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Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

@HusseinAboubak

24 May

Arab Culture and Violence
Why the ME clearly seems to have a high propensity for violence why the violence so brutal and cruel? There are many reasons, one of them is culture. Arab culture lacks many tools for conflict resolution aside from violence due to various issues. The /1

lack of peaceful conflict resolution mechanism coincided with modernity in its effect of democratizing claim-making and politicizing wide segments of human populations hitherto never politicized, creating significantly more conflict of interests. This made means of coercion /2

to become more central culturally. Using violence and coercion is naturally however not the first line of action when resolution is not possible. Threat and fear are first used in order to prevent violence. This is why, for example, many punishments are performed in public, /3

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Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

@HusseinAboubak

24 May

Prior to the mid 50s, Egyptian leaders and intellectuals were not interested in Arab Nationalism, and most Egyptians had never heard of it. Arab Nationalists from the Levant were very frustrated with the Egyptians home they had to drag to Arab conferences and only participate /1

As observers. In the mid 50s Nasser of Egypt accepted a bribe in the form of a promise to turn Egypt to the "Germany" of the Arabs with permanent status of leadership in exchange of bringing Egypt to Arab Nationalism. The venture failed, Egypt paid the price and got nothing /2

This left Egyptians with one of the most severe narcissistic injuries in the ME due to loss of status and a failed investment. The entire venture left Egypt indeed like Germany of the Arabs, but in the negative sense. Egyptian culture, not policies, remain a very negative /3

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Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

@HusseinAboubak

18 May

Many in the media, including anti-Isreal bigots, are whimpering about how Palestinians are dehumanized. The thing is, they are right! When you are told that your body is a bullet to be shot against the Zionists, that is dehumanizing. When you are told that they best thing you /1

can do with your life is to die for land or for AlAqsa, that is dehumanizing. When you are told you should go by a 5 shekel knife and go stab Jews and its okay if you die trying that is dehumanizing. When you are used as a human shield, that is dehumanizing. When you are used /2

as another casualty number in order to agitate public opinion against Israel that is dehumanizing. When your life is sacrificed on your behalf by terrorists for the sake of the glorious cause, that is dehumanizing. But no, we don't hear much about that. The bigotry is /3

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Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

@HusseinAboubak

12 Mar

With all the good things coming out of the Gulf, its important to understand there are still a crucial problem for thr Gulf to solve, the indigenouization of skills. The Gulf has impressive infrastructure, made, maintained, and managed by foreign skill and Indian programmers

The native skills are mostly concentrated in finance and real estate. The educational efforts of importing American campuses is yet to show results. The reasons this issue is so difficult to overcome are very complex and don't give in to quick solutions. However, if there is a

country that shows the potential for the kind of human capital needed for information based economies, it is actually, no kidding, Saudi Arabia. Most of my life, I, like many, resented the Kingdom for reasons that are well known and no need to restate them. But things have

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Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

@HusseinAboubak

8 Mar

One of the things that is hard for me to explain, even to many Zionists, is that the Palestinian cause was never about Palestine at all, it was always about other major struggles for power in the regions. The words that can describe Arab politics best for the 20th cent

is "crisis of legitimacy," questions of who is to have power, why, and to what end WERE THE QUESTIONS. Nothing else existed. Coups, civil wars, assassinations, militias, and a metaphorical jungle of prime chimp power competition. Palestine was the only tool in the Arab

political toolbox to circumvent those questions. If you wanted power, the only legitimacy you could find was Palestine. It was the only thing that let you carry arms, come in over tanks, and grab all the power your tormented soul is lusting for. Nasser, the Baath, PLO, PLFP, Amal

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Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

@HusseinAboubak

7 Mar

There is a major process going on in the Middle East right now to which most western observers are completely blind. There is a major multi dimensional process of identity and social structure reconfiguration. All over the region, people are starting to play with most intimate

things, faith, identity, and sex. Individuation on multiple levels, national identities are breaking off of pan identities, Individual identities breaking off of collective ones, and new think breaking off of group think. Its happening at home, on the street, in institutions,

and on national levels. 15 years ago I prefered to read and listen to western conversations because Arabs had nothing interesting to talk about. Today, without exaggeration, its the complete opposite for me. Even SAUDI podcasts are far more interesting than American ones

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More from @HusseinAboubak

Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

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Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

Hussein Aboubakr Mansour

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