F1 is Here!

For those of you who care, the Formula One races begin tomorrow!!!....and the Ministry of Information has prepared for it

From today's GDN:

Information Ministry gears up for F1

MANAMA

THE Information Ministry will put all available resources at the diposal of Formula One organisers to give round-the-clock coverage to fans, said Information Minister Dr Mohammed Abdul Ghaffar.

The Ministry is fully prepared to cover Formula One events that will begin tomorrow, the minister said in a statement to the BNA.

As part of its plan the ministry's foreign media department in co-operation with the PR department has set up a media office at the airport in co-ordination with the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC).

Sounds good to me! Hope it all works out well and goes smoothly. I've only ever attended the F1 once and it was interesting at best!..Different strokes for different folks i guess. Nevertheless, I have always found that "third world countries" always put on the best shows and organize amazing events (ie: Qatar, Dubai, Bahrain, the Philippines etc) because of this need to impress and be accepted amongst the upper ranks. Good on them!

Best of Luck,

Peluqa

For those of you who are interested:

Interactive Bahrain International Circuit Map

Good Luck Mahmood!

Peluqa (The Bitch) would like to wish Mahmood Al-Yousif the best of luck in court on Tuesday, April 17th, 2007! And apparently...not only is he a regular criminal, there are charges of drug use too..|Libel case to be heard in the High Criminal Court!| (yeah I know. lame ;))...

Here's a little tip for you just in case the atmosphere gets too tense and you need a laugh...Imagine the people in court dancing around naked...like in the musical Hair...it helps me when I'm being yelled at by my boss...I imagine him as a big, naked dancing circus ape...trust me works every time!...except for that one time i got fired for trying to force feed him a banana...but whatever! minor glitch...

Best Wishes,

P

For more on Mahmood Al-Yousif:

Mahmood's Den
Mahmood Al-Yousif at Wikipedia


[Update]: The court case and charges have been dropped by the Minister...

I am Wonder Woman!

Your results:

You are Wonder Woman

Wonder Woman 80% Superman 80% Supergirl 75% Catwoman 70% Green Lantern 70% Iron Man 65% Spider-Man 50% Batman 50% Hulk 45% Robin 40% The Flash 35%

You are a beautiful princess with great strength of character.

Kylie Minogue!

For those of you who love Kylie Minogue...well, she's back with a new track. Its called "White Diamond" and you can have a listen at her official site... http://www.kylie.com/

Also, for those of you who heard about M by Madonna at H&M...they are launching a line of beachware in May inspired (but not designed) by Kylie Minogue...

Bahrain Press One of the Freest...

...in the ARAB world...(sorry to burst your bubble)

Ok first and foremost....Geoffrey Bew of the GDN says the following:

THERE were 154 violations of Press
freedom in Bahrain last year, according to an independent study......Kuwait was
top of the list with a Press freedom percentage of 88.38, notching up 58
violations, while Yemen was bottom with a rating of 34.87pc thanks to 325
violations.

-(Study Conducted by Amman Centre for
Human Rights Studies)

http://gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=177085&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30019

Can I just say one thing?....Everything is relative and this "independent study" has not taken population into account. Rating these countries based on violations does not take size into account. A small country like Bahrain, where nothing much goes on really, cannot be compared with Kuwait of Yemen straight off the bat. Not that much is going on in those two places either...its just that they are bigger countries and that should be taken into account. This is like comparing violations by the press in Bahrain and the US. There are several ways to manipulate statistics and this is a rather weak one....

Secondly, I would be elated at this news if Bahrain's press or media was one of substance. When our local leading English news paper {the Gulf Daily New} carries headlines such as "Filipina Fun with Nikoty" it really gets me thinking....don't we have anything more important to report than a group of people who couldn't even make it in the Philippines performing at some whore house...oops I mean Hotel..yes, that's it....the sad truth...probably not...Not only is it reported...its a headline...I mean seriously, maybe the GDN should just change its name to What's On In Bahrain {For Indians and Filipinos} The "media" in Bahrain is laughable...so before we celebrate the great freedom enjoyed by the press...(disregarding the fact that several foreign sites have been blocked [now possibly unblocked]) lets establish an actual media first....

Nuns vs. Hijabis

Well, I am sure that many are aware of this world-important "raging debate"...*rolls eyes*. I had an argument with a friend a few days ago and would just like to put this to the public. Most people who are pro-hijab (I'm not one of these although I have nothing against Hijabis) equate wearing a hijab in day to day life with christian women becoming nuns. Apart from the fact that becoming a nun takes absolute HELL to begin with....a nun is not as much a part of society as a hijabi. What we today call nuns are not actually nuns. They are called nuns but are actually of a new order founded in the 18th century...rather than dedicating their life to prayer and seclusion, they dedicate their lives to worship and to societal good. They are allowed to leave monastery to work to achieve good amongst the societies from which they hail. Now, a Hijabi, on the other hand, is just a regular woman. Married maybe...with kids...maybe single who really cares...my point is that there is no routine to be followed...no rules and no seclusion. Personal morals and standards of dress and conduct are all that they have to worry about when becoming a hijabi. Other than the process of becoming a Nun, the most important distinction between the two is exposure. People argue that the west should not criticize hijabis and claim that it is unfair that hijabis are condemned and considered to be oppressed while Nuns, who dedicate themselves to God and cover pretty much the same body parts are celebrated and praised as pious and God-fearing people. Well, the only problem is that it is easy to praise or pass judgement on something you don't have to deal with...its just like calling a painting behind glass beautiful. We have nothing to do with the painting and we aren't exposed to it unless we choose to be. The same goes for Nuns. I think I can count the number of times I've seen a nun on one hand....Hijabis on the other hand, I see every day. Therefore, although I do not believe Hijabis are oppressed (unless they are forced to cover by their families etc), I believe that people criticize them because they see them all the time and do not understand the true meaning of covering up. I don't believe that it is truly part of my religion and think it is more of a custom. It was picked up from the Greeks to begin with. Greek women from the upper class would cover to create a distinction between themselves and "slave girls"....therefore, I really think its more of a social barrier than a sign of piety. If every other catholic women could dress like a nun and lead as normal a life as a hijabi (i.e. work, live, marry, have children) I would say that the west do not have the right to misconceive hijabis...but I think the image of an oppressed Muslim woman and the ill-treatment of Muslim women are just two of the many stereotypes held about us in the west.....Am I making sense?