Baby Steps

I have to apologize for not posting for quite a while now, but I’m back and let’s leave it at that.

For the past three months Bahrainis have gone from watching the news to making the news, and I do not see it as necessarily a bad issue. In fact if you pose an optimistic point of view you would try to find out the good in all of that. I would like to call what has happened as a wake up call to us Bahrainis who have so comfortably kept our heads under the bed sheets or have lived all of their lives ignoring those around us. In terms of social change we can already see a more active and aware society, yet it’s still lacking.

One of the issues I have with Bahraini society is that there was little or no action taken by individuals or groups. I mean that apart from established charity or political societies there is hardly any groups or individuals that take upon themselves to act in the hope of making Bahrain a better place. I remember that I have been to “Think Pink” charity dinner once and I was struck by the lack of Bahrainis in that charity dinner, and that the ones who were there were sadly just using it as either a place to hook up girls or because their boss was attending. Why is it that a society, and by that I mean the old Islamic state one, that was once famous for having established the basis for social cooperation is now a fading shadow of that. The funny thing is that when this society was much less wealthier it was much more socially conscious. This basic idea of social consciousness is what is needed in order to take those small but steady steps into having a society to be proud of being into. Why do we have to let the expats take those first steps for social cooperation? We lack neither the money nor the education to make our own society a better one.

We cannot expect government to take our hands for every single step; we need to be ahead of government in this aspect, and it doesn’t have to be more of the traditional charity organizations. We can have hundreds of different and innovative ideas that would target a sector of society or more. We see many new ideas coming into the world and we could use them and tailor them to fit our own moral and religious values. Also we have a UN representation office here in Bahrain just like everywhere, we can approach them and as them for guidance since they have so much experience. It is so easy to do yet people are reluctant and look to others to start any initiative before participating. This form of wrong thinking needs to be eliminated from our culture, and replaced with a more social conscious one instead.

There are so many needy sectors here in Bahrain as it is around the world, and the key to start is to take a look, listen carefully and choose which idea you support the most. Them all you need to do is to take some individual steps towards clearing all the government red tape that is required. The most important thing to do is not to look for others to join you from the beginning, but start as an individual and work from there, and believe me that others would eventually join in. another thing to keep in mind is to have your heart in the right place when taking this kind of venture.

A Cry of Pain in the House of Laughter

Have you ever had a nightmare where you are trying to cry for help but no voice is coming out of your mouth? How you end up waking up suddenly covered with sweat? Well, at least you end up waking up. How about if you wake up and you still can’t hear your own voice or your cry of help? That would definitely be a nightmare. This is basically the sad situation in Bahrain.

We have had so many celebrations and ceremonies of loyalty in the past month than we had in the past 10 years of King Hamad’s reign. The people are almost drunk with the euphoria of a false victory. Yes, a very false victory. Think about it. Who did you defeat? The Shiaa? I still see them here living in Bahrain. Where else would they live anyway? I still see the country in a state of security deadlock. I still see the economy rocking like a small boat in a sea of storms. All the while we are celebrating and the country is slipping dangerously down a dark slope into the dangerous unknown. Sadly I have to admit that many Bahrainis have turned into unthinking drones that repeat the mantra that everything is okay and all is well on this paradise island. Now you have to understand that we as Bahrainis have turned into several sections. One section is the Shiaa who constitute a big slice of the population and they definitely don’t see that everything is alright and dandy, and who the majority of them sadly submitted their thinking brains to their religious leaders, exactly like some of us have done to our religious leaders. Another section is the Sunnis who are daily celebrating and going out of their way to participate in any show of loyalty to the leadership; those have also sadly submitted their brains willingly. Then we come to the minority of thinking human beings from both sects who see and witness that this country is far from healthy again, but who sadly have chosen not to take part in anything and live their lives as if they live on the moon. I have to admit that some people just got fed up and started living their lives normally regardless of what is happening around them, but that sort of negativity is not helping and which actually harms the very fabric of this country. You simply cannot ignore the devastation to society that pushed us back to the dark ages. Some action needs to be taken and soon or else all will be lost.

You have so many sectors of society that have wronged Bahrain as a nation, and honestly we have all wronged Bahrain in our own way during this crisis. Be honest with yourselves and look at what you have done and what you could be doing to help Bahrain in its time of need. One of these sectors of society is the business men sector. Just look at those leeches that used the crisis to gain more profits. Who have ever heard of a fast food restaurant that serves or belongs to a sect? That’s just ridiculous actually in a so called civilized society. Those business men have always sliced up Bahrain, and they will always do that unless society rises up and solidifies against them. If you don’t believe me just take a look at your preferred newspaper and the many pages that those businesses have dedicated to show loyalty to the leadership, and during the crisis they were very suspiciously silent because they were observing who would win in the end so that they would jump to the winner’s ship and declare their unlimited loyalty. They think that Bahrainis are stupid, and to be frank they got some kind of point in thinking that unfortunately. We got in our society also the religious so called leaders who climb on the shoulder of religion in order to be called politicians. I absolutely despise them for doing such a thing. Religious leadership was only successfully pulled off by one man in Islam and that was the Prophet Mohammed. All of those who came after him were political leaders who have taken religion as a way of life and a guide for leadership not as an excuse to solidify their leadership claims. Those so called leaders use the simple instincts of human need for spiritual guidance to invade their minds and spread fear to anything that is different to their religion or sect. They even use their charity centers as political party headquarters. A place to brew political agendas and plots instead of a center that should provide help for those in need, and how many are there in desperate need.

There are many more examples of those who would prey on Bahrain to strike a claim to further their status in this time of crisis, it would be impossible to count them all in one post. The sad fact is that we, those who have the blessing of thinking for ourselves, are crying out in pain at what we see being done to our country yet are unheard just like that nightmare I told you about where you cry out but no voice is coming out.

I’m sorry if I have offended you in this post, but I’m just crying out of pain.

The Barça Effect

In this post I would like to touch upon the new world order of football. It is staring us all in the eyes, yet we try to resist its onslaught. It is a known fact that football is the leading sport in the world, but it is also a fact that football is turning from an exciting sport to a more simple form of exciting soap opera for men. Don’t you feel that sometimes in big Champions League games that you can actually know the outcome with watching only five minutes of a game? Especially when European heavyweights clash with each other. Don’t you notice how in the past two years the world has been divided between the blue and garnet on one side and the white on the other? Was it a coincidence or is it a planned operation behind closed doors with shadowy men controlling the outcome of games? I believe that it doesn’t really matter. Rather what matters is how Liverpool can emulate the successful ideas behind Barcelona.

In the past twenty years we have seen how Man Utd has overtaken us in the business department. Yet we can all feel that 99% of Man Utd fans around the world only happen to be fans because of success. Take trophies away from them and they will lose their fan base like what we have seen with the emergence of Chelsea. We can't fool ourselves anymore into thinking that the business factor of football is not directly connected with success on the pitch, and so we must start focusing more and more into how to bring this double success. This would be easy anyways; heavy marketing in Asia and North America would immediately give you enough ammo to compete on the pitch. But what can be tricky is how to have success in the business department without losing your soul. We can see this in the Barcelona model. They have risen up to second place in terms of revenue in football, yet still can be appealing to any football fans. It is a simple yet delicate balance. They appeal to all football fans through the powers of romantic football and political struggle. Easy when you think about it, yet extremely difficult to pull off successfully. So how can Liverpool emulate such a model?

First of all we already have the attractive football on the pitch, we only need to carry this over to the next season and little by little we would develop a reputation of playing attractively. We should take into consideration not to take it as an excuse though, or we would end up something like Arsenal and how they hide behind their attractive football when faced with the lack of trophies. There is also a factor that in the 2008/9 season Liverpool were at its peak in terms of attractiveness and fear factor. We didn’t care what ball would come out of Platini's little basket and that was a "fakht". The romantic football joker card can be a double edge sword, so it is best kept for the more highlighted games of the season and keep the more realistic playing style to the lower tier clubs in the league to insure more points in the bag. Losing in a big game can have a psychological backlash but when losing with pride it can have a positive drive on players, pundits and fans.

The second factor into the Barcelona model is the political struggle effect. This raises more romantic sympathies of a repressed people under an occupation. Anyone who visited Barcelona or Catalonia could clearly see that there is no repression taking place and it's only a calling for a romantic past glory. Nevertheless they have succeeded in having the sympathy of everyone who would witness how their fans and players represent the old kingdom of Aragorn. Although look to the north of Spain and you would see another people calling for their freedom in what is called the Basque Separatists, yet we don’t see football fans sympathizing with them. This romantic nostalgic marketing is the trademark of Barcelona as a football club and is being used to its fullest by its marketing vehicles. So unlike Man Utd, if Barcelona should go through a trophy dry spell it wouldn’t have as much a blow on their fan base as would on a club like Chelsea or Man Utd whose only means of success is though achieving trophies.

I do apologize for having written my raw thoughts and ideas into this subject, but I do believe that Liverpool is more than capable of achieving a higher standard than what we are in now. I also believe that there are good lessons to be learned from all football clubs, we just need to see which one would suit us more and how it can be applied without drastically changing our beloved club into a fan exploitation corporation.

The Fabulous Five

The family value was and still is a major debate point in the west, where the "family" is constantly being eroded by the unstoppable power of TV. Who needs a family if you can have Opera to guide you to her newest line of consumer items? For us here in the East of the globe, we tend to value the family more even with decades of western influence. This value is seen as imbedded in all Eastern religions as a major pillar of having a virtuous life. I am no different in saying that I try as hard as I can to value my family and show gratitude for having such a loving family. But this blog is too small to take up all my family you know (I have a HUGE family as you might guess), so I have decided to let this inspiration go to those five special members who act as my column, carrying my heavy burden all the time with a big smile on their faces. I am going to be selective in this post as I am talking to those who have sisters. To those who don't I can only say tough luck, you're missing a lot. This goes out to you sisters.

To have a sister in your life is a true blessing. I know that if you have a bigger sister then she will most probably annoy or even bully you from time to time while you are still little. But once you have grown up, you would immediately have a spare mother ready to take her shoes when she is not there for any reason. A sister is clear evidence that God have created women as strong creatures unlike what some bigots would want to suggest about how fragile or how weak they could be. I say to them of course they are fragile and sensitive, no one denied that, but I also tell them to dare and try to touch a hair on any woman's child without her approval, let's see who would scream the louder there. You see Eve was not some bimbo who annoyed Adam, for God's sake she stood by him and supported him even though they were kicked out of heaven; who would want to have sex and get kids when you have just had such a tragic thing ever happen to you? But enough about women. I'm not here to act as their lawyer, because they are more than capable to defend themselves. What I would want to convey though is that having a sister in your life is like having a turbo charge in your car, when you're stuck in a race all you need to do is push that turbo button and you are immediately given a boost like no one can give you. I have had this kind of experience so many times I lost count. And the funny thing is that you don’t need to do much to get that kind of support, cheaper than therapy that’s for sure. No matter how busy, a sister will always make enough time to her family, whether she is married or not. Sister fights are also the best, one moment you see them bickering, and all of a sudden they hug each other so tightly and start fighting over who have wronged the other more.

A sad fact of life is when I see people moving away from their families and creating a separate life, cutting all links to the past. Yet a family is the only group of people who would stand by you in any circumstance and without asking for anything in return. So why would we not want to appreciate them? Another sad fact is to see brothers and sisters not growing up from their adolescence and teenage fights, and carry them over to their old ages all for the sake of a fake pride. Don’t they know how powerful they could be if they could join forces together? We don’t need a "soap opera" life to feel special, all we need is just to be ourselves and accept the other part of the family for who they are. Just think about how boring would a family be if all members are exactly the copy of each other. But sadly we think of family members as those who would always forgive us even if we constantly step over them, but what if one day they are not there to forgive you? If you take everything from a person and peel away all that is his life, all is that going to be left is his family. So please cherish those who would gladly care for you.

I can never imagine my life without my sisters, and to be honest I don’t want to imagine that anyways. I have been carried by them so many times, and I'm speaking literally here. They have always been there for me through thick and thin, and no matter how far they are. Sometimes all I needed was to dial one their numbers and after talking to any of them I feel that all my worries have been nothing anyway. A blessing like this cannot be repaid no matter how hard I try, but I do try to nevertheless. So when I'm out there rescuing the rest of the world, my fabulous five will heal my wounds when I come back home.

I would love to write something similar to my mother, but sadly she doesn’t read my blog, so I'll just give her a hug instead.

Age of the Hypocrite

In the age of the hypocrite, truth is taboo. That's what I have realized during 31 years of experience so far. A simple way of putting it is to ask yourself have you lied to anyone today. Chances are that you have, but you would probably argue that it was a "good lie" that was meant to make someone feel good or avoid an embarrassing situation. What I say is that once you get used to lying then you won't notice the difference. The latest crisis have opened up my eyes to a much real world than what I have had in my mind, and that have made me take a better prospective of people around me, and myself of course.

We all lie, and that’s a fact of life, whether we like it or not. What makes us a better person is the admittance that we lie and especially to ourselves. We also have different faces to show, and don’t tell me that you don’t because you do. Take it for example a side of you that only your family sees, another side would be your colleagues at work or the person that sells you clothes at the mall.. Etc... You get the point. So yes we all have different faces that we take off and put on in different situations and occasions. That does not necessarily mean it is a bad thing, it's just bad when you fool yourself into thinking that you are the only angel surrounded by a planet full of demons. The question is not whether we do these things or not, but why we do it? A difficult question if you really think about it. More importantly is the effort of lying or deceiving worth all this trouble? I have mentioned in a previous post about when Gulliver encounters the mythical race of Houyhnhnms, and if you can remember or refer to them then you would know that they are a race of sentient horses on an island where horses are the masters and the humans are the animals. They also do not behave like humans, but rather think that most of human behavior is barbarian or what they call "yahoo". One of the behaviors that they do not know about is the concept of lying. They were actually asking Gulliver at one point why would anyone utter words that are not true. They believed that talking was a blessing and privilege that need not be wasted on such corrupted ideas such as lying. Another funny thing they did not know about was the concept of politics, simply because they can't be successful politicians without saying lies after lies. Shows you where politicians stand, in the cages with the rest of the "yahoos".

I try not to judge anyone but myself, and I do stand with all the rest of humanity in the act of lying and deceiving. You see, God didn’t create a pure Adam in heaven; he actually created a very flawed creature, with some elements of corruption to pass down to the rest of humanity. I believe that is a fact, but that’s not the point, rather the point is how has the strength and willpower to challenge these features and inheritance? For God promises heaven if you just put in an effort, because He knows how few would even come close to succeeding in this challenge. So I do not remove myself from this argument when I say that can't we just cut back at our lies? Can't we just try to keep a minute of purity in our day to keep us from sliding into "yahoos"? I believe we can and that is won't be that hard anyways. It's not meant to be difficult; it's just difficult as a first step to take, just like having the courage to jump into a cold swimming pool.

Trust is the only thing that keeps us together as humans and not go around killing each other… hmmm, wait; I believe I should take this sentence back. Still, I firmly believe, as always, that we as the descendants of Adam and Eve, who have smelled the air of heaven and have mistakenly given that up, have inside each and every one of us a great reserve of goodness that when needed will rise up and save us at our times of need. All we need to do is just listen very carefully to this voice of good and help it grow louder and louder.

Two Wrongs Make a Right

In this age of enlightenment and scientific superiority who would have guessed that humans would reverse it's so called evolution and become spiteful little savages. My guess is that actually this trait has never really left our conscious mind. You don’t believe me? Switch on your TV and flip to any news channel you may prefer and see for yourself. When concerning Arabs on the other hand, we seem to take it to another level altogether.

I'm criticizing my own kind not because I despise myself or where I come from, but because I like to think that you criticize because you care. Regardless of what I think though, it is a major concern to many people that the level of calls for revenge is rising up throughout the Arab world at an alarming rate. We first had some revolutions and protests that have ousted corrupt regimes, and I was standing fully behind it like Tunisia and Egypt. Now we have calls for blood from these noble revolutionaries against their former rulers. I do understand how injured you still are but murdering an old man who was once a symbol for everything you hated will not heal any of your injuries nor will it bring sudden and immediate prosperity to your nations. I still remember the day some fools who call themselves Iraqis murdered Saddam and cheered over his body thinking that they have had the final laugh. In fact what they have done was only for revenge, for they have gladly handed the great nation of Iraq into the hands of the Iranians. Why would they do that? Out of revenge of course. We also saw thousands in Iraq lose their lives over just because they had the unfortunate bad luck of having the wrong name in the wrong neighborhood. Although these same people have been living by each other for decades or even centuries, but the call for revenge have wiped all of this harmony in an instant, to be replaced by bloody calls for holy justice.

What would we expect if Egypt takes its first steps on the slippery road to revenge? I would expect instability that could last for more decades than what Mubarak has ruled over them. What I would expect out of them though is to stop all the calls for revenge and let justice take its course. That would be the surest way of building a formidable nation. Street justice has always been a regrettable fact in nation's histories, so please do learn and avoid this painful lesson. Oh, and don’t try and fool yourselves with false justice and false trials, thinking that your conscious have been purified, for two wrongs do not make a right, no matter how you try to shape it. Facing fire with fire is not an option anymore.

Finally I will have to touch upon my country. Bahrain is obviously going through what I can only call a tough rebirth, and it is up to us ordinary citizens and those who love Bahrain to insure that the child will not be a deformed monster. I do not call on government to act, nor have I ever called for any government to act, because I'm a firm believer in human power to change all that is around him or her. This power, if put into good use, will be our salvation to a better Bahrain. A Bahrain that knows no revenge and knows only justice.