Cedar Island = Destructive Project

If by now you haven't received the following email, then here it is:

“Beirut - "Noor International Holding", located in Beirut, declared its determination to present to the Lebanese official authorities the development of "Lebanon's Cedar Island" project facing the Lebanese coast in order to get the approvals. The company revealed also that the project is an artificial island in the sea and it is similar to Lebanon's national symbol. It is worth mentioning that this island will be the biggest artificial tree in the history”

"Dr. Saleh confirmed that the project, in its plans, takes into consideration the protection of the maritime environment without causing any damages to it due to the fact that some of the Island's parts will be the cedar's branches floating above the sea surface."

Thank you but NO THANK YOU. We already have trees and green and mountains and a great beach and a great weather and a great location in Lebanon, we do not need to go by imitating Dubai (who originally imitated us in the first place) and create fake things by killing the maritime life.

We still have a little bit of great nature in Lebanon, forests, mountains and a very nice sea. We do not need to fake things.

Dr. Saleh, are you sure this project takes into consideration the protection of the maritime environment? How is that possible? It is going to take up a lot of space in the sea, are you going to send a note to all the fish and turtles and algues and everything to move to a new section in the sea?

Plus, the money that will be spend on this project can be used to much more useful and needed projects in Lebanon. We need 24h electricity, we need better roads, we need more job opportunities, we need more scholarships for the youth, we need better security forces, we need order, we need better social security, etc... etc...

Vicious ridiculous cycle

With more than 1250 Gazans casualties, half of them civilians and 13 Israelis died, including 10 soldiers, ceasefire between Hamas and Israel took place after more 3 weeks of continuous battles and rockets flying from one side to the other.

Hamas proclaimed it won a great victory over the Jewish state.

Read more here.

And

"We reserve the right to act in Gaza," Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni told Israeli television. "If they lift up their heads and shoot, we will return with great force because that is what you do against terror organizations."

And

"People said that Hamas had given up resistance, but they were the ones who fought the Israelis when they came, so all of Gaza supports Hamas," said 15-year-old Eimad Abul Maeza.

Deja vu isn't it?

EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner suggested international help in rebuilding Gaza could come if the Fatah Party of moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas returned to Gaza.

And

However, a top European Union official said Europe wouldn't help to rebuild until Gaza was governed by rulers acceptable to the EU. The European bloc considers Hamas a terrorist organization.

Typical reaction in deed.

Palestinian surveyors estimate the war caused at least $1.4 billion worth of destruction to buildings, roads and power lines.

Who won again?

Gaza was the topic of discussion at the Arab Economic Summit held in Kuwait Monday, which saw reconciliations among the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria and Qatar.

Read more here

Hmmm, so they meet after the ceasefire? Again, typical arab reactions.

When will this vicious ridiculous cycle ever end?

Obama, black, democratic and smart. His first day

Obama stepped into the white house today, 20 January 2009. Obvious points? He's the first American President. He's a democrat. He seems smart and eloquent. And he's young.

With every new president, the nation hopes for change, for things to improve. With a new American president, most of the world joins the americans with these wishes and high expectations.

Obama already has on the plate that Bush left him an economic crisis (the worst since decades), 2 wars in Asia and a whole world waiting and watching every step he makes.

The black population in 2007 was 13.5%, and it is increasing. A black president? I say finally. He proved to be the most appropriate candidate, whether he's black or white or green, who cares?

As I said earlier, with every new president, even if most times we get disappointed, we can't help but hope for the better.

One thing I liked about Obama is his honesty, modesty and that he is down to earth. He knows he's not going to make the economy better in 1 year or withdraw all troops scattered in the world in one month and just make peace between Iran and Israel. It's enough that he tries his best, and doesnt make things worse. Bush did.

It is very important for the US to make peace with their enemies or at least not make things worse. The next 4 years will have an impact on the whole world. I know many disagree with me on this one. But I once predicted that the EURO will rise when it was only 0.85USD, so yes, I should work for the economist! Ok stop laughing.

Quick note: I saw Jon Stewart's show maybe 10 days ago, when Israel was bombing Gaza, killing dozens of people per day, the US media was showing and talking about Obama's daughters first day at school in Washington D.C. Really, the US media should start thinking that the US isn't the only country in this world.

Would you like to play with the snow?

Nothing is as fun and warm (if the sun is shining) like a day spent on the snow. This is one of the things I like about Lebanon, even though I don't know how to ski or snowboard, but I still like the sight of snow, and especially the sight of the cedars in the snow. Like to ski? Visit this post that I've written sometime ago. It's a part of the series "Where to go when you visit Lebanon".

Casinos and Amusement Centers - Part 1

Below is an interesting story of real life events about people who go to amusement centers, the modest accepts everyone version of Casino Liban, people, their stories, where they come from, the rules of such amusement centers and more.

This is a form of a series of stories, this is an extract of part 1.

أن تكون موظف صالة في محل تسلية، ليس مسلياً أبداً. ليلك يصير سلسلة من كوابيس عبثية مضنية، كأنك أمل هؤلاء التعساء الوحيد، أو الصاحي الوحيد بين جمع من المخدرين المنوّمين

...

مرة تقدم مني أحد اللاعبين طالباً مني أن اصرف له عشرين ألف ليرة أخرى، بعدما لعب وخسر العشرين ألف ليرة الأولى. لعب وخسر من جديد. ثم تكرر المشهد مرات ثلاث. خسر ما يقارب ستين ألف ليرة. اقترب من الآلة وضربها بيده، منتظراً أن تجاوبه. كانت أصابعه مشدودة على شكل قبضة جاهزة للكم الآلة لكمة أخرى أقسى من الأولى. لم أتحرك من مكاني قيد أنملة. وانشغلت في النظر في ورقة أمامي كنت أكتب عليها. سمعت وقع خطواته تدنو من مكتبي، لكنني لم أرفع عينيّ. توجه إلي بصوت خفيض، قائلاً " أرجوك يجب أن أعود إلى زوجتي وأولادي" ثم انتظر قليلاً منتظراً إشارة مني. ظللت صامتاً، وهو يعرف تماماً أنني لا أستطيع أن أعيد له ماله.

Click here to read full version on NowLebanon.com

Ehtnic cleansing of the Palestinians, who to blame

For a good round up and detailed background that will help understand the current situation between Israel and Gaza, I recommend reading this article "Who to blame for this Ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians" by my fellow blogger Marxist From Lebanon. Click here to read the article.

Once again... Gaza

What's happening to Gaza is not a new sight. For Lebanese it is
especially a reminder of the July 2006 war. Once again, the Arabs sit
and do nothing. Once again, Israel is only defending itself. Once
again the international community ... is the international community.
Once again, people die to form another sheet of statistics in a
forgotten history book. Once again, after the war will be over, the
strong will finish stronger, the weak will finish weaker, and
people... died.

2009, rough start

Unfortunately while some of us were out drinking, partying and celebrating the coming of the new year, some people while they were drinking and dancing, died in a horrible way. Last night, dozens from differently nationalities in a nightclub in Thailand died after the nightclub was set on fire, cause still unknown. That is seriously a really sad start for the families of those who died, and for those who were burned and are wounded.

On the other end of Asia, Gaza is still under fire. Israel is not accepting any ceasefire. More than 400 so far are dead, while a big part of them are civilians.

Too cliché to wish for Peace, too cliché. But nevertheless, I wish that 2009 will carry some wisdom with it, less natural disasters, more awareness of the global warming issue, and more stable financial situations. As we say in my homeland "Save your white penny for a black day".

I dream of the day Smoking is banned in public places in Lebanon

It's a dream indeed. Meanwhile, all we ask is for the smokers to respect those who don't smoke in a restaurant for example. I am not saying pub, am not sayin night club, just restaurant where I want to eat my meal without the smoke going through my nostrils.

2 weeks ago, we were in a restaurant inside a mall. We had ordered our food and were waiting for them. When 2 women come and sit on the table on our right. So far so good. Suddenly, one of them lit a cigarette and all the smoke came towards me, allowing me to inhale the healthy air. So we kindly asked her if they can put it off or switch places between each other. So the woman ignores us and asks the waiter whether this was a smoking or non-smoking place. By default, most of the places in Lebanon are pro-smoking, so he nods. Then she looks our way and says:
- "Change your places if you're bothered".

Of course, I answered back, but long story short, they stayed, the waiter suggested another table, I refused, told him we got here first and we like our table and if anyone should move to another table it's them. In the end, nothing changed, except I got a Tiramissu for free.

Anyway, check out this article here, they're saying after a study that lasted 3 years, that the smoking ban helped decrease the percentage of hospitalized heart attack by 41%.