The Year of the Rat Reading 20: "Micronations"

It isn't every day one sits down to read a travel guide. I don't know if they even count as books. But this one was different. It looks at little countries throughout the world that people have declared in their backyards as well as strange places like Sealand.
It was a weird look at a weird world of kings, queens, emperors, and just good old fashioned nut jobs (not to say kings, queens and emperors can't be nut jobs). I didn't realize it was so easy to declare yourself independent. So henceforth, Apartment 20 declares itself independent from Kuwait and from the building. Anyone coming in will have to have special permission. There will be no taxation in the land. (But then again there are none in Kuwait.)
(The picture is of the view from "The Right Honorable Principality of Apartment 20.")

One: cut a hole in a box

When I first saw this video I didn't really like Justin Timberlake. After seeing it I gained a whole new level of respect for him. Anyone willing to be this goofy and out of character must be okay. Enjoy.

43!

I turned 43 a few days ago. It was no big deal. Actually I took a nap for part of the day. That was nice.
43 is a weird year since it is a prime number. You can't divide it up and examine your life through it. 42 was a good year. I could think about life in 14 year intervals. What was I doing at 14 and 28? That was fun. This 43rd year started off a little more low key.
I do remember what I was doing at 21 and a half though. That is when I joined the Air Force. So I guess 43 is good if you divide it by two. At least it was for me. Joining the Air Force changed my life. I don't think I would be where I am without it. (Is that a good thing?)
So there you have it: 43. (And next year I will get to Hank Aaron's number, which is something.)

The Year of the Rat Reading 19: "A History of Israel: From the rise of Zionism to our time"

Some of you might be wondering where I have gotten all of this time to read so many books. Actually the answer is two-fold. First of all it is Ramadan. That means things are closed during the day. So I have been spending much more time reading. Secondly, I have been finishing books that I have started in the past. This one is an example of that. I have been reading it since about 2004. It is 1020 pages long. Too my credit I did read the last 140 pages of it over the last few days.
It tells the story of Israel from Theodore Herzl to the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin. There is a new edition, but I read the second. I wish the author would just issue the pages that I haven't read. Then I could also read the third.
It was a meaty history. Lots of details. 1020 pages is a lot for such a small country, but Israel has experienced quite a lot of history in the last 150 years or so.

The Year of the Rat Reading 18: "The Woman who Laughed at God"

I got into Middle Eastern history a long time ago when I started examining the Bible. The Bible led me to the Israel-Palestinian conflict and this in turn led me to examine both Judaism and Islam. So you can see my reading interests. This book is by an author I have really enjoyed. I read biographies of David and Moses that he had previously written and another one on the Bible. This one is mostly about Judaism is the post Biblical years.
I learned a lot about what it means to be a Jew and how it is often hard to pin down. The word Israel means "One who wrestles with God." In this way, I guess anyone who wrestles with God is a Jew, though Jews are a little more demanding.
This book looks at classical Judaism and how Jews have had to deal with Christians who for the most part aren't very Christ-like. I recommend it highly. It also gave many new topics to examine.
Shalom.

Sports and Philosophy

I teach that education is all about body, mind and soul. Here is the body part.


Pre-Game Coin Toss Makes Jacksonville Jaguars Realize Randomness Of Life

I sure am glad I wasn't in China for the Olympics

I used to live in Beijing and know that this really could happen.


The Beijing Olympics: Are They A Trap?

Bush and the economy

Sometimes the economy suffers when the president leaves office.


Economists Warn Anti-Bush Merchandise Market Close To Collapse

The Year of the Rat Reading 17: "Among the Righteous: Lost Stories from the Holocaust's Long Reach into Arab Lands"

I love history, and I really hate having to deny it. I try my best not to. In Kuwait there are a few things I am not supposed to talk about in class: the Persian Gulf, Israel and the Holocaust. The first one I don't mind. The locals call it the Arabian Gulf. I have no problem with that. All countries have words that they use to describe themselves and their region. The last two I definitely have a problem with. Mostly I have a problem with them because the only way to get out of the mess the Middle East finds itself in is through education.
In my backpack today is a book by Amos Oz. It is his memoir of growing up in Israel. I bought it at Virgin Record Store in Kuwait. I can buy books about Israel here but I cannot legally mention it in class. (And people can't legally drink here either if you know what I mean.) I can understand why Arabs wouldn't be too happy with the Israelis. So I can understand why the locals wouldn't want someone to teach them about this country, considering how many Palestinian kids I also teach.
But the Holocaust is different. It is one of the most important events in world history. We need to understand how man acts at his worst and how he sometimes responds in a positive manner at these times. The author of this book decided to go and look for Arabs who helped Jews during World War Two, particularly in North Africa. The author was surprised that no Arabs had been honored at Vad Vesham, the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem (http://www.yadvashem.org/). He wondered if he could help bridge the gap between Jews and Arabs by discovering such individuals.
You think that would be easy, but with politics being like it is, it was quite an endeavor. In his exploration he discovers times when Arabs took advantage of Jews, and more importantly finds heroes among the Arab population. The real villian in this story is the Vichy French. They decided to become anti-semetic way before the Germans invaded North Africa.
It seems that there have been a lot more talking between the communities since this book came out. I think it is important. I just wish I could teach my kids the full extent of man's horror.

Philosophy Picture

I received an email about a month ago from a French philosophy magazine. They wanted to use a photo of mine that they had discovered on flickr. I was so surprised. Since I teach Philosophy it is kind of a neat honor. There is a saying about Yemen though. It says you cannot take a bad photo in Yemen. It is probably true since it is such an amazing Arabic nation.
So I thought I would add the photo to my blog. This is the one that will make me world famous, especially among the millions of French readers of philosophy magazines. (There are probably that many right?)

Electoral College

I never did graduate from the electoral college but I sure do like it. It allows all of those flyover states a bit of prominence that all of the coastal idiots hate so much (and that is not a dig at Myrtle Beach).
So the Washington Post has a electoral college map that you can work with. So I did one tonight with my predictions for the election. I see McCain winning 332 electoral votes and Obama winning 206. I know my Jackass friends will weep big ole tears. But I think I am happy. Gotta wait two months though.

<p><strong>><a href='http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/interactives/campaign08/electoral-college/'>Electoral College Prediction Map</a></strong> - Predict the winner of the general election. Use the map to experiment with winning combinations of states. Save your prediction and send it to friends.</p>

Bearded

I love teaching. Mostly it is nice because the kids ask goofing questions. Today I had one of the best ones I have ever had. A girl in History asked if she could ask something personal. So I said okay. "Sir, I heard that you grew a beard because you saw an alien. Is that true?" How do you respond to that one? I tried not to laugh. It was such a great question. Of course we lost about five minutes of teaching time in the process but what fun.

Ramadan Kareim

Well Ramadan started last night and with it comes fasting. I woke up at 3 am to have my breakfast. It was a nice breakfast. I had oatmeal, an orange, a glass of tea, a glass of orange juice and a yogurt. I am actually not feeling too bad today. I can eat in about five hours and I am planning to do what most people in Kuwait do: take a nap this afternoon. Is that cheating? I don't know. If it is, then everyone is doing it. The hardest days of fasting for me are on the weekends. It is too hot to do anything outside and all of the restaurants are closed. Plus if you are fasting you cannot eat or drink anyway (so maybe it is best that everything is closed). But when you sit at home you get antsy and want to eat and drink. I would rather be in school.
The first 20 days of Ramadan aren't as difficult as the last ten. During those last ones, Muslims are expected to say extra prayers at night. So everyone is hungry and sleepy. Since I am not a Muslim (yet anyway), I don't have to worry about those last few days.
So I am now at school waiting for the school bell to ring. Then I can go home and curl up in my bed. Then I will wait by my tv watching them shoot the cannon off in downtown Kuwait. After that I will drink a cup of tea, eat some dates and maybe even have an orange. Then I will think about dinner.
Well wish me luck on another Ramadan journey.