Friday middle eastern pop star blogging- an addendum

in his December 9th post "The Saudis and Fox"(i.e. Rupert Murdoch), Abu Aardvark discusses the middle eastern cheesecake phenomenon, attributing it to globalization, albeit of an indirect sort. I don't know. Most middle eastern countries' upper classes are usually more westernized, at least in terms of the expression of their tastes, than the rest of their societies, which is one of the reasons Islamic fundamentalism is a fire so easily stoked in some quarters, the westernization being associated with the haves, as opposed to the dirt floor and no electricity have-nots. Maybe the only hope for a sane and pluralistic 21st century Islamic world is the law of unintended consequences, wherein the evils of Western exploitation become tagged as a George W. Bush thing, rather than due to westernization, per se.

(Abu also beats me to the punch with a Nancy Ajram picture.)


from Magharebia.com