Mind Soup

Screenshot from Gino Raidy's acceptance speech at The Social Media Awards Pan Arab Web Awards Academy Sues Blogger Rita Kamel Over Blog Post I am no stranger to being threatened for my outspoken opinions about social issues in Lebanon.  In 2010, I was “let go” from a staff writer position at one of AUB’spublications because I wrote a blog post on my personal blog that someone in AUB’s higher management did not like. In 2011, I got a call from a so-called-lawyer of a burger joint (which has went bankrupt since) threatening me with a lawsuit over negative tweets about their food quality. I laughed in her face at the time since she did not even know the difference between Facebook and Twitter and I had documented proof that the owner of the place had created an account for the purpose of bashing me. I was not the first or last victim of corporate bullying in Lebanon or around the world. In 2010, Octavia Nasr, a renounced Lebanese journalist, was fired from her position...

Bahrani Blogger Ali Abdelemam GLOBAL VOICES ADVOCACY : Ali Abdulemam, a leading Bahraini blogger and Global Voices Advocacy author, was arrested earlier today by the Bahraini authorities for allegedly spreading “false news” on BahrainOnline.org portal, one of the most popular pro-democracy outlets in Bahrain, amidst the worst sectarian crackdown by the government in years, and accusations of a supposed “terror network” involving several political and human rights activists. The BahrainOnline portal is censored in Bahrain. He sent an email earlier today mentioning that he got a call from the Bahraini national security just before his arrest, then arrested him and alleged that he was trying to flee. Reportedly the Bahraini government has a long track record of using torture against dissidents http://bit.ly/9kZyJQ and their TV has been broadcasting hateful sectarian messages to justify its crackdown Ali was arrested before also for content published on his portal, and he contri...

The following is a repost of Fisk's article from The Independent  on Sunday. He is talking about the incidents of CNN senior editor Octavia Nasr and the British Ambassador to Lebanon, Frances Guy . I might have guessed it. CNN has fired one of its senior Middle East editors, Octavia Nasr, for publishing a twitter – or twatter in this case, I suppose – extolling Grand Ayatollah Sayyed Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah of Lebanon, calling him "one of Hizbollah's giants whom I respect a lot". Well, he wasn't Hizbollah's man, but no matter. He was definitely a giant. A man of immense learning and jurisprudence, a believer in women's rights, a hater of "honour crimes", a critic of the theocratic system of government in Iran, a ... Well, I'd better be careful because I might get a phone call from Parisa Khosravi, who goes by the title of CNN's "senior vice president" – what these boss types do or what they get paid for their gutless deci...

MIND SOUP : A couple of days ago, the news of Octavia Nasr being fired from CNN envaded the Lebanese and Middle Eastern media. It may has come as a shock to the society, yet this denial of free speech has been demonstrated very widely across various prestigious institutions in the region and world-wide. To re-cap, Nasr who held the position of senior Middle East editor at CNN was laid off earlier this week after 20 years of work because she praised the late Hezbollah Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah on twitter. "Sad to hear of the passing of Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah. One of Hezbollah's giants I respect a lot," she posted Sunday morning. This tweet was immediately picked up by Israeli supporters and Nasr was criticized and attacked for sympathizing with Fadlallah. The Simon Wiesenthal Center in the US demanded that Nasr "apologize to all victims of Hezbollah terrorism whose loved ones don't share her sadness over the passing of one of Hezbol...

Remember a while back, I was writing for Align, the business school newspaper at AUB, and then dramatically got fired for expressing my opinion on my personal blog? ( more info ) Well get this... They still published my articles online, without mentioning my name. I'm pretty sure this breaks some copyright laws or something. What crime did I commit for them not to mention my name? Last time I checked, I didn't murder anyone. Well at least google knows the truth!  It's bad enough that they haven't paid me yet for the two months I worked there. Well, to be fair, none of the other staff writers got their pay checks yet! Imagine that. People working for almost four months now haven't been paid a dime. I am seriously glad that I got "fired" early on. Way to be proffessional, Align!

This article is featured on the Support Freedom of Speech Blog . --- A month ago, I got recommended by a friend to work for Align, the official Olayan School of Business (OSB) monthly electronic newsletter at the American University of Beirut (AUB). I applied and immediately got accepted. AUB Campus Two weeks ago, the letters of acceptances to the AUB Medical School were sent out to senior premedical students. In short, several very qualified candidates did not get acceptance letters while others with much lower grades got the approval. The role of ‘wasta’ (i.e. connections) was very apparent, especially with the new rolling-out admissions system they are implementing. In a spontaneous effort to expose the truth while trying to cheer the deserving people up, I published an opinion piece on my personal profile on Facebook and my personal blog “ Mind Soup ” discussing the effect of ‘wasta’ and favoritism on decisions made by several departments in AUB whil...