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Friday, November 30, 2012

Monday, November 26, 2012

The Lebanese Rocket Society — Films — Doha Tribeca Film Festival | Doha Film Institute

The Lebanese Rocket Society — Films — Doha Tribeca Film Festival | Doha Film Institute:


Winner of the best feature doc award at the Doha film festival. The rockets, Arz 1, 2 and 3 did not have a military purpose, but the program was shut down nonetheless by the Lebanese government, and under international pressure. Will we get a gov, in 2013, that promotes local ingenuity instead of muffling it? It depends how we vote!

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Jewish groups opposing Israel's actions against Palestinians

Below are Jewish groups speaking up against Israeli aggression towards Palestinians. 

Independent Jewish Voices | For human rights and a just and peaceful solution

Not In Our Name, a Toronto group that opposed zionism

The International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

divided, you say?

A muslim club tweets the visit of a christian leader (known as Lebanese leader in Lebanon). So how's that for not having a religious divide?



Thursday, August 30, 2012

Constructive message of the Patriotic Party in Lebanon, endangers sectarianism

A constructive anti-sectarian message:
"It is time to return to our roots, and celebrate our holidays with our children in the mountains in the churches of our villages, to share with relatives and neighbors the joy of the holiday and the gathering, and begin with the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary."

This is such a contrast, with the common western question, or Saudi remark: you are Lebanese, therefore bigoted and divided by religion.

Which companies support keeping GMO's unlabeled?

Great info graphic on prop 37 to label GMO's

anti-racism campaigns in Lebanon

Cheyef 7alak is an org that tackles stereotypes

A facebook page monitors and calls to boycott racist beaches

BlogBaladi posted on racist beaches

IvySays blogged on racism in Lebanon as well


Thursday, August 23, 2012

a firm estimates the size of protester crowds

Manifestation étudiante : une firme estime la foule pour Radio-Canada | Grands Titres | Radio-Canada.ca

This would be great to make the news about protests in Lebanon, and Syria more factual. Data instead of gossip, imagine that!

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Lebanon in the 2012 olympics, majority women athletes


Female athletes paved the way for Lebanon at Olympics.

At the 2012 Olympics, the Lebanese delegation is made of 7 women and 3 men athletes. 

Greta Taslakian - 200 m
Ahmad Hazer - 110 m hurdles
Mona Shaito - individual foil
Zain Shaito - individual foil
Caren Chammas - Women's Judo, 63 kg
Ray Bassil - Trap shooting
Wael Kobrosly - 100 m breastroke
Katya Bachrouche - 800 m freestyle
Tvin Carole Moumjoghlian - women's singles in table tennis
Andrea Paoli -Women's Taekwondo 57 kg





Monday, July 9, 2012

Cute Lebanese Guinness records craze!

Batroun enters Guinness Book of Records for biggest cup of lemonade:

Hariri projects his disregard for Lebanese people ....

Hariri is projecting: he says that the Lebanese Not Surprised that Govt. Doesn’t Care if Citizens Killed by the Syrian Regime. The Saudi loyalists maybe, but not the patriots. He should know, they clash with him because they uphold equal rights and oppose corruption.



Was he concerned when you stole $11 billions? Or when you snuck in Fatah el Islam to provoke a civil war in lebanon: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/03/05/070305fa_fact_hersh?
Gen. Aoun is the only Arabic politician reported in the Wall Street journal that said every lost human life is a tragedy, regardless of national, religious or political belonging. I now common sense is not your strong point, but this means that a Lebanese citizen in the North is a sad loss too. Here's a quote from the Gen. Aoun's article in the Wall Street Journal in 2006: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115429780106621697.html?mod=WSJ_article_comments#articleTabs%3Darticle . Quote of Gen. Aoun: "all human life is equal and priceless".  The patriotic party proposed the 1st civil law of the middle east, upholding equal rights to all Lebanese. This is the part clan members like you can't digest: http://www.tayyar.org/Tayyar/Wap/NewsDetails.aspx?_GUID=%7BB0BF123A-FA61-4517-9389-AE0D39537652%7D&Lang=en-US.

I wrote this as a comment on naharnet, it's "pending moderation". If it's not moderated Hariri-style, we just might be able to read it.

Lebanese Patriotic Party pioneers a civil law in the middle east

The Lebanese Patriotic Party also proposed a unified civil law that abolishes sectarianism

regressive view: Lebanese can only be puppets

According to an author who stereotypes Lebanese people as puppets, As the U.S. Retreats, Iran Fills the Void

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Monday, June 25, 2012

Patriotic party and allies sabotaged by half of the cabinet

June 21, 2012: Apparently half of the cabinet sabotage the development of Lebanon.  I wish BCR (patriotic party and allies) would use the populist approach, invite the public to join them in producing electricity through new technology, that the old-school half of the cabinet cannot sabotage.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Saudi Arabia paying salarie of opposition that includes AlQaeda

Saudi Arabia to pay salaries of Syrian opposition fighters

Saudi Arabia is the mother ship of every Banana Republic in the middle east, and home base to Wahabi extremists (Al Qaeda). They have colonized Arabic countries around them via corrupt governments. The US has alternated between the corrupt rulers and extremist groups it supports, but it consistently opposed citizenry movements, like the Lebanese patriotic party. These advocate equal right, secular governments, and make their country diverse, stable, and unavailable to foreign manipulation. There is one thing the US, and the expansionist Saudi empire do to not approve of it seems: citizenry. In Lebanon the citizenry movement grew from a flashpoint in 1989 to the being the second largest block in parliament. This increased popularity of citizenry got in the way of foreign attempts at provoking civil wars.  In Syria, there is also a clash between citizenry and clans. The west only recognized a democracy vs. dictatorship fight, but opposing the dictator are also clans that would simply take over, but not advance democracy. These clans have been branded as freedom fighters by the Saudi regime, and the western media resonated that up to recently. The Saudi regime supports clans, and opposes citizenry, just as any colonizer would. It's manipulative to overlook the war of clans on citizenry, some Syrians want to belong to a nation, nit a collection of clans, and view the Saudi regime as their enemy.  It doesn't advance democracy to boost clans in the war on citizenry, it just reduces Syria to a messy mismatch of clans.

Thursday, June 21, 2012

C.I.A., and the mothership of AlQaeda (Saudi Arabia) are arming the Syrian opposition!

This is the new method of colonising, by destabilizing: C.I.A., and the mothership of AlQaeda (Saudi Arabia) are arming the Syrian opposition!
C.I.A. Said to Aid in Steering Arms to Syrian Rebels

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Lebanon - Geert Hofstede

Geert developed a model for characterizing and comparing national cultures. He also co-founded and became the first Director for the Institute for Research on 
Intercultural Cooperation (Tilburg University). Here's how Lebanon ranks as a culture, on the Geert Hofstede scale. You can use the interface to compare Lebanon to other countries, such as the US. Overall we seem big on hierarchy (something to tackle?), ambition, and loyalty to our collectives. It seems to me that we're half way there!

Saud Arabia reclaims its rivers, while Lebanon looses its cultural and historic sites

Ancient River Valley Reclaimed: Saudi’s Sweet Success StoryAll the while, Saudi developers caused an upheaval among environmentalists in Lebanon by buying and destroying natural and cultural reserves. More than 7,000,000 m2 have been bought by foreign developers in Lebanon.

Saudi-backed developers have decimated Beirut's historical heritage, and activists of Dlebta in Lebanon are protesting the Saudi take over over the heritage site called "Hill of the Cross", prompting a new facebook group. Saudi-loyalists have blocked the law proposed pre-2009 by BCR in Lebanon to contraint foreign investors and make sure the benefit the local economy and culture: article 31 shown in this document.

Monday, June 11, 2012

Man Predicts cell phone in 1906. I predict hovering bubbles in 2012 :)

Man Predicts Future in 1906. Time Travel? Inventor/Visionary invents cellphone over 100 years ago.

Good call. I predict we'll be done with cars and roads in 50 years, hopefully less. We'll have silent, non-polluting hovering bubbles instead. If we invented at the pace of inventors, not the pace of money grabbing corporations, we would take less time to re-invent the world!

Friday, June 8, 2012

A great Canadian example of how to present an argument in politics

What is Harper Afraid Of? | Corporate Knights:

Imagine a waste-to-recycling mapping tool for Lebanon

We could use one of those in Lebanon:
EPA's Waste-to-Biogas Mapping Tool
To connect waste generators to those who could use the waste as an industrial raw material

June 8 is World Oceans Day: garbage has worse effects than climate change

June 8 is World Oceans Day
Eating sea food, consuming plastic bags, landfilling garbage, are some of the practices endangering oceans and planet, more than climate change.

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Iceland: the other Lebanon

Lebanon refused to be manipulated into more civil wars, and signed MOU's.  Iceland refused the global economic policy to socialize private debt, and changed its government and constitution changed its government and constitution.

Friday, May 18, 2012

women's rights in Lebanon


Lebanon is much further ahead and liberal relative to its environment, but there are Lebanese blue laws, outdated and ignored by modern Lebanon, that need to be changed. One of the them is article 522, as this campaign explains:

Campaign to abolish Article 522 from Lebanese Penal Code حملة إلغاء المادة ٥٢٢ من قانون العقوبات اللبناني 


Argument based on solid data: interactive map of the destruction of Palestine

Interactive map of Palestine villages destroyed in Nakba | The Electronic Intifada:

Monday, May 14, 2012

Nuclear power plants fuelled by nuclear waste

Most people cringe at the thought of nuclear power plant, because one accident can doom an area and it inhabitant for centuries. But MIT students designed a nuclear power plant fuelled by nuclear waste.  This is a solution to having nuclear waste buried and radioactive for hundreds of thousands of years. Waste is buried in man-made structures, which is dangerous in itself.

Friday, May 11, 2012

Misuse of public funds in Lebanon: PM salaries exceed spending on any public project

Misuse of public funds in lebanon,  PM salaries exceed spending on any public project

list of expat-voter forms, per Lebanese embassy

Lebanese who want to vote from abroad in he 2013 parliamentary elections need to file a form with their embassy. This form differs based on the embassy jurisdiction they live in.  An expat guide is forming on wikipedia and here.
Is your embassy missing from the expat voter guide? You can add it in a comment below, or on the wiki page.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

The official Lebanese Gazette: minutes of the Lebanese parliamentary meeting

Really, this should be the news: just a list of what was achieved, every month in the Lebanese legislature: The Official Lebanese Gazette.  No opinions, no squabbles, no hear-say. We're then free to judge the facts ourselves.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

The Lebanese of the Titanic

The Lebanese of the Titanic; "we share the pain but not the glory"

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Will animals be in our future?

In Lebanon, Animals Lebanon is painting a hopeful picture of the future, where animals will be respect it, and humans will enjoy their company in Lebanon. What's next, will we be able to communicate with animals? SpeakDolphin says we will! Imagine, interacting with animals anywhere in the world, and having conversations with them. How uplifting would that be?
Experiments showed that when people bond with animals, even a grizzly bear, they discover a whole new layer of their nature.

Hala

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Lebanese can now vote from abroad

Here's a curiously under-advertised turning point in the history of Lebanese democracy, we Lebanese living abroad can now vote from Lebanese embassies. Did you know? Are you prepared? Do you know what form to file? Coming soon is a guide to voting from abroad, in progress. Please comment on any missing information, and share your experience and opinion on voting from a Lebanese embassy, finally!

a brief overview of the Lebanese diaspora

PM Gen. Aoun said that the 2013 parliamentary elections in Lebanon are the last chance for reforms.

Monday, April 23, 2012

US, how about adding Saudi Arabia and their Banana Republics to your axis of evil?

Why isn't Saudi arabia and the banana republics they prop in the middle east part of the "axis of evil"?
Bahrain Grand Prix cars race as protesters march in villages

Monday, April 16, 2012

does the west know?

Does the west know, that the free patriotic movement doesn't promote dum arabic taboos? We have issues with Israel but we don't lead anti-Israeli witch hunts. This shows when Aoun says he's not embarrassed to meet with Karam, who was accused of collaborating with Israel.  Ridiculous fanaticism is what self-righteous societies like Israel and the Saudi's do, the allies of the US that is.

sustainable architecture in the middle east

Green-Thumbed Journalist Nick Leech Defends Gulf Design | Green Prophet:

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Jewish Rabbis in Surprise Visit to Sidon — Naharnet

Jewish Rabbis in Surprise Visit to Sidon — Naharnet

science vs. mercantilism, in a fight to preserve Lebanese heritage

Les archéologues locaux et internationaux catégoriques : « Les cales phéniciennes de Minet el-Hosn, à conserver à tout prix » (Vidéo) | Libnanews:

This is not new, when greeks undig a phoenician ruin, they burry it back. Ego prevails over science when it comes to Europeans, Arabs and Israelis denying the share of phoenicians in history. The Israeli government sabotaged a National Geographic mission to surface a phoenician ship.  These are join by Lebanese mercantile, exploitive leaders who think a sense of roots gets in the way of them exploiting the Lebanese population.

These are the proponents of ego. Opposite to them are the proponents of science, archeologists who demonstrated the validity of phoenician ruins, and the Lebanese who echo their findings

and again, contractors negate the validity of phoenician ruins. An ancient phoenician port is about to be destroyed by developers in the Solidere area: Blue Lebanon phoenician port in danger

Hippodrome de Beyrouth : L’APPL entame un recours en justice auprès du Conseil d’État libanais | Libnanews

Dr. Naji Karam : L’installation portuaire phénicienne et le rapport de la honte

Manifestation pour la sauvegarde du patrimoine de Tripoli (vidéos) | Libnanews:

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

This is how we need to build houses and their gardens in lebanon one day!

What if we had a new design for low=cost mass produced homes in Lebanon? Our country has availble lands outside of Beirut, and we could use smaller homes and larger gardens.

This low-cost Blooming Bamboo home was built to withstand floods in vietnam, and it's affordable to low income residents. We have agreat weather in Lebanon, 300 sunny days a year, mild temperatures except in the mountain, maybe we can invite such firms to design a low-cost Lebanese home with local materials.

This architect, and Nader Khalili from California, make adobe houses the logical choice, for the sake of nature and our budget.

Garbage Warrior [Full Length Documentary]

A permaculture garden would make a perfect companion for such a house: Sepp Holzer - The Agro Rebel: Permaculture in Salzburg Alps (Der Agrar-Rebel) - Documentary Film:

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Carpooling in Lebanon, to reduce the smug and traffic!

Autopooling.com, is carpooling for Lebanese universities.
Here's an article about it in bluelebanon.

More carpooling websites:
Lebanoncarpooling.com



Sunday, March 25, 2012

Will Lebanon follow Costa Rica's example? Forestation increased their GDP

Costa Rica Leading the Way in Incentivizing Protection of Nature | Conservation International Blog:

If we had these in Lebanon

Imagine how much more pleasant Lebanese cities would be if every few buildings shared a courtyard planted with a Forest Garden

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Can we hope that Jon Stewart of the Daily Show is starting to get to know Lebanon? :)

On the show on March 14, 2012, a greeting from Lebanon via Germany!

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Ep. 17074) March 14, 2012 Clip 1 of 4:

Al Jazeera more concerned about the 9/11 rescue workers than US republicans

Jon Stewart shames GOP & FOX on 9 11 Rescue Worker Bill - YouTube:

Will industrial hemp help Lebanon have an industrial renaissance?

In the west "hemp is taboo", but the scientific fact is that it's a valuable industrial raw material. Lebanon on the other hand is not obliged to have the same taboo.

Industrial hemp, which is impossible to get high off of, is a valuable industrial raw material, for construction and producing paper. Producing paper from trees is protected by an powerful industrial lobby, but it is also environmentally non-sensical. Lebanon doesn't need to be stuck in the same flawed thinking as the west. We're looking for ways to soar, reach our potential and make up for the past delays. Maybe growing hemp should be part of that. This information is detailed in the first part of the video by Blogtopus:  WHEN WE GROW, This is what we can do

Friday, March 23, 2012

Cabon steps in when the US stops funding the UNESCO

to punish UNESCO for voting "yes" to palestine being a full UN member, US cut off its funding

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Ep. 17075) March 15, 2012 Clip 1 of 4:

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Why Lebanon needs organic farming

because of the damage that conventional farming is causing elsewhere

Tell the USDA to Save the Bees!:

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

women's rights in North Africa

Avaaz - RIP Amina:

3 times more women then men die of heart disease

because the female-specific symptoms were overlooked, and only the male heart attack patterns were studied.
Noel Bairey Merz: The single biggest health threat women face | Video on TED.com:

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Monsanto is sued back, and health hazards of GMO's

Canadian farmers sued Monsanto after their field was contaminated with GM Canola, and the corporation demanded a fee!

Now we all need to sue Monsanto for exporting to Lebanon and elsewhere, GMO - containing foods that pose a health hazard.

Friday, March 2, 2012

and that's how it's done! Short transparent political communication

I'd love for Lebanese patriots to write a white paper on how political achievements should be communicated to the public! Here is a useful, transparent Lebanese minister of telecommunications, Sehnaoui, describing in a brief and factual form, his achievement in office. No emotions, no rhetoric, just facts. They were written in a way to respect people's time and their right to drawn their own conclusions. Perfect!

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Can comedy in Lebanon compete with that?

Good comedy can cause a policy change, and did, in the case of a climate policy debate in the Australian legislature (via TED talk by Chris Bliss).
Do you think we have Lebanese comedians who can compete with that? :) Can our comedians take on politics and open people's eyes to crucial issues, which will put politicians under pressure to do their job?

Massoud Hassani Turns Childhood Toy into Wind-Powered Mine Sweepers | Green Prophet

Massoud Hassani Turns Childhood Toy into Wind-Powered Mine Sweepers | Green Prophet

so, mines come from the west, and mine sweepers form the east?

... and case in point, a new rail gun coming to you from the US
First industry railgun prototype launcher gets all fired up

Monday, February 20, 2012

environmentalism in the middle east

New Green Roofed School in Kuwait Will Promote Hands on Agricultural Learning | Green Prophet

Hassan Fathy is The Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture | Green Prophet

Rooftop Hydroponic Farms in Egypt Scrub the Air and Uplift Urban Poor | Green Prophet

Lebanese Goat Farmer Goes Solar, Subverts Government’s Green Apathy | Green Prophet

MTV Lebanon - Baynetna - Paul Abi Rached - Marwa Wazni

Holy Land Leaders: Muslims, Jews, Christians Link to Save the Planet | Green Prophet

... and Africa: Un écolo d’origine libanaise nommé ministre au Sénégal | À La Une | L'Orient-Le Jour:

Dubai’s Camels to Chomp Down Runaway Mangrove Forests? | Green Prophet

Permaculture in the middle east Is the Silver-Green Bullet (INTERVIEW) | Green Prophet


Lebanese undoing environmental damage

Sept 3rd, 2012 A car-free day in Ashrafieh

Protecting Migratory Soaring Birds - YouTube

Zero Waste ACT (waste segregation project in Lebanese Schools)

Lebanese Goat Farmer Goes Solar, Subverts Government’s Green Apathy | Green Prophet

MTV Lebanon - Baynetna - Paul Abi Rached - Marwa Wazni

Green Resistance Blog, Lebanon. Environmental Problems cannot be solved just by changing individual habits

Beirutopia: Could Lebanon's capital become a garden city? - CNN.com

Ibrahim El Ali Le Liban n'est pas une poubelle: eco-group are hardly mentioned by Lebanese media but they are whom Lebanese living abroad identify with.

A report on water pollution in Lebanon: Tahkik 25/04/2012 - Water Resources In Lebanon

La Biodiversité du Liban

IndyAct in Lebanon opposes incineration, and this Good Planet post (French) explains why les incinérateurs sont des fabriques de poison.

Media upheaval against hunting in Lebanon: OTV report.

Lebanese Wind Farm Will Bring Light to 60,000 Homes


Friday, February 17, 2012

Dalida, from a time when Arabic wasn't "evil"

For those who didn't know her, Dalida is an Egyptian-Italian signer who sang in many languages including French and Arabic, lived in France, and was a makor influence on French culture!

Back then, 1980's, you didn't get arrested at US airports for having class notes in Arabic. Imagine multilingual Dalida going through airport security today. Speaks 8 languages? She must be "unpatriotic".

Now that the internet works in Lebanon, online business are booming

Courtesy of the ministry of communication held by Sahnaoui and Nahhas, and Bassil (BCR), for 3 consecutive terms, Lebanese online business are booming.
They are also environmentally aware, like this Lebanese car pooling online business.

Friday, February 10, 2012

1984

1984, when the US supported Irak and Taliban (their friends the anti-commi rebels).

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Ending corruption in Lebanon, some documents demonstrating the facts

The documents linked to below are in Arabic, please comment below if you'd like to help translate them

Fact 1: Legally, seniority is required but does not guarantee promotion in public offices

Fact 2: Three court audits (in a first, second, and third part) of the Lebanese treasury department demonstrates fraud.

Fact 3: The law proposal to upgrade the public energy sector in Lebanon is financially sound, and inexplicably stalled by the prime minister.

Fact 4: The treasury is not properly accountable.

Fact 5: profiteers in government have exploited the cell phone network in Lebanon

In support of ending corruption, sheikh Mahid Hamoud prays in a mosq, in support of Gen. Aoun, the lead in ending corruption in Lebanon. A regressive American reporter would ignore all these facts and just call "Christian" leader.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

west threatened by scientists in the east?

BBC News - Iran car explosion kills nuclear scientist in Tehran

Can you imagine, the ex-colonies being as armed, as technologically advanced as their old colonizers? Sure Iran could become as damaging as the current Saudi American alliance, which props banana republics throughout the middle east. However, right now the damage comes from the unchecked Saudi-American power.  That's the more scary thing, countries that are armed and unchallenged, not when there is a balance of power. Of course the ideal balance is when no one has nuclear weapons.

Friday, January 6, 2012

garbage turned to treasure in Beirut

TEDxBeirut - Ziad Abichaker - A garbage love story - YouTube

and Lebanese hipsters come up with a brilliant anti-littering campaign
http://www.aub.edu.lb/news/2012/Pages/metel-ma-shelta.aspx

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Egyptians celebrate the new year, Christians and Muslims

‫مسيرة بالشموع من كنيسة قصر الدوبارة إلي ميدان التحرير‬‎ - YouTube

This is how Arabs respond when colonizers try to manipulate them into civil wars. They say no thanks.