Rosy Dawn with Chills
Wooo HOOO, Kuwait! Look at this temperature at 7 ayem!
And then look at the humidity and the dew point! No wonder we all feel a little clammy!
The dawn is moving further and further to the south, and this morning was briefly rosy as the sun struggled to break through the thick haze:
When my husband and I prayed together this morning, we prayed to be able to keep our minds and hearts on the things that are really important, and not the things of the world. As financial empires crumble, we want to be thankful for all the riches with which we have been blessed – our marriage, our son and his wife, our families – for good jobs, and good friends – and we pray to be safe on the roads.
Even the Qatteri Cat likes morning prayer time. 🙂
She Kept Her Head
From today’s Arab Times:
Police arrest youth, hunt for two in kidnap, rape bid of schoolgirl
KUWAIT CITY: Police have arrested a Kuwaiti youngster and are looking for his two other accomplices who allegedly kidnapped a schoolgirl, drove her to a deserted area and tried to rape her, reports Al-Dar daily.
The girl told police that the youngsters got scared when she screamed for help and drove off; however, she managed to note down the plate number of their vehicle and it led to the arrest of one of them.
God bless this scared, screaming girl – she used her head. The miserable cowards who abducted her and intended to rape her dumped her, and she wrote down their license number! Wooo HOOO on you, girlie!
An Insult – and 3 Dead Kuwaitis
From today’s Arab Times. How many hearts are breaking in Kuwait over one young man’s lack of self-control? I know, I know, this is Kuwait, and things are different. Because of an insult, three brothers are dead, and one in intensive care. Two families devastated, one with dead sons, one with a son who is a murderer. Three crashed vehicles, one from an innocent man who only stopped to see if he could help, and ended up with his car stolen and crashed, too. . . the whole thing is tragedy, from beginning to end.
Three brothers dead: Three Kuwaiti brothers in the age group of 25-30 years died in a road rage accident in Mina Abdullah while their fourth brother is currently confined to the intensive care unit of Adan Hospital, reports Al-Anba daily.
According to a security source, a Kuwaiti youth’s car broke down on King Fahd Expressway. The youth reportedly called his father to inform about the breakdown and told that four Kuwaiti youngsters had insulted him. When his father went to help the youth, the latter took his father’s vehicle, drove at full speed and crashed into the Jeep of the four brothers. The Jeep overturned due to the impact and one of the brothers died on the spot. Two others died in Adan Hospital and the fourth one is confined to the intensive care unit.
Meanwhile, the youth, who appeared disoriented, left his father’s car at the site of the accident and drove away with an Asian’s car who stopped to check what happened. He was eventually arrested after crashing into another car.
How does the law work in a case like this?
It says the young man was arrested. Is he still in jail? Can you get bail after killing three people in an act of rage?
Is his driving license taken away?
is an insult considered justification for a crime of rage?
Does he go to prison, or if he pays blood money, does he walk away free?
If he is convicted of murder, what is the likely sentence?
Will he also go on trial for stealing the Asian’s car and crashing it?
Not a legal question:
Does this cause an unending feud between two families? Or is this just another chapter in an already ongoing feud?
How many drivers am I sharing the road with who have killed?
Winners! Great Kuwait Sunset Challenge
As promised, here are the winners of the Great Kuwait Sunset Challenge, in the order of the votes received:
Mathai
Bu Yousef
Teagirl
AbdulAziz
Congratulations to all! I think everyone who got to see your stunning photos were also winners.
Thank you all for participating, thank you for submitting your photos, and thank you, too, for voting. This was a lot of fun.
Next Saturday, we will introduce the new challenge. 🙂
Kuwait Activists Reject MPs” Hijab Ruling
Activists reject MPs” hijab ruling
”Wearing of veil is not prerequisite for ministerial post”
KUWIAT: Political activists have expressed their great disappointment at the Parliament”s Legislative Committee”s decision which stated that the positions held by Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education Nouriya AlŮ€Subaih and Minister of State for Housing Affairs and Minister of State for Development Affairs Moudi AlŮ€Homoud as female ministers were unconstitutional.
In a symposium entitled “Who protects personal freedom,” eminent activist Najla AlŮ€Naqi said that the committee should have paid attention to more serious issues rather than focusing on marginal issues such as wearing the veil. She urged the committee to reconsider its decision.
Sheikha Dr. Maymouna AlـSabah made the Constitution a point of departure for her argument, stating that it did not distinguish between genders when it came to the qualification of a voter and never mentioned any preference of one over the other. She demanded for the appointment of more female ministers since it is the only way for them to reach the Parliament.
Historian Ghanima AlـFahaid outlined the role of Kuwaiti women and their contribution to society in different fields including defending the State from invaders. She reminded the audience of the brilliant work of both ministers and that they tirelessly endeavor to serve the community in every possible way.
Kuwait University lecturer Dr. Layla AlŮ€Sabaan regarded the decisions as regrettable at a time when women should be encouraged and commended for their work. She stressed that the Kuwaiti society believes in equal opportunities for all regardless of gender and that personal freedom should be respected as long as it doesn”t jeopardize the culture and traditions of the society.
Journalists Society consultant Dr. Ayed AlـManna discussed the legality of female ministers, highlighting that gender equality in a country like Kuwait is extremely important. He added that Kuwait is a liberal society in many ways, pointing out that the Constitution does not specifically say that women must wear veils as a perquisite to taking up their ministerial posts.
Meanwhile, political activist Najat AlـHashshash questioned the nature and background of the decision asking if this ruling applied to all female staff working in the Parliament or ministers only.
Last updated on Friday 24/10/2008
Kuwait Fatal Traffic Accidents
From Al Watan
Road accidents claim 450 lives annually
Al Watan staff
KUWAIT: Some 450 people die due to road accidents in Kuwait annually, according to recent statistics quoted by a Kuwaiti specialist. Fatal traffic accidents have alarmingly increased in Kuwait with the latest statistics suggesting that there has been an increase of 35 percent in the period from 2002 – 2005.
The information was revealed by Dr. Ghanem Sultan during a lecture he delivered at the Kuwait Geography Society where he disclosed that traffic accidents represent four percent of overall death cases in the country, making Kuwait the country with the highest rates of trafficـrelated fatalities.
Regarding the causes of traffic accidents, he pointed out that accidents generally occur due to speeding, drivers’ reluctance to wear seatbelts, recklessness, the jumping of traffic lights as well as driving under the influence of alcohol.
Expanding on human factors, he blamed accidents on the growing population, the multitude of vehicles as well as traffic congestion.
According to him, around 80,000 – 90,000 new cars ply the roads every year, adding that projects to expand road capacity reached its maximum limits in 1997.
He also attributed fatal accidents to geographical factors, including high temperatures, humidity and dust during the summer and rains during the winter season.
That’s a very high death rate. How many of those deaths are young male Kuwaitis, whose removal from the marriage pool and gene pool can have unknown consequences?
Do you think there are really 80 – 90,000 NEW cars on the roads every year? Could that be a misprint? That sounds like a very high number of new cars to me.
Operation Hope Needs Shoes, Blankets and Men’s Clothing
Thanks for getting the word out! Seems we’ll be getting the shoe drive going as of November 1st with AUK as our drop point. Bazaar will be featuring an article with the details in their November issue so to plug in I encourage you to pick up a copy of the magazine.
Blankets & trousers are also high on the “need” list. Serious donors should email us on operationhopekuwait@yahoo.com for details on where to drop your new or gently used items.
Blessings,
Sheryll Mairza
OPERATION HOPE – KUWAIT
Founder & Director
90 Year Old Kuwaiti Overdoses on Heroin?
This is very hard for me to imagine:
Citizen dies of heroin overdose
Al Watan staff
KUWAIT: A citizen in 90s died on Wednesday at his house in Jabriya due to an overdose of heroin. After the Operation Room received a phone call from the family informing them that the Kuwaiti man suddenly fainted, police officers and medical teams rushed to the house. The man was taken to the hospital by paramedics but passed away. Forensic police examined the corpse and confirmed that a drug overdose was the main cause of death.
“Where You From?”
AdventureMan calls, full of chat, wanting to tell me what he is seeing at the airport. Normally, it’s a good time for a chat, but today, I’m having none of it.
“I just called the police again.” I told him.
(I can hear him thinking “Oh oh.”)
First I dialed the neighborhood police number, and nobody answered – again.
We have accidents in front of our house all the time. Sometimes I can see everyone with their phones out and I don’t call. This time, I called. No answer. I dialed 777. Thank God, they have WOMEN who answer, women who speak a little English, and I speak a little Arabic, and together we figure things out. They are smart, they are competent and they are sweetly polite, not officiously bureaucratic.
I tell her about the accident, tell her the neighborhood.
Two minutes later, my phone rings. He doesn’t speak English.
“Bolice?” I ask.
“Bolice” he affirms, and says my neighborhood.
I start telling him, in Arabic, the block, the street and the cross street. See? I’ve gotten so smart!
“Where you from?” he asks in amazement, and I can hear him grinning.
“I’m from (the neighborhood)” I answer.
He leaves the phone, and he is yelling and everyone is laughing in the background. Someone else comes.
“Where you from?” he asks. He just wants to hear me talk.
I tell him – in Arabic – the block, the street and tell him “CAR CRASH! TOO MUCH TRAFFIC. NEED BOLICE!” He is laughing. He calls someone else.
This guy speaks English.
“Car crash?” he asks.
“Yes!” I respond, glad to be on topic.
“Why you call me?” he asks.
(I didn’t call him. I called 777 {the emergency number here.} They called me!)
“Car crash.” I repeat. “Too many cars” (I say this in Arabic) Need BOLICE!”
He is laughing.
“Where you from?” he asks.
I say I am from the neighborhood.
“You in car?” he asks.
“No, I see from my house.”
“Come to station.” he says.
“No, BOLICE COME HERE!” I say, and tell him again the street, block and cross street – in Arabic.
He laughs and hangs up.
Forty five minutes later, traffic is still snarled up, no one is managing traffic, there are any number of near accidents as a result, and it is just a mess. No BOLICE.
For my non-Kuwaiti readers, the law in Kuwait is that when there is an accident, you cannot move your cars, not even out of the way, until the police have come. Until they come, everything stays as it is except for an ambulance can come and take away someone who is hurt.
Eat Fast, Get Fat
This is from BBC Health News and it reminds me of all the times our parents told us to chew our food and eat more slowly! I hate to say it – they were right.
Speed of eating ‘key to obesity’
Slow down!
Wolfing down meals may be enough to nearly double a person’s risk of being overweight, Japanese research suggests.
Osaka University scientists looked at the eating habits of 3,000 people and reported their findings in the British Medical Journal.
Problems in signalling systems which tell the body when to stop eating may be partly responsible, said a UK nutrition expert.
He said deliberately slowing down at mealtimes might impact on weight.
The latest study looked at the relationship between eating speed, feelings of “fullness” and being overweight.
Just under half of the 3,000 volunteers told researchers they tended to eat quickly.
Compared with those who did not eat quickly, fast-eating men were 84% more likely to be overweight, and women were just over twice as likely.
Those, who, in addition to wolfing down their meals, tended to eat until they felt full, were more than three times more likely to be overweight.
Stomach signals
Professor Ian McDonald, from the University of Nottingham, said that there were a number of reasons why eating fast could be bad for your weight.
He said it could interfere with a signalling system which tells your brain to stop eating because your stomach is swelling up.
He said: “If you eat quickly you basically fill your stomach before your gastric feedback has a chance to start developing – you can overfill the thing.”
He said that rushing meals was a behaviour that might have been learned in infancy, and could be reversed, although this might not be easy.
“The old wives’ tale about chewing everything 20 times might be true – if you did take a bit more time eating, it could have an impact.”
‘Biological imperative
In an accompanying editorial, Australian researchers Dr Elizabeth Denney-Wilson and Dr Karen Campbell, said that a mechanism that helps make us fat today may, until relatively recently, have been an evolutionary advantage, helping us grab more food when resources were scarce.
They said that, if possible, children should be encouraged to eat slowly, and allowed to stop when they felt full up at mealtimes.
Dr Jason Halford, Director of the Kissileff Human Ingestive Behaviour Laboratory at the University of Liverpool, said that the way we eat was slowly being seen as a key area in obesity research, especially since the publication of studies highlighting a genetic variant linked to “feelings of fullness”.
His own work, recently published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, found that anti-obesity drug sibutramine worked by slowing down the rate at which obese patients ate.
He said: “What the Japanese research shows is that individual differences in eating behaviour underlie over-consumption of food and are linked to obesity.
“Other research has found evidence of this in childhood, suggesting that it could be inherited or learned at a very early age.”
He said that there was no evidence yet that trying to slow down mealtimes for children would have an impact on future obesity rates.
I am also guessing that when we were out hunting for our food and gathering our food, we got a lot more exercise than we are getting today, and we burned more calories. We drank coffee black, without 1,000 hidden calories from flavorings and whipped cream. We walked, instead of jumping in our cars. . . Spent less time sitting at our computers, and more time moving around.
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