A Roadmap for Mohamed Hechmi Hamdi

Tunisian aspiring politician Mohamed Hechmi Hamdi can make more success by choosing winning strategies rather than begging electors for votes.
Hechmi Hamdi "killed" his dreams by announcing that he would become the next president of Tunisia. Judit Giuliani, the wife of the former mayor of New York Rudolph Giuliani, was asked in The View whether her husband wants to become a candidate for the 2008 Presidential Elections and she replied no. Shortly later, we found him running for the Republican Primary Elections. Hamdi shouldn't reveal his ambitions in such a clear way thus, jeopardizing his plans and giving his opponents the opportunity to short-circuit his career. Moreover, Hamdi should found a political party thus, institutionalizing his political activism. He was envied by the other political parties, both winners and losers in the elections, because the Popular Petition that he found was an independent list and not a political party. The second reason for the media lynching of Hamdi is that he hasn't come to Tunisia. He was masterminding from the outer seas.

Pornography and the Distortion of Beauty

Pornography has swept the world; you find it almost everywhere whether explicitly or not. Thousands of Internet websites are attracting audiences from all walks of life although the habit of watching blue-content DVDs has been crumbling. The success of of the pornography industry may be due to the power of its mission: To satisfy our sexual instinct. Pornography is teaching whole generations pervert and bizarre sexual techniques that we assume our partners will automatically accept and even embrace. More importantly, pornography is distorting our taste of beauty.

Pornography is emphasizing the extremes. Internet websites that broadcast adult content focus on the superlatives; the biggest, the tallest, the tiniest, etc. It's distorting the way we appreciate the beautuful things. Fit women are considered slim and unfit for sex. Fat women are, according to them, super sexy and are able to give more pleasure. This is at odds with the rules of human biology. It is also emphasizing the freak. Ugly men and women are portrayed as unique and different. Our taste is perverted.

Big can be beautiful but it's not the only beautiful. Many organizations are compaigning for size awareness and for the cause of obese women but their work is hindered by these pornographic sites which instill in the viewer's mind the isea that big size is related to pleasure and sexual fulfilment. They are also discriminating against the slim ones. They also don't show respect for their models who are treated as beasts and tools of pleasure. A new norm of beauty is being established by the adult-content websites and is witnessing a widespread in the mainstream media and in society as a whole.

How to Campaign to Release a Jailed Blogger

Some bloggers are jailed in developing countries because of their political or social activism but there are a few steps that can be undertaken to help release them. 1- Send appeals to the embassy of the country of the blogger in your country. 2- Send to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the jailing country on Twitter: @Minister-of-Foreign-Affairs 3- Spread the word on Twitter- use #blogger's-name and #name-of-his-country. 4- Add a banner on your blog/website 5. Write blog posts demanding the freedom of the jailed blogger. 6. Spread the videos related to the blogger.

Leadership at the Time of No Leadership

The notion of leadership has undergone many changes throughout the ages. Nowadays, we don't have the type of leaders like the prophets and Alexander the Great. We don't have lands to conquer and monotheistic religions to preach but we have markets to conquer and minds to reach. Thus, the vision of the leaders has changed. Also, we don't have a crisis of leadership as the number of leaders is mushrooming and the margin of maneuver is lessening. The leaders who want to be remembered by history should explore new fields in order to be innovative and pioneering.

Identity or No Identity?

Identity has undergone a tremendeous change. Today, we don't see a homogeneous identity but it's rather heterogeneous and hybrid. Since the waves of immigration from Europe and other parts of the world to the New World, we have started talking about identity as doubled. Also, the Old World itself is no longer homogeneous; it's becoming more and more multicultural. The partisans of globalization say that time has come to talk about the world citizen and demographic realities on the ground stand by their idea. The evolution of international traffic has accelerated people's immigration thus identity has changed. We are more and more talking about the roots, the descent and the origin. Identity is more hyphenated than it was in the past. Hyphenated adjectives like Italian-American or Algerian-French are present everywhere. Besides, we started talking about multiple citizenships and not only two; Monica Seles and Carlos Ghosn are perfect examples of this multiplicity. For globalists the one-citizenship age is falling apart. For nationalists, it's still strong. We cannot control human migration because it's a natural human phenomenon. It's not an artificial one. One of the chracheteristics of the human being is to move, to settle and to resettle and history has proven that.

How to Preserve the Diasporas' Identities?

Diasporas are growing everywhere; their numbers are accelarating. Many of the members of those diasporas are fearing to lose their identities and their roots. I understand those fears but many measures can be taken to preserve those weakening identities. Language is an essential part of one's identity and culture and a lot of third-generation immigrants are not speaking a single word of the language of their fathers . They, later, deplore the loss of their identity. Parents should speak at home the language of their fathers in order for the kids to be accustomed with that language or accent. Also, the names of the newly-born babies should be related to the culture of the original identity, thus society becomes multicultural and diverse. History has proven that multi-ethnic societies are stronger than the mono-ethnic ones. The interaction between those ethnicities is a source of creativity. The diasporas should also worship the religion of their ancestors and venerate the saints of their original lands. For Christian Lebanese who are outside Lebanon, it is Our Lady of Lebanon which should be venerated. Frequent visits to the fathers' land are also encouraged in order for the new generations to know where do they originated from. Parents ought to instill in their children and grandchildren the notion that they should be proud of their origins. Grouping a certain diaspora in institutions and associations is a unifying factor for the immigrants and their descendents. The diasporas should be treated by their original states as full citizens and they should be granted citizenships, the right to vote and seats in the parliaments. An emphasis can be put on the original cuisine and on media related to the ancestors' land. Maintaining the diasporas' identities is a burning issue but previously-given clues can be very helpful.

How Abu Dhabi's Rise is Good for Dubai

Following the footsteps of neighboring Dubai and Qatar, Abu Dhabi has set a vision for itself. The latter aims at building a developed society in the city-state by 2030. After Dubai's real estate bubble's explosion by the fall of 2008, Abu Dhabi has witnessed a magnifcient rise. Many analysts see that Dubai has callapsed as Fast Company magazine wrote "Bye-Bye, Dubai" on the cover of September 2009 issue while others believe that the society and the system that Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has built is strong enough to fall in few months. The proponents of the second viewpoint say that Dubai can benefit from Abu Dhabi's rise. During the Arab Strategy Forum held in Dubai in 2004, Fareed Zakaria said that Dubai shouldn't fear from Qatar's progress. He added that it is in Dubai's interest that Qatar accumulates more power. Following the same logic, Dubai and Abu Dhabi are not determined to fight each other. They may compete and more importantly they have to compliment each other. Dividing the roles gives an opportunity of specialization and focus. Dubai will be visited by thousands of Abu Dhabi's tourists. When asked by journalists whether Abu Dhabi is competing with Dubai, Dubai's ruler said that the cities belong to one unifying state and there is no competition between the two emirates. Abu Dhabi's eminence will exert more pressure on Dubai to excel. If left without any serious competitor, Dubai might stay in the comfort zone. This race is healthy for the UAE and for the GCC as a whole. Time has come to talk about the Gulf Triad: Dubai, Qatar and Abu Dhabi or the Gulf Quartet when Saudi Arabia is added to the triad. In the United States, for example, Los Angeles and San Francisco are two neighboring and "rival" cities but they didn't eclipse each other. This is a healthy example that Arabians can contemplate. Dubai will become a more competitive city due to the rise of Abu Dhabi. In the Middle East, several finanacial and cultural centers are emerging. The world has statrted talking about Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Jeddah, Riadh, Ras Al Khaimah and Beirut-the always vibrant city and the regional hub of the past and of the present. These centers may be regional ones but they meet and sometimes beat the international standards in many fields: finance, commerce, tourism, transport, real estate, architecture, media, fairs and education.

What Do the Kurds Want?

The Kurdish people have one aim which is to have an independent state for the Kurds but the Arab world will not lose much things if the Kurdish dreams of full autonomy come true. When we look at the map of the Arab world and the areas of the Kurdish existence, we will realize that the Kurds live in peripheral lands. This very geographical fact will lessen the Arabs' anxiety of a possible Kurdish secession. If the Kurdish people dwell in the heartlands, then the atomization of the Arabic lands will start. It's no secret that the Kurds want their history-long dream of an independent state to materialize but the overwhelming Arab people categorically disagree with this idea. Turkey is the most outspoken opponent of the Kurdish independence. One day those ambitions may come true but in the forseeable future it is very unlikely for a bold step from the Kurds to happen. Kurdistan and not only Iraq's Kurdistan is the ultimate goal for the local Kurds or those living in the diaspora. We are talking today of the Kurdish cause. The Arab countries didn't deal with the Kurds in an intelligent manner. They should have integrated them in all aspects of life in order for them not to feel alienated and marginalized. Let's learn from the Thai government's handling of the attempts of the Pattani Province's secession. It has integrated them and appointed a Muslim man belonging to the rebellious area the speaker of the parliament. Today, it's the age of citizenship. Look at the New World, it's a mosaic of ethnicities living in cohabitation and not necessarily harmony. Time has come for the Old World to learn from the New World.

The Arabic Language Can Disappear

Arabic is one of the most ancient languages in the world and it is still a living one. This privilege does not give it immunity from disappearance. Most Arabic Muslims think that Arabic is an eternal language because The Qur'an stated that the Muslim holy scriptures will be conserved for eternity. Also, Prophet Muhammad said that the language of the dwellers of the Garden of Eden would be Arabic. The Qur'an can be preserved but Arabic language may disappear. Latin, for example is a dead language but many chef-d'oeuvres were written in Latin and are still preserved. Khalil Gibran stated in his book The New and the Marvellous that Arabic would face the same fate of Latin; it would disintegrate into many languages. The local dialects would emerge and replace it. Although it may be true that Gibran's prophecy was not fulfilled, one cannot deny that Arabic is in need for revitalization. Said Akl want far to promote for the Latinization of the Lebanese-Arabic letters. We find the latter process in Turkish, Kurdish, and in other languages. The Arab Christians have produced wonderful poetry, novels and dictionaries because they stripped Arabic from its sacredness. The Arabic Muslims have to do the same thing. The Arabic language's relation to The Qur'an is a blessing and an obstacle at the same time. Muslims have a tendency not to change Arabic or add new words because in their subconscious mind it is related to something sacred.

How to Campaign to Release a Jailed Blogger

Some bloggers are jailed in developing countries because of their political or social activism but there are a few steps that can be undertaken to help release them.

1- Send appeals to the embassy of the country of the blogger in your country.

2- Send to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the jailing country on Twitter: @Minister-of-Foreign-Affairs

3- Spread the word on Twitter- use #blogger's-name and #name-of-his-country.

4- Add a banner on your blog/website

5. Write blog posts demanding the freedom of the jailed blogger.

6. Spread the videos related to the blogger.