A Peek into Others' mind » October 6, 2008

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(133 unread)

October 07, 2008
6:56
“A Big Surprise Awaits Israel If It Attacks Lebanon”
» ‎ Wake Up From Your Slumber - The Truth Will Set You Free

“A Big Surprise Awaits Israel If It Attacks Lebanon”

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6:20
GOP: The Obama Ayers Relationship
» ‎ Little Green Footballs

The GOP’s William Ayers portfolio.

6:19
Money Has No Value, People Do: The Bailout; the Rothschilds Said Give it Up
» ‎ Wake Up From Your Slumber - The Truth Will Set You Free

"Money Has No Value, People Do: The Bailout; the Rothschilds Said Give it Up"

By Fahim A. Knight

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5:04
Why Congressman Jim Traficant REALLY was put in Jail (& wagthedog2008.com)
» ‎ Wake Up From Your Slumber - The Truth Will Set You Free

October 06, 2008 NA (Network America) e-wire

Why Congressman Jim Traficant REALLY was put in Jail

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5:04
أمواج اسبانية في فرات الشام: ثلاثائيات -6-
» ‎ Syria Planet

الصباح "خيبة أمل وفد 14 آذار في زيارته لفرنسا" عنوان كهذا, وجدته في افتتاحية موقع إخباري شبه رسمي, داخل الخبر يتغنى بشهر العسل الفرنسي السوري, و يعطي تفسيرات لفتور العلاقة ما بين ساركوزي و فريق 14 آذار شبيهة بتفسيرات مشاجرات باحة مدرسة ابتدائية. من المؤسف و المخجل, رؤية استغباء (كي لا أقول غباء) الإعلام السوري. يفسّرون الأمور و كأنها "صلح عشائر", و يستعينون بالمحللين و
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5:04
أدهم: أشواقٌ ثلجيّة !
» ‎ Syria Planet

Click To XL

أشتاق لثلج دمشق !

فدمشق كأشواقٍ زهرية ,

أرى خيطان اليرقات .

وأذكر أيام دمشق الثلجية .

وأشمشم رائحةً تهفو ,

فأذكر ليلى الشاميّة ,

ما أجمل أيام دمشق ,

ما أجمل ليلكة شتوية ,

أشواقي ليست ثرثرة

وبقايا أوراقٍ مرميّة ,

أشواقي أزهار الشام ,

و فل حماة المضوية ,

وشامة على خد شآم ,

وياسمينة , وفل , و مزهريّة .

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5:04
Global Voices Online » Syria: Syria: Lazy People
» ‎ Syria Planet

From Syria, Muoffaq Qabbani writes about how much he hates lazy people.

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5:04
Global Voices Online » Syria: Syria: Lazy People
» ‎ Syria Planet

From Syria, Muoffaq Qabbani writes about how much he hates lazy people.

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5:04
Global Voices Online » Syria: Syria: Artists' Work Showcased
» ‎ Syria Planet

Imad Moustapha, Syria's envoy to the US, posts pictures of two of his favourite paintings by Syrian artists.

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5:04
Global Voices Online » Syria: Syria: Damascus Cultural Calendar
» ‎ Syria Planet

Yaser Sadeq, from Syria, writes about the cultural scene in Damascus.

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5:04
The Free Men We Are: sacrifice
» ‎ Syria Planet

sacrifice

المصدر: صفحات سوريا
Posted in فكر وسياسة, حريات, سوريا
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5:04
مدونة علوش: أ�جار الدومينوز
» ‎ Syria Planet

قبل أن أبدأ أودّ منكم قراءة الفاتحة على أرواح شهدائنا الأبرار في ذكرى حرب تشرين، شهداء سوريا ومصر، رجال صدقوا ما عاهدوا الله عليه، اندفعوا بكلّ قوة، مؤمنين بالنصر، مؤمنين بالحرية، أولئك هم الرجال بكل حقّ، أين نحن من ذلك الزمن الذي ليس ببعيد، يوما اجتمعت ارادة العرب من المحيط للخليج، في ذلك الوقت لم يكن هذا يعجبنا، اليوم نتمنى فقط عودة المثلث العربي [سوريا-مصر-السعودية]، لم أتوقع أن نصل إلى ما نحن عليه من التشرذم، تشرذم فوق تشرذم، ولا حول ولا قوة الا بالله.

ما علينا،

في التدوينة السابقة لم أتطرق بشكل كافي إلى ماهية القروض الرديئة، الآن كلّ ما عليك فهمه أنّ هناك عائلة ذات دخل محدود اقترضت لشراء منزل بسعر فائدة متغير، وعندما بدأت أسعار العقارات ترتفع رهنت منزلها للحصول على المزيد من القروض، ولكن ما إن انخفضت أسعار العقارات؟ بوووم، انفجرت الفقاعة.

الآن، كان هناك فقاعة، وانفجرت الفقاعة، لم يتمكن المقترض من سداد أقساطه، تشكلت ديون معدومة للبنك، انخفضت أسهمه، أفلس البنك وانهار، إذا لماذا تستمر سلسة الانهيارات؟.

سلسلة الانهيارات المالية تتوالى تماماً كأحجار الدومينوز، المصدر: سعود الحداد

السبب هو التشابك المالي في الأسواق المالية، التي أصبحت مفتوحة لكل المستثمرين، فقد يكون أحد المستثمرين في البنك المُنهار مؤسسة في اليابان، وعند انخفاض سعر السهم، تخسر هذه المؤسسة نقودها، وبذلك يتأثر من يعمل في هذه المؤسسة في اليابان من أزمة مالية في أمريكا.

ومن أشكال التشابك انتشار فروع البنوك حول العالم، فالقاعدة هي التزام الفروع بدعم الأم، قد يكون البعض محظوظ كما حدث مع بنك HSBC فبالرغم من خسائره الكارثية في أوروبا، إلا أنه عوّضَ هذه الخسائر بالفورة الاقتصادية في الخليج وآسيا، لكن ليست كلّ البنوك محظوظة مثله.

قد تصل الخسائر لدرجة لا يمكن للفروع تحملها، وهنا يحدث انهيار كامل على مستوى الفروع والشركة الأم، فيغلق الفرع أبوابه، نتيجة انهيار الشركة الأم، وتتأثر جميع الشركات والأفراد المرتبطين بذلك الفرع، نتيجة أزمة لا علاقة لهم بها لا من قريب ولا من بعيد.

أمّا أهم أسباب سلسلة الانهيارات المالية، هي عمليات التوريق لضمانات القروض، فالبنك عندما يقوم بالإقراض يستحوذ على عقار أو سلعة أو ورقة مالية كضمان، يقوم البنك بعدئذ بتحويل ضمانات القروض هذه إلى أوراق مالية جديدة [سندات]، ويقوم ببيعها، ومن يشتري هذه الأوراق [يشتريها بداعي الاستثمار] يقوم بتحويل جزء منها كضمان مقابل قرض من بنك آخر، أو يستعمل هذه السندات كوسيلة لسداد ديونه، أي ديون تسدّ ديون، وديون تخلق ديون، وهكذا تستمر العملية حتى يتم موعد الاستحقاق فيعود الضمان لصاحبه وتتسلسل عمليات الاستحقاق لتغلق عملية التوريق.

بالاضافة إلى ذلك، كل سند من السندات التي تحدثنا عنها لها تقييم مالي، ومن يمتلك تقييم سيء، يلجأ إلى دفع رسوم لدى شركات التأمين التي تتعهد بدفع قيمة السند في حال تخلف البنك عن سداد قيمته أو زوال الأصل الضامن لهذا السند.

لكن ماذا لو؟
ماذا لو حدث هذا مع بنكنا المنهار؟ الذي فقد ضماناته، وأصبحت ديونه معدومة؟ ماذا يعني ذلك، ببساطة تتضاعف الديون المعدومة لدى كل مؤسسة مالية تعاملت مع هذه الأوراق، حيث أصبحت الأوراق المالية السابقة [السندات الصادرة عن الضمان] بدون قيمة، الآن اضرب الرقم بمئات الألوف، وهو رقم ضئيل مقابل العقارات [وهي الضمانات] التي انهارت وبيعت بالمزاد العلني، ستصل إلى رقم فلكي، إلى خسائر مرعبة، إلى انهيار مالي كأحجار الدومينوز.

فكل مؤسسة تعاملت مع هذه الأوراق المالية المشؤومة ستطالب بحقوقها، لكنّ أيّ حقوق هذه من ضمان أصبح خواء؟.

الآن انهار البنك الأصلي المُصدر لهذه السندات، وضاع الأصل الضامن لهذا السند [سيارة، عقار، أوراق مالية]، يأتي دور شركات التأمين التي تعهدت بالدفع تعويضاً عن خسارتك هذه، جميل جداً، لكن ماذا لو حدث هذا على مستوى آلاف السندات؟ ستقف شركات التأمين عاجزة عن السداد وتعلن افلاسها هي الأخرى.

ويضاف لأسباب الانهيارات المالية ارتباط العديد من المعاملات المالية بأسواق العقود الآجلة، أي العقود المستقبلية، والعقود المستقبلية قائمة على التوقّع، كأن تقوم ببيع سلعة [غير موجودة الآن] تتوقع انخفاض سعرها، لكن ستكون بعد أسبوع موجودة، العقود المستقبلية مجال معقد ومن الصعب فهمها إن لم تمارسها حقيقة، [أنا نفسي لا أستطيع شرحها] و لي عودة حول هذا الموضوع بتدوينة مستقلة بإذن الله.

المهم، تتفاعل العقود المستقبلية و الأزمة المالية مع توقعات المستثمرين للمستقبل وثقتهم به، وكلما انخفضت توقعاتهم وثقتهم بالمستقبل، تراجعت المعاملات والعقود بسرعة وفقدت قيمتها وتحققت الخسائر بكل من يرتبط بهذه العقود، وعادة يكون التفاؤل والتشاؤم من أداء السوق، وطالما هناك أزمة مالية يعمّ التشاؤم وتتراجع العقود المستقبلية، وأهم مثال على ذلك، عقود النفط الآجلة وما يصيبها الآن من تراجع، فينخفض الطلب عن العرض فيهبط سعر البرميل.

ما هي النتائج؟
النتائج وخيمة، وسنعيش [نحن العرب سنعيشها عن بعد] آثار هذه الأزمة لعشرات السنين، أهمّ شيء، ستتغير قوانين إدارة المخاطر في البنوك للأبد، لن يكون هناك اقتصاد حرّ بعد الآن، ستكون هناك صعوبة في الاقتراض، وستكون هناك شروط قد لا تتمكن الشركات الصغيرة من تحقيقها، سيتباطىء نمو الاقتصادي العالمي وقد نلاحظ بطء في ظهور تقنيات جديدة نتيجة تعثر عمليات الإقراض والتمويل للبحث العلمي.

يتراجع الاستهلاك كما ذكرت مسبقاً لصعوبة الحصول على قروض بطاقات الائتمان، أو لارتفاع تكاليفها [الأمريكيين جميعاً يتعاملون ببطاقات الائتمان، وهي بطاقات دين، يعني الشعب الأمريكي كلّه محكوم بالدين للحكومة الأمريكية].

وتخفيفاً للأزمة قامت المصارف المركزية بضخّ المليارات، التي وصلت للتريليونات، لتسهيل عمليات الإقراض ومنع توقف النشاط المصرفي ونشاط السوق.

الاقتصاد الأمريكي قوي ومرن جداً، و قدرته عالية على التعافي، فهو اقتصاد متعدد الموارد وليس اقتصاد تجاري فقط، والقائمين عليه قادرين على التعلم من أخطائهم، قادرين على محاسبة أنفسهم، وقادرين على مواجهة المسؤول عن الخطأ والعمل على تصحيحه، لكن مع ذلك، المليارات التي تبخرت ليست مزحة، والخسائر قاسية جداً، وكما يقال غلطة الشاطر بألف وأنا أقول هنا قد تكون غلطة العمر، وآثارها واضحة على الأمريكيين، خصوصاً من فقدوا منازلهم وأصبحوا يعيشون في عربات مغلقة و مع ذلك تلاحقهم فواتير بطاقات الائتمان ومطالبات الاستحقاق من البنوك على شكل ديون طويل الأمد، أي ربما يموت وهو يعمل ومازال يسدد ديونه.

في المقابل وكأي أزمة مالية، هناك من ينتفع، انهيار البنوك الأمريكية سهّل دخول المستثمرين الأجانب ومنهم الصين، ما يحدث في أمريكا اليوم تماماً ما حدث في كوريا الجنوبية في الأزمة الآسيوية 1997، حيث انهارت أغلب الشركات الكورية وتعرضت للإفلاس، فدخل الأمريكيين مشترين لأغلب شركاتهم، اليوم لا تجد شركة كورية إلا و10% إلى 30% من أسهمها ملك الأمريكيين.

الانهيارات المالية تفسح المجال للأقوى لاحتكار السوق، فالرابح هو من يصمد رغم جراحه المثخنة، والمكافأة السوق بكامله ملك لك!!، كما حدث مع فقاعة الانترنت، من مئات الشركات لم يبقى إلا ياهو، وغوغل، وأمازون وغيرهم القليل؛ فانهيار أربع أضخم بنوك استثمارية أمريكية واندماج بعضها مع بنك أمريكا Bank of America جعله أضخم مؤسسة مالية على وجه الأرض، وستسمعون باسم هذه المؤسسة المالية كثيراً في المستقبل، هذا إذا لم ينهار وبقي صامد.

لاحظوا أنّ الخطة المالية للإنقاذ تتطلب 700 مليار دولار يتم تمويلها على شكل ضرائب من عامة الشعب الأمريكي، الحجة إما الخطة المالية وإما أن تفقدوا أعمالكم، والجميع يعلم إن لم تطبق خطة الإنقاذ، الهدف التالي في الانهيار هي القطاعات الخدمية والصناعية.

فبدون السيولة لن تتمكن البنوك من منح القروض، ولن يتمكن المستهلك من الشراء، فيغلق المصنع أو الشركة المقدمة للخدمة، مسرّحةً آلاف الموظفين والعمال، اليوم لا وجود لرأسمالية ولا اشتراكية، اليوم يوجد غني وفقير، الوضع شبهه كالمنشار، في التضخم يربح الأغنياء، وفي الكساد الفقير يدفع الثمن، الاقتصاد المنشاري أفضل وصف لما يحدث.

أخيراً،
سؤال بريء؟ العالم يتحرك لإنقاذ “الاقتصاد العالمي”؟ سؤالي، لو تم صرف 100 مليار فقط في مكافحة المجاعات وبناء المدارس في إفريقيا، وإدخال هذه الأمّة في عجلة الإنتاج الاقتصادي، وتحقيق تنمية لا بأس فيها، ألن يكون لذلك فوائد هائلة على “الاقتصاد العالمي”.

أليس دخول الصين عجلة الاقتصاد العالمي قبل أربعين سنة له أكبر الأثر على واقعنا؟!، هل كنّا لنحلم بامتلاك أجهزة الحاسوب الرخيصة الجيدة لولا العمالة الصينية الرخيصة؟.

سؤال بريء آخر؟ اليوم هناك دول “عربية” فاحشة الثراء تفتخر أنّها حققت تنمية شاملة وبنية تحتية عالمية؟ سؤالي؟ ماذا حضّرت هذه الدول لمواجهة هكذا أزمة في المستقبل، وهل اقتصادها “التجاري” قادر على التعافي في حال تبخرت المليارات؟.

لماذا لا تبدأ هذه الدول بصناعات ثقيلة متطورة وهي قادرة على ذلك، صناعات عسكرية وصناعات تقنية قادرة على خلق الطلب لا فقط مواجهته، صناعات تشكل مورد إضافي لمواردها الطبيعية، فتكون مُصدّرة بدل أن تكون مستوردة.

طالما لديها من الأموال ما يكفي لشراء الجبال الجليدية وتحويلها لمياه عذبة؟! لماذا لا تضمن مستقبلها ومستقبل أبناءها، ومستقبل العرب جميعاً؟.

هذه الدول هي أملنا الحقيقي في النهوض، فيها تتوفر جميع العوامل لبناء دولة عربية تكون قدوة لأشقائها، الأموال موجودة، واليد العاملة والخبرة موجودة، والموارد الطبيعية موجودة، أم إنّ مصير الدول العربية جميعاً فاحشة الثراء أم لا، هي تبديد ثرواتها وتبخيرها.

قد أكون لم أوفي الموضوع حقّه، وقد يكون هناك أخطاء بسيطة في شرحي، لكن أنا متأكد أنني تناولت العمود الفقري للقصة، الجزء المحوري منها، وهذا ما يهمّ، على كلٍّ لأي ملاحظات، أدرج تعليقك، وإن لم تتمكن راسلني، سأكون سعيد بقراءة رسالتك.

روابط ومراجع:
ثورة الويب 2، شرح مبسط جداً لأزمة الاقتصاد الأمريكي، ويكي انكليزي فقاعة الانترنت، ويكي عربي الكساد.
بشر الموصللي، البورصة، دار شعاع.

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5:04
The Syria News Wire: City of Jamine
» ‎ Syria Planet

Jasmine is the flower of Damascus. No Jasmine in the world smells like the Damascene Jasmine. But as the city jumped head-first into the Soviet-style progress of the 1960s and 70s, that smell was replaced by the odour of petrol fumes, building site work, dust and cigarettes. By the turn of the century, the idea of Jasmine in Damascus had become just that - an idea, a memory, slowly fading away until it became nothing more than a myth. But people live on myths, and imagined memories. So a massive Jasmine planting programme began a few years ago. 5000 plants sprung up across the capital, surrounding almost every public building. Walk along the streets at night, especially at this time of year, and the scent of Jasmine becomes overpowering. I have some Jasmine scent in a bottle that I take with me when I travel. Its job is to remind me what this city smells like. But truth got mixed up with imagination a few nights ago. I was walking through Damascus, and I could smell the Jasmine. I racked my brain trying to think what it reminded me of. Then it came to me - the flowers brought back the memory of my bottle of scent.
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5:04
مدونة فراس: أيمن بهجت قمر و عندليب الدُقي
» ‎ Syria Planet

السلام عليكم و رحمة الله و بركاته
كيف الحال ؟ أعود معكم بتدوينة جديدة , رُبما لن تستهوي البعض بسبب عدم معرفتهم بالأشخاص التي أتناولهم و لكن سأحاول تبسيط كُل شيء.
من هو أيمن بهجت قمر ؟
أيمن هو ظاهرة شاعرية فريدة من نوعها لاتتكرر أكثر من مرة , نعم , فأيمن شاعر غنائي مُتمكن و لديه موهبة كبيرة أوصلته لكبار النجوم , لو بتسمع عمرو دياب أكيد تعرف من هو أيمن , أو لو تشوف تتر المُسلسلات(المقدمة الغنائية) أيضاً أيمن بهجت قمر , لن أُطيل كلامي عليه لأنه و بنظري أيمن فوق النقد و لايوجد أي كلام يقدر يعطيه حقه .

عندليب الدُقي : فيلم من إنتاج شركة روتانا في العام الماضي , بطولة محمد هنيدي , المُمثل المصري المعروف و المشهور .و طبعاً الفيلم هو سيناريو و حوار أيمن بهجت قمر .
نأتي الآن لسبب كتاباتي لهذه التدوينة ؟
على الرغم من مضي وقت كثير على صدور هذا الفيلم إلا أنني لم أتمكن من مُشاهدته حتى البارحة , و حقيقةً الفيلم أو إن صح التعبير رسالة الفيلم شيء عظيم نجح أيمن في أولى تجاربه السينمائية .

أيمن أراد في هذا الفيلم إيصال فكرة للعرب و رسالة و دعوة للتوحد . قد تُشاهد الفيلم لأول ساعة و لا تُحبه لأنك لن تجد أي شيء مُميز و لكن نهاية الفيلم و تقريباً من بعد إنقضاء الساعة الأولى و حتى الدقيقة 44 من بعد الساعة , ستفهم كُل شيء و ستفهم رسالة هذا الشاعر الكبير . ما أراده أيمن هو الوحدة العربية , و الأخوة و الألفة و جسد فيه واقع أليم , و هو أننا نخوّن إخواننا و نثق في عالم لا صِلة لنا فيها غير العمل , و هذا مايحدث بالفعل , و أراد أيمن من هذه الفيلم إيصال فكرة أننا نتهاون في التعاون مع الصهاينة و الدنمارك و أعداء الإسلام و نقول نحن لادخل لنا في الحكومات و لكن صدقوني , ماهي الدولة ؟ أو ماهي أركان الدولة ؟ وجود أرض ضمن إقليم مُعين يسكنها مجموعة من البشر يتكلمون لغة واحدة و لهم عادات واحدة و تقاليد واحدة و مصير واحد (من كتاب القومية في الثانوية العامة , طالب متفوق) , المهم , كفانا غش و نفاق , كفانا الإختباء خلف الأقنعة و وضع المُبررات لكل شيء نفعله , أليس صحيح ؟ ليس هُناك من هو معصوم صح ؟ و لكن نحن العرب عيبنا واحد , الخوف , و هو الذي يجرنا في النهاية إلى عدم الصدق مع نفسنا , تخيل لو أن كل واحد فينا كان صادقاً مع نفسه , ما الذي يُمكن أن يحدث ؟ الثقة بيننا ؟ معدومة و أنا أول واحد لا أثق بالناس و لكن لماذا لا نُحاول أن نُصفي القلوب ؟ نزرع الثقة , نبني وطن , نبني مُجتمع و ننتهي من كل العُقد التي نوهم أنفسنا أنها موجودة ؟ شعور الأخوة هو فوق كل شيء , رابط الدم واللحم هو أقوى من كل شيء , هذه هي الحقيقة و لكن شياطيننا التي في داخلنا هي من تُزين لنا كل شيء , تقول لك بيع أخوك من أجل مبلغ من المال و أنت تُبرر و تقول أنا بحاجة المال إذاً سأبيعه ما المشكلة ؟ و لكن أيمن جسد كُل شي في هذا الفيلم , أراد أن يقول نحن عرب و العرب أخوة , أتمنى أن نتغير و نُصبح أفضل من كُل العالم في الأخلاق , ليس في الدين , لإن الدين دون أخلاق لافائدة له .

أتمنى من كل شخص أن يكون صريحاً مع نفسه , يواجه نفسه و يحاول تغير نفسه , فلو غيّر كل واحدٍ منا مافي داخله و كل واحد بدأ بنفسه , سيتأثر به شخص واحد و هذا الواحد يؤثر بشخص آخر و هكذا تتغير لبنة المجتمع المبنية على النفاق و الغش و حُب المال .

أعتذر عن هذه الإطالة و لكن هذه هي الحقيقة , و أتمنى أن تُشاهدوا هذا الفيلم لأنه بالفعل مُعبر .

شكراً لك أيمن و شكراً لمحمد هنيدي

تحياتي

فراس

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5:04
MQabbani, Minds Talk: Lazy people
» ‎ Syria Planet

as much as I hate stupidness

I HATE laziness, it arrrrrrrghhhhhhh kills me

I LOVE Hyper people, active , fast, Cool, move, action

you have unlimted power just Relase it right…..

be Active ya jama3a WAKE UP

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5:04
Weblog of a Syrian Diplomat in America: Ahmad Moualla 4
» ‎ Syria Planet

Some of my favourite works by distinguished artists from Syria.
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5:04
Bassem JARKAS Blog blogs: Intrepid Countdown... Yah!!!
» ‎ Syria Planet

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5:04
My Chaos: Home
» ‎ Syria Planet

My home is not a place… it doesn’t have walls or trees.
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5:04
انا بموت على حلب:
» ‎ Syria Planet

When I have so little time to spend doing anything but keeping my head above water academically, getting up to Aleppo is a real treat. Unfortunately, because my visits are rare, they are expected to last-a fact that usually means I only tell one to two people that I’m in Aleppo at a time. The most common comment I hear is that I am always late and in a hurry to leave early. This time, I had a day and two nights, but I decided to take on the challenge of actually visiting as many people as possible. Thus, on Sunday, I went from house to house and coffee cup to coffee cup. Without meaning to, I made it through four visits by mid afternoon, but I hadn’t had anything to eat. Only my brothers were home back in the harra so I watched them play Euro-cup soccer on the computer and chatted on subjects ranging from Ottoman torture techniques to the optimal time to get engaged. On my way from the Old City to the New, I picked up some sweets for the next two house calls. I was weak from hunger at that point so I crossed over to the fruit market for an single apple. I knew he would give it to me for free before I asked, but I tried to give him some lira anyway. Of course he did not accept my repeated attempts to pay.

In New Aleppo, I endured the usual scolding for my tardiness, but when that was over the conversation came easily with friend Ghufran and her family. Although Ghufran and her siblings all grew up in Aleppo, are the second generation of Syrian speakers in their family, they still identify as Chadi and as such, they understand more of my outsider experience than most Syrians. Culturally, they are less concerned with social codes than most of my friends here and sometimes the transition out of the relaxed atmosphere in their house is jarring. One such example was my final visit of Sunday evening. One of Ghufran’s brothers accompanied me to my next rendez-vous. I had arranged to see the family of an old friend I’d not visited since 2007. Long absences always make me nervous, but as usual, the graciousness of my hosts was overwhelming. Now when I go back to Aleppo, everything seems different-new busses, new buildings etc, but stepping into this house was like stepping back in time. The kindness in my friends’ eyes and the heavy-handed generosity, even the furniture arrangement were all the same as they had been. I felt that I was the only one who had changed, and I had changed so much. I had a hard time not gawking at the familiarity of the five faces that smiled back at me, all with the same nose, cheeks and facial expressions. It’s a shame I pass the point of cognition and speech after 10PM because I would have liked to be more present for the conversation, but I was ready for bed the moment I left the house. Leaving is always tricky from any house, but Yehiya (not my brother; my friend’s) knows how to bargain; at quarter to eleven I declared my intention to leave and he responded with “fifteen minutes…ten minutes…” I managed to say goodbye within the half hour, but not without a bagful of Eid treats in my hand.

I pushed my luck with so many successful social contacts it seems. This morning, I had agreed to come back to my family’s home at 6AM for a quick call on my brothers. They would be up for an early soccer match and ready for a last goodbye before I departed. I must have just missed them because when I stood outside the door and called Aubiedeh’s phone, I could hear it ringing inside, but nobody stirred. The street was empty save a garbage man in his early twenties. I could feel him watching me so instead of walking past him, I took an alternative route out of the harra to an outer parking lot that connects to the street. He followed me. Politely, he asked if he could have a word and asked if I would like him to wake the house up. I said, they are my family and I can talk to them another time. I just missed them this time, that’s all. He asked where I was from-a common question. America. He offered his hand and I, always wanting to show good will in the name of America, pushed my hesitation to the back of my mind (I don’t like shaking men’s hands here) and offered my own hand. That was my first mistake. My second mistake was not to run as soon as I pulled my hand out of his grip. He had tried to kiss my hand; a sign I know too well as anything but gentlemanly. I scolded him angrily, simply saying “That is unacceptable and you know it!” This of all neighborhoods is not somewhere that a man would come near me under normal circumstances. As I walked briskly toward the street shouts followed me. I turned to yell a warning to stay away only to discover he had exposed himself. That would have been enough to disgust me, but he was set on ruining my day and marring my beloved city. He came after me with the worst sentence I have ever heard, in any language. Thinking about it now, what really upsets me about what he said was that it was not a threat, but a plea. I was almost to safety when he seized his last opportunity to assault me. It was the first time I witnessed something so heinous in Syria and I feel the need to say that this degree of harassment is not acceptable, lawful or common. I almost didn’t write about it at all. But it happened and is an example of the kind of cruelty no one should have to endure, regardless of culture or religion.

I could have gone to the police, or I could tell my brothers and they would take care of the ignorant man, but both of those options mean opening a can of warms for my reputation. I can’t risk the rumors that would run through my family if they knew that my person space was at all violated, even though it was only a momentary grope. This is the sort of thing I have to keep quiet from those who have the power to protect me. It was with this thought that I left for Damascus. Truly, that is a shame.

Although the I am not done feeling sick over this morning, my faith was somewhat restored by the little sun-dried woman who sat next to me on the bus to Damascus. Her leathery, tattooed face smiled at me before she recited pre-departure prayers in a dialect littered with “gaa’s” and “chee’s.” (for those not familiar with Syrian social markers, that means she is Bedouin, from the eastern desert). She was on her way to see her daughter, married with young children south of the city. Though I slept and read for the majority of the ride, we talked occasionally and just before pulling into the Pullman station, she held out a sheet of notebook paper, held it out, upside-down and asked if I could call her son-in-law to inform him of her arrival. I spoke with her daughter and arranged a taxi to the house. How strange, to be a foreigner, but literate in both language and the city’s system. At the taxi door, the old woman planted a broken-toothed kiss on each of my cheeks and said farewell. On the other end of my bus ride home I stopped to get lunch at one of my favorite falafel stands. My favorite employee was there, waiting with a wide, kind smile. We chatted about the Eid and he asked after Zach, who lives near the stand as well.

Although it is the prevalence of goodness in people that makes me trust more than might be wise, I will do what I can to keep my faith in the seeds of light in everyone. I just ask, if you’re reading this, to please let the seeds grow in you. I’m doing my best to water mine. I want to thank that Bedouin woman and the falafel guy. They made better what was much worse.
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5:04
انا بموت على حلب: a few more pictures from Mar Moussa
» ‎ Syria Planet

beautiful, mooo?

The stairs

If you know my ceramics, you'll know the "Ayn" is of my hand

like heights??

The first stage of sunburn...
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5:04
:: Ahmad Bekdash Blog ::: الاستقلال والطرابيش - جبران خليل جبران -
» ‎ Syria Planet

قرأت منذ أمد غير بعيد مقالا لأديب قام يعترض و يحتج فيه على ربان و موظفي باخرة فرنسية أقلته من سورية إلى مصر. ذلك لأن هؤلاء قد أجبروه أو حاولوا اجباره على خلع طربوشه أثناء جلوسه إلى مائدة الطعام ، و كلنا يعلم أن خلع القبعات تحت كل سقف عادة ...
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5:04
tajreed: the come back
» ‎ Syria Planet

After the lull in activity last month ,this month will witness several big and important events for the avid follower of the cultural scene .
I have become more familiar with using websites to get informations instead of relying on brochures that you don't come by always , moreover you can have informations at your disposal at any time and from a more number of sources ,so you can be constantly update .

the two most frequently visited websites for me are :
The french cultural center website
The website of Damascus Capital of Arab Culture 2008
I think the DCAC 2008 website has been valuable source of info and a successful experiment of how people can get useful info about events and news that are of importance to them ,from official websites which are known for their uselessness .
some of the highlights:
from the CCF website: concert and workshops- Aredo Quartet.
from the DCAC 2008 webite: an evening with the Jutland Ensemble as part of DCAC activities this month under Classical Music section.
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5:04
Razanisms - رزانيّــــات: وعاد غشاء البكارة
» ‎ Syria Planet

عاد باب الحارة. Posted in لاحريّات, يوميّات لاجندرية, تعتيرات, ذكوريّات, سوريّات, عنصريّات
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5:04
أليبوس العربية: فليربوا أنفسهم قبل أن يربونا:شيوخ الفتنة و الارهاب و العمالة
» ‎ Syria Planet

أثارت المعلومات التي كشفت عنها الصحف البريطانية عن عمل ابنة الأصولي اللبناني عمر بكري كراقصة تعري في حانات لندن ، أثارت عندي مخزونا من الذكريات و مماثلا لها من الأفكار التي كنت أحاول صوغها في قالب متماسك لكي أعرضها .الذكريات التي أتكلم عنها هنا و تلك الأفكار التي أحاول عرضها تتعلق بعلاقة رجال الدين أو من يدعون ذلك بمريديهم و علاقتهم بمسار مواز بأهل بيوتهم.
رجال الدين يملؤون القنوات الفضائية ، يتحدثون و يتحدثون .... يعظون و يعظون حتى نخالهم أنهم يمسكون بمفاتيح أبواب الجنة و يريدون منا أن نجري إليهم متوسلين عطاياهم المباركة حتى يعطوننا نسخة ننجو بها من الهلاك الذي يحاولون إخراجنا منه.
هكذا يصورون لنا أنفسهم و هكذا ينخدع الناس بهم غير مدركين أنهم في معظمهم أدوات فتنة و مشاريع تطرف و نهم للمال لا يوازيه أي نهم . لا أعرف سببا لهذا النهم إلا أن ما أعرفه هو ذاك الستار من الكلام الذي يخدر الناس و يصرفهم عن التفكير في حقيقتهم و صورهم الأصلية .
لنعود إلى تلك الفكرة التي أحاول التكلم عنها في هذه السطور . دائما ما نعرف علاقة رجال الدين بمن حولهم من المريدين و من الأتباع لكننا و نادرا ما عرفنا تلك العلاقة التي تربطهم بأهل بيوتهم ، ببناتهم و أولادهم و زوجاتهم.
لا أعرف سببا لذلك لكن ما أعرفه هو أنه من النادر أن يبرز واحد من أولاد رجال الدين أو من بناتهم في حقل ديني أو يصبحوا علماء فيما كان إباءهم علماء به أو على الأقل هذا ما يدعونه .
الحقيقة الغائبة عن كثير من الناس هي الصورة التي لا يعرفها الناس المبهورين "بشيوخهم" عن أولاد هؤلاء الشيوخ و الذين من المفترض أن يكونوا قدوة للشباب و الشابات.
قد يقال بأن الوردة قد تخلف شوكة . هذا صحيح ، لكن الحقيقة هي أن الوردة لا تجبر الناس على أن يكونوا ورودا مثلها . فرجال الدين يجهدون لاهثين في إقناعنا "بالعودة إلى طريق الحق " و في " ترك الشهوات "..... لكنهم أبدا لا يجهدون في محاولة تربية أولادهم و نهيهم عما ينهوننا عنه بل إنهم يتركون لهم الحبل على الغارب "ليفسدوا " و يطغوا و لنا في عمر بكري مثلا . فحسب الصحف البريطانية فهو الذي مول عملية تكبير صدر ابنته "لتصبح أكثر جاذبية" و "ليسهل لها إيجاد عمل كالعمل الذي تمتهنه.
تجربتي كبيرة مع أولادهم. على الأقل أستطيع أن أسرد قصتين. الأولى عن نصاب أعرفه و أعرف من يكون أبوه. أبوه أحد الذين يشار إليهم بالبنان في مواضيع "الاقتصاد الإسلامي " تراه يخرج على صفحات الصحف يحرم و يحلل و ينصح.... بينما ابنه يرتكب كل الموبقات التي قد لا يتخيلها عقل عندما يعرف أنه ابن "العالم".
و الثانية ابنة "عالم الدين " التي تواعد في الشقق المفروشة و تسهر حتى الصباح لتعود إلى بيتها و هي في حالة سكر شديد.
قصص كثيرة أستطيع أن أسوقها إلا أن الأشهر بالتأكيد هي قصة ابنة عمر بكري التي أضحت قصة الموسم إعلاميا .
و عمر بكري لمن لا يعرفه أصولي إرهابي عميل لكل المخابرات التي يمكن أن تتخيل و أن لا تتخيل .كان رئيسا "لحزب التحرير" في بريطانيا قبل أن يحله بنفسه بعد أن أثار الشبان و جعلهم متطرفين ثم تركهم وحيدين يواجهون مصيرهم و فر إلى لبنان ليقود "نهضة السنة" الحريرية الوهابية .
هذه هي نماذج رجال الدين الذين لا نعرف منهم إلا وجههم البراق الذي يظهر على الفضائيات ليحلل و يحرم و يخدع بمعسول الكلام و حسنه.
الناس ليسوا بسذج لكنهم طيبي القلب يريدون كلمة تفتح لهم الأمل في حياة بعد الحياة تنسيهم واقعهم و فقرهم و أمراضهم النفسية التي أصابهم بها أهل اللحى و متسولي الفضائيات.
معظم هؤلاء الذين يدعون أنهم شيوخ و رجال دين هم عملاء مخابرات لدول أجنبية و عربية إما بطريقة مباشرة أو غير مباشرة يخدمون أهدافهم في تخدير الناس و تغييب وعيهم.
معظمهم ذوي عاهات ، إما داخلية لا نستطيع رؤيتها أو خارجية تذكرنا كلما رأيناهم بأعور الدجال.

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5:04
Weblog of a Syrian Diplomat in America: Excursions in the Old Town
» ‎ Syria Planet

Rafif is a great expert on the labyrinth known as the Old Town. Every time we go back home, we make sure to spend a whole day in this most splendid part of Damascus. The wealth of beauty found there is unmatched by any other city we have been to up till now. Our regular pilgrimages notwithstanding, the Old Town never fails to reveal to us a hitherto unknown gem or two, making every new trip a mixture of reacquainting ourselves with the much missed familiar, and the serendipity of stumbling upon a totally unknown old house, narrow street, delightful...
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5:04
أمواج اسبانية في فرات الشام: الأرجوحة -الفصل الرابع-
» ‎ Syria Planet

الفصل الرابع من "الأرجوحة".. محاولة روائية للتحميل بصيغة PDF للتحميل بصيغة MS Word مواضيع متعلقة: الأرجوحة- الفصل الأول الأرجوحة- الفصل الثاني الأرجوحة- الفصل الثالث ...
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5:04
Syria Comment: US to Lift Sanctions on Syria? More on Syrian Military North of Lebanon
» ‎ Syria Planet

The stories on the US being on the verge of lifting sanctions on Syria, seem too good to be true. I doubt any action will be taken to improve relations with Syria so long as President Bush sits in the White House. Of course, the various US agencies that have to deal with Syria, such as Defense, State, Intelligence, etc. have all been urging the White House to reassess its policy toward Syria for some time.

‘US considers lifting Syrian sanctions’
By JPOST.COM AND Herb Keinon
Oct 5, 2008

Washington is considering a possible change of policy towards Syria in the near future, which would entail lifting sanctions against the country but would not include returning the US ambassador to Damascus, Israel Radio quoted senior US officials as saying on Sunday.

The officials reportedly said that discussions were being held over the best way for the US to influence Syria, in light of the improved relations with France and the visit of French President Nicolas Sarkozy to the country in September.

A US official said there were several encouraging signals on the Syrians’ part, including the decision to renew diplomatic ties with Lebanon. On October 2, a senior Israeli diplomatic official said Jerusalem had no problem with the US engaging in dialogue with Damascus. …

….. Welch, according to the CNN report, also said Syria should play a more positive role in the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations and stop supporting Palestinian terrorist groups. He also raised the issue of Syria’s strategic relationship with Iran.

It is precisely here, according to Israeli officials, that a US dialogue with Syria could be productive.

According the Israeli official, Israel realizes that if the West wants to move Syria out of Iran’s orbit, the US will have to play a more active role in Israel’s negotiations with Syria in general, as well as increase its own dialogue with Damascus.

Here is the al-Jazeera article in Arabic about America’s reassessment of its Syria strategy

Syria’s Deployment to the north of Lebanon
al-Akhbar has a very good spread on the Syrian deployment in the north. It seems that it’s more substantialal than we thought. However, it certainly is not a prelude to an invasion. Qifa Nabki has translated it at his new site. The Arabic is here: . The deployment must also be seen in the light of Nir Rosen’s recent article on the Salafis in Lebanon . He brings to life the danger that the Salafists in Lebanon, who have Israeli C4, American weapons, hatred of Syria, Hizbullah, Israel, and the Lebanese government, present to Syria. . After some of these Salafists were arrested, the Lebanese government released them. The US has not complained. The USG did complain that the Syrian government released Absi, who promptly traveled to Lebanon, where the government made no move to arrest him despite having ample opportunity. Absi built himself into the head of Fatah al-Islam and caused the deaths of many. . One striking example of the Jihadists who were released by the Hariri government is Omar, who was arrested in 2004. He was accused of plotting to bomb western embassies. But he was released in 2005, along with other jihadists, at the same time as Samir Geagea, the leader of the right-wing Christian Lebanese Forces, who had been convicted of war crimes. The release of Omar and other jihadists was widely regarded at the time as an attempt to bolster the Sunni credentials of the Future Movement. . JOE MACARON’s “The Saudi-Syrian Cold War Unfolds in Tripoli“, gives very good historical background to the North Lebanon problem. [I have one quibble. He writes: “Islamist Omar Bakri, who was able to escape British authorities, was released by Lebanese authorities and found a new home in Tripoli in August 2005.” Bakri left Britain On August 6, 2005 of his own free will following the London bombings. The Home Secretary later forbad him from returning from Lebanon. British Ambassador to Lebanon James Watt said, “We made no request for his arrest, nor for his extradition. As far as I am concerned, this is a very simple story — it is a Lebanese citizen who returned to Lebanon and has been arrested by the Lebanese police. We have nothing to do with it and it’s not in our place to comment on what has happened.” It would seem that Omar Bakri was detained for only a few days by the Lebanese authorities before he was released and took up residence in Tripoli. . DJ Meshaal Calls For Syria-Saudi Thaw: Arab Diplomat
2008-10-05
RIYADH (AFP)–Exiled Hamas supremo Khaled Meshaal has called for a thaw in ties between Saudi Arabia and Syria during a recent visit to Saudi Arabia, an Arab diplomat said Sunday. “During meetings with Saudi officials, Meshaal raised the issue of Saudi-Syrian relations, which have long been tense, and stressed the importance of improving those ties,” the diplomat told AFP, requesting anonymity…..

The head of the Palestinian Islamist Hamas also met in Mecca with Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora, the Arab diplomat said.

Israelis Wary of a US Radar Base in the Negev
By Tim McGirk and Aaron J. Klein / Jerusalem: Time, Thursday, Oct. 02, 2008
Meshaal also met with Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman for talks on Cairo’s efforts to broker a reconciliation between Hamas and the rival Fatah party of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, the diplomat added.

Cheyenne Mountain’s NORAD, the central collection and coordination center for a worldwide system of satellites, radars, and other early warning systems watching for threats to North American security from both aircraft and ballistic missiles. George Steinmetz / Corbis

When a contingent of U.S. soldiers opens a radar facility on a mountaintop in the Negev desert next month, Israel will for the first time in its 60-year history have a permanent foreign military base on its soil. And despite the early warning that the American radar would provide if Iran launches a missile attack on Israel, some senior Israeli officials are nonetheless wary about its presence. Complained one top official, “It’s a like a pair of golden handcuffs on Israel.”

From its mountain perch in Har Keren, the U.S. radar will be able to monitor the take-off of any aircraft or missile up to 1,500 miles away — giving Israel a vital extra 60-70 seconds to react if Iran fired a missile, Israeli military sources told TIME. Israel has its own radar system trained on Iran, but it’s range is much shorter. Still, some see several drawbacks for Israel in the radar, and blame Defense Minister Ehud Barak for requesting its deployment in Israel without consulting anyone other than his chief of staff. Some in the upper echelons of the Israeli Defense Force fear that although the radar will enhance Israel’s protection against Iran, it may also open up Israel’s own military secrets to the Americans.

The radar will allow the U.S. to keep a close watch on anything moving in Israeli skies, “even a bee”, says one top Israeli official who asked not to be identified. The U.S. may be a close ally, but Israel nonetheless has aviation secrets it would rather not share. “Even a husband and wife have a few things they’d like to keep from each other,” explains this source. “Now we’re standing without our clothes on in front of America.”

Israel will have no direct access to the data collected by the radar, which looks like a giant taco. It will only be fed intelligence second hand, on a need-to-know basis, from the Americans — unless the radar picks up an immediate, direct attack on Israel, Israeli sources claim. And Israeli officials expressed concern that the radar’s installation may anger Moscow, since its range will enable the U.S. to monitor aircraft in the skies over southern Russia. When the U.S. stationed anti-missile radar and interceptor systems in Poland and the Czech Republic — ostensibly directed at a future Iranian threat, although the Russians believe their own missile capability is its real target — Moscow warned those countries that the move could result in their being added to the target list of Russia’s missiles.

Israeli military sources say that Barak requested the radar from U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates in July, after U.S. requests to station such a system in Turkey and Jordan were rejected. Barak was eager to acquire the advantage of the early warning that the system would provide in the event of a possible Iranian attack. But with the Russians already peeved at Israel for having had military advisers inside Georgia when war broke out over South Ossetia, the radar’s deployment in Israel, say officials, might make Moscow even more likely to supply Iran and Syria with its highly-accurate SA300 anti-aircraft missile batteries.

The top-secret X-band radar will be staffed by around 120 American technicians and security guards in the Negev, say Israeli military sources. But Israeli planning and air force officials are perturbed that Defense Minister Barakdid not carry out any evaluation of the radar’s possible impact on Israeli military operations before approving it. For one thing, Israeli defense experts are worried that waves from the X-band radar might throw off the accuracy of a new Gil anti-tank missile also being tested in the Negev. “The Bush Administration is in the mood to give us anything, as long as we don’t attack Iran,” gripes one senior official. “So why did we take this radar?”

Dangerous Talks with Syria
Maj.-Gen. Uzi Dayan and Dr. Jonathan Spyer - 9/30/2008

The current indirect talks between Israel and Syria are highly unlikely to result in a peace agreement. The talks, far from playing any positive role for Israel, are mistaken both in terms of our values and in terms of our practical interest. They are being conducted by an irresponsible government with no public mandate, and are already causing real harm. We should be working to isolate the Syrian regime, not rehabilitating it.

From the point of view of values, the government’s approach is fundamentally mistaken. The Golan Heights were taken in a just war in 1967, a war which was provoked by an extremist and reckless Ba’athist regime in Damascus. Our presence is both legaland essential. The Golan Heights must be retained under Israeli sovereignty.

The Syrian regime preached the destruction of Israel, and was directly responsible for the deterioration which made the 1967 war inevitable. There is no moral content to the claim by the same regime that its “rights” were violated by defeat in a war which it had actively sought. Independent Syria controlled the Golan Heights for exactly 21 years. Its borders are based not on some ancient patrimony, but rather on the division of the Ottoman Empire by the Western powers after 1918. Syrian rhetoric regarding its connection to this area lacks all content……

ANALYSIS / Will Israel’s next war be a repeat of Lebanon 2006?
By Amos Harel, HAARETZ, 05/10/2008

What will the next war look like? Recent statements from several senior Israeli military officials offer a surprising answer: Perhaps much like the last one.

Following on the Israel Defense Forces’ failure in the 2006 Second Lebanon War, the army is likely to resume fortifying its maneuvering capability, represented by the Armored and Infantry Corps, at the expense of its firepower, particularly that of the Air Force.

However, a recent interview with GOC Northern Command Gadi Eisenkot, and articles written by two senior reserve officers, indicate that the IDF will continue to give first priority to firepower, even if the targets it chooses are different than those chosen in previous conflicts.
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This is not merely a theoretical matter. Though neither Israel nor Hezbollah seems particularly interested in another round of fighting, another conflagration is certainly possible. This could come as a result of a revenge attack for the February killing of senior Hezbollah operative Imad Mughniyeh, for which the group blames Israel, or as an Israeli response to the group’s smuggling of anti-aircraft weapons into Lebanon.

In an interview Friday with the daily Yedioth Ahronoth, Eisenkot presented his “Dahiyah Doctrine,” under which the IDF would expand its destructive power beyond what it demonstrated two years ago against the Beirut suburb of Dahiyah, considered a Hezbollah stronghold.

“We will wield disproportionate power against every village from which shots are fired on Israel, and cause immense damage and destruction. From our perspective, these are military bases,” he said. “This isn’t a suggestion. This is a plan that has already been authorized.”

Colonel (Res.) Gabriel Siboni recently authored a report through Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies backing Eisenkot’s statements.

The answer to rocket and missile threats from Syria, Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, he believes, is “a disproportionate strike at the heart of the enemy’s weak spot, in which efforts to hurt launch capability are secondary. As soon as the conflict breaks out, the IDF will have to operate in a rapid, determined, powerful and disproportionate way against the enemy’s actions.”

“This strike has to be carried out as quickly as possible, through prioritizing strikes at its assets, rather than chasing after launch sites. Such a response is likely to be remembered by decision makers in Syria and Lebanon for many years, thus deepening deterrence,” he said.

Major General (Res.) Giora Eiland, formerly head of the National Security Council, belongs to a similar school of thought, and even goes a step further.

He believes Israel failed in the Second Lebanon War and is liable to fail in a third such war, because it is fighting the wrong enemy: Hezbollah, instead of the state of Lebanon itself.

Writing for an INSS publication set to come out this week, Eiland states it is impossible to beat an efficient guerrilla army supported by a state immune from retribution. The fact that Hezbollah has rebuilt its strongholds beneath the Shi’ite villages in southern Lebanon will make any IDF maneuvering efforts difficult, he writes, adding that targeted strikes against rocket launch sites will not decrease the number of rockets fired at Israel.

“Hezbollah operates under optimal conditions from our perspective. A legitimate government runs Lebanon, supported by the West, but it is in fact entirely subordinate to the will of the Shi’ite organization,” he writes.

Eiland recommends preemptive action: that Israel pass a clear message to the Lebanese government, as soon as possible, stating that in the next war, the Lebanese army will be destroyed, as will the civilian infrastructure.

“People won’t be going to the beach in Beirut while Haifa residents are in shelters,” he writes.

While Eisenkot and Siboni deal primarily with striking Shi’ite strongholds, Eiland sees Lebanon’s infrastructure as a primary target, in a plan highly reminiscent of the one proposed by then-IDF chief of staff Dan Halutz, which was eventually shot down by U.S. opposition.

Eisenkot’s “DahiyahDoctrine” also raises a number of questions about a possible international backlash, which could end the conflict under conditions favorable to the enemy.

What the three officials have in common, surprisingly, is their emphasis on air power. Anyone who thinks the Air Force will step aside given the results of the last Lebanon war will likely be proven wrong.

Syria’s next step to reform
By Andrew England
Financial Times, Published: October 1 2008

Still, once it is up and running it will be a symbolic success for those promoting liberalisation in Syria, an issue that has become more pressing as the country’s limited oil reserves decline.

“The creation of a stock market sends a strong signal we are moving towards our objective of a social market economy.”

Bassel Hamwi, general manager of Bank Audi and deputy chairman of the exchange, says the real significance of the opening of the stock exchange lies not just in attracting foreign investment but in the signal it sends to the Syrian bureaucracy.

“I think with the stock market, Syria will be very much on its way to becoming an emerging market and an important indication that we are open for investment,” he says.

“This signalling effect could also have an important internal impact. Today, if you were to talk to government, you would probably hear divergent views on the need and speed to open up and reform the market, and it may even convince those sitting on the sidelines.”

Saatchi backs angry art of Middle East
The Britart patron is finding new talent amid the troubles of Iran and Iraq
bY Richard Brooks, The Sunday Times, October 5, 2008
Click here to view the artists’ works
The art impresario Charles Saatchi has picked his latest new wave of talent - painters who have sprung from the wreckage of Iraq and the religious strictures of Iran.

Saatchi, famous for spotting and promoting Britart in the 1990s, is to stage an exhibition of work by some 15 young artists from the Middle East at his new gallery in Chelsea, London.

Their work ranges from graphic depictions of the carnage in Iraq to nudes that defy the edicts of the Iranian ayatollahs. All the artists were born in these countries or in Syria or Lebanon, although some now live in exile.

Saatchi, who since his patronage of the Young British Artists has spread his wings with exhibitions of new European and American artists, is staging a show of Chinese work to open his gallery this week.

Over the past few months, however, he has been quietly accumulating works by the Middle Eastern artists. Some he first spotted online, others he picked up at galleries in New York or Dubai.

The show represents a return to his roots for Saatchi, born to an Iraqi Jewish family in Baghdad before moving with his parents to Britain at the age of four. “Some of this Middle East art is witty, some of it is hair-raising, and the best works are as sharp as a scalpel,” said Saatchi.

His new gallery, which will be free for all exhibitions, opens on Thursday at the Duke of York’s headquarters, a former barracks off the King’s Road.

“The work of these artists from the Middle East looks very different to the art we are used to seeing from America, Europe and now China,” …. Click here to view the artists’ works

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ابن الشمــــال: Ahmad . M . G
» ‎ Syria Planet

لاحظت شيئًا مفرحًا في قارئ الخلاصات بعد العيد وهو خطبة مدونتين لمدونين في فترة ما بعد العيد : وهما المدونة فاطمة صاحبة مدونة مقتطفات تقنية إلى المدون أحمد عبد اللطيف صاحب مدونة AhmedSQL وخطبة المدونة هنادي إلى المدون كريم علي . ألف مبروك وعقبال باقي المدونين والمدونات . ولتقديم التهاني بإمكانك المباركة للكل في مدوناتهم . Posted in حكاية [...]
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Weblog of a Syrian Diplomat in America: Ahmad Moualla 3
» ‎ Syria Planet

Some of my favourite works by distinguished artists from Syria.
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Mosaics: Blog on current and Middle East affairs: Solidarity Lessons from 1973
» ‎ Syria Planet

I have often brought up the example of October 1973 in meetings and conferences, as a response to declarations (mostly from Americans and Israelis) about the sorry state of the Arab world, and the "fact" that its unity died in 1967 when "Arabs attacked Israel" and paid the price. I wish we could commemorate better things than the start of war, but until that happens we should not forget the significance of the events of 1973.

It's a pity that it takes the anniversary of a war, and not of something constructive, to bring out memories of solidarity, as ephemeral as it might be. My father was ambassador in Geneva at the time, and my parents have told us in detail about those incredible days, about the unprecedented outpour of solidarity and the countless offers of help -- not only from Syrian expats of all backgrounds, but also from Arabs wishing to declare their support of the joint Arab stance against Israel. That's what I chose to write about for this month's issue of Syria Today.

Solidarity lessons from 1973

Memories of pan-Arab unity during the 1973 October War remain strong even 35 years after the event.

In any discussion about politics in the Arab world, a majority of people will concur on the common maxim that Arabs can only agree to disagree. True to its clichés, the region has not only witnessed intense wars and dubious peace in the last half century, but also frequent disputes and reconciliations between brotherly countries over the most mundane of issues, while the notion of Arab unity, and even that of pan-Arabism, has begun to fade into oblivion as a mere footnote of history.

Whether this practical assessment of the potential of inter-Arab agreement was reached reluctantly or with conviction, it reassures some observers of the region who have maintained an enduring contrived effort to destroy this fragile notion of unity, even claiming that it never actually existed in the first place. For a variety of reasons, the negationists now openly ridicule the few remaining places where Arabist actions and discourse are still used, portraying them as mere dreams reflecting immature ideological aspirations that are inconsistent with the real Arab world.

There is regrettably some truth to such appraisals, but it does not help the critics credibility that their own plans for a disjointed Arabia has been a major element in the projected demise of Arab unity, and that their long-term vested interests have rendered any attempt to conduct a common Arabist policy into mission impossible. Even if some Arab states were to try joining forces politically, the divide and rule default reaction (still highly effective, years after Anglo-French agreements partitioned the region) would come into force and doom the effort to failure.

Indeed, the mere notion of a movement that is both secular and nationalist in nature (especially one encompassing the entire Arab nation) stands in the way of many a scheme to control the regions resources, and various governments have gone to extremes to counter this inconvenient trend supported by the masses throughout the past century. Irresponsibly, colonial powers even promoted the rise of Islamism to counter the undesirable secular national movements seeking independence. Just as the British fought nationalist fervour in Egypt by encouraging the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, and just as Israel tried to deter popular secular liberation groups in Palestine by facilitating the establishment of religious groups like Hamas, attempts at inter-Arab unity were offset with persistent measures that ensured breakdown and kept main actors segregated. Segregated and increasingly opposed to one another.

The Madrid Peace Conference of 1991, for instance, was to launch a multilateral peace process aiming at a comprehensive settlement of the conflict. Instead, at Israels insistence and with American acquiescence, the process was broken into multiple bilateral negotiations, allowing Israel to navigate between different tracks while never having to commit to a global solution or actually making the painful concessions it pretends offering for peace.

There is a reason why the supposedly impossible inter-Arab harmony, à la EU, continues to attract so much attention. For all the disparaging and sarcastic references to Arab unity, and for all the denials about its current or previous existence, regional players know full well what Arab unity could achieve, especially when directed against the hegemony of Israel. And even within the neo-nationalist and the neo-moderate Arab groups in the region, who seem to find the Arab-Israeli conflict passé and the concept of resistance (in its many forms) to Israel distasteful, the lingering memory of Arabisms power is enough to warrant concern: this old-fashioned zeal remains entrenched in their societies, appealing to a considerable segment of the population which would rather not see allegations about fake unity and especially about a fake common cause develop into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Even in states which have established ties with Israel, public opinion remains overwhelmingly reluctant, if not categorically opposed, to normalising diplomatic and economic ties with Israel, still considered a common enemy for the vast majority of people concerned with the Palestinian cause. In such circles, pan-Arab unity is not considered to be an abstract concept, but rather a proven strategic success that could turn the regions fortunes around.

That is why even 35 years after its occurrence, the October War (known worldwide as the Yom Kippur War, courtesy of the Israeli-dictated perspective) continues to provoke nostalgia in the collective Arab memory of unity, a memory formed by accounts of Arab achievements and not on the failure to regain occupied territory (especially after the urgent intervention of the US), a memory engrained even in the minds of those not yet born during those events.

On October 6, 1973, the tenth day of Ramadan, Syria and Egypt launched the joint military action that would trigger the most unexpected sequence of events and shatter a number of myths, including that of Arab powerlessness and of Israeli invincibility, demonstrating that Arabs could unite, and in doing so achieve great successes.

Although Israel had been warned by King Hussein of Jordan in person about the imminent attack, its arrogant refusal to believe that its Arab enemies could even attempt this feat made the attack easier and ironically maintained the element of surprise. The Bar Lev line, a barrier of Israeli fortifications in the occupied Sinai which Israel had bragged was insurmountable and impenetrable, simply crumbled in a couple of hours under the force of Egyptian pressurised water guns. Prompt military advances were made on the Golan as well, as Syrian commandos swiftly took the m

A Peek into Others' mind » October 6, 2008

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