Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Over the past week, I watched one TV program after the other discussing the same subject. Upper middle class Egyptians giving their life savings to a person to invest it for them, then (naturally) this person disappears with their money. Different swindlers, different "victims", but same style, same strategy, and the same end result.

The victims' stories had the following in common:

• All perpetrators promised/gave unbelievable interest rates that are not possible even in illegal trades (drugs, arms, money laundry,.. - I sound like I am expert on the subject!!!)
• All perpetrators were closely acquainted with a"STAR" of the society (politician's son, artist, soccer player, ..) who (willingly or not) provided him with a halo of trust & respect
  
• Some victims claimed that they did not ask (actually did not care) how this "investor" made such profits
• Others chose to believe the fairy tales they were told about smuggling cell phones, or any other product (which they knew was illegal)
• They all trusted the perpetrator because they saw wise (professors & bankers) or powerful (police & army officers) members of the community dealing with him
• They all invested obscene amounts of money that I was surprised they had in the first place, and even sold their cars and apartments to give the swindler as much money as possible (ranging from 100,000 to several millions of pounds)
• Most of them made the mistake of asking the swindler to invest any interest they made (no wonder he was able to promise such high interest rates!!!)
• None of the victims showed any remorse or regret for their ungratefulness & thanklessness for what the initially had and unashamedly admitted that they fell for the scam because they envied others who were bragging about their high-return investment

From all the above, I declare that I don't sympathize with any of those "victims". They were not the victims of those scoundrels, but rather victims of their own greed. They are criminals cause they willingly investing in an illegal trade and they are idiots to fall for the same scam that swept Egypt back in the 90s.

When will so many Egyptians learn from history and previous mistakes?
When will so many Egyptians learn to only enjoy money that they actually worked and toiled for??
When will so many Egyptians stop leading this double life ??? One of a devoted religious & pious person on the outside, and another of a lazy greedy money-worshiper????

As for the "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" who are now leading splendid lives abroad, enjoy while you can. Money will buy you a lot of comforts. But never love or happiness.

Ahdaf Soueif

About seven years ago, an American colleague of my husband asked me if I knew of an Egyptian novelist by the name Ahdaf Soueif. Filled with confidence (why is it that the more ignorant one is, the more confident one feels?) I replied: "This does not sound like an Egyptian name, I think you made a mistake." Since Jan had read Ahdaf's books, she insisted that Ahdaf was Egyptian. A quick Google search exposed my ignorance. I would have loved to cover the ignorance, by saying that the problem was the khawaga pronunciation of the name, but Jan is fluent in Arabic.

I never expected this incident to be a turning point in my life, but it definitely was. I read In the Eye of the Sun and it deeply touched me. I never identified with a character in a novel as I did with Asya. I then read her two books of short stories, Aisha & Sandpiper, and her second novel The Map of Love. I loved each one of them and wanted more. So I read all her articles that were available on the internet, then I reread In the Eye of the Sun, yes each and every word on the 800+ pages. I later read Mezzaterra & her translation of Murid Barghouti's I saw Ramallah & still wanted more.

By that time, I became confident that I have found my favorite novelist, and in spite of Margret Atwood's quote mentioned in this blog, I wanted to meet or at least know more about the person behind the pages. I emailed her. I remember that the question I sent her was very stupid, so I was truly surprised when she replied and her reply was sweet, humble, and graceful.

Ahdaf, who is a renowned and celebrated novelist in the west, could have easily gained more money and fame had she not chosen to embrace a brave stance on two issues:

• She recognized that Arab women writers' text is liable to misuse, and more so her own text since she writes in English, so she avoided controversial issues or discussed them with a sensitivity and an honesty that avert any misuse or misinterpretation.
• She repeatedly reflected her political beliefs in her work without any consideration to the expected aggression and assault of the Zionist machine and its supporters in the west. This stance might have cost her the Booker prize, but her reply was to intensify her activist work. Although she might have preferred to concentrate more on writing novels, after the death of her friend Edward Said, she did not hesitate in carrying the banner of the Palestinian cause.
  

Dear Ahdaf,

Thank you for your work, and for giving me an Egyptian role model I respect and love.
Thank you for helping me become a better, and less apathetic person.
Thank you for introducing me to the wonderful world of Arab Women Writers.
Thank you for introducing me to the thought and work of the great Edward Said.
Thank you for bettering my sense of humor. My kids say that in the past couple of years, my jokes have gone from K.G. level to second grade, or even third grade level on some days.

your biggest fan,
nahoul

Check Ahdaf Soueif's site at: ahdafsoueif.com

Silent no More

Borrowing the title of an excellent book by Paul Findley, these two disturbing news items from Saudi & Egypt:
Rape victim sentenced to 200 lashes and six months in jail
Tax Collectors Threaten Hunger Strike

have now changed to:
Saudi king 'pardons rape victim'
Egypt tax workers end protest

because the victims chose to be "Silent No More".

Mabrouk & Solidarity.

Frequently Asked Questions:

1. Why did you choose the "Born Again Egyptian" title?
The first thing that comes to mind (after the very tempting "none of your business" reply) is that I did lose my Egyptian soul for a number of years. Thanks to the writings of several Egyptian and Arab intellectuals, and to my dear daughter noona, I found it, and I vow never to let go again.

2. What other FAQ did you receive?

That's it. To be honest with you, I did not even receive the previous question. I just made it up.

3. Then why did you start a list in the first place?

Your guess is as good as mine.