World Cup Politics

The incident of a Ghanaian player who raised the Israeli flag and the subsequent furious Arab reaction, tells us about the long road ahead in solving the Middle East conflict.


For the record, I support the Ghanaian team. I was born in Ghana, and I now live and work there. I even travel using a Ghanaian passport. I love the Ghanaian people and I think they are one of the friendliest and most tolerant in the world (and I’m well traveled). It is not strange to find a family in Ghana where brothers and sisters profess different religions. A Muslim, A Jew and a Christian can easily be biological siblings who love and respect each other. In Ghana, religion is a choice, and people do not judge you accordingly (although they do slightly less well with race, where on the streets, I’m still referred to, with a smile, as Obroni “White Man”)

We had a great game against the well-reputed Czech players. We were at our peak performance. My emotions while watching the game were strong and fairly homogeneous: My team is winning!
Until, that is, a Ghanaian player, John Paintsil, after scoring a goal, pulled out an Israeli flag from his socks and waved it ecstatically to millions of viewers around the world.
I had a moment of cognitive dissonance. I couldn’t know what to make of this. My favorite team is waving my not-so-favorite flag.

After the game ended, I set out to find some answers online. Needless to say, Alarabiya had already featured the news as the first item on its main page (yes, main page, not sports section): “Ghanaian players celebrate victory by raising the Israeli flag,” the headline screamed.
A glimpse at the comments section, and I knew Ghana’s reputation is now in tatters. Everyone ignored that odd voice of reason who pointed out that another Ghanaian player had kneeled and prayed in an Islamic fashion to God.

Funny how much volatility the Israeli Palestinian conflict can still attract. Raising the flag “is an act of aggression against the entire Arab and Moslem world” according to one commentator. “This proves that the Ghanaians are a silly people,” shrugs another. Not to forget the indispensable conspiratorial brilliance: “This is a calculated move by Western countries to bribe poor African countries to spite Muslims”.

Never mind that the Ghanaian Team spokesperson issued this apology afterwards:

Defender John Paintsil was very popular in Israel where he plays for Hapoel Tel Aviv and had wanted to acknowledge the Israeli fans who had traveled to Germany to support him. He is obviously unaware of the implications of what he did. He's unaware of international politics. We apologize to anybody who was offended and we promise that it will never happen again. He did not act out of malice for the Arab people or in support of Israel. He was naive... we don't need to punish him.

This still didn’t cut it with Alarabiya readers:
“Everyone knows the Israeli Palestinian conflict, [The Ghanaian player] did it on purpose and he must be punished”. “If the Ghanaian player raised the Palestinian flag instead, the whole world would have been angry”.

But my favorite comment is this one: “We have our own ways of punishing the Ghanaians, Just ask Denmark”. Well, I have news for that reader: Ghana’s main exports are raw Cocoa (stop eating chocolate?) and gold (come on, you’re an Arab, can you boycott that?)

The biggest question is this: For how long can some Arabs play the Ostrich? What if the Israeli team had made it to the world cup finals? Would the Saudis have refused playing them like they decided to refuse receiving the best player award (just in case), simply because it’s sponsored by a Beer company?

Institutionalized Stereotyping (updated with more fun)

Tangoal..


It must be an Arabic thing. Reading the football commentaries in English, I couldn’t find anything that matches Alarabiya's excessive use of stereotypical metaphors to describe competing teams. Did you know that the Spanish Matador has slain the hapless Ukranians 4:0? What about the Samba Dancers, the Japanese Computer? the Tango Dancers? The German Machines?

I don’t know what to make of this, I'm not sure if all Argentinan players can dance the Tango, but would the Saudis appreciate them being called the Camel Riders? How about the Tabbouleh Eaters for the Lebanese? Hold on, I have a good one, how about this headline: “The Iraqi bombers have blown up the Samba Dancers to pieces”

**Update**
Sorry, I just can't help it, here's some more fun from Alarabiya:

Rough Translation:
The Korean Dragons burn the French roosters..
The Brazilian Samba beats the Australian Kangooroos

Who Are Those People?

A lot of people in the Arab world watch Aljazeera. The online polls are hence, to an extent, reflective of the Arab point of view. But when 72% of Aljazeera’s online voters (people with internet connections, mind you), say that they received the news of Zarkawi’s death “with sadness,” it is fair to say that the Arab world has a big public opinion problem.


Translation.
Poll Question:
How did you recieve the news of Zarkawi's death?

Poll Answers:
With joy: 14.8% (5,531 voters)
With sadness: 72.3% (27,109 voters)
With no interest: 12.9% (4,852 voters)
Total voters: 37,492

Knefeh And Noodles

Lebanon's second city is about to be pushed out of its comfort zone...


Don’t be fooled by the fancy buildings and a bunch of new glittery cafés. Tripoli looks like a city, but it is in fact one big town. People know each other, tradition is entrenched in most social interactions, and gossip is a favorite pastime.

Tripoli is nominally Lebanon’s second capital, but measured by economic activity, it trails way behind Beirut. It has no significant economic motor to hold it together. But this is about to change.

Chinese Traders have somehow concluded that the best place to establish a regional trade center to promote their products is the Rachid Karami International Fair in Tripoli. Their decision is about to transform the entire Tripolitan economy.

The Project will generate 3000 jobs in its first phase. Estimates indicate that 400,000 people will come to Tripoli annually to trade. Most visitors will be from Arab and African countries, and most will need to be housed, fed and entertained. Considering the embarrassing scarcity of hotels in Tripoli, we are talking about big opportunities in the tourism and real estate sectors. Whether or not Tripolitanian investors will seize them is a different matter; Northerners are notorious for playing safe with their money (many live off bank interests).

The thousands of Chinese, added to the Arab and African traders, will also bring a concept that was previously unheard of in homogenous Tripoli: Multi-culturalism.
Because of little exposure, a lot of people will not know what to do with the Chinese next door, this is why the Municipality is kindly urged to change racist attitudes by using awareness public campaigns.

Being a native of Tripoli myself, I will sit back and enjoy watching the transformation take place..

Tied Up..

Sorry guys, my posting will be spotty at best these days.. If you want to know why and see a picture, click here. Again, Sorry for the inconvenience..