Eid Ritual - Early Morning Graveyard Visit

When I was a kid my dad would take me with him to visit the dead folks in the family cemetery at the crack of dawn on the first day of Eid. I used to be fascinated by this ritual and always wanted to go with him. Then one eid visit in my 11th year I got spooked about decaying bodies in the ground, and decided that I'd like to be cremated when I die. I stopped going to the cemetery that year coz I just did not want to hang with dead people at my feet. Not my thing.

Early this morning on the first day of Eid Al Fitr, under an angry almost growling grey sky, I was reading Brokerage Firms Scandal and got an aweful, cold, morbid feeling - a flashback of that last cemetery visit.

The economist Dr. Yusuf Mansur writes:

The recent scandal that rocked the financial market in Jordan had its roots in the ambivalent attitudes of some bureaucrats. The story is about over 200 Jordanian brokerage firms that claimed to deal in international currency, stock and currency markets. The direct loss was a claimed embezzlement of over JD500 million, according to news reports, and an impact on the Jordanian stock market of twice that, easily. The impact on the real estate market, especially in the northern region, and the liquidity crunch that emerged have not fully unfolded yet. The tale of how they came about is sickening. continue

What does it take for public servants to serve with integrity?
Why is legislation not respected by those sworn into it?
Until when do we want to remain pathetic and in the dark, while knowing better?

IMHO, fixing this country is easy if we adjust our attitude and life ethics.

What are we waiting for?

One day in the future the stories about the ugly people of a little country called Jordan, their conscious choices to adopt bad mores, the greed and wickedness that they lived by, are going to be what we are remembered for – kind of like the Sodom & Gomorrah story – just different time, different badness!

Eid Mubarak to those celebrating.


Related
This Country Brand Has Lost Its Way
Jordanians suffer financial loses

It's a Wrap

Ramadan, the workshop, is over.

Divastation wraps it up:

"We're seeing the crescent but we sure ain't seeing the light!"

Walid Zou'bi donnig his own make

Enough said.

That Soul.... it's in the Details

GAM have been trying hard to lay some sensible groundwork for a good urban lifestyle in Amman. That's a massive feat given our past, our lack of vision/real understanding of, and public sector job/worker mismatch. There's a lot of progress that's been made, and we should probably blog more about the good stuff....another day.

GAM's workplace slogan includes "A livable city is an organized city.... with a soul".

That's nice. And I'm sure the municipality's consultants, communication and PR workers all oohed and aaahed when they came up with this and started to use it. Sounds great actually.... if you're writing a song.

To deliver on "A livable city is an organized city.... with a soul" is a whole other story. To deliver on that claim takes a lot of soul. To translate plans, images, words and dreams into real life takes a lot more than bricks, mortar, new orgs, a white board, a check list, a new logo, a slogan and a cold press release. If we want to stretch our imagination about the life we want in this city, let's invest a bigger amount of soulful work into it to make it happen right. It's easy.

This lovely attempt at a public garden on 1st circle is wonderful. I've spoken to a few kids, parents and passersby around that neighborhood, and they like that there's a garden there. But there are a few buts - an ongoing conversation since mid summer when they installed this - thank you for removing the broken and shattered glass from that third structure, but the rest of the dangerous glass erection (among others) sits right there waiting for someone to have a nasty accident. It sits by 1st circle where everyday people across the GAM food chain pass by. Every single day.

The 1st circle Saleh Burqan Garden is a great idea and lousy, sloppy implementation. It's not safe nor totally functional. What happened to responsibility?




Questions to the GAM kind folks:

• Do you want the kids to play there?
• Do you want them to be safe?
• Do you want parents to enjoy a public place with peace of mind?
• Do you want it to work for everyone, including the coffee cart guy, the ka3k guy, anyone in a wheelchair?
• Do you want it to be something you're proud to showcase, like that nice award you got? - (which you do realize remains a nice-to-have-useless-trophy if not delivered against)
• Do you want to cross it off your to-do list, or do you want it to be a contribution to the lifestyle of the neighborhood?
• Do you want to be part of the soul of this city, or do you want to stop that soul from feeling good?

What we aspire for and what we are are two different things right now. The missing ingredient is that soul. If we don't want to put some soul into what we do, why bother?! If we don't want to get things right by getting the details right, then let's just drop the soul. And let's stop wondering why this place is full of skepticism. We simply don't deliver.

Are we building communities or are we building portfolios?

If we want to continue to work sad and soul-less, we're going to be sorry - again and again.

Choose.

If you choose to go with the soul option, then why not:

• Remove that protruding, rusty pipe out of the ground, as well as the unfinished fountain (we have historic proof that's been a failing element of urban public deco)
• Remove the remaining glass art (one shattered, two to go)
  
• Ramp the sidewalk from the street (and no, a little edge doesn't work)
  
• Ramp the garden from the sidewalk at both levels
• Landscape the space for function
  
• Show the coffee/ka3k cart guys their new spot in the garden
• Move on to what's next, smiling

It's easy, and everybody wins.

Today is a beautiful day in Amman. Enjoy the weather shift. Enjoy the fall.


Related on 7iber.com
Hope & Cynicism Abound in Community Forum

The Next Big Conversation

This 360east read is the next big conversation passionate, progressive young minds in Jordan are going to have. Full elections for University of Jordan's student council means something remarkable could happen.

And that needs a lot of work from a lot of different people. This is about new, brave, unrelenting leaders standing up and speaking out. And it's an opportunity for everyone to get involved to bring out the voices of reason thru these powerful megaphones within our reach.

continue reading AlGhad - Sept 25

What are the questions students should be asking? What are the questions candidates running for the elections should be asking? -asking themselves and those they want to serve and represent. How can you contribute?

Campaigning can be one of the healthiest, most important conversations young people can get engaged in, and today is a good/much needed time for this. A well elected student council can impact the shift learning environments are aching for.

Exciting!!



Related
English announcement
Thabahtoona
Jordan and the Power of Blogs on 360east
Cost of Jordanian Silence on the Black Iris
University of Jordan by Nermeen Murad

This Country Brand Has Lost Its Way

A couple days ago this Books@Cafe story in Jordan slapped me with incredible clarity about many things I’ve been struggling with for a while. When I first read it I thought, give me a break, that was predictable, another year of the same old confusion. Then I realized this story comes shortly after this remarkable Jordanian blogger calls it quits. After seemingly never ending tales of corruption revolving around public officials. While reckless brokers were collapsing after bad trading, ruining lives. Amidst a country facing political, economic and social challenges all taking a heavy toll. A local media in a perpetual downward spiral. And an extremely frustrated people.

Brand Jordan is bust. Brand Jordan is in the worse shape ever it seems. And no sooner had I come to that revelation, this appeared. Country brand ranking. I’m not big on rankings, but it is some kind of gauge. So not only is brand Jordan aching from the inside, but it’s also aching from out there.

Brand Jordan needs to evolve into amazing so as to regain the trust of those who love it. Brand Jordan needs it’s diverse lovers to find new ways of existing on common ground. Brand Jordan needs to reignite the fires of compassion in everyone.

While reading the wide range of comments on Madian’s Books@Café story I realized every single one was right. Nobody was wrong. Not only was every contribution right, but each was put out there with so much passion.

So if they are all right and the passion is felt, what's the problem?

The lack of vision is the problem. Brand Jordan has failed to keep the vision alive and the lights are dimming. Brand Jordan fell off the track at some point. Why does that matter? Because passionate people need a vision to be able to achieve their goals, fulfill their desires, face their fears, overcome their challenges. Passion helps us define the spheres we want to be in. Vision helps us see the journey. And when brand Jordan is bust, we can’t see.

Vision is for everybody. If we can share the vision of the Jordan we want so that we all see it, the passion in everyone finds direction. And these passions that come in diverse origins, faiths, ethnicities, classes, political affiliations, cultural choices, colors, ages, shapes and sizes, will all find their places on the road forward.

Shutting down Books@Café and the other F&B outlets around the country in a way that allows the system to abuse it’s own system is the saddest low point we can get to. It does nothing but drive us to lose faith and cultivate apathy. A license should be honored. A rule should be respected. Common sense should be heard. Public servants should not forget that they are there to serve. The business of fear, amnesia and anesthesia should not be allowed to prevail.

If our vision includes a Jordan with special rules during Ramadan, everyone will respect that. If the vision includes business as usual twelve months a year, everyone will respect that. But when we dishonor our own rules, disrespect our own diversity, deny our own realities, we become a broken people with a broken country brand. And no matter how hard we try, how much we invest, how loud we shout, we will not get it right. All that happens is that we pollute the intellectual, physical and spiritual landscape.

Vision is why we are able to devour change and challenges passionately when everyone else says not possible. Brand Jordan is shrieking out. Defining, sharing the vision for, and fixing brand Jordan must be our absolute priority. If we know where we want to go, we can better define who we each need to be for the journey.
An edited version also on ArabComment

UPDATE - interesting/related
Newspapers, blogs and Books@café by Nermeen Murad
Debating the Real Issues at The Black Iris
Closed for Maintenance short doc by Ibrahim Owais
They Even Cover Our Queen at The Arab Observer
When you stand for something Seth Godin
ساحة المعركة بين المحافظين و المتحررين - al-akhbar

....................



A TEDTalk by Eve Ensler on security, insecurity, tribes

A TEDTalk by Jonathan Haidt that makes you think about morality

What's Green & Emits Hot Air?

The bad ad campaign about nothing

The unenvironmental ad campaign for the eco meet. Wasteful in so many ways. Over days I saw these ads - some a full double spread! Then I stopped looking thru the papers. They're still running for all I know! And what do they say? NOTHING. Full pages of nothing. It's an invitation to register for an event! Zero information. Zero value. Zero inspiration. Zero relevance. And in truth defies any common sense of eco-anything with wasteful ad space, wasteful ad design, wasteful non-message.. You can never build real eco-cities and enviro aware communities with such an attitude and behavior. But hey... it's funded... and green... ok in color!

What if these full page ads and double spreads in the dailies taught us something? Compelled us to learn? Empowered us to get involved?

What if the ad campaign included stories about enviro issues, solutions, practicalities?

What if the ads invited young people to join the event and share their perspectives and stories?

What if the ads invited artists and cultural workers to get involved?

What if the ads told us about successes and remarkable people?

What if the ads invited active citizens and bloggers to join, bring their cameras and share the way they see things?

What if the ads included real life details of the challenges at hand and references to resources to learn from and contribute to?

What if the ads told stories that inspired us to get up, take action and lead?

Getting green is relative.

Eco is just three letters.

Green is just a color.

Getting it is an attitude, mindstyle and lifestyle.

Is it about communication or communications?

Is passion fueled thru stories or facts?

What kind of conversation do you think we should have?

Virtual Power in Your Real World

The power of human compassion never stops. Give them the tools and they will shine! The NYTimes shares this touching story of how virtual gets personal after a blogger's plane crash.

Meanwhile in virtual Arabia, The Black Iris calls sheer lunacy out at Morocco sentencing blogger Mohammed Erraji with two years in jail for speaking his mind. UPDATE: blogger Erraji released and appealing his sentence.

Khalaf, the remarkable anonymous Jordanian blogger, calls it quits! UPDATE: re-inspired for one more post.

And this community remembers.

Where do you want to click today?

Collectibles

I'm a huge JD1 DVD consumer. I don't keep them though, I pass them on in bulk. Small fee that spreads a lot of love, coz movies are made to be seen.

Every now and then there's a movie I want to own and cherish an original. Nadine Labaki's CARAMEL is the latest. I crossed borders to catch it in the cinema. I took friends and strangers to the Amman screenings and watched it over and over with joy. I knew I wanted the DVD. Mine arrived today :) Some people make things you want to keep, proudly. They're the good guys. Thanks for this warm keeper Nadine Labaki!

Look At These Incredible Humans

So far, 2008 for me is the year of super people. Beautiful minds. Mighty humans. Incredible souls.

Last month China initiated an inspiring conversation with its own and with the world about the road forward. The Chinese hosted a new kind of Olympics. Not only was Beijing a good home to superhuman athletes enabling them to set phenomenal records, but it was the Olympics of contribution. The Chinese stood up and took action to give us a mind-blowing production around the Games.

And I don't just mean that spectacular opening ceremony on the 8th day of the 8th month in the 8th year after 2000 when China demonstrated the power of people's intellectual and cultural abilities to manipulate technology that enhanced all our senses. Despite pollution, censorship, blankets of security apparatus, and skepticism-of-the-other, the Chinese said 'let's talk'. In preparation to the Beijing Games, the Chinese looked deep into their souls and figured out who they need to be for the journey, then spent seven years delivering on that vision. They invited us into the best setting ever. They catered to our every need. And when someone complained, they said they were willing to try harder. And this conversation they started is only the first chapter of a new Chinese dialog - among themselves, and with the universe.

Yesterday Beijing was home to yet another opening of an awe-inspiring event of human potential - the Paralympic Games - under the motto One World, One Dream. The Jordanians who have made it to be part of this dream are:

In table tennis:
- Maha Barghouti (the only athlete to win a Paralympic gold medal for Jordan)
- Khitam Abu Awad (team gold medalist and individual silver medalist at 2006 World Championship)
- Fatima Azzam (multiple medalist at Pan-Arab Games and 2006 World Championship team gold)

In athletics:
- Olympic medalist Jamil Shibli (and 2006 Asian Championship gold medallist)
- Amer Salti
- Mohammad Abdul Aziz
- Omar Hmadeen
- Tharwat Hajjaj

In powerlifting:
- Fatima Lawi (who finished 5th at the World Championship in Busan in 2006)
- Mutaz Juneidi (5th in Busan)
- Faisal Hammash (7th in Busan)
- Omar Karadeh
source

Over the past few months, I've been lucky to follow the prep of one of the athletes in Beijing right now embedded in the new conversation. Edward Maalouf is a member of one of the tribes I belong to. In detailed emails over many months, Edward spoke of his training, preparations, supporters, challenges, fears and joys. As September got closer, we could feel the heat thru his emailed stories (some of which are on this Act For Lebanon Facebook group).

Edward Maalouf at the Mannheim Marathon/May 24, 2008

With every story that landed in my inbox, I would find myself thinking in new ways. With every challenge Edward shared with us, I discovered new solutions. And with every brave achievement he celebrated, I knew there was so much more work ahead. But the most amazing thing that would always come thru was the bravery. His incredible determination to keep the conversation alight - and that was contagious. The dialog Edward Maalouf was leading was not only about a Lebanese paraplegic handbike racer going to the 2008 Beijing Games. He inspired conversations about what kind of world we need to create to transform our disabilities into remarkable new abilities.

What is the conversation Jordan wants/needs to have with its own and with the world?

I think we haven't quite figured that out yet.

I know when we do, everything will change for us. The right conversation includes everybody, impacts everybody. The challenges we're fumbling with will become manageable. The feats ahead of us will morph into motivations. And the power fueling this force of change will shine with the souls of our humanity. And the footprint we leave behind will trace our fascinating cultural heritage only to find it alive with the pulse of present times.

We are incredible humans. Look in the mirror. Look down the hall. Look across the street. Look thru the window. Look up. Look out into the world. Listen. Then speak up. It's time for that conversation.

Little Ecosystem in Harsh Asphalt

A Municipality crew in white coats landed in this Amman hood on Shanqeet mid November 2007.  They left behind this hole and grate.

Then the winter 07 rain came.  The hole that was filling with autumn leaves and trash, started to fill water and not drain much.

Finally, one day in August 2008, I got what this is for and the vision behind it!  The hole was put in to collect the trash that rolls half way down this road - a mini landfill.  The grate is there to catch the larger items like this can to stop it from rolling down, and to separate it for easier recycling.  And the water collection underneath is to green the patch - notice the sprouts above.

I get it now.  It's an initiative!  Part of the Municipality's Enviro/Greening with an organic neighborhood sustainability plan:  Street Green - Multipurpose Creative Eco-Thinking.  They're looking for a sponsor to implement city-wide.  The prototype locations are now part of the eco-tour route of Amman, a first in the urban enviro circle.

The words in this post are fiction.  The images are fact.

Seif's Throne

He Accepted The Peace Pipe

He was seeking a thrill

She frolicked

He wooed

She aaaahhed

She teased

He cooed

He tried on a new veil

She let down her hair

He reached in far

She gave him a peace pipe

He laid out the lace

She closed her eyes

She let herself through.

He didn't come in peace.