Pointless Alqaeda
The most interesting thing about this dangerous organization is how pointless it is
Mustapha Hamoui · Apr 15, 2013
Blogging Lebanon
since 2005
Blogging Lebanon since 2005
Ideas Should not be Shielded from Criticism
When Maragaret Thatcher died yesterday, the world was split between those who called her a visionary savior and those who called her a divisive monster. At the heart of this strong division is ideology: Thatcherism strongly embodied conservative ideals of a small state, the power of the free market and muscular militarism, and it stood in direct opposition to the leftist ideals of social solidarity and the primacy of the state in fighting poverty.
Mustapha Hamoui · Apr 9, 2013
Bending With the Wind
The supporters of Iran and the Syrian regime in Lebanon suffered a big blow with the fall of Mikati’s government. But don’t count them out just yet.
Mustapha Hamoui · Apr 6, 2013
Lebanese Diaspora Cuisine
A few years after my great grandfather immigrated to West Africa 80 years ago, he had his heart set on eating Kibbeh. There was a problem though: He doesn’t enjoy eating Kibbeh without Baba Ghannouj, and good eggplant, the kind that is used to make Baba Ghannouj, was not available. Moreover, unlike borghol which can be shipped easily accross the world, eggplants perished on the road and couldn’t be imported. So his wife, my great grandmother, had to improvise: They used a readily available ingredient, avocado, to replace eggplants. 4 generations later, we still occasionally serve avocado Baba Ghannouj when he have Kebbeh, and we love it.
Mustapha Hamoui · Apr 4, 2013
Like A Bus With Square Wheels
Yesterday I was reading a Lebanon article by Robert Fisk. I used to admire the man, but lately I’ve been getting the feeling that he’s losing his bearings. That said, I like his recent observation about our dear land of the cedar:
Mustapha Hamoui · Apr 1, 2013
Blame the War, Not the Reconstruction
This photo is making the rounds online in Lebanon. It was one of pre-war Lebanon in the seventies where people seemed carefree and happy. Unlike today, the city center seemed busy and full of life, and most importantly, full of diverse people from all social strata. It’s a great photo because of its nostalgic value, but people are reaching all sort of wrong conclusions from it.
Mustapha Hamoui · Mar 28, 2013
The Sheikhs and the French Water
How two bottles of water can be a symbol of Everything that is wrong with the Arab league.
Mustapha Hamoui · Mar 26, 2013
There’s the Qatar Arab Spring, and there’s the Imaginary Arab Spring
Qatar’s vision for the future of Arabs is winning so far. A realistic alternative is yet to emerge.
Mustapha Hamoui · Mar 25, 2013
Faster and More Independent
Here’s a little secret: When Lebaneseblogs.com first launched, the website depended on Google Reader’s backend to fetch new posts. At the time this felt like the most efficient way to do things, until Google decided to kill Reader that is..
Mustapha Hamoui · Mar 24, 2013
No featured image