...My reaction to this article on the Syrian conflict and how the Asad regime will survive until 2013 is a mixed one. On one hand I believe that the regime will eventually be kicked out of power. On the other I believe that the regime could stay in power. The reason behind my thought on how the regime could stay in power is that Asad has a military stronger than the rebels within the country. But connecting to what's happening in Syria now the regime could be thrown out of power if the United Nations gets involved, the U.N would only get involved if the Syrian government uses chemical weapons. A reason I believe the regime could stay in power is the fact that the opposition to the government has a very weak leadership causing any real progress in a coup d' etat to be difficult. From my understanding the author of this article believes that the Asad regime will survive. The author makes very good points like the opposition being weak, Asad having a strong military, and the fact that the chances of the international community intervening are very low, I still don't believe that the regme will last. I also learned that changes in government in the Middle East have been happening since the end of WW2. Another thing that I have learned is that many of the conflicts in the Middle East have been fought over religious disputes. The author also states that because of poor economy the regime will be overthrown,but it should last until 2013. A final thing that I have learned is that most...
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...British Invasion When one thinks of rock and roll there is a whole list of adjectives to describe a band. The groups can go from laid back to an in your face, ultra loud show of shows. There are many differences in rock bands and none is greater than the deviation between Oasis and Dave Matthews Band. From upbringing to influences, the differences are represented in the music and those who live for it. They might be Suez Crisis of 1956 The Suez Crisis of 1956: The War From Differing Viewpoints Carleton University Research Paper #1: Submitted to ... under the same category but there are very few comparisons that are so far apart. Oasis is the foremost representative of a working class band. Their hometown of Manchester, England is a tough town of industry. The people are known for they re hard work and even harder partying. In contrast, Dave Matthews was raised on a South African estate as the son of an ambassador. His hometown was full of proper English families, most being from english History of England The Ice Age ended about 8000 BC, during which the Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons lived in Great Britain. Because of the melting ice the water level rose and ... aristocracy. The members of Oasis tell of their early drug days, shop lifting, and hard partying. Drugs were a major part of the bands early years and so was hard, ear blasting rock and roll. Matthews once criticized this behavior by Oasis as he proclaimed his own virginity in the drug world. In typical Oasis fashion...
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...because it is a rich land, where people can grow crops and soil on. It is where the Nile River spreads out, and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. Having said so, how will global warming affect this rich soily land that provides a home for 3rd of the population? The answer is climate change, which will cause “the Mediterranean and other seas to rise one foot and 3.3 feet, flooding the coastal areas along the delta”. It will destroy the sandy beaches that are one of the main reasons why Egypt is visited by millions of tourists’ every day. Due to global warming, scientists are afraid that the ice sheets of Greenland and West Antarctic would melt; this will cause a greater damage for Egypt. As I mentioned before 10.5 percent of the population would have to look for new homes, because the delta would completely drown. Including half of the crops in Egypt would drown too, such as wheat bananas and rice. This is why, we should be more careful with the resources we use. We should recycle and help Egypt and the world from the burden of global warming. This will affect nobody but us, and our children; this gives me a bigger reason why I should take care of the earth, even if I’m the only one, ill still make a difference in the world. Sources:...
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...I recommend that we prepare our delegates for the cultural norms of doing business in the Middle East and assign our representatives with this in mind. Summarily, this is because the prevalence of Islam in the region has resulted in different values assuming primacy and neglecting to educate our team on the cultural norms may result in an impression of ethnocentrism. Moreover, to avoid the appearance of paternalism I recommend that we also provide translators rather than rely on our customer’s English. At the meeting we discussed the successful bid for the contract and our flight to the initial meeting onsite. This raised a number of interesting questions regarding how we should conduct ourselves to minimise misunderstandings. If the negotiating team does not account for cultural differences in conducting business in the region the firm runs the risk of losing the contract to a competitor. Considerations must be given to the host’s religious sensibilities. Islam has implications for the systemic treatment of the business process, including what operational activities are permissible. The delegates must also be prepared for the following main differences to Australian culture as illustrated in the diagram below (Hofstede, 2012): context sensitivity in communication, autocratic leadership, the prevalence of collectivism and ‘face’, long term orientation compared to western cultures at circa 50 (Baron, 2008), and high levels of uncertainty avoidance, yet curiously a relatively elastic...
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...BUSINESS AS USUAL? RECENT CHANGES IN THE ARAB WORLD IN HISTORICAL CONTEXT" By Michael B. Bishku* INTRODUCTION What began in Tunisia in December 2010 and continues most violently in Syria today has been labeled by observers of and experts on the Middle East as the "Arab Spring," but is that the correct term? (It should be noted that Lebanon engaged in the Cedar Revolution in 2005 - following the assassination of Sunni Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri by Hezbollah operativeswhich resulted in the withdrawal of Syrian froops after 30 years.) While Tunisia seems to be emulating Turkey as a historically secular country with mildly Islamist politicians exercising the greatest amount of influence in their country's respective foreign and domestic affairs, Egypt, the birthplace of the Muslim Brotherhood, appears to be at the center of a struggle between the Islamists and the military, which has dominated politics in that country since the early 1950s, while secularists and the minority Copts feel as if they have been sidelined. Majority Shi'a in Bahrain were quashed in their attempt to have a minority Sunni government recognize their rights, while Yemen's longtime leader was replaced by that country's vice president. Libya toppled an erratic dictator, but has no experience with representative government and like in Yemen the population possesses tribal identities. Syria is now engaged in a brutal civil war in which at least 20,000 people have lost their lives by the summer of 2012. Other countries...
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...Political and Religious Corruption Knowing the fact that Nawal El Saadawi was a revolutionary woman in the Arab word, an Arabian reader like me or any other reader from any other part of the world won’t be so surprised of her exposing the corruption of the political and religious system in Arab’s societies. First, from the very beginning and through her female protagonist Firdaus , Nawal tries to pave the way for us as readers to be ready for the exposition of the political scene in Egypt, especially when Firdaus first starts to develop her love for reading and state the following: “I got to know about the Persians, the Turks and the Arabs. I read about the crimes committed by kings and rulers.” And there are other hints that she pointed out through the novel like when she used to spit on the pictures of those kings, princes and presidents who have their pictures published on magazines and newspapers. It is like Nawal, through Firdaus, is trying to deliver the idea of how the relation between women and the Egyptian authorities was taking place in that society, and how dangerous it will be to misunderstand the mechanism of how this corrupted political system works. Actually, there is that instant where Firdaus saw the pictures of the rulers who were sitting in mosques, surrounded by the congregation being present at the Friday ceremony and praying for the souls of martyrs and she comment on these pictures especially about the ruler when she says “Like a man stricken to...
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...course of the history they frequently found themselves in the middle of fighting and misunderstanding between the nations, thus it was a rough process which was still continuing. In the midst of such conditions it was understandable that those countries were a piece of cake for the Soviet Union to make them communist "believers". The problem was not only based on the Soviet's desire, but mainly on the opponent‘s inability to resist the pressure of being involved in a new political system. The immediate reason and pushing power of the famous doctrine was Suez war. This war was aimed at the reservation of the Egypt's nationalization in the Suez Canal Company. Three participants: France, Britain and Israel failed greatly in helping Egypt and this fact caused creation of a whole new page in the diplomatic world history. Britain at that time was considered the most...
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...Egypt i/ˈiːdʒɪpt/ (Arabic: مصر, Miṣr, Egyptian Arabic: [mɑsˤɾ] ; Coptic: Ⲭⲏⲙⲓ, Kīmi ; Sahidic Coptic: ⲕⲏⲙⲉ, Kēme), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: جمهوريّة مصر العربيّة (help·info), is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world. Covering an area of about 1,010,000 square kilometers (390,000 sq mi), Egypt is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west. Egypt is one of the most populous countries in Africa and the Middle East. The great majority of its over 81 million people[2] live near the banks of the Nile River, in an area of about 40,000 square kilometers (15,000 sq mi), where the only arable land is found. The large areas of the Sahara Desert are sparsely inhabited. About half of Egypt's residents live in urban areas, with most spread across the densely populated centres of greater Cairo, Alexandria and other major cities in the Nile Delta. Monuments in Egypt such as the Giza pyramid complex and its Great Sphinx were constructed by its ancient civilization. Its ancient ruins, such as those of Memphis, Thebes, and Karnak and the Valley of the Kings outside Luxor, are a significant focus of archaeological study. The tourism industry and the Red Sea Riviera employ...
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...Gender and Social Change in the Middle East: The Islam and Women Phenomenon Written By: Amelia Ramraj Arguably the most heated, widely discussed and controversial topic in gender and social change with respect to a cultural context is the state of women in the Middle East and the role that religion plays as a primary source for further derived influences of politics, economics, legal and family affairs to the social situation as a whole. This social stratosphere of revolving and intricate subjects of change and progression represent a multitude of conflicting ideologies, theories and realities. The media serves as an informational anchor, particularly in its portrayal of social situations and change, primarily divided into Western and Eastern media. The broader subject at hand is gender and social change in the Middle East, but specifically, how women, as the primary subject of the gender discussion, and Islam, as the foremost engine to drive the social scene across the Middle Eastern peninsula co-exist to create an unprecedented dynamic in the Middle East. This research paper will attempt to progressively reveal and discuss related subjects in order to create a transitional framework for a relevant understanding of the gender and social dynamic of the Middle East. As an outline, this paper will begin by briefly discussing the global role of women from a gender and sexuality perspective. It will then analyze how such roles are portrayed and what movements exist in order...
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...Political Islam is playing a major rule now in the current political scene; so it is important to analyze how it rose in Egypt and how it has been shaped over the years. The political Islam is mainly a set of ideologies that holds the belief that Islam can be a political ideology as much as it is a religion. Although Islamic thinkers have always emphasized the enforcement of the Islamic law (Sharia) as the main reference of the state’s political and social ideologies, they never agreed on the exact means and degree of enforcing it. This difference of course dates back to the early times of Islam when different interpretations lead to a schism in the guided Caliphate called the Great Fitna which results we have to bear with until today. As the Islamic Thinker Mohamed Abdu suggested the Holy text is “alive” in the sense that its interpretations differ greatly depending on the background of the interpreter, these different interpretations lead to the forging of different schools of thought and Madhabs. And as political Islam is directly derived from Islamic teachings and has been affected by the differences in interpretations, Political Islam has never been united under one banner. The Ex Egyptians presidents Gamal Abd El Nasser and Anwar El Sadat had their different ways in dealing with the Islamists and of course helped in shaping political Islam in Egypt. Before Gamal Abd El Nasser, Egypt’s second president, Islamist groups were largely concerned with seeking independence from...
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...“The Facebook Revolution”: Social Networking Sites and the correlation with The January 25 Revolution. 1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Information and communication technology increasing with the growing variety of Internet based applications. This new media is not only "library information" to facilitate the dissemination of information to a universal audience, but even more than that. This media is also a powerful tool for communication activities. Furthermore, with Web 2.0 technology, design and use of the Internet has changed much work to do with this new media that Levinson (2009) call this "new new media"- more new than the new media- which shows variances against the classic new media such as e-mail and websites. This media is not merely a tool to facilitate distribution, archiving and text-based, but has become a tool for social media who have the capability delivering media content and providing interaction facilities between readers and writers. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein (2010) define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0 and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content (photos, videos, links, etc.)." In addition, it is also one of the latest communication channels that enable dissemination and sharing of information can be done quickly and widely through the new media. Undeniably, the year 2008 is seen as...
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...movement of demonstrations, marches, plaza occupations, riots, non-violent civil resistance, acts of civil disobedience and labor strikes. Millions of protesters from a variety of socio-economic and religious backgrounds demanded the overthrow of the regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. There were also important Islamic, liberal, anti-capitalist, nationalist, and feminist currents of the revolution. Violent clashes between security forces and protesters resulted in at least 846 people killed and 100,000 injured.[22][23] Protesters also burned upwards of 90 police stations, though international media and politicians attempted to minimize that aspect of the revolt.[24] Protests took place in Cairo, Alexandria, and in other cities in Egypt, following the Tunisian revolution that resulted in the overthrow of the long-time Tunisian president. Grievances of Egyptian protesters were focused on legal and political issues[25] including police brutality, state of emergency laws,[1] lack of free elections and freedom of speech, corruption,[2] and economic issues including high unemployment, food price inflation[3] and low wages.[1][3] The primary demands from protesters were the end of the Hosni Mubarak regime, the end of emergency law, freedom, justice, a responsive non-military government and a say in the management of Egypt's resources.[26] Strikes by labour unions added to the pressure on government officials.[27] During the uprising the capital city of Cairo was described as...
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...Ramy Sayed Mouhammad Ahmad Hassan El-Touny Personal Data: Date of Birth : September 20, 1980. Place of Birth : Cairo, Egypt. Nationality : Egyptian. Martial Status : Married. Military Status : Exempt. Mobile No. : 01098005566 - 01114555115 Home Tele. No. : 0244342731 - 027649301 Address : 21 Hassan Mahmoud Street, In front of Abdo lelzeyoot, El-Agamy, El-Kalag, El-Marg, Cairo, Egypt. Or: Railway Rest – End of Mansour St. – In front of High Dam Buildings – Helwan – Cairo, Egypt Postal code : 13754 E-Mail : Mr.ProiD@gmail.com Objective:- Seeking a suitable career, in which I can, utilize my abilities in a challenging position in a progressive organization that believes in adopting hard worker candidates, in such organization I can use my academic skills beside my interpersonal communication talents in achieving organization aims & objectives. Education: Summer 2004 : Bachelor of Engineering, Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt Department : Mechanical Engineering. Major : Industrial Engineering and Production. Graduation Project : Testing of the behavior of bolted joints in composite ...
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... * The Russians had helped the Slavic people who were rebelling against the Ottomans at the time * Ottomans lost Romania, Montenegro, Cyprus, Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Bulgaria. Geopolitics lands create problems again * Great Britain and Russia fight over Muslim Lands * Great Game was the war over India, which were currently Britain’s most profitable colonies. * Russia wanted to gain India’s’ wealth but the British had successfully defended. * After successfully defending, the British actually tried to spread its empire into Afghanistan. * Afghanistan was familiar with powers trying to invade the kingdom. Great Britain retreated after decades. Egypt makes reforms * Seeing how powerful other nations were Egypt had to adapt. * Egypt made political and social reforms * Military and economic reforms followed. *...
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...Doing Business Project, Egypt’s ranking in the ease of doing business had risen to 106 out of 183 countries, up from its 2008 ranking of 116, making it a World Bank “top ten reformer.” In addition, Egypt had made substantial progress in opening up its economy to global trade, with its rank in the Global Competitiveness Report 2009-2010, published by the World Economic Forum, moving up by 11 positions to 70 out of 133 countries. Despite its rise in the rankings, Egypt still has a relatively low level of openness, with exports/GDP at 25%. (Deutsche Bank, 9 Feb. 2010) As a result of its low level of integration with world markets, Egypt was not hit by the global recession to the extent that more “linked” economies were. However, this also means it is less likely to benefit from the recovery in global trade. Prior to the global recession, Egypt had hit its 7% official GDP growth target for 2 years in a row, with 2007 and 2008 growth at 7.1% and 7.2% respectively. This rate of growth had enabled it to reduce unemployment from 10.9% in 2005-06 to 8.1% in 2007-08. In 2008-09, however, unemployment rose to 8.8% and GDP growth slowed to 4.7%. (Figure 1) Although these numbers are not so bad compared to many Western countries, it could still potentially present some big issues for Egypt down the road because it is a country with a very young population. According to the World Bank, 32% of its population is between ages 0 and 14, 63% is between ages 15 and 64, and only 5% is...
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