Zaat

I chose to read Zaat by Sonallah Ibrahim for my next reading assingment. I will admit that I did not finish the novel yet, but I have done a decent amount of reading in it.

The book is interesting to say the least. It focuses on the title character, Zaat, who is your typical middle class Egyptian woman. The chapters alternate between Zaats everyday life, and the headlines of the Egyptian newspaper that she works for. Many of these newspaper events deal with Egyptian politics in the late 1980's and early 1990's. The chapters dealing with Zaat's life are a bit scattered and jump from event to event. The stories are random, dealing with everything from house remodeling to bureaucratic dealings to marital relations. Oddly enough things like children and work are hardly mentioned. This isn't a story that flows at all, but is still very well written, and is extremely interesting to read. At times Ibrahim's sense of humor is blatant and other times it is hard to catch, but at times I found myself laughing out loud to some of Zaat's experiences. It did seem like a lot of times Zaat's thinking and ideals were very childish, and slightly demeaning, especially from a female perspective. I did enjoy the book, and would recommend it highly. It isn't the easiest to read, but it is defiantly a good read.

Turkey

I must admit that I don't know much about the country, but upon researching, I did find out some basic facts:

-Turkey is a parliamentary representative democracy. Since its foundation as a republic in 1923, Turkey has developed a strong tradition of secularism. Turkey's constitution governs the legal framework of the country. It sets out the main principles of government and establishes Turkey as a unitary centralized state.

-The territory of Turkey is more than 1,600 kilometres (1,000 mi) long and 800 km (500 mi) wide, with a rectangular shape

-President: Abdullah Gul as of 2007

-Prime Minister: Recep Tayyip

-Population: 71,158,647

-99% of the population is Muslim, but Turkey is a secular state that assures complete freedom of worship to non-Muslims.

-The following is the economic status of Turkey:

Industry: textiles, food processing, autos, mining, steel, petroleum.

Agriculture: tobacco, cotton, grain, olives; livestock.

Exports: apparel, foodstuffs, textiles, metal manufactures, transport equipment.

Presentations

I really enjoyed listening to both Dr. Ellin and the panel of veteran soldiers that came to present their views Wednesday.

Dr. Ellin was well versed in the study of the Jewish/Palestine conflict. One thing in particular that I found interesting was that the wall being built around Israel is a "security barrier" used to protect Israeli citizens from suicide barriers. According to Dr. Ellin, since this wall has been built, the number of attacks have decreased significantly. I had never thought of the wall this way, and if it is really one of the main reasons it is being built, it is not as offensive as I once viewed it. He also provided us with an informative hand out about "A (Partial) Collection of Jimmy Carter's Falsehoods" disputing some of the facts in Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid. One of the most interesting points I found in this article was that the wall being built, supposedly in Palestinian land, is not at all true, it has been built on disputed grounds and at certain points, veers into Israeli land.

Lt. Phillips, Sgt. Gilmer and Sgt. Merritt were also intriguing speakers. I was moved after listening to them speak about their trips to various parts of the Middle East, and it almost made me want to become apart of the military. Each spending over a decade in our armed forces, stories of war and assistance not only spoke of their character, but also of their feelings for our country. They are here to protect us and keeps us safe from threats of violence, whether they are real or imagined. Their presentation reminded me of who I am (an American) and what out freedom stands for. Even further, they have more knowledge and experience with the Middle East and their culture more than any other speaker to date, which I believe gives them more credit than most. By far, my favorite set of speakers to date :)

Modern Day Harems

Upon completing Dreams of Trespass, I though it would be interesting to see what information I could find about Harems used as a form of protection, not for sex, and if there were still Harems like this that exist today.

Unfortanuatly I could not find anything specifically adressing the type of Harem that Fatima Mernissi lived in, but I did find information about this specifice type of harem. According to the Lexicon Orient, some of these harems do still exist, in places like Saudia Arabia, and household harems were a place for women to live, and in pre-islamic times, wives and concubines live together in the same house.

There was also a very informative artical on Wikipedia that gives the background and history of harems. The name "harem" itself literally means "something kept safe." Originating in Turkey, ancient harems could house hundrands, up to thousands of women at once for safe keeping. Some went willingly into these harems and others were forced their against their will.

Dreams Of Trespass

For my next reading assignment, I decided to read Dreams of Trespass by Fatima Mernissi.

This is a very interesting autobiographical story about a girl growing up in a harem in Fez, Morocco in the 1940'a. For those of you who don't know, a harem is "living quarters reserved for wives and concubines and female relatives in a Muslim household." It isn't the typical ideal of men and concubines, but more of a place for the women of the family to live so that they are not violated or misled by men outside of the household. The harem dictates how the women live, and seems more like a prison that a place to live. The women are not allowed to leave unless it is the early morning hours. Fatima is constantly told not to question authority, and lives a very sheltered and secluded life. Unwilling to live her life in such a sheltered environment, Mernissi seeks solace in discovering what is truly on the other side of the walls of her home that keep her prisoner. She is urged by her mother, though, to escape the harem life she is living, and the novel introduces a lot of feminine ideals and movements for the Islamic religion. It was enlightening to learn that this particular religion was not as opressive to women as the media has made it out to be.

I really enjoyed this novel, and I would recommend it to anyone, especially someone who is into feminine movements. Not only was it easy to read, but it promoted a lot of the ideal that I hold personally for my self and for women everywhere, which is to not allow themselves to be overpowered by others who think lower of them simply because they are women.

Research on Woman at Point Zero

The following websites provide some interesting information about woman and their role in Egyptian society.

http://www.nawalsaadawi.net/
This is the author, Nawal El Saadawi's personal website that has a personal biography and information on women's rights in Egypt.

http://www2.hu-berlin.de/sexology/IES/egypt.html
This website give information about sex and sexuality in Egypt, very informative.

http://www.themuslimwoman.com/herrights/womensrights.htm
This is a detailed website about women's rights in Islam, what they are entitled to civilly and humanly.

Woman At Point Zero

For my first independent novel, I chose to read Woman At Point Zero by Nawal El Saadawi. This was a fascinating story about a woman who suffered a life of abuse and despair from her childhood, up to her execution. Told from the perspective of Saadawi, the woman, Firdaus relates her tale from her prison cell the day before her execution. She has been sentenced to death after killing her pimp, Marzouk, and is based on a true story.

Firdaus has lived a truly unfortunate life. She was beaten and neglected by her parents, and sexually abused by friends and relatives before she even finished high school. She is later married off to her uncle's wife's old, dirty uncle, who abuses her so badly she flees from her home. It is here that she turns to prostitution as a means of survival. She goes through a series of ups and downs, until she is told that her profession "is not respectable." She gives up prostitution for a brief stint as a entry-level secretary for a large company. She realizes that her life isn't as profitable as when she could sell her body for money. Returning to prostitution only results in her arrest and death.

This story is an insight to the struggles that women in the Middle East face. Firdaus states that "all women are victims" and "all women are prostitutes" in one way or another, to themselves, to their husbands and to society. She has a very negative outlook on marriage, feeling that as soon as a woman marries, she becomes a slave to her husband, which I believe to be true in this particular society. In the end, she comes to "hate men" and everything that they stand for. She also emphasized that the pain of selling her body was not as bad as the pain of a broken heart, illustrated when she falls very hard for a young worker, Ibranim.

From a female perspective, there are a lot of things that hit close to home for me. In no way am I comparing my life and situations to Fidaus', but her pain and suffering at the hands of men is still something that can be seen splashed across the headlines of newspapers today. Women abused, battered, raped and prostituting themselves out as a profession is still common today in our own country. It made me angry, the further into the book that I went, not only at the men who abused Firdaus, but at Firdaus herself for not fighting harder for respect and self dignity. The book was very powerful and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a book that shows the struggles of a woman in modern Middle East culture.

Information on Iraqi War

The following web site was pretty interesting. It outlays all the money spend on the Iraq war, and gives examples of what we could have done with the money instead. The total amount increases by the millisecond, and you can even specifically narrow down the spending in your own community. The site is called the National Priorities Project.

Cost of War

The following is a video I found on YouTube that illustrates just how horrific war can be to both the soldiers and the innocent bystanders. The injuries abstained by the children sends chills down my spine, and the mass graves put in perspective how much life has been lost in this war.

Iraq - Crimes Against Humanity

Iraq Invasion

The Iraq Invasion has become known as the Second Gulf War or Operation Iraqi Freedom. It's official start began on March 20, 2003, and although it was opposed by the United Nations, the United States and its backers continued with their plans, in order to confiscate the supposed Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). Upon further investigation, there turned out to be no WMD, but I think the most beneficial outcome of this situation was the liberation of the Iraqi people from the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein, who was captured and removed from power on December 13, 2003. By helping the innocent Iraqi's who suffered from this tyrants power for decades, I believe the occupation of Iraq was more than beneficial. On January 31, 2005 the Iraqi Transitional Government was set to draft a new constitution for the Iraqi people, so then could live free lives without the fear of punishment or death. Restoring power to the people was a step in the right direction.

Israel Lobby vs. Israel Lies

The two pieces of reading required for today's class were by far the most interesting and consuming of all that I have read for this class so far. The Israel Lobby by John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt, and it's rebuttal, "Debunking the Newest-and Oldest-Conspiracy" by Alan Dershowitz present many arguments on why to be pro-or-anti Israel support. The television debate between the two provided insight into their individual views as well.

Mearsheimer and Walt provided a paper that is full of research, facts and statistics, and while it still isn't clear to me exactly why the United States supports Israel, there are many things presented that make me question exactly why no one has raised and issue about the amount of support we provide for them, when they are strategically useless, and in my opinion, they act like a spoiled child when they don't get their way. It is argued in "The Israel Lobby" video provided by americanfreepress.net, that while many disagree on the portrayal of United States and Jewish leaders, the one thing that Mearsheimer and Walt point out is that the issue of Israel is taboo and no political leader in the United States really wants to debate it.

Dershowitz rebuttal is disappointing. He addresses some of the issues presented in "The Israel Lobby" most of the paper attacks the sources, and argues that they "are taken out of context." Sources are taken out of context all the time, and I was hoping to see him actually debate the issues at hand instead of simply split-hairs over sources. He does point out that Israel lobbies don't always win US favor, especially when they are competing with Saudi lobbies, who win out a majority of the time. He also brings up the issue of "Paranoid Style of American Politics" which refers to the paranoia of the exaggerated influence of one party on specific governmental policies.

All in all I learned a lot about the Israel Lobby, and frankly I am not happy with what I see. Israels treatment of the Palestinians can be compared to the holocaust many of their ancestors experienced during World War II. The other thing I don't understand is Dershowitz argument that the Jews just want "a small democracy in which Jewish culture can thrive". Israel is not a democracy and never will be as long as church and state intermix. When the US broke off from England, they struggled for year to build a country and economy on their own, with threats of domination from all direction. We didn't take hand outs or rely on one particular country to establish our democracy. If Israel wants its democracy so badly, maybe they should have to actually work for all of the hand outs they are receiving, and maybe they would appreciate it a little more...