor form of ailments. Reeves showed the world that you did not have to be down and out with the ailment, but rather can be optimistic through being hopeful and determined. In fact, Reeves said in his interview in Reader’s Digest (October 2004) “I focus on the opportunities that comes along my way and rather than on the things that haven’t arrived yet.”
One thing that almost everyone is saying is that Reeves wife, Dana, has been on his constant side. She has been very patient and has contributed a lot of her time and energy to care for Reeves. Reeves said in the same in the interview that “the love and support of my family, and the fact that I’m needed” is really what kept him going through his sufferings. The biggest gift Reeves said he got was “the growth of his family, the support we give one another—my two older kids [from previous relationship], and Will [his son from Dana], and of course Dana, who is by my side no matter. And that’s really extraordinary.” I think at a time when people have the conception that family values have been eroded from the Western society, particularly America, this comes as a fresh breath to me.
I have left my small tribute to Reeves at BBC Online. I know I never shared any of this with you earlier, but I secretly admired Reeves for his bravery, hope, courage and determination. As someone who is deaf, and uses hearing aids, I took some lessons from Reeves as to how deal with the situation. There is an old adage which goes something like “there is always someone worse off than you.” I would think of the situation Reeves is in, and would count my blessings!
Here is the website if you are also interested in leaving your tributes:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/talking_point/3732366.stm
Yours,
Mansur
PS The BBC have closed the section where you can leave your tributes.
Today, Christopher Reeves passed away. Christopher Reeves was forever immortalized as the Superman. Whenever Reeves’ name is mention, images of Superman come up in people’s mind. I still remember watching the first Superman movie—that made me believe that a man could fly! I dreamt of flying myself at that young age, and would pretend to play Superman: flying, using my vision to cut through steel and blowing hard to blow away the villains!
Reeves carried on his persona of a superman into reality when he fell off his horse during horse-riding. He broke two of his vertebrae and was paralyzed from neck downwards. He was bound to a wheelchair. He simply could not move. That was a drastic change from a man who made the world believe he could fly to a man who was made immobile. However, as we all know, Reeves kept his hope, courage and determination high. He was very optimistic that he would be cured. He rallied for the cause of paralysis world over and initiated a foundation – Christopher Reeves Paralysis Act and was set up to carry out research. Reeves became a role model world over for people who suffered from paralysis, but I feel that Reeves was also an inspiration to others who suffered from even the minor form of ailments. Reeves showed the world that you did not have to be down and out with the ailment, but rather can be optimistic through being hopeful and determined. In fact, Reeves said in his interview in Reader’s Digest (October 2004) “I focus on the opportunities that comes along my way and rather than on the things that haven’t arrived yet.”
One thing that almost everyone is saying is that Reeves wife, Dana, has been on his constant side. She has been very patient and has contributed a lot of her time and energy to care for Reeves. Reeves said in the same in the interview that “the love and support of my family, and the fact that I’m needed” is really what kept him going through his sufferings. The biggest gift Reeves said he got was “the growth of his family, the support we give one another—my two older kids [from previous relationship], and Will [his son from Dana], and of course Dana, who is by my side no matter. And that’s really extraordinary.” I think at a time when people have the conception that family values have been eroded from the Western society, particularly America, this comes as a fresh breath to me.
I have left my small tribute to Reeves at BBC Online. I know I never shared any of this with you earlier, but I secretly admired Reeves for his bravery, hope, courage and determination. As someone who is deaf, and uses hearing aids, I took some lessons from Reeves as to how deal with the situation. There is an old adage which goes something like “there is always someone worse off than you.” I would think of the situation Reeves is in, and would count my blessings!
Here is the website if you are also interested in leaving your tributes:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/talking_point/3732366.stm
Yours,
Mansur
PS The BBC have closed the section where you can leave your tributes.
Tuesday, October 05, 2004
The One about the Discrimination Against Saudi Women
(Ruba and Rania- This is for you!)
Dear faithful readers of my blog,
The Arab News headline screamed: WOMEN BARRED FROM POLLS! That one line disappointed me so much. When will the women get a fair chance in this country?
What is the Kingdom so scared of? Are the men-folk so scared that the women will perhaps do a better job? (I can tell you from my experience at university that Saudi girls are much better students than the Saudi boys who were at my university to show off their assets and to enjoy the open-ness in society in Dubai!) Do the men fear losing their power and authority once women come into the workplace? (And by workplace, I don’t mean schools, hospitals and women-only boutiques!) I mean, for God’s sake, how can you women feel so comfortable going into make-up and lingerie shops and purchase items while being served by a man? Don’t you women feel least bit concerned that you are being served by a man when you ask him you’re looking for a particular sized bra? Don’t you find it a bit funny when a man demonstrates to you what particular shade of blusher would suit your skin?
I was more disappointed, because women being barred from the first ever elections in the Kingdom is a big blow to all the women out there, who are being marginalized. The interview of several men showed the mindset of the men here: “women’s place belongs at home,” “first women need to handle the home, only then can they work outside,” “the society is not ready to have women in the workplace,” and the most absurd “women will not be able to perform effectively.” If I were a Saudi woman, I would have been deeply insulted by these comments! Who are these men here to comment on what women can and cannot do? I think the women and the liberalized men are tired of repeating over and over again about how much freedom women enjoyed during the Prophet’s time; they talk about women running business, dealing with men, riding camels and so on. It’s about time they stop bringing up examples from the past and do something for the present! But the Kingdom of Saudi is not ready to have women out in the real world!
Why there is this much discrimination against women, I don’t understand. Sure, I can hear some of the women out there saying to me “look at the bright side Mansur. We women don’t have to drive in this crazy traffic, no parking hassles, men do all the paperwork for us, no single teens to bother us in all family areas” and the list goes on and on. If you are happy being relegated to an almost second class citizen—all I can say is enjoy!
I went out yesterday to get something from the supermarket. The temperature was a scorching 42 degrees centigrade. I was sweating profusely, even though I was in jeans and t-shirt. On my way to the supermarket from my car, I saw a woman sitting on the steps. She was an African, rather robust, sitting in such a position, I thought she was going to fall over and die. She was covered entirely from head to toe, save her eyes, which were peering out from the slits. My God, how can you sit like this in the heat in an all –encompassing ‘black’ abaya (covering). You are going to faint here. Don’t you know ‘black’ absorbs heat! Ironically, all the men have it easy, they wear ‘white’ thobes, and we all know white reflects off heat. Don’t you think that’s a tad bit weird? I think it’s very unfair.
Women represent more than 50% of the Saudi society. Women are given less than a ¼ area in the area surrounding the Kaaba in Mecca. Isn’t that weird? Islam talks about one of the signs of the End of Days will be when there will be 50 women for every one man. Don’t you think the authorities would have enough sense to provide more space to women in Mecca?
I must however say that there are women in Saudi who are brave enough to stand up and fight for their rights to equality. There are three women who stood up for elections, sadly to be barred now.
I had two Saudi female friends, Ruba and Rania, in my architecture class at university. Once they finished architecture, I had asked them what they will do and where they will work. Both of them said that they have to go back to Saudi Arabia and stay there. But you can’t work there, I asked. Yeah, we know we cannot work there. Our only option left is to get married. Friends, this is the year 2003, and Saudi females graduates like Ruba and Rania cannot even work. Ruba married after moving to Saudi within a few months of graduation, and is not using her architecture degree for which she worked extremely hard for five years. The last I heard of Rania was that she left the country to work somewhere else.
I do look forward to that day when the women here will be given a fair chance to work in Saudi.
Yours,
Mansur
Dear faithful readers of my blog,
The Arab News headline screamed: WOMEN BARRED FROM POLLS! That one line disappointed me so much. When will the women get a fair chance in this country?
What is the Kingdom so scared of? Are the men-folk so scared that the women will perhaps do a better job? (I can tell you from my experience at university that Saudi girls are much better students than the Saudi boys who were at my university to show off their assets and to enjoy the open-ness in society in Dubai!) Do the men fear losing their power and authority once women come into the workplace? (And by workplace, I don’t mean schools, hospitals and women-only boutiques!) I mean, for God’s sake, how can you women feel so comfortable going into make-up and lingerie shops and purchase items while being served by a man? Don’t you women feel least bit concerned that you are being served by a man when you ask him you’re looking for a particular sized bra? Don’t you find it a bit funny when a man demonstrates to you what particular shade of blusher would suit your skin?
I was more disappointed, because women being barred from the first ever elections in the Kingdom is a big blow to all the women out there, who are being marginalized. The interview of several men showed the mindset of the men here: “women’s place belongs at home,” “first women need to handle the home, only then can they work outside,” “the society is not ready to have women in the workplace,” and the most absurd “women will not be able to perform effectively.” If I were a Saudi woman, I would have been deeply insulted by these comments! Who are these men here to comment on what women can and cannot do? I think the women and the liberalized men are tired of repeating over and over again about how much freedom women enjoyed during the Prophet’s time; they talk about women running business, dealing with men, riding camels and so on. It’s about time they stop bringing up examples from the past and do something for the present! But the Kingdom of Saudi is not ready to have women out in the real world!
Why there is this much discrimination against women, I don’t understand. Sure, I can hear some of the women out there saying to me “look at the bright side Mansur. We women don’t have to drive in this crazy traffic, no parking hassles, men do all the paperwork for us, no single teens to bother us in all family areas” and the list goes on and on. If you are happy being relegated to an almost second class citizen—all I can say is enjoy!
I went out yesterday to get something from the supermarket. The temperature was a scorching 42 degrees centigrade. I was sweating profusely, even though I was in jeans and t-shirt. On my way to the supermarket from my car, I saw a woman sitting on the steps. She was an African, rather robust, sitting in such a position, I thought she was going to fall over and die. She was covered entirely from head to toe, save her eyes, which were peering out from the slits. My God, how can you sit like this in the heat in an all –encompassing ‘black’ abaya (covering). You are going to faint here. Don’t you know ‘black’ absorbs heat! Ironically, all the men have it easy, they wear ‘white’ thobes, and we all know white reflects off heat. Don’t you think that’s a tad bit weird? I think it’s very unfair.
Women represent more than 50% of the Saudi society. Women are given less than a ¼ area in the area surrounding the Kaaba in Mecca. Isn’t that weird? Islam talks about one of the signs of the End of Days will be when there will be 50 women for every one man. Don’t you think the authorities would have enough sense to provide more space to women in Mecca?
I must however say that there are women in Saudi who are brave enough to stand up and fight for their rights to equality. There are three women who stood up for elections, sadly to be barred now.
I had two Saudi female friends, Ruba and Rania, in my architecture class at university. Once they finished architecture, I had asked them what they will do and where they will work. Both of them said that they have to go back to Saudi Arabia and stay there. But you can’t work there, I asked. Yeah, we know we cannot work there. Our only option left is to get married. Friends, this is the year 2003, and Saudi females graduates like Ruba and Rania cannot even work. Ruba married after moving to Saudi within a few months of graduation, and is not using her architecture degree for which she worked extremely hard for five years. The last I heard of Rania was that she left the country to work somewhere else.
I do look forward to that day when the women here will be given a fair chance to work in Saudi.
Yours,
Mansur
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