Comments on: Axis(tential) Questions

By: Ghassan Karam

Ghassan Karam — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 17:56:00 +0000

quelqu’une,
Remember that you were the one that didi not think that one should have the right to refer to the Us as the land of the separation between state and church or the one with diversity of opinion that is protected by law. The implication is that is a charade and that better examples of freer and more diverse societies exist.
I still believe that you are not making enough distinctions between what is and what ought to be but be that as it may, I sure respect your right to think that the West is the embodiment of evil.:-)

By: quelqu'une

quelqu'une — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:58:10 +0000

Ghassan,
I also wanted to leave the thread die but since you ask me not to keep the suspense, here is my reply.
In the first place, it’s very interesting to notice how easily one can be accused of being a supporter of China/Russia/Saudi Arabia/Iran/Singapore – all in one, lovely! But you missed the Talibans, Adolf Hitler, Global Warming and Darth Vader, ya Ghassan – when they simply express a doubt about the excellence of liberal democracies.
Your last paragraph tends to suggest there’s no valuable alternative to Western liberalism. I personally give no credit at all to this ridiculous Thatcherite motto.
I believe in the capacity of each people to organize themselves independently – according to their own situation and historical/geographical/cultural background – without always referring and paying tributes to the dominant narratives.
You wrote : “No one questions that we are not at the end of history and that society will keep on evolving , hopefully towards a more just and a better world”.
But why don’t you give the same chance to other societies? Why would the Chinese society and even the horrrrrible Iranian one have no chance to evolve – while the Western have? Do you think the capacity of progress is inherent to Western societies exclusively? Inquiring minds would like to know.

By: Ghassan Karam

Ghassan Karam — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:55:42 +0000

quelqu’une,
I probably should allow this thread to die gracefully but, what can I tell you, I just cannot:-)
Your criticism of Western society is right on if what you are talking about is the greater issue of how history unfolds and that we are far away from any absolute whether it be freedom, diversity etc… No one questions that we are not at the end of history and that society will keep on evolving , hopefully towards a more just and a better world.
Unfortunately I do not think that is what you are talking about. You seem to be leveling some harsh criticism not only abought our inability to rise to a higher standard but as if there is currently a better alternative only if we will chooseit. If that is the case then please do not keep us in suspense but let us know what is it that we are missing about the Chinese society or is it the Iranian model or possibly the Russianone. Or is it that of Singapore or Saudi Arabia. Inquiring minds would like to know.

By: quelqu'une

quelqu'une — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:46:15 +0000

Ghassan,
Fashion is certainly not a metric to judge a society but it’s a symptom. When I use the word “fashion”, I’m not speaking about art and stylists – that I may like – but about an ideology and a market.
What you call “the level of diversity” in western societies is either an illusion or a bias : “diversity” and “personal freedoms” both underlie a massive standardization of tastes and choices in western societies. “People are free to indulge” :
1- as long as they can afford it
2- as long as their way to indulge meet the needs of the market

By: ghassan karam

ghassan karam — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 22:26:25 +0000

quelqu’une
So after all is said and done you want to judge the whole Western world on the basis of Vogue? I sure needed a laugh, thanks:-)
You cannot be serious if you think that “The Devil Wears Prada” is the yardstick (metric) to judge a civilization? But maybe you are. So you don’t like fashion. Well guess what neither do I nor Hardin that you dismiss neither did Roegen who popularized the idea that fashion “is a disease of the mind”. But that is exactly what personal freedom and liberty implies isn’t it? People are free to indulge , be selfish and even bigots as long as they respect the rights of others.
I think that the lady protesteth too much:-)

By: Alberto

Alberto — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 19:17:24 +0000

http://kootoob.blogspot.com/

Try this one, it seems he knows a lot of artists, cartoonist and etc

By: quelqu'une

quelqu'une — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 16:45:47 +0000

Ghassan, the fact I consider olive oil as a universal remedy does not imply I also believe in a natural state : ) I am not that naïve and I know what a social contract is. The “level of diversity” in a western society?
mmm.. Maybe you should leave Garrett Hardin just for one minute and open Vogue magazine.

By: Qifa Nabki

Qifa Nabki — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:17:57 +0000

Hi everyone

Thanks for the tips, but I’m an old hand. (This is baby girl #2)

V, we’ve been keeping Mustela in business for the past 4 years. Amazing how much better those wipes are than anything else.

But thanks for the tips.

PS: Can anyone direct me to some good Lebanese cartoons available on the internet? I want stuff in Lebanese Arabic, not fus7a. And I’d prefer it didn’t have a religious content. Also, it doesn’t have to be cartoons… it can be one of those “studio” shows that every Lebanese channel seems to have on the weekends with people dressed up in enormous animal costumes.

New post coming today. Stay tuned.

By: ghassan karam

ghassan karam — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:55:24 +0000

quelqu’une,
At times one does not need to keep on inserting the qualification that it is very rare for any idea to be fully realized. All what we can do is set a concept as a goal and approach it asymptotically. And guess what, many countries have moved much closer to the target than others. Whether you approve of it or not the level of diversity, right to dissent, personal liberty and freedom of speech that is found in Western society is difficult to match especially in the Arab world and its environs.
I happen to think that the French should not have passed the law against headdress but you must admit that the law prohibits the display of other religious signs but this is a far cry from religious persecution or outright prohibition on religious beliefs that you seem to imply that it is.
As for coercion by the state let me remind you that this is a world that is “full” and the utopia that we will be better of in a state of nature is rather silly. If I want to live in a crowded plant with tremendous scarcities then the best guarantee for my personal freedom is the social contract with the state. It has been labelled by Hardin “Mutual coercion mutually agreed upon” since absolute freedom in the commons would inevitably lead to ruin.

By: quelqu'une

quelqu'une — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 09:37:30 +0000

“Remember that this is the land of separation between state and church.”

“Secular states do not dictate personal beliefs but are built on the foundation of personal liberty and diversity.”

Ghassan, are you truly believing in these myths?

A secular state is still a state – that simply uses different forms of coercion to be maintained.

“Personal liberty” and “diversity”?
Tell the French girls expelled from schools (public schools, partly funded by the taxes paid by their parents) about it – simply because they were covering their hair.
Diversity? Tu parles!

PS – Better, healthier and much more efficient than mustela or any other crème : OLIVE OIL