Mind Soup

Bayan Bibi: After a getting hit by a stray bullet and punctured lung, I am starting a social media campaign to promote positivity. This article was originally published in Cloud 961's November issue . Bayan Bibi is showing the world that she is still very strong despite all that she has gone through. She engraved the bullet that shot her and punctured her lungs just a few weeks ago while walking in Hamra and wears it proudly around her neck: A true act of courage and bravery. Instead of blaming her shooter or his political party, she is urging everyone to be positive and not hate. She has planned out a social media campaign and a web-series to spread her message. Here is her story as told by her! 31/9/2013 Lebanon – Beirut While people were celebrating some political thing, a stray bullet fell on my back while I was walking with a friend in Hamra Street. It cut through my lung and it jammed itself between my 3rd and 4th ribs. I was rushed to the emergency room...

Below is a guest post by my favorite politician in Lebanon, HMA Tom Fletcher , the British Ambassador to Lebanon. In Lebanon's Hands Lebanon tends to be high on our August watchlist. This year there was no major single crisis, but five developments raised anxiety. Israel accused Hizballah of involvement in the Bourgas terrorist attack. A pro-Assad former Minister was arrested. Kidnappings returned in a dangerous 48 hours. Some Gulf countries told their nationals to leave. The Tripoli powder keg re-ignited. Throughout, the media were quick to accentuate the negative. Lebanon has learnt to live with a certain level of instability. Periodically, for millennia, it has gone through phases of fragility, as regional tectonic plates and delicate demographics shift. The result is often conflict and political realignment. Are we in such a phase? Not yet. But I think there is an increasing realisation among Lebanese that Assad’s ability to directly influence political life in Lebanon is...

I am a firm believer of the work of NGOs especially in Lebanon where politics and the government do nothing toward a more civilized society. A recently founded NGO, " 4 a Cause ", organizes events of which the profits go to associations and causes in need. The events are variated, fun and offered to the youth to raise awareness about where help is needed. The first event is going to be a concert: Music 4 a Cause in which the profits will go to Baitna , a non-profit charitable organization, that aims to provide homes for impoverished mentally handicapped people, particularly orphans and those uncared for to welcome them in a family atmosphere. So save the date, this August 30th , Bands and DJs are on board with us to entertain you 4 a very noble cause! Standby is opening 4: - Joy Fayad - Lazzy Lung - Meen the Band . They're followed by: - Mini B (NRJ) - Underrated . Doors open at 6.00pm. Presale tickets: 20$. But you'll also be able to get a ti...

Below is an excerpt from a post entitled “We came, We saw, We destroyed, We forgot”  by William Blum.  An updated summary of the charming record of US foreign policy. Since the end of the Second World War, the United States of America has … Attempted to overthrow more than 50 governments, most of which were democratically-elected. Attempted to suppress a populist or nationalist movement in 20 countries. Grossly interfered in democratic elections in at least 30 countries. Dropped bombs on the people of more than 30 countries. Attempted to assassinate more than 50 foreign leaders. In total: Since 1945, the United States has carried out one or more of the above actions, on one or more occasions, in 69 countries (more than one-third of the countries of the world! If you’re American and wonder why the rest of the world hates your guts, why Jihadists are out there after you, or why your government is despised, you better read more about this issue.

(Photo Source: Time.com Cartoon of the Week ending Feb 25) It is without doubt that when people look back at the political events of the year 2011, the highlight of the year would be the civil revolutions and uprisings of the Arab world, or what is commonly refereed to as the 'Arab Spring'. The Arab Spring has been associated with one of the most booming means of communication till now: Social Media. It is a common misconception, though, that the revolutions were caused by social media, since they would have started with or without the internet. However, what kept the revolutionary flame burning was the ability of citizens to easily and quickly share news, photos and videos of what is actually happening on the ground using social media. All reputable news sources were relying on amateurs to deliver the news. For the first time of the history of the Arab World, the news was made and delivered by citizens. Citizen journalism has never been so popular. And ...

You may have seen the pictures of starving people in the Horn of Africa on your TV screens. We are all asking: how can this be happening again? Parts of Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia are facing one of the worst droughts for 60 years, and around 10 million people are desperately in need of food, clean water and basic sanitation. Join me in calling on world leaders to save millions of lives - today and tomorrow: http://act.one.org/sign/horn_of_africa/?source=horncrisistafem Despite the urgency of the situation, most world leaders are responding too slowly. Immediate aid is essential. Yet at the same time we must not let them drop the ball on long term solutions as has too often happened in the past. Take action right now at: http://act.one.org/sign/horn_of_africa/?source=horncrisistafem We can help stop starvation now - and stop the causes of starvation. Firstly, we need to make sure funding is provided to pay for urgent help that will prevent people from dying. Secondly, the...

This is a guest post by Di Kar. Di is a Sudanese political science undergrad at the American University of Beirut. Follow her on twitter @ D3akar Politics and what not. The Arab Spring has been the highlight of everything I have read over the past few days from twitter, aside from numerous newspapers and Italian politics. Your probably wondering why I am mentioning Italy, right? Hold that thought. The Arab Spring, that started with a man in Tunis and sparked mass protests in countries from the Maghreb to Yemen, has now shifted the whole scope of the Middle East and North Africa region. It is, to me, a much needed breeze of change for a region that has been stagnant under the fists of despotism and western influences. For the first time, I feel optimistic about the region. Egypt is pulling weight, and heading towards democratizing its system of government - despite all the challenges - nevertheless, the sleeping giant has awoken. Perhaps the Palestinian diaspora might be resolved or ...

Dear Minister Nahhas, I had the unfortunate displeasure of attending your so-called "open discussion" last week at AUB.which was hosted by the Youth Shadow Government  I have to begin that the whole lecture (which cannot even be considered an "open" discussion because there was nothing open about it) was very pointless and was not informative at all about the telecom situation in Lebanon. What it was though is extremely depressing. Your excellency explained that decreasing the costs of telecommunications will not solve any problems. You also said that equalizing chances between countries will not be achieved if telecommunications became better. I am sorry to tell you that this is a pathetic excuse not to improve the communications sector in Lebanon. Your speculations that such improvements are not necessarily advantageous to the Lebanese society are invalid. I don't know if you realize how important the internet and fast communication is for the Lebanese yo...

I woke up this morning with a flood of news about Osama Bin Laden's death on facebook, twitter, google reader, buzz and so forth. With all the celebrations and the worldwide debate (he's even trending on twitter), something smells very fishy, and its not coming from the sea. So U.S. troops kill Bin Laden, and throw him into the sea within 24 hours of his death. You would think that after ten years of searching for the "most wanted terrorist on earth," the body would be kept for more than one day. TIME newspaper ignorantly attributes this action to Islamic tradition, and that the troops directly threw the body into the sea because the did not want to offend the Islamic beliefs of burial. I quote: The reason is bound up within Islamic practice and tradition. And that practice calls for the body of the deceased to be buried within 24 hours, according to a U.S. official, who spoke Monday on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive national security matters. [..] ...

Below is one of the most simple yet touching TV commercials that I have seen in a long time. The simplicity and yet complete relevance to the topic at hand is striking (especially with Gebran Tueini's quote - may he RIP), and the visuals compel you to focus on every detail. I usually do not like political advertisements, and this one is not entirely political but advertising for Annahar newspaper (which tends to have a political side), but I felt that it was much more creative than other advertisements in this category. This campaign was done by GREY. Let me know what you think. UPDATE : Apparently, this ad has been inspired (I don't want to say stolen) from a Chinese Ad for CCTV . Thanks Nadim for the info.

After four years of studying at AUB, I think it's time to breakdown a list of typical AUB students that you are bound to meet here: The Westies : are students who have nothing better to do in life but sit outside and around West Hall and socialize 24/7. Some of them even come as early as 7:00 AM even though their first class doesn't start before 2:00 PM.. The Fiskies : are usually the weird English/Philosophy students who hang out outside Fisk Hall and are very culture-oriented. By that, I mean afro hairdos, weird facial hair, slippers, and I'm fairly certain they are high on something other than knowledge. (Also know as the hippies) The Zoo-keepers : are the students who basically live in the area known as the "zoo" which is a small park area facing the AUB cafeteria where they hang out to smoke, cluster, and discuss one-sided politics. The sunbathers : are the students who skip classes to lay down on green oval and get tanned when the sun it out. They are...

Recently, everywhere I go, I've been referred to as a trouble-maker or even introduced as a mischievous person. While there's no shame of having this label, it is constantly starting to stick as a negative reputation because of gossip and word twisting (what the Lebanese call "adding salt and pepper to the story". So why do I have this reputation, you ask? It all started with an article I wrote criticizing admissions at a highly-reputable institution and from there on, people have atributed my constructive criticism to anything I wrote or even spoke about as an initiative to cause trouble or ruin reputation. This middle-eastern culture doesn't account for constructive criticism or personal opinion. We are in a culture where if you criticize something, then you are its enemy. Perhaps this is how politics works, but that isn't how I work. Think about it, when I invest effort and time in writing about some negative aspect of most topics, does it mean that ...

Screenshot of " A Separate State of Mind " MIND SOUP :  A Separate State of Mind  is a new blog on the Lebanese blogosphere which discusses life, music, politics, movies and thoughts of a Lebanese youth, Elie, who is one of my best friends. I have been trying to get Elie to start a blog since I created Mind Soup two years ago (2nd birthday coming up on Feb 21 :D) but his laziness and procrastination delayed it. He has had some guest posts here on Mind Soup but now he took the plunge and after some quick trial with tumblr, he started his full wordpress.com blog:  http://stateofmind13.wordpress.com . A few things you might want to know about Elie: He's a huge Carrie Underwood fan that I started calling him a Carrieoholic.So you should definitely expect to see some posts about her. He likes country music and pop (Britney Spears anyone?) He likes to watch movies, and I mean a lot of movies, so he will be posting some movie reviews. His taste in mo...

MIND SOUP : So today, October 15, is Blog Action Day 2010 . The theme this year is water . As I live in a country where water is theoretically abundant, I, as many other Lebanese, may not feel the urge to conserve water or use it wisely. But as I watch TV and read bloggers posts from other countries, I have become more aware of the critical water situation the world is facing. After enrolling as a blogger against hunger for the United Nations World Food Programme and engaging more into the world blogosphere, I was shocked to know that around 4.500 children die daily from water related diseases and that a almost a billion people on Earth don't have access to clean and safe drinking water ! Since then I realized that there are so many things with our water consumption in Lebanon. We take hour-long showers, flood our houses to get them cleaned, stare at the open faucet while brushing our teeth, and use excessive amounts of water to irrigate our flowers and plants. But the most un...

View of Club's Stands next to West Hall Today has been a very long day indeed, a long fruitful day. AUB's Online Collaborative had its debut today during Clubs day where cabinets and active members of clubs and societies gather around West Hall to recruit members. After struggling with the board for around an hour, we were set to go. The collage of social networking logos attracted many students who came closer to ask questions or take a flyer. Other students had surprised or even disgusted looks when they saw our stand. They don't know how important and crucial our work is. Many thought that we are a group of people addicted to facebook and trying to recruit facebook addicts into one group. Our humble board Boy, they are so wrong. What they don't know is how the whole world has its eyes fixated now on digital media, especially social media. News outlets are leaning more and more towards online media. Many politicians, organizations or event planners ...

I was in Baalback this past weekend with the AUB Ambassadors and the new students showing them around Bekaa and AUB's farm (AREC). What caught my attention is that everywhere I looked, there was a guy or a stand of Hezbollah T-shirts. What's worse is the look on the seller's face when you decline to buy a shirt from him. Seriously, I don't want to buy a shirt from you! I wouldn't even take it if you offered it to me, even if it was covered with gold! Is this how Hezbollah is now funding its illegal weapons now? (By the way, rumors are that these shirts are Made in Iran...) © Mind Soup © Mind Soup

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...

Below are a few posts I have enjoyed reading this week. Shoot As You Walk "Plug Into E-Cycle Movement" Pictures (NourSpot) Photo by NourSpot Futurist Project (Joe's Box) After five years of hard work and research my sister made a nice final project for her diploma, a nice creative project that i personally loved and i guess we need those kind of projects as Lebanon is witnessing an unprecedented boom in shopping malls. A museum of archeology and history In Byblos as the city is a tourist destination visited annually by many tourists. [...] Where are the tourists? (Blog Baladi) In June 21, Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud said that the number of visitors to Lebanon has increased by 26.6 percent compared to this time last year, the National News Agency (NNA) reported on Wednesday. Since then, we haven’t heard any updates on the number of tourists in Lebanon and to be honest, i think the numbers are going down and drastically. [...] Why Not? (Independence ...