campus may 2012 by Campus Magazine

Dedicated To The Daily News Egypt

THE FIGHT: WHO’S IN AND WHO’S BEEN KNOCKED OUT?

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IN THIS ISSUE

Feature 10 The Curious Case Of Abo Elfotouh 13 Strategic Vision For Egypt Underscore 20 Sexual (Dis)Orientation 22 The Al Sauds 24 On Voting 26 Marriage: What Tant Tafeeda Didn’t Tell You Center Stage 28 Amr Moussa: The Fictional Interview That Never Took Place Opinionated 30 Summer In Sa7el: Attack of The Toothpick Clones 32 Russian Roulette: The Sad State Of Science In Today’s World 34 For Whom The (Wedding) Bell Tolls 36 Eye Candy Campus Quiz 38 Are You Te2eel Or Faseel? The Gay Section 42 How To Screw Up Any Relationship By Being Ridiculously Insecure

2 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

Patterns 44 Trends 46 Fashion Bulletin 48 Edith Head: The Most Influential Costume Designer Hollywood’s Ever Known 50 Yasmine Said: A Hot New Designer Is On The Block! The Green Passport 54 Lebanon Shelves, Screens and Speakers 56 Interview: Youssra El Hawary Balls 62: Mahmoud Hassan: Cairo Jazz Club Bouncer By Night, World-Class Champ By Day

Chairman Shady Sherif

Editor-in-Chief Louis Greiss

Creative Director Leila Tapozada

Editors

Wessam Sherif Yasmine Zohdi

Junior Editor

Youssef Saad Eldin

Business Development Ismaeel Khoudeir

Senior Media Executive Zeina El Alfy

Media Executive Ghada Zayed

Financial Manager Ehab A. Aziz

Chief Accountant Sherif El Haggar

Accountant

MAY 2012 MARCH 2012

Ahmed Serag

Office Manager Sylvia Peter

Office Assistants Ibrahim Mansour Mohamed Eid

IT Manager Ahmed Saher

Production Executive Manager Sherif Mahmoud Mahmoud El Araby

Distribution Manager Shazly Eid

Distribution

Abdelhamed Fathy Ashraf Ramadan Gamal Moustafa Ramy Afifi Ragab Fathy Aly Afifi Aly Fawzy Waleed Gilani Abdel Aziz Abdel Rahman Mahmoud Samir

Art Director Ahmed Saad

Graphic Designers Bassem Raafat Muhammed Abdelaal

Writers & Contributors Dr. Adel Youssry Khedr Adham Abdel Salam Amy Quotb Chalaine Chang Hend Ghorab Mariam Abdel Gaber May Kamel Menna Tarek Salma Elmasry Sherif Elmashad

Sherif Elmashad Cover Credits

Muhammed Abd Elaal

CTP & Printing

Sahara Printing Company

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Heliopolis

69, Adidas (El-Marghany), Africana Café, C&CO (Horreyya St- El Korba), Belino Café, Blueberry (Ard El Golf ), Beano's Café (British Council – El Korba – Airport – British University), Charleston Café, Cortigiano, Café Mo, Cairo International Airport, Coffee Roastery, Colors, Cat, Diwan Bookstore, Diadora, Desire, Every Man’s Bookstore, Farah Café , Flower Market, G Live, Genga Café, Gelateria Roma Café, Harris Café, Gallery Bel3araby (El Nozha St.), House Café , Hope Flowers, Hot Pink, In Flower, Hyper Original, Khodier, Rosso Cafe, IIPennello Ceramic Café, Kan Zaman Restaurant, Le Rince, Linea, La Cassetta Retaurants, Makani, McDonalds, Mobil Mart, Mori Sushi (Salah Salem), Milk, Musicana (El Korba), Munchies Café, No Name, Nuts @ Nuts, Occo, One 4 all, Polka Dolka, Pottery Café, Schatz Café, Smart Gym (Sheraton & Ard El Golf), Roma Café, Shell Mart, Salah Beauty Salon, STR8, Spicy, Style Gym, Tres Bon, Up 2 Date, Viking Cafe, World Gym, Waffle Point, Zein, L’Aubergine

Nasr City

Adidas(Genina mall), Aroma Lounge (City Stars), Beano's Café (City stars – Makram Ebeid – Abbas El Akkad), Beka, Calvin Klein Jeans (City Stars), Casper & Gambini's, C&Co (City Stars – Geneina Mall), Esprit (City Stars), Farah Café (Geneina Mall), Le Gourment Marche, Kenouz Restaurant, ISI (City Stars), Martino, McDonalds (Abbas el Akkad), Musica (Abbas el Akkad), My Day Cafe, Pascucci Café, Ravin, Spicy (City Center - Geneina Mall) ,Virgin Megastore

Mohandiseen

Adidas/Timberland (Lebanon Street, Gezeeret Al Arab Street), Beano's Café (Gameat El Dowal Street), Beau Jardin Café, Bershka (Gezeeret Al Arab Street), Café Mo, Cedars café , C& Co, Café Bean (Aswan Sq.), Cocolina (Syria Street), Ciccio Café, Cilantro, Mohamed El Sagheer, Cocolina, Dar Al Balsam Bookstore, Diwan, Eventya Flowers, Laguna Café, L`Aroma Café, Makani, Marsh Café, McDonalds, Mori Sushi, Multi Stores, Non Bookstore, Pasqua Café, Quick24, Renaissance Library, Safari Café, Samia Alouba, Silviana Heach, Solitaire Café, Shoe Room, Scoop Café, Second Cup, Spectra, Spicy, Sports Café, Tommy Hilfiger, Toy Story, Trianon Café, Tornado Café, Volume One, Zarina, Zee Lounge, P 75, Al Dar, Café De Fiori

Downtown & Mokattam

AUC Bookstore, Beano's Café, Beymen, Cilantro, Maktabet El Balad, McDonalds (Tahrir), Balady

Dokki

Ahl Cairo, Adidas, Beano's Café (British Council), Coffee Roastery, Dar Al Balsam Bookstore, Mr. Joe, Makani, Korista Café, Momento, La Boutique, Orange, Quick24, Retro, Spicy, Tabasco, Zein, Zarina

Zamalek

Al Akhbar Bookstore, Arabica, Beano's Café, Coffee Bean, Cilantro, Cocolina, Crave, Diwan Bookstore, Euro Deli, FDA, 69, Gardenia Flowers, Goal, Googan Bookstore, Kodak Express, L'Aubergine, Makani, Mezza Luna, Mobil Mart, Mohamed El Sagheer, Mori Sushi, Munchies, Orangette, Tabasco, Quick 24, Ravin’, Romancia Bookshop, Sequoia, WIF, Zamalek Bookshop, Van Gogh Bookshop, Zafir

Maadi

Adidas, Adam Bookstore, Arthur Murray, Bakier Stationary, Bander Café, Beanos, Beau Jardin, Books & Books, Beta Bookshop, Bookspot, Caj, Euro Deli, Cat, Condetti, Chilis, Coffee Roastery, Gengra Café, Greco, Costa Coffee, El Shader, Dunes Lounge, Ghazala Stationary, Green Mill, Gudy, Kotob Khan, Kiwi, Honest Bookshop , I Spot , La Gourmandise, Makani, McDonalds, Mediterraneo Restaurants, Reebok, Renaissance Library, Rigoletto, Samia Alouba, Second Cup, Shell Shop, Shoe Room, Spectra,The Bakery, Timberland, Volume One

October City

Beano's, Byblos Café (Dandy Mall), Café Mo, McDonalds, Mexicana Café, Mori Sushi (Dandy Mall), Second Cup, Shell Shop, Solitaire, Sans Soucis Café, Trianon

El Rehab & Fifth Settlment

Food Court (Le Reve Grand Café, Jounich Café, Gauchos Café, Mercato Italiano), AUC Bookstore

Giza & Haram

Beano's, Dar El Shorouk, Mexicana Café, Polo Shop

Alexandria

24Seven Café, Adidas & Timberland (Syria st, - City Center), Banna Stationary, 24/7 Café, Adidas/Timberland, Banna Stationary, Beano's, Cillomo Café, C&CO, Cilantro, Coffee Roastery, Deekom, Mazaya, McDonalds, Quiksilver, The Sixties Café, Tamarin Center, Rapo

Tanta

Axon, Pizza Station, La Plato Café

EDITOR’S NOTE

Dear Mr. Dogg, I hope this finds you well. Let it be known that I’m not a fan of your music nor do I have the slightest appreciation for the entire genre to which you belong. Nevertheless, seeing that you do have a wide fanbase and that a lot of people like your music, I feel obligated to deliver this message to you:

STAY THE FU*K AWAY FROM TAMER HOSNY! Unfortunately, even though I capitalized the ENTIRE past sentence, I know it won’t be enough to derail you from this imminent, dumb decision. Accordingly, I have backed it up with a number of extremely convincing reasons: • Tamer Hosny is a hairy, older version of Justin Bieber. So, his fans are also like Bieber’s fans. aka “beliebers”. • Although this should be easily deducible to you, I’ll say it anyway: he sucks a*s. • He’ll force you to say how awesome he is on tape. • He’ll probably refer to you as “Abu Snoob”. Ask Shaggy, he’s been in trauma ever since. • Tamer is NOT your gateway to Middle East stardom, quite the opposite. Trust me. • He’ll gay up your music. • “Lavinjoy Enhabbiness” doesn’t go with “Drop it like it’s hot”. • You just had a holographic encounter with Tupac, man. Have you no shame? • I’m pretty certain you’re in no need for that extra cash. Shaggy’s been having a bad few years, so it’s understandable why he’d go for cheap, easy money. As for you, sir, there is not one justification. • You’re too old for this crap. In the end, I do hope that you take my plea seriously and make the right decision. Peace out,

4 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

SECTION NOTE EDITOR’S

The Art of Deviation

I always thought 2011 was going to be the year during which I would quit my job and spend some time abroad; working or studying, and challenging myself in the process. I had felt it was time for me to leave my comfort zone and be exposed to experiences completely unfamiliar to me. But then January 25th happened, and I decided the time was not right to leave. I chose to stay, and what I experienced, I am sure, is more enriching than anything that I could have gone through anywhere else.

IF THERE’S ONE THING I DO WELL, IT’S PLANNING. I ALWAYS PLAN. I MAKE PLANS FOR MYSELF, DOWN TO THE TINIEST DETAILS… WHERE I WANT TO BE IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS – AND WHAT I WANT TO BE DOING EACH YEAR UNTIL THEN, HOW I’LL SPEND MY DAY – INCLUDING WHEN I WILL HAVE LUNCH AND WHAT I WILL WATCH AS I EAT, WHAT I’LL WEAR TO WORK TOMORROW – FROM MY TOP TO MY SOCKS. And the result is always a disappointed me, with plans either abandoned or half-completed; never totally fulfilled. And it’s not worth it. You see, the thing is, when I look back, I realize that the best things that ever happened to me were not really a result of planning at all. In fact, my plans never even included them. I had always planned to study journalism, for instance - but a twist of fate led me to political science. And what I studied about the world - its history, its nations and peoples, the ties that bring them together and the forces that separate them -shaped me; made me who I am, helped me figure myself out, and find a voice that later found its way to my writing. I also came to know that I am in fact passionate about writing in itself - as a process, an art, a state of mind - rather than journalism as a profession. I never intended to accompany my American researcher friend on her field visit to Gayyara – one of Cairo’s poorest, most marginalized slum areas - that spring day in 2010. But her translator had bailed on her and she needed someone to help, so I deserted my plans for the day and accompanied her. I was moved, enlightened… and I wrote what was to be my first published article. It came out in Campus, and was one of the reasons why I later became a full-time editor, as I have been for the past two years.

6 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

As I write this note, I am in Beirut. I came here with a couple of friends and four pages full of plans: places we should visit, monuments we should see, restaurants we should eat at. Each thing we do, we check off the list. Most items remain unchecked, though. We haven’t gone to Baalbek nor have we spent a night out in Music Hall or seen Rafiq Al-Hariri’s shrine. We improvised instead… and ended up climbing a mountain of snow with an old wood carver who used to be friends with Abdel Wahab and showed us the very spot where he used to relax with his ‘Oud whenever he came to Lebanon in the 1960s, having ‘argileh’ (shisha) at 3 am with a Shiite from the South who told us unbelievable stories about the sectarianism tearing the country and its people apart, and - in the beautiful little town of Bsharri - stumbling into the house where Gibran Khalil Gibran – a man I find infinitely inspiring – was born. There’s nothing wrong with planning. But it becomes a problem when you spend more time planning your life than actually living it. Your plan is not some sort of holy rule that you’re obliged to abide by. Your plan is meant to be an expression of your dreams and desires, but never a frame that restricts or contains you. Deviate, explore, discover. You might – actually, you will – screw up at some point. But there’s always the option of making a new plan, right? And you don’t really have to stick to that one either. “Run from what’s comfortable. Forget safety. Live where you fear to live… I have tried prudent planning long enough. From now on I’ll be mad.” – Jalal Al-Din Rumi

] FEATURE ]

The Curious Case of Abo Elfotouh

A Brotherhood conspirator

or a “liberal Islamist”? By Youssef Saad Eldin

For everyone, regardless of his/her political orientation, this past year has been nothing but a series of bad news. Events like the Maspero massacre, Mohamed Mahmoud, the Cabinet events and the Port Said massacre were considered by everyone as catastrophic to say the least, unless you are the spawn of Satan. The first piece of good news I had heard in a while was the exclusion of several influential “evil candidates” from the presidential race. As far as revolutionaries were concerned, “the good candidates” were Abo Elfotouh, Hamdeen Sabahy and Khaled Ali and the “evil candidates” were El Shater, Omar Suleiman, Ahmed Shafik and Abou Ismail. However you don’t have to be perceptive to notice the recent change

10 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

in attitude of some people towards Abo Elfotouh. This change of heart made me ask myself a question I should’ve asked a long time ago…. What the hell is going on? Let’s get something straight, I’m not an Abo Elfotouh supporter and I’m not planning on giving him my vote. As a matter of fact the purpose of this article is not to defend him but to simply separate fact from fiction when it comes to the accusations being heaved towards him.

An Ex- Brotherhood member Everybody knows that Abo Elfotouh was not only a member of the

Brotherhood, he was also –as of 1987– a member of the Guidance Bureau; the MB’s highest executive body. In 2009, however, Abo Elfotouh failed to keep his place in the Guidance Bureau. He claims that it was his decision to resign, whereas other sources suggest that he was “removed” as a result of an internal coup led by the conservatives (El Shater and the likes) against the reformists within the MB. Everybody also knows that he didn’t exactly resign from the MB; he was more of expelled, to be precise. Abo Elfotouh was expelled because he went against the MB’s decision and announced that he will run for presidency. Needless to say, at that time, the MB has announced on more than one occasion that they will not push for a candidate in the presidential elections. The man also has a history to be proud of, having a career in the Arabs Doctors Union and several other relief organizations enabled him contribute to several relief missions. However this didn’t save him from the recent outburst against him by “liberal voters”.

As of the mid 1980s, Abo Elfotouh’s reformist bloc received several blows from the conservative bloc, yet chose to remain silent, whereas other reformists criticized the MB’s leadership. In some of those cases, figures like Essam Soltan submitted their resignation from the Brotherhood. This would mean one of two things: Abo Elfotouh was either too loyal to the MB or too… spineless. The fact is, the only time Abo Elfotouh went out of his way and clearly opposed the MB’s leadership was when it came down to his ambition of running for presidency. And even then, I doubt that he made that move for the country’s best interest, but to be sure that he wasn’t the MB’s number one presidential candidate! Last but not least and according to my Facebook homepage, most of the “Abo Elfotouh supporters” I know were originally Baradie supporters. When Baradie foresaw what’s going to happen and threw in the towel, those people saw Abo Elfotouh as their next best choice. In my opinion, those supporters are the ones who portrayed Abo Elfotouh as a liberal; before that, he was just the “relatively moderate Islamist” who quit the MB to run for presidency.

The conspiracist strikes again The million dollar question One of the most prominent accusations –which is more of a conspiracy theory– is that Abo Elfotouh is, and has always been the Muslim Brotherhood’s secret candidate for presidency! Let’s be rational, you have to understand that whatever you and your social network take for granted, is not taken for granted by the rest of voters. For example, I didn’t vote for the MB in the parliamentary elections and pretty much everyone I know didn’t too, but the MB won more than 40% of the seats. If you think of the MB as an evil twisted political force then you have to understand that the majority of the voting population may not necessarily agree with you. Point is, the MB will not take the deceptive approach by secretly backing up Abo Elfotouh in order to trick the minority –including you– to vote for him. If they do so, they will be marginalizing the majority that would gladly vote for him if they knew he was the Brotherhood’s candidate. In simpler words, the past year has shown that things are not as complicated as we think; whoever is in control doesn’t need to think that far ahead.

If Abo Elfotouh is not our man, who is? I don’t think anyone has the answer to that, and most probably, “the man” does not exist. But the fact remains: last year has proved that he who claims to have an understanding of what’s going on is probably delusional. Perhaps I’m wrong about Abo Elfotouh and maybe he’s even worse than I think he is. At the end of the day, what matters the most is that you vote for someone out of conviction, even if this conviction is based on the choosing the “lesser of two evils”. Being a sheep though and voting for someone because he’s the general preference is the real mistake. C

Something’s off Why wouldn’t I vote for Abo Elfotouh if I don’t believe in the “secret Brotherhood agent” theory? Well for starters, being a reformist in a pretty conservative society doesn’t make you a liberal, it just makes you the lesser of two evils. Despite the fact that Abo Elfotouh is considered a liberal when compared to Salafis and the “Old Guard” who currently control the MB, he still is a conservative and an Islamist! When someone is being labeled as a liberal Islamist, don’t let the word “liberal” distract you from the “Islamist” part! It is noteworthy that during the early 1970s, Abo Elfotouh adopted a much more conservative understanding of Islam, one that is pretty similar to the Salafi dogma. Newsflash: a liberal Islamist is not synonymous to a liberal Muslim! Liberal Muslims strongly oppose the replacement of civil law with Sharee’a Law while Islamists believe that Sharee’a Law should prevail. A liberal Islamist, such as Abo Elfotouh, believes that Sharee’a law should be implemented, but “claims” that it should not be forced on people and should come by choice. The problem is that if both the parliament and president are of an Islamic background, it will only be a matter of time before the population is brainwashed (through education and media) into believing that Sharee’a should prevail.

Strategic Vision for

Egypt 2012-2035 CAMPUS IN-DEPTH REPORT

13 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

Nationalism: We got that all wrong. First we got rid of foreigners living in Egypt and celebrated that. What we really did then was to close our windows on the world. Then we started to reinvent the wheel in all our decisions. No one wants the foreigners to rule, but why not use them to solve our problems (best practice). We have an unexposed isolated society who is living in medieval ideas and lifestyles and does not easily accept anyone who is not like them. Religions are not for countries, they are for individuals. Being religious is a great thing because it ensures that people are honest and virtuous. But it also ensures that they are hard workers and disciplined. Willingness to learn from others and applying latest technologies and best practices are in no contradiction with our religion. So let us be 21st century citizens who want to really progress with their beloved country. That is nationalism. Absence of meritocracy: It is who you know, and not what you know, or can do or have achieved, that would make you progress and have more impact and accountability in Egypt. Achievers in charge became the exception when it should have been the standard rule. Brilliant achievers either fled out (the great brain drain) or worked privately and were never noticed nor recognized until they were merited internationally. We were very happy to hire our relatives and friends in all positions, with very poor performance results. As long as there is no scoring system and results thoroughly questioned, we

shall continue on the same path. How can results be questioned when clear objectives have not been set, agreed upon and mandated? Yes there are no jobs but contractor agreements that are set for every job holder, stating what is expected of him. Again these objectives were never clear because whatever plans we set were not based on a clear strategic vision (a final destination). Amazingly, and for so long, Egyptians never selected anyone to be in charge, nor heard of his performance nor had a proper scale/reference to question his performance. Population: Are we so proud to be so fertile? Germany, France and the UK were 50 to 60 million people when Egypt’s population was only 20 million in the fifties. They are still 50 to 60 million while Egypt has grown to reach 90 million people in the last half century. Following the math, Egypt should hit the 1 billion people mark by 2100. A very bad target, probably we will starve before that. No religion would advocate country suicide. We have to be very strict about birth control. Inflation: Very difficult to find another big country case which faced what one Egyptian generation has witnessed in their lifetime. The prices of most goods and services have forever increased to 100 fold (10,000%) in the last 50+ years. This was mostly related to population growth and weak economic performance. The rulers borrowed (government debts today exceeds LE 1 trillion) to quote ‘protect the limited income groups’ through subsidies, artificial pricing, disguised employment, with less resources to improve life and productivity. The people either migrated to Cairo (which became congested), or the Gulf, or had to compromise and live miserably. Naturally many got corrupted. Who can afford that for another 10 or 20 years? It is a frightening thought.

FEATURE

annualÊ tradeÊ exchange.Ê EuropeÊ andÊ AsiaÊ shouldÊ provideÊ EgyptÊ withÊ theÊ necessaryÊ supportÊ toÊ embarkÊ onÊ suchÊ aÊ massiveÊ plan,Ê asÊ itÊ isÊ beneficial for them (win-win situation).

The Mission Statement WeÊ reallyÊ neverÊ hadÊ aÊ strategicÊ visionÊ andÊ naturallyÊ neverÊ hadÊ effectiveÊ plans with measurable objectives. Whoever comes to office should workÊ toÊ achieveÊ that.Ê LetÊ usÊ allÊ agreeÊ thatÊ weÊ haveÊ toÊ paintÊ aÊ pictureÊ ofÊ whereÊ weÊ areÊ today,Ê andÊ anotherÊ pictureÊ asÊ toÊ howÊ weÊ wantÊ seeÊ EgyptÊ in say 20 to 50 years (the final picture) and get that to receive national recognitionÊ andÊ consensus.Ê SoÊ whoeverÊ rulesÊ isÊ thereÊ toÊ achieveÊ theÊ plansÊ thatÊ wouldÊ leadÊ toÊ thatÊ visionÊ andÊ theÊ peopleÊ canÊ knowÊ ifÊ heÊ isÊ movingÊ closerÊ toÊ orÊ furtherÊ awayÊ fromÊ thatÊ vision.Ê AreÊ weÊ on-courseÊ orÊ off-course?Ê IÊ amÊ offeringÊ oneÊ picture. EgyptÕ sÊ GDPÊ shouldÊ reachÊ $1,500Ê billionÊ toÊ becomeÊ theÊ 20thÊ largestÊ economy in the world by 2035 (average annual growth rate of 8%.) Today,Ê itÊ hasÊ aÊ GDPÊ ofÊ aboutÊ $Ê 230Ê billion,Ê andÊ ranksÊ 40th.Ê PopulationÊ growthÊ shouldÊ beÊ curbedÊ toÊ 1%Ê annuallyÊ henceÊ reachingÊ 140Ê toÊ 150Ê millionÊ peopleÊ byÊ 2035Ê leadingÊ toÊ aÊ healthyÊ perÊ capitaÊ incomeÊ ofÊ aboutÊ $10,000.

WeÊ shallÊ notÊ ignoreÊ allÊ possibilitiesÊ toÊ furtherÊ exploitÊ theirÊ massiveÊ presenceÊ inÊ EgyptÊ throughÊ numerousÊ derivativeÊ projects.Ê WeÊ shallÊ NOTÊ sellÊ ourÊ land.Ê WeÊ shallÊ offerÊ itÊ forÊ useÊ (lease,Ê BOT,Ê PPP,Ê concessionsÊ orÊ any other forms of exploitation). These logistics development projects willÊ beÊ largelyÊ awayÊ fromÊ allÊ congestedÊ areas,Ê eventuallyÊ creatingÊ newÊ citiesÊ andÊ millionsÊ ofÊ jobÊ opportunities.Ê ThatÊ desertÊ roadÊ networkÊ (primarily to move merchandise between the ports), should extend 600Ê toÊ 800Ê kilometers.Ê ItÊ willÊ resultÊ inÊ atÊ leastÊ 50Ê kilometersÊ bandÊ widthÊ forÊ developmentÊ ofÊ infrastructuralÊ andÊ super-structuralÊ projectsÊ overÊ 30,000Ê toÊ 40,000Ê squareÊ kilometers.Ê ThereÊ shallÊ beÊ hundredsÊ ofÊ billionsÊ ofÊ dollarsÊ inÊ newÊ investmentÊ opportunities,Ê andÊ millionsÊ ofÊ newÊ jobsÊ createdÊ andÊ aÊ massiveÊ releaseÊ ofÊ populationÊ pressuresÊ onÊ CairoÊ andÊ DeltaÊ (15Ê yearsÊ forÊ developingÊ theÊ networkÊ ofÊ desertÊ roadsÊ andÊ the ports). EgyptÊ shallÊ referÊ toÊ internationalÊ practicesÊ forÊ itsÊ tariffsÊ andÊ forÊ pricingÊ itsÊ services.Ê ItÊ SHALLÊ NOTÊ levyÊ taxesÊ andÊ dutiesÊ unnecessarilyÊ norÊ shallÊ itÊ threatenÊ theÊ conceptÊ ofÊ freeÊ trade.Ê NationalÊ SecurityÊ considerationsÊ shallÊ naturallyÊ beÊ inÊ fullÊ effectÊ (smuggling,Ê weapons,Ê drugs, illegal items and environmentally unfriendly products). Ê The River Nile & Sudan We have never seriously attempted to open-up the river Nile for traffic, atÊ leastÊ betweenÊ EgyptÊ andÊ Sudan.Ê EgyptÊ andÊ SudanÊ shareÊ aÊ longÊ historyÊ ofÊ friendshipÊ andÊ cooperation.Ê IfÊ weÊ everÊ wantÊ toÊ becomeÊ oneÊ day self-sufficient on food and even an exporter, we should strengthen our complementation with Sudan (and other river Nile countries). Open-up the river for traffic, establish a road network between the twoÊ countries,Ê buy/leaseÊ andÊ cultivateÊ partÊ ofÊ theÊ 200Ê millionÊ acresÊ ofÊ fertileÊ landÊ there,Ê investÊ inÊ andÊ helpÊ startÊ allÊ kindsÊ ofÊ projectsÊ toÊ helpÊ developÊ ourÊ neighborsÊ andÊ brothersÊ inÊ Sudan.Ê WeÊ shouldÊ cancelÊ allÊ kinds of economic or social barriers and allow for free flow of people, goodsÊ andÊ services.Ê WeÊ shouldÊ targetÊ forÊ anÊ EconomicÊ UnionÊ withÊ Sudan (10 years).

HowÊ canÊ thisÊ becomeÊ achievable?Ê WeÊ haveÊ toÊ maximizeÊ theÊ returnÊ onÊ ourÊ assets.Ê NotÊ justÊ anyÊ assets,Ê theÊ assetsÊ whereÊ weÊ haveÊ aÊ fullÊ competitiveÊ advantage.Ê NaturallyÊ weÊ shallÊ continueÊ toÊ utilizeÊ allÊ ofÊ ourÊ otherÊ assets,Ê andÊ perhapsÊ workÊ onÊ beingÊ moreÊ productiveÊ andÊ efficient about it. OurÊ uniqueÊ assetsÊ whereÊ weÊ haveÊ aÊ fullÊ andÊ uncontestedÊ competitiveÊ advantageÊ are: The Miracle Geographical Location ThisÊ isÊ GodÕ sÊ giftÊ toÊ theÊ peopleÊ ofÊ Egypt.Ê Unfortunately,Ê itÊ hasÊ beenÊ ignored and marginally exploited (the Suez Canal). Egypt is the uniqueÊ centerÊ pieceÊ ofÊ theÊ world.Ê EuropeÊ andÊ AsiaÊ (60%Ê ofÊ theÊ worldÊ GDP) international trade, is by definition, passing through Egypt. EgyptÊ isÊ alsoÊ theÊ gatewayÊ toÊ AfricaÊ andÊ inÊ theÊ centerÊ ofÊ theÊ MiddleÊ East.Ê EgyptÊ hasÊ beenÊ repeatedlyÊ invadedÊ andÊ occupiedÊ throughoutÊ historyÊ forÊ thatÊ reason.Ê EgyptÕ sÊ developmentÊ plansÊ shouldÊ focusÊ onÊ logisticsÊ toÊ economicallyÊ exploitÊ thisÊ uniqueÊ geographicalÊ position. WeÊ shouldÊ focusÊ onÊ developingÊ moreÊ ports,Ê roadÊ networksÊ andÊ soÊ on,Ê primarilyÊ connectingÊ theÊ MediterraneanÊ withÊ theÊ RedÊ SeaÊ viaÊ ourÊ ignoredÊ desert.Ê Automatically,Ê newÊ vastÊ areasÊ ofÊ landÊ initiallyÊ dedicated to logistics (warehousing, packaging) will emerge. There areÊ numerousÊ timeÊ andÊ economicÊ savingsÊ forÊ bothÊ EuropeÊ andÊ AsiaÊ toÊ useÊ EgyptÊ asÊ theirÊ primaryÊ hubÊ forÊ theirÊ multi-trillionÊ dollarÊ

16 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

The Land of the Pharaohs WeÊ haveÊ theÊ largestÊ archeologicalÊ reserveÊ inÊ theÊ world.Ê HowÊ muchÊ ofÊ thatÊ isÊ exhibitedÊ andÊ forÊ whatÊ price.Ê HowÊ wellÊ hasÊ thisÊ treasureÊ beenÊ packagedÊ (advertisements,Ê documentariesÊ andÊ soÊ on).Ê WeÊ shallÊ NOTÊ SELL our treasures but can definitely rent it out for limited times (1 to 3 years) to countries to exhibit for their people who cannot visit Egypt, but might after seeing it. There must be thousands of museums andÊ multinationalsÊ whoÊ wouldÊ likeÊ toÊ exhibitÊ aÊ sampleÊ ofÊ ourÊ nationalÊ treasuresÊ andÊ willÊ competeÊ inÊ auctionsÊ toÊ haveÊ theÊ honor.Ê CannotÊ quantify the revenues but it will be in billions of dollars every year (2 years). Requirements for Success ThisÊ couldÊ beÊ anÊ acceptableÊ visionÊ toÊ startÊ planningÊ for.Ê WeÊ haveÊ to realize that to get there we need to observe many things, some importantÊ onesÊ are: Egypt’s Identity: We are Egyptians who have always been recognized and admired by the world as such, not because of being part of the MiddleÊ East,Ê AfricaÊ orÊ theÊ MediterraneanÊ andÊ regardlessÊ ofÊ ourÊ religionÊ or otherwise. We are not anything else but Egyptians and we should not attempt to project any other image. Keep our identity intact. We gain respect from the world for that. Egypt is not just a state; it is a country, an important country with a great civilization and culture. There are not so many countries like Egypt in the center of the history books.Ê WeÊ shouldÊ beÊ proudÊ andÊ weÊ shouldÊ showÊ it. Open to the World Policy Egypt should adopt a new Open to the World Policy. We want to accept others regardless of how differently they think or live. We are an active part of today’s world. We shall not isolate ourselves and reinventÊ theÊ wheel.Ê WeÊ shallÊ meltÊ inÊ theÊ potÊ andÊ learnÊ fromÊ theÊ restÊ

ofÊ theÊ world.Ê WeÊ areÊ notÊ theÊ bestÊ butÊ wantÊ toÊ learnÊ fromÊ theÊ best.Ê WeÊ shall learn from other countries’ experiences, adopt modern methods forÊ management,Ê obtainÊ technicalÊ assistanceÊ andÊ support,Ê sendÊ ourÊ childrenÊ toÊ learnÊ andÊ trainÊ abroad,Ê attractÊ experts,Ê technocrats,Ê writers, artists, artisans and many others to come and visit/live with us in peace. We want to learn from them. We want Egypt to become a centerÊ forÊ crossÊ culturesÊ again.Ê WeÊ shallÊ NOTÊ differentiateÊ betweenÊ anÊ Egyptian and a foreigner.

WeÊ shouldÊ attractÊ internationalÊ expertiseÊ toÊ adviseÊ onÊ andÊ helpÊ restructure our educational system and help implement the new system and content in the coming 5 years.

Human Resources

Red tape can kill all development efforts and should be a top priority for our Parliament and any cabinet to review, assess and restructure. AgainÊ thisÊ effortÊ isÊ requiringÊ bestÊ practicesÊ fromÊ otherÊ countries. C

No more illiteracy in Egypt in 10 years, we should be ashamed. Let us create an incentive system to accelerate fighting illiteracy by institutions. Example: tie judicial sentencing for minor felonies/fines, or grant tax settlement delays, or allow double expensing for tax benefits who ever eradicates illiteracy. It should become a currency of exchange for the private sector. 100% literacy should become a national objective for our Parliament.

Training and HR development should be merited in our tax system to createÊ incentivesÊ forÊ allÊ corporationsÊ toÊ developÊ theirÊ staff. Red Tape

The First Egyptian Online TV Channel!

elgomhoreya tv has launched the first season of the thriller series “El Ma7kama”, which is the FIRST interactive series in the world! “El Ma7kama” allows the viewer to step into the detective’s shoes and try to solve tricky cases. If you manage to crack the case, you’ll be rewarded with points which are exchanged for prizes. But take care though -- you only have 5 chances to watch the case!

How does El Ma7kama work? • Log on to elgomhoreya tv through Twitter, Facebook or through the website itself • Watch the case carefully and look for clues! • Try to solve the case. But remember, you have five chances to watch the case! • HOWEVER, you can increase your chances of winning by sharing the case on Twitter, Facebook or through emails -- share to win big!

E7na Show

One of the most daring Egyptian shows EVER produced! A mixed group of youth discuss the most controversial and important topics in Egyptian society -- a must-see!

Ekhtarna Lak

Ekhtarna Lak is a compilation of the funniest and rarest videos on the internet! Our videos and random themes will have you laughing out loud!

ELGTV Studio

El GTV Studio is all about showcasing the work of talented young Egyptians, with ‘7 Minute Movies’ and ‘El Share3 Yoghany’, which is where the debut of our hit video ‘Matloob Za3eem’ with Cairokee was first released!

www.campus-mag.blogspot.com

Al Saud

SECTION UNDERSCORE

THE DICTATORIAL FAMILY THE WORLD HAS DELIBERATELY TURNED A BLIND EYE ON By Wessam Sherif

IF THERE’S ONE THING THAT REALLY BUGS ME ABOUT US EGYPTIANS, IT’S THE FOREVER-SHOCKED REACTIONS WE SEEM TO HAVE TOWARDS ANY GIVEN INCIDENT, BE IT STRANGE OR COMPLETELY NORMAL OR EXPECTED. WE’RE QUITE THE MELODRAMATIC BUNCH, IF YOU WILL. I STARTED NOTICING THIS PHENOMENON AROUND LATE 2011, WHEN SCAF HAD ALREADY SUNK KNEE-DEEP IN LIES AND THE IKHWAN HAD SHOWN THEIR “TRUE” FACE. NEVERTHELESS, WHENEVER ONE OF THOSE TWO COMMITTED A NEW ACT OF “BETRAYAL TO THE REVOLUTION”, MOST WOULD STILL HAVE THE I-CAN’T-BELIEVE-THEY-DID-THAT REACTION. SADLY ENOUGH, WE’RE STILL REACTING THE SAME WAY UP TO THIS DAY.

That really bugged, I mean really bugged me, until I myself fell victim to it a few days ago. Upon the arrest of El Gizawy for –absurdly enough– “insulting royalty”, I was so infuriated and borderline shocked that I vowed to rip the Al Sauds a new royal a*shole in an article. While I kept my word about writing the article, through research, my fury and surprise faded completely. As you will see, the Al Sauds have always been, and will always be, narcissistic, oppressive, backward-minded and condescending monarchs.

Self-preservation, religion-driven politics 1925 – King Abd Al Aziz Ibn Saud, with the help of the Ikhwan*, regains the land that had been taken from his family by the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century. After his success in bringing the Arab Peninsula under his control once again, the Ikhwan rebelled because they wanted to spread their version of Wahabism beyond the Arab Peninsula. King Abd Al Aziz didn’t like that, and after taking the approval of the “Ulama” he destroys those who helped him regain his lost family’s lost kingdom.

1945 – That was right after WWII and the U.S. was in dire need of a secure supply of oil. Consequently, a deal was struck, by which Saudi Arabia provides a secure supply of oil to the U.S. and in return, the U.S. provides military assistance and training to Saudi Arabia in addition to building the Dhahran American military base. It was called the Oil for Security Pact.

1979 – Saudi Arabia strikes a secret deal with the U.S. by which each contributes an equal amount of money into sponsoring the Afghan war against the “Godless” Soviets. Around 45,000 Saudi volunteers head to Afghanistan where they receive military training, giving birth to Taliban.

1982 – King Fahd finances Sunni Saddam in his war against Shiite Iran, only to regret it two years later when Saddam invades Kuwait and starts eying Saudi oil.

1990 – King Fahd takes the approval of the “Ulama” and half a million American soldiers land on Saudi soil to take part in the Gulf War.

2011 – Fleeing Tunisian president, Ben Ali, finds sanctuary in Saudi Arabia.

22 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

2011 – Saudi Arabia intervenes to crush the Bahraini revolution. It is noteworthy that Bahrain’s population is 70% Shiites, ruled by a Sunni minority. Doing the math here is pretty easy.

Human Rights and Reform 1932 – That’s the year when the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was declared. And to expand the family’s bloodline and keep the kingdom united, King Abd Al Aziz marries a daughter from every tribe, four at a time, accounting to 20 wives in total.

1958 – Prince Talal, one of King Abd Al Aziz’s young sons brings about a movement of reform and manages to draft a new constitution that would have transformed the country into a constitutional monarchy had it not been refused by King Saud, his older brother. Prince Talal was later exiled.

1991– 47 women decide to take to the streets and claim their rights, including the right to drive. They all get arrested by the religious police and the drive ban is reaffirmed.

1992– Saudi Arabia sees its first written constitution, which basically reaffirms Al Saud’s grip on the kingdom.

1994 – Anti-monarchy protests were held in the town of Buraida following the arrest of two Wahabi clerics for anti-government preaching and thousands were arrested by the government.

2010 – Sixteen men were sentenced to 5 to 30 years in prison after trying to establish a Human Rights organization. They were convicted of breaking allegiance to the King. Sound familiar?

2011 – King Abdullah receives wide-scale critique after announcing a $36bn welfare package ahead of protests. The Al Sauds were accused of trying to “bribe the people into quietude” instead of applying tangible reforms.

2011 – In late September, a law was passed that allows women to vote and run for local office but they were still not allowed to drive.

2011 – A woman was sentenced to 10 lashes after being found guilty of driving. The sentence was overturned by King Abdullah.

2012 – Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah Al Sheikh declared that not only was it forbidden to build new churches on the Arab Peninsula, but all the existing ones had to be demolished, because “there are too many”. The statements were met with wide disdain.

Twisting the world’s arm Trust me, that past chronology is only a handpicked bunch of incidents that depict the mentality of the fundamentalist rule this family has engraved in the history of an entire country. Not to mention the heaps and heaps of scandals the Al Saud “Princes” have stirred and the recent Wikileaks of massive financial corruption within the ranks of the family. So, the way they treated El Gizawy was more than expected. It just hit home because we were informed of it -- many Egyptians are subjected to terrible treatment by Saudi Arabia, but we usually never hear of it.

So why is a clearly dictatorial state being treated like the elephant in the room? Simple. Oil. When it comes to international affairs, Saudi Arabia’s got barrels and barrels of oil to cover up for its numerous faux-pas. And the importers (namely the US) are more than happy to play the passive role as long as the juice keeps flowing. Saudi Arabia is almost on equal footing to Israel when it comes to American preferential treatment. That should tell you something. The situation is different when it comes to the Arab region, or more precisely, it should be different now that a mass political upheaval has taken place, which should be accompanied by an economic one. A country like Egypt, for example, relies heavily on its 1.5 million plus labor force in Saudi Arabia, and no strong political stance would ever come about without a strong Egyptian economy vis-à-vis the Saudi one. In conclusion, it is crucial to note that our problem is with Al Saud not Saudi Arabians. Saudi Arabia’s problem is with Al Saud, and we can only hope for their ouster soon.

Did we ever consider voting? No. Because we had absolutely no trust in the government, and there were countless indicators that told us the elections will be rigged. Is the case really any different now? The revolution continues… because the revolution has announced it will bring the regime down, and the regime is still standing. The head of the regime right now is SCAF, and it isn’t the least bit logical that the way to cut off that head would be through elections fully organized, supervised and controlled by it. The optimum solution would be to find an alternative for the current governing power and then hold elections. One day I imagined what would happen if all “revolutionary” presidential candidates were to withdraw from the elections, in an act of protest against its conditions, and a declaration that the power organizing it is illegitimate. And oh, how wonderful it would be, if they could all agree amongst them and announce – firmly and clearly – that they are wholly ready to form an entity (a civil presidential council; call it what you will) ready to rule the country temporarily, until democratic elections are held. No one is ready to revolt now, because in their eyes, in a month or two, elections will be held and a new president will take over and power will be transferred peacefully. If you ask people to take to the streets and bring SCAF down now, they’ll respond by saying they’re leaving in June anyway, so why the rush and the unnecessary hassle? However, if the presidential candidates with enough credibility announce their withdrawal and questioned the integrity of the elections, the people would listen… and eventually wake up. Especially when they see that the only candidates left are a bunch of ex-regime ‘feloul’ or opportunists. constitutional declaration has since then been used to legitimize the barriers SCAF keeps planting in the path of the revolution, and is a main reason why we have been stumbling incessantly ever since. And every time anyone objects, they are met with the same retort: “It’s the constitutional declaration the people have voted for!” As for November’s parliamentary elections, some thought the People’s Assembly would be our way to get rid of SCAF, and that it would become a legitimate arm for the revolution, so they voted. Even those who were heartbroken over the young, brave fighters who had died in Mohamed Mahmoud less than a week earlier voted, so as not to leave parliament to the opportunists who had abandoned the square. Yet the Islamists did take parliament, started its sessions with a “thank you” note to SCAF… and the Parliament came to be used just like the constitutional declaration: every time it stood by and idly watched as SCAF committed its crimes, and sometimes even justified them, it legitimized their atrocities. And, again, every time anyone objected, they were met with: “It’s the parliament the people have voted for!”

If that happened, supporters of each of those candidates would unite on one demand and pressure SCAF to comply: transfer power to that civil entity. All the time and energy and effort spent on working on electoral campaigns would be focused on revolution… revolution as an act; revolution against authority. Legitimacy then would be to the streets – packed with people in protest, not to the elections SCAF is preparing. We would corner them; instead of them cornering us – as they are now. Yes, I know this will never happen, simply, because none of the candidates would even consider such a step. The only candidate who did withdraw – El Baradei – never revealed his reasons clearly enough to uncover SCAF’s plots and deals, and because of this – in addition to his disappearance from the revolutionary scene afterwards – many were disappointed and quite let down by his decision. As for the current candidates, the only sound explanation I find for their willingness to take part in elections with such conditions is that their desire to reach power was stronger than that inner voice urging each of them to do the right thing.

Twice we stood in long queues for hours on end, only to pick a new tool they ended up using to manipulate and control us, to fight us, to fill the road ahead of us with obstacles. Well, I do not want to be screwed over again, not by choice. In March, we were still in the honeymoon period where everyone was drunk on “the army protected the revolution” illusions. In November, our reason was we were “stuck” and “we have to counter the Islamists”… Well, we haven’t revolted so they would repeatedly corner us and coerce us into doing things we’re not entirely convinced with.

However, the idea of forcing SCAF to hand over power is not a mere fantasy. Last November, we were really close to making that happen. Mohamed Mahmoud was the strongest revolutionary wave we had witnessed since February 2011, and the one thing that broke it was the elections and those whose sights were set only on the parliamentary seats they so fiercely desired. People voted, thinking the newly-elected parliament would help with avenging those who had died. And so the electoral committees filled up, as the square gradually emptied… and that’s how elections killed the revolution.

Ever since the beginning of this transitional period, we’ve been moving down a path drawn by SCAF: stops they determine, dates they decide, conditions they dictate. I am no political analyst nor am I extraordinarily intelligent, but it’s only natural that this authority that’s been devising new ways of oppressing us every month during this past year won’t exactly lead us down the road to the revolution’s success. Right?

For the Sake of Being Consistent…

What about the revolution? The revolution doesn’t aim for procedural democracy; the revolution aims for freedom. And this freedom is much bigger than the freedom to pick whose name you’re going to put a tick next to on a piece of paper, then fold this piece of paper and throw it in a glass box. The revolution is radical change, not meaningless processes on the surface while the core remains the same. If elections are the key and the answer to everything, well, there were elections when Mubarak was president!

I know that boycotting – without being a collective stance and a fullblown initiative the majority will adopt – will make no difference. But I do not see this as justification to ignore what my mind and my personal intuition tells me. I might not have the power to affect the general situation, but I have it in my hands to at least be true to myself and act in accordance to my beliefs. Right now, I do not see myself standing in a voting queue, nor do I feel comfortable giving my vote to any of the available candidates. I find no logic that can mentally persuade me that it’s the right thing to vote, and there’s a psychological barrier that makes me unwilling to react to anything the candidates say, and pushes me to reject their cheap presidential campaigns. I can’t find reason to participate when this is how I’m feeling… and, above all, I don’t see the point of chanting “Yasqot 7okm el 3askar” for a year if I’m going to take part in their joke of an election and allow them to make a fool of me, yet again.

Marriage:

What Tant Tafeeda Didn’t Tell You

By Amy Quotb

You meet Mr. Right… Oh no, this is not how I want to start. You fall in love… Erm, no, not that either. Okay, you get married. Deal?Deal. Now what? I hate to be the one who bursts you bubble here, but “Mr. Right” and the perfect “falling in love” storyline is JUST a Hollywood myth, along with “happily ever after” and the word “forever.” Marriage is what happens after the credits.It is work – HARD WORK – like everything else in life, and if you’re in it for the rainbows and butterflies, then you’re in for the shock of your life. I’m not saying that marriage isn’t cool, it is. But you have to ease yourself into it, because it’s NOTHING like what Tant Tafeeda told you (the woman was just talking you into getting married, okay?) So, I’d like to share my humble experience with all you unsuspecting fools out there, because the universe knows, nobody warned me! Tant Tafeeda, brace yourself. *Drumroll* “When you get married, you can do whatever you want” HA! Yeah-fricken-right. Listen, the only thing you get to do is the things that you could do with your family, only this time with your husband (which is, granted, more fun.) Because if your father never let you spend the night partying with people he doesn’t know, chances are, your husband won’t either. And if you think that your dad was too “overprotective”; HE’S NOT, he just had common sense, the same kind of sense that your husband will have when he tells you that you can’t walk in the streets of Cairo

26 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

wearing hot shorts and a tube top. Because married or not, you’ll get gang-raped like no tomorrow. And if you think that your husband will let you travel the world alone and live your wildest dreams with exotic strangers from around the globe, well then I don’t know what to tell yah! Oh and by the way, for girls who have a curfew; turns out the streets look pretty much the same after 11 pm. Only less women and more drunken assholes who think they’re Vin Diesel in Fast and Furious. “When you get married, you will crave motherhood” That sounds very sweet, doesn’t it? Good for you! If you managed to squeeze a 20-minute manicure between waking up at 7 am, struggling with traffic to get to work, working like it’s Armageddon for 8+ hours, struggling traffic to get back home, doing chores and spending time with your husband then YOU’RE A FRICKEN HERO. Now show me the baby bump and tell me that you’ll have another 24 hours in the day for that little sucker. Pfffftpuhlease! “When you get married, you both gain weight because of “ra7et el bal wel dala3” Ahhhhhh yes… El dala3… That must have been when YOU (Tant Tafeeda) got married and had nothing better to do but cook, prepare dessert, and then cook some more, for Si’Ssayed who’s gonna come back home from work and have nothing better to do than eat your delightful works of culinary art. Errrr yeah… No. We gain weight because we work 9 to 7 and have one of two options: eat junk or starve. Half the married couples in my circle eat together only on weekends, that’s when they actually have the luxury to choose to “eat right.”

UNDERSCORE

Other than that they’re usually stocking up on potato chips, processed croissants and coke, or resorting to “asra3delifary f masr.” How’d ya like that, TantTafeeda? “When you’re married, your sex scenes are gonna look like *enter your favorite sex scene from a Hollywood/Porn movie here*” No. Both male and female actors have nutritionists, personal trainers, plastic surgeons, light effects, music effects, after effects, before effects… Unless you’re Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher, you won’t suddenly transform into Venus and Zeus and have god sex. You’re people, you’ll have people sex. “When you’re married, all your friends get jealous and want to be married too” That might have been the case 30 years ago, when girls still stuck to the old “don’t show your dirty laundry” rule, and when there was no internet packed with anonymous “Soso’s” and “Lulu’s” blabbing about their marriage problems, knowing that nobody would recognize them. Nowadays, the mere thought of marriage scares the hell out of a lot of girls, because they get to hear stories about the ugly side of it (like above) from random sources around the clock. The number of girls “dying to get married” is now gradually shrinking versus the number who’s actually scared shitless. And for the sake of those, why don’t we call a spade a spade and give marriage some credit? There’s also a bunch of trash that’s being said about marriage that turned out less than true. “When you’re married, your career takes a downfall” Not if you’re married to someone who understands that your career is as important as your marriage. Because not every woman wants to be defined by her man, not every man wants his wife to only be “his wife.” Especially that she wasn’t anyone’s wife when he met her, and he fell in love with her as a package; working, having fun, with new stories to tell and experiences to share. I like to think that my working and doing things I love enriches our life as a couple, and gives us things to talk about, and support each other for. I know for fact that my husband takes pride in me being a working woman with talents, hobbies and interests. And I’m pretty damn sure that if I were unemployed, I would have gotten a divorce long ago, because the boredom, lack of purpose and resentment would have eventually stifled me, and us. “When you’re married, you discover things that can kill the passion” True, only if you think that you’re perfect. I mean sure, when you live together you see more than you both wanted to see, but we’re only human! You’ll get to encounter his raging Medusa locks as he wakes up, while he’ll get to hear you fart for the first time. You’ll get to see his childish (and fatally needy) side when he catches a bad flu, and he’ll get to meet Mrs. Godzilla De La PMS in mind-blowing HD every month. Well, what did you expect? That he wakes up with built-in hair gel, and that she never has gas? Grow up. “When you’re married, you will have so many fights and end up hating each other” Yeah, because you’re dating days were fight-proof? Comon! Back when you were dating/engaged, your fights were about

“Who is she? Why is she calling you?”… “You drank WHAT?”… “Why didn’t you call me back? I left you 35 messages!”… “He was OBVIOUSLY hitting on you! Why did you keep talking to him?”… When you’re married, these issues subside, and you fight about different things. Day-to-day life things, that may seem like they affect the core of your relationship, but that’s where you have to remind yourself that it only makes sense! You are two grown up adults (I hope) who spent 20+ years living life in a certain household with certain ways and rules, to suddenly merge lives, where you have formulate new ways and rules! It’s pretty normal to clash then, because each of you is subconsciously trying to apply what they were used to in their pre-marriage life. And that’s how you learn to negotiate, compromise, and adjust. This is how you fit better and suit each other better. This is NOT how you fall out of love, even when sometimes it may feel like it. “When you’re married, you lose touch with your friends and social life” Why? You’re married, not dead! Most married people end up like conjoined twins; they go everywhere together, do everything together, they even share the same friends! This can’t be healthy. When I first got married, I fell into that trap, until I realized that I’m running out of things to talk about with my husband. We experienced everything together that there was nothing going on in my life that he didn’t already know about! So I decided that every once in a while, we have to split. Do something alone, plan a girls night/guys night, or go to the beach for the weekend, each with our own friends. Believe me, it allows for more interesting talks later, and inspires new ideas for things that you can do when you’re together. “When you get married, you start getting bored of each other, and eyes start to wander” Wallahy da 7asab shataretko ba2a! Word to the wise: never let your partner fall into the comfort zone, thinking that this is what you look like, this is what you always do, and this is where you’ll always be. I change my hair every few months. I get interested in a different kind of music every few weeks. I suddenly change my style from raggedy jeans and shirt to cute dresses and heels. I never buy another bottle of the same perfume. I am a very moody person, but that’s just me. I’m not asking you to be crazy like me (it does get tough for my poor husband, not knowing what to expect,) but don’t be monotonous either. If you feel comfortable doing the same things over and over again, step out of your comfort zone every now and then, do something new for a change. Encourage trying a new restaurant, dance to a CD that totally sounds wrong for you, buy an item of clothing that you wouldn’t normally wear. Spice up your sex life, don’t be boring… After all, you ARE stuck with the same partner for good *evil grin* And last but not least, don’t feel the urge to be agreeable just because you’re married. Object, debate, have a conversation, stimulate each other mentally, whether it’s about the next presidential elections, or why Ashton Kutcher is cute. All I wanna say is, marriage did NOT turn out to be what I expected, and during the first year I was seriously haunted by the idea that I wasn’t cut out for this kind of struggle. I questioned every decision I made, and at times it felt like I was pushing against a brick wall. I wondered why nobody warned me that it was going to be THIS DAMN HARD. But with trial and error, talking and compromising, and getting to know each other better, it got a whole lot easier. My marriage is not what Tant Tafeeda had in mind, and I’m proud of that. C

] CENTER STAGE ]

Amr Moussa: The fictional interview that never took place. By Sherif Elmashad

WHEN I WAS FIRST ASKED TO WRITE AN ARTICLE ABOUT MR. AMR MOUSSA, MY FIRST IMPRESSION WAS SOMEHOW NEAR “SWEET! THE GUY HAS LIKE A ZILLION INTERVIEWS OUT THERE. EASY JOB!” WELL, I ADMIT IT, I WAS A FOOL. THE GUY HAS A ZILLION INTERVIEWS ONLINE, WITH ALMOST EVERY PRESENTER OR NEWSPAPER THERE IS OUT THERE, YET, YOU CAN’T QUITE COME OUT WITH A SOLID OUTCOME OUT OF ANY OF THESE TWO-HOUR-LONG INTERVIEWS. I STARTED THINKING OF UNUSUAL WAYS TO HANDLE THE GUY – A FRIEND OF MINE SUGGESTED I STALK HIM, FIND OUT WHO CUTS HIS HAIR, AND HAVE A FRIENDLY CONVERSATION ABOUT THE “TRUE” AMR MOUSSA WITH HIM- BUT PEOPLE LIKE YOUSRI FOUDA AND AMR ADIB HAD ALMOST EVERY SERIOUS POINT COVERED. DESPERATELY, I DECIDED TO STOP TRYING TO INTERVIEW THE GUY, WENT TO HIS TWITTER ACCOUNT, AND DECIDED TO INTERVIEW HIS TWEETS INSTEAD. AND THAT’S WHEN I FOUND OUT MY GUEST FOR THE NIGHT, THE “E”. 28 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

I noticed his twitter handle wasn’t @amrmousa or @amromousa as anyone would expect, but it was rather @amremoussa, and I couldn’t quite understand what the “e” after Amr was doing there. So, what follows, is the fictional interview that never took place with the unofficial representative that doesn’t represent Amr Moussa or his campaign or Egypt or anything you can think of:

Me: “E”, welcome. E: My name isn’t plain “E”. Show more respect. I have a verification sign next to me on Twitter.

Me: Ok, my apologies. “E”, Your Arrogantness, welcome. E: Thank you. I’m glad to be here myself. Me: I guess the first question that comes to mind is who are you, and how did you come across Mr. Amre Moussa’s way. E: Well, I’m change. *long pause*

Me: And..? E: I thought you were much smarter, tsk tsk. Well, for as long as he was there, Mr. Amre Mousa has always been an icon of change, *goes theatrically crescendo*, a brave voice against injustice, a walking pulsating conscious within a corrupt system, a glasses wearing Nobel prize winner..

*I interrupt*: WHAT? Nobel? Your smartassness, you’re talking about @elbaradei now! E *pauses*: Oh, sorry, got carried away. Well, he’s just as cool as @ elbaradei.

Me: Ok, I still can’t figure out where you fit in the twitter handle. E: Ah, I was getting there. Well, Mr. Amre Moussa, after his undeniable role in the Jan. 25 revolution, thought it was time to embrace a clear and shining logo for the change millions of Egyptians were out in the streets demanding. And thus, he decided adding an ‘e’ to his name. An E that represents the generation of Facebook. An ‘e’ that’s a common letter in “3eesh, 7oreyya, 3adala egtma3ia”. An ‘e’, that’s the difference Mr. Amre Moussa impacted being both a Minister of Foreign Affairs (1991-2001) and a Secretary-General of the Arab League (2001-2011). An ‘e’ that represents the dream of all of our martyrs.

Me: So, what you mean is, this is what he promises? We’re electing him for adding an ‘e’ to his twitter handle? E: No! Of course not. People will want to elect him for his program; for his relations with foreign countries, for being a man of state, for his diplomatic skills, for how he hates Israel.

Me: Ok, Your Arrogantness, allow me to dig deeper into these topics. Let’s start with the Egyptian- Israeli relationships. From where exactly did we get the widespread idea that Mr. Amre Moussa hates Israel? E: Sha’ban Abdulreheem. Me: Excuse me? E: From the Sha’ban Abdulreheem song. Are you an elitist who disgraces sha’bi songs and ridicules such an artistic talent as of Sha’boulla?

Me: Well, given the fact that he can pretty much bluff people into anything, give a lot of promises without really promising anything, isn’t this a bit disastrous to a country that’s having its first true free elections ever? E: No, Mr. Amre Moussa loves this country. He’s a patriotic man. He’s been to all the monuments. He’s … etc. *The E went on for almost 112 minutes about how patriotic Moussa is, so, unless this whole magazine issue was about him, this part had to be omitted. I had enough time to text my girlfriend, check twitter, arrange with the guys for a concert we’re attending, answer my emails, play a couple of rounds of Draw Free, daydream and yawn.*…and has quite the appetite for Foul & Ta’mia from Elga7sh. Are you with me?

Me: Yes, yes. Well, speaking of his wide network of connections with foreign countries, a certain question comes to mind. There was this news circulating about him receiving a sum of 5 million dollars from the KSA. Is this true? E: Let’s not put it this way. Why don’t we picture it more like a farewell gift? Why didn’t anyone think that maybe, these 5 million dollars were a bet over a game of Angry Birds?

Me: Yeah. Well, I have an iPhone, can I enter such bets please? I’m pretty good at all editions of Angry Birds! E: Leave me your twitter handle and your Angry Bird scores. Next question please?

Me: Yes. Well, this will be the last political question there is. In his presidential program, Mr. Amre Moussa focuses so much on the first 100 days of him serving in Elorouba palace. Tell us more about this. E: Well, I’ll tell you a secret. Ever heard of Hercules? Me: Yeah..? E: Hercules, being the demi-god he was, after a certain twist, and against what pleases him, placed himself at King Eurystheus’s disposal. Long story short, the king gave him a set of impossible tasks and Hercules, a hero, went on doing them. It’s from this that I was told they got the 100 days idea. They’re full of almost impossible tasks to be done. But, Amre Moussa is a hero and we believe in him!

Me: No. But I don’t think an idea should be taken off a song. Besides, Sha’ban said “ba7eb Amr Moussa, w bakrah Israel”. It’s Sha’ban who hates Israel. Mr. Amre wasn’t mentioned there. E: Moving on to the next question please.

Me: So, re-phrasing, you regard Mr. Amre Moussa as a demi –god, the people as a king who Hercules didn’t want to serve because he thought they were inferior to him, and his first presidential promise a story that belongs in mythologies? E: Ma3andish ta3liq! Ma3andish ta3liq 3ala eletlaq!!

Me: Ok. Speaking of being a man of state, isn’t this state the same exact state people were chanting against? Wasn’t he a part of the regime people died to change? E *smirking while repeating “oh poor kid”*: No. He wasn’t. He was, is,

Me: Ok, calm down Your Arrogantness. What is Mr. Amre Moussa’s favorite car? E: One that’s surrounded with a presidential security team.

and will always be a loud opposing voice.

Me: What is Mr. Amre Moussa’s favorite food? E: Burger “king”, a Mac “Royale”, or anything from “Malek” elkebda wel

Me: With all due respect, he dodged the law prohibiting folool from practicing their political rights because of a certain someone for whose sake the word “minister” was taken off the law! E: Totally didn’t happen. The word “minister” was never put into

sogo2.

Me: What’s his favorite sexual position? E: That’s a state secret.

discussion. Besides, Essam Sharaf was an ex-minister during the Mubarak phase.

Me: His favorite T.V. ad? E: All the former NDP campaigns. They crack the laughter out of him.

Me: And we all know how that ended. Ok, speaking of his diplomatic skills, tell us more about that. E: Well, having served 20 years in top political positions, Mr. Amre

Me: His soft spot? E: Pretty obvious? His wattle.

Moussa is known for being quite the diplomat. Over the years, he’s developed quite the set of skills that are quite dangerous to any enemies we have. On top of all these skills, is his more-than-humanly-possible ability to talk for hours long with you coming out with complete zero. He can, as my dear friend Sha’boulla says it, “sell ‘em fish in water”.

Me: Ok, Your Arrogantness. This was such a delightful interview. We would like to thank you for this fictional dialogue. Is there any question you’d like to ask us maybe? E: Yeah. Well… I don’t know how to say this…

Me: Well, excuse me, but isn’t this a bit intimidating for us, Egyptian voters? E: How so?

Me: By all means, please, come forward. E: Have you heard about Qnet? Me: *censored* 29

] OPINIONATED ]

By Leila Tapozada

30 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

One morning I woke up, and almost every female in Egypt was skinny. Now obviously this is a gross generalization. Most middle-class and lower-class Egyptian women have plenty of meat on them bones. But I’m talking about the girls I went to university with, the ones I work with, the ones I’m friends with, the ones I see at restaurants and cafes and night spots and most noticeably in sa7el freakin’ shamali. What the hell happened? Egypt used to be the land of ‘lazlaza’ and ‘rabraba’ and Hayatem and Leila 3elwy and belly-dancers galore. They’re called belly-dancers, people! Not ribcage and pelvic-bonedancers! Although I was never skinny, I never used to be super bodyconscious. I mean, I’m five foot two and have both plentiful boobage and junk in the trunk, so being skinny was never in the cards for me. But I was fine with that, because no one around me had a perfect body either, and the guys weren’t complaining. So everyone lived peacefully in world of real bodies, where a little kirsh or a little jiggle never hurt anyone. Until recently. Dammit, someone forgot to give me the skinny memo I first started noticing the phenomenon a few summers back in sa7el. There were a group of girls to my right, and I kid you not, from a distance they were all virtually identical. Medium height, extremely thin, minimal boobs, lightened brown hair worn in the same style, matching sunglasses, trademark accessories, and bikinis that they all mixed and matched between themselves. And then I turned to my left. An almost identical group of girls was there too! What the hell was going on? I was familiar with the copycat aspect of girls wearing the same style and color of bikinis, sunglasses, footwear and accessories, but since when were their actual bodies identical? It was disconcerting. But then I thought, hey, maybe because this is Hacienda, these are the sick Vogue-worshipping throwbacks who bow down to the idol of anorexia.

But there was a teensy issue with that. I LOVE FOOD, GOD DAMMIT. LOVEY LOVE LOVE. I love pasta and pizza and fries and chips and Chinese and Indian and home-cooked and fast food. My motto in life was: GET IN MY BELLY! But I didn’t want to be the ‘fat’ one in a sea of toothpicks. So I started working out obsessively for like four months, daily, for three hours. But I got discouraged because although I’m sure I toned up, my weight on the scale wasn’t moving. And the clones-of-thinness had imprinted into my brain that if I wasn’t 55 kilos or less, then well, I might as well wear a galabeya and stay off the beach w akol 7allet ma7shy (yumm, ma7shy!) So I stopped working out and actually slowly began to gain weight. At this point I was about to throw myself in front of the nearest microbus, who probably would think my plump body was just another random matab thrown into the road at his inconvenience. Since when did I care so much about my weight? Since when was it ever something that I linked to self-confidence? Why was I letting a bunch of people, who had no other positive attribute than being ‘thin’, mess with my mind? It took time, but I started to re-adjust my way of thinking – a.k.a. unbrainwash myself. I’m never going to be a toothpick. But then again, they’re never going to be me. They don’t have my face or my hair or my skin or my ability to fill out a bikini top. Nobody is perfect, and nobody should beat themselves up about it. All my boyfriends loved the way I look, and I never feel unattractive. Sure, I still get depressed sometimes, mainly when I’m PMSing or when all the sizes in a store run from thin-to-microscopic or when thinner people are moaning about how they want to lose weight. But then I give myself a mental slap in the face. Which is what I think all those toothpick clones need as well (but not mental slaps, real ones). C

But it wasn’t just Hacienda. Girls who always had very normal bodies started to shrink. Hell, girls who were already thin to begin with began to shrink. And that of course is besides the few shocks I got when I would run into a formerly-obese-now-toothpicks girls I used to know. How the hell did they lose 50 kilos, or 15 kilos, or even 5 kilos? Was everyone on some kind of conspiracy diet and chose not to let me know? The clones feed on your soul (and that’s about the only feeding they get) I suddenly found myself, who was always in the ‘normal’ area of the fat-o-meter, being pushed way into the wrong side. Why was everyone thinner than me?! And why were girls who were thinner than me dieting?! Did that mean I needed to diet, too? I started getting comments like “oh my god, you would be amazinglooking if you lost a little bit of weight! You have a beautiful face and curves so all you need to do is lose the extra weight!” Extra weight? Did I have extra weight? Apparently so. And apparently people thought I should be losing it, pronto. And I have to admit, I caved to the peer pressure. I wanted to be amazing looking, like they said!

OPINIONATED

Russian Roulette The Sad State of Science in Today’s World By Adham Abdel Salam

Wouldn’t it be nice if scientists could actually prove things and give the world reliable information to base our decisions upon? There was a time when science was a tool that served humanity and its wellbeing as opposed to companies, conglomerates and money-making mongers. Unfortunately, that time is long gone, and today science is serving - and has become a slave of - greedy corporations that buy and pay for scientific research and manipulate the outcome of studies to promote their agendas; agendas that are purely financial or political or both. And governments are playing along as well, and that is what is scariest. You are by now probably thinking that I am exaggerating or that I have watched too many low-budget conspiracy theory documentaries. And you may be right, but when I see presidential, or parliamentary candidates, who openly and notoriously admit to taking financial contributions for election campaigns or governments that subcontract not only military but scientific, social, economic, and health studies, to companies that have a stake in the results of those studies, and are solely interested in making more and more money, I simply have to wonder if maybe I am not exaggerating at all. “Expelled” For some reason or another, Darwin’s theory of evolution and natural selection is quite “in” these days… and although more and more scientists… yes, scientists - not theologians, not sheikhs, not pastors - but scientists, are stepping up and saying that there are too many flaws in the Darwinian theory and that a superior intelligence has to be at play, I still always say to myself; who am I to squash the ideas of others just because I don’t believe in them? Apparently the scientific community does not share my tolerance towards other ideas. There are now two theories: 1- Darwin’s evolution and natural selection, Big Bang, etc. 2- Creationism; which suggests that a superior power i.e. God, has created the world and the creatures that inhabit it, One can clearly see, however, after watching a brilliant documentary called “Expelled”, more and more scientists - who for the longest time have been praised for their genius and amazing work - have in fact been fired, and shut out from the entire scientific community, for committing the outrageous and sinful act… of mentioning the possibility of Intelligent Design or Creationism in a class room or in a paper they published. That alone, just mentioning that possibility, is grounds enough to disqualify any scientist or scholar from their job and from their title even. Just proposing an idea or theory that is against “mainstream” science can in fact get you expelled from your teaching job or your lab. The Ugly Truth You are free to research and see for yourself the countless cases where this has happened. Ranging from today all the way back to the days of Galileo, you will discover the ugly truth: that the days of the inquisitions and church-dominated science are still upon us; they just changed names to peer review, academic accreditation

32 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

and politically dominated science. Besides what kind of scientist would you be to defend the idea of God having created the world as opposed to accepting a theory that suggests that life was created through coincidence; a coincidence that Hoyle in his book “Hoyle on Evolution” describes as: “The chance that higher life forms might have emerged in this way is comparable with the chance that a tornado sweeping through a junk-yard might assemble a Boeing 747 from the materials therein… I am at a loss to understand biologists’ widespread compulsion to deny what seems to me to be obvious.” Global Warming… A Hoax? Same thing is happening with the world’s hottest topic today - and I mean hottest. Global warming is killing us… the end is near… doom is upon us and all that rhetoric. And while we, the people, are getting blamed because apparently our very existence is killing the planet, you will not find a single report in mainstream media even discussing the possibility of the theory that is being perpetuated all across the world via internet. No scientist dare discuss the idea that global warming might just be a hoax, and those who actually do have the courage to discuss that theory can’t find a media outlet that is brave enough to run the story. Why, you ask? Well, for the same reason the other scientists are now shaking in their boots for even mentioning Intelligent Design or Creationism. Theories and studies now show that the earth has temperature cycles which are regular and consistent based on regular eruptions on the surface of the sun called solar flares, the proximity of the earth to the sun and other variables. And according to some scientists we are experiencing the same regular and scheduled spike in global temperature that we experienced in the dark ages, about 1000 years ago, and that the world’s average temperature now is well within the average and acceptable range. Other theories suggest that the earth is, in fact, cooling down as opposed to burning up. Puzzling Possibilities I am not saying that global warming is a hoax, and I am not saying it isn’t, what I am saying is that, not only do we, the people, not know the problem itself, but we are being blitzed by a massive number of things that we simply “must” do to prevent our own annihilation. And to make things even better, most of these things are contradicting in their nature. Don’t drink tap water; it is full of hazardous waste vs. don’t drink bottled water; they use over 1.5 million barrels of crude oil to produce their bottles which is enough to power 100,000 cars for an entire year, just in the U.S.A. Recycle or the planet will die vs. don’t recycle because studies show that the recycled material takes as much as 3 times longer to decay and reintegrate into the environment, making the world fuller and fuller of trash and waste (some studies even say 6 times and others say 8 times).

Don’t eat meat because studies show that eating meat contributes more to pollution than driving a car due to the contaminated run off from slaughterhouses vs. we should eat a whole lot of meat because livestock itself emits almost 20% of all greenhouse gases as they emit Methane all day long Don’t drive cars; they consume fossil fuels and are dangerous to the environment vs. don’t drive a hybrid because hybrid batteries contain nickel which is mined in very few locations on earth such as Ontario, Canada, in plants and factories that have caused so much environmental damage and acid rain that NASA uses the “dead zone” around these plants as test sites for their moon rovers. Also worth mentioning is that the nickel itself is then transported to a few process plants, mainly in Europe, to be refined, then to China, where it is cheaper to make it into nickel foam, then off to Japan, where the technology is available to make the battery itself, and then all the way back to the place where they are going to install the battery into a car. Considering the fuel and emissions required for all the transport and manufacturing of nickel-based hybrid batteries, it adds up to about 50% more than what you need to build and drive a hummer. And if that is not enough, other studies claim that since it is much cheaper to drive electric and hybrid cars, in effect it will cause more and more people to drive, which eventually leads to just about as much pollution as is being produced today from driving good old fuel cars. And the most extreme of all is the study that shows that walking contributes more to green house gases than driving. People walking more means they will eat more, which also means that they will “pass gas” more. Not to mention, the increase in food consumption also

increases the proliferation of slaughter houses, unless of course they go vegan, which would bring us all the way back to the fact that if we all go vegan, more and more cows will emit Methane that will increase green house gases and kill the planet. How Do We Know? Now I am not a scientist, nor am I scholar of any kind and I have absolutely no way of discovering which of these studies is the right one; especially when they come from some of the most reputable labs and universities in the world. And I alongside the rest of the human race who are clueless as to what we should or should not do, am left with a sense of helplessness and futility. Overwhelmed by the horror of how near the end is according to all of this information, we are faced with an even greater horror… that the only place we rely on to guide our actions or provide us with proper information as to what is good for us and for the environment, is the same place that is manipulating us and diluting us into buying more and more worthless junk for the sake of money hungry corporations… junk that might very well end up being harmful to us and to the planet as opposed to helping us protect it. I guess our best bet is to do it Russian Roulette style; choose blindly and hope our choice was not the one with the bullet. It is either that or praying to God. Oh right, I am sorry, I forgot I am not allowed to mention “God”; I apologize for that. C

OPINIONATED

By Salma Elmasry

34 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

And so along with the dusty foliage, the dusty streets and the dusty, dusty weather, spring brings us weddings. Ah, mating season bestowed upon us! Every year you come bearing endless buffet dinners. And I find myself- even thought I am not of the derang… ahem, chosen few to actually perform this season- nonetheless I find myself involuntarily dragged into wedding/engagement talk, planning, gossip, the eternal I-haven’t-picked-out-a-dress-yet dialogue and of course, the Facebook picture stalking phenomena – “you guys, that picture of you poking your fiancé in the eye is so cute!” It is all so tiring. Weddings and their preludes and epilogues are a hard, hard place to be for a cynical non-believer in the marriage institution, and especially if it’s someone you actually care about who is getting hitched. Watching lovely friends or cousins do that to themselves is just too painful at times, you almost can’t stop yourself from shaking them and asking, why, why, why are you doing this to yourself? Are you sure? Are you positively, absolutely sure? Do you understand you’ll have to see that face every.single.time you wake up in the morning? And evening? And night? And what if you want some me-time, peace and quiet? You’re going to kiss goodbye any attachments to personal space you might have had and God help you if you have children! No, no, must not think that far. And you start to understand why sha3by weddings are only about the booze and the hash.

Where’s the excitement? Where’s the ‘pick me, choose me, love me’ drama? Why would I want to dedicate the rest of my life to systematic boredom?

order and out of the way as soon as possible- ‘here, getting married: check!’- type of thing? Why not wait? And choose wisely, and fall in love with someone who totally spins your head around. And take your time to find out how wonderful they are, and time to figure out how much exactly they will irritate you and make your life a living hell. And then decide. And calculate. And have endless dinner parties/ sleepovers/therapy sessions discussing your options. And then finally settle on taking that coveted next step. And then have your fairytale wedding and torture your friends over bridesmaid dresses. Don’t get me wrong, I am truly happy for all my people who choose to engage in that sort of behavior; but I can’t help that I have never felt truly at ease at a wedding. Not only because the ever-present feeling of disaster the bride usually instills in everyone around her prewedding, but because of the possibility at the back of my head that this might all be for nothing. One day, maybe not far from now, this would have all been just a gigantic waste of money, effort and time. There will be a certain credit-card-holder weeping somewhere. It is a little, ok fine, a very gloomy thought but I can’t help it. But despite this seemingly morbid attitude towards weddings and the like, I always disappoint myself and walk out of every wedding bubbly and feeling that tingly joy of new beginnings, new possibilities. Oh well, I guess I will never figure out how to make the little bit of casual gloom go away until I myself am one of the glorified, self-harm addicts out there who love to do that to themselves. Maybe then I’ll understand. Until then, I do not intend to try this at home. C

But then you take a look at the friend/cousin/boyfriend’s friend I only met today’s face and they’re positively glowing! Happy, shiny, cascading err… happiness flowing out of them all. It’s like so far, it’s the day of their lives. Poor souls. Like innocent lambs, led to their Eid beheading. Smiley, unknowing. Content. And so you think, ok fine. They look so joyous; let’s allow them to do that one thing, just once. We’ll see how it goes. Or not. But let me make one thing clear, this dread is not about relationships. That would be for another article, or magazine. Anyway, it’s not that I’m against love or soul mates or any of that folkloric stuff, I’m not even against marriage per se, but the way so many people exploit marriage for personal gain is what turns me off of it completely. Most people you talk to want to get married because they don’t want to be alone. And it doesn’t matter if they can’t imagine their lives without that person, they want someone there so they wouldn’t have to spend time alone, and so they can compare their shiny partners against other shiny partners and feel like they’re not missing out, that they’ve turned out normal. And for -arguably unimaginative- some, it’s a way to reflect success: here, I’m a happy person with a big family, look at that snotty child of mine! That’s it, I’ve succeeded at life; I’ve made it! Yawn. Where’s the passion in there? Where’s the excitement? Where’s the “pick me, choose me, love me” drama in this? Why would I want to dedicate the rest of my life to systematic boredom? One that, statistically, has a 4 in 10 chance of going caput. Why settle? What is it about everyone’s fear of missing their one chance to get married? Is it some sort of OCD that everyone has and I don’t, to get things in

Eye Candy

36 APRIL 2012 CAMPUS

te2eela

Are you

] CAMPUS QUIZ ]

(Women)

Fatret el tazbeet:

faseela?

The guy you have a crush on hasn’t asked for your number. What do you do? A) Nothing, what can I do? I just wait and hope that he does. B) I try to subtly encourage him to ask for my number by acting really friendly and fun to hang out with C) I give him my number without asking for his and say “let’s hang out some time.” That way the ball is still in his court but I gave him a nudge forward D) I ask for his number and give him mine

So you go out for coffee with a guy and it goes really well, but the next day he doesn’t call. What do you do? A) Think that he probably didn’t like you, or thought you were unattractive or boring B) Not contact him until he contacts you first C) Shoot him a nice text or BBM saying that you had fun D) Call him

El ‘tazbeeta’ kanet mashya kwayes the first week or two but now you feel like he’s starting to lose interest – he calls/ messages less and makes fewer plans to see you. How do you react? A) Freak out internally and talk to your friends about what you could’ve done for him to lose interest B) The next time he calls/messages, you don’t answer. And when you finally answer and he wants to make plans, say you’re busy. Two can play this game. C) You try not to worry too much and just assume he’s busy or something. If he messages or calls, you act normally, but you don’t see him out. D) Call him and ask him if anything is the matter and why is he not acting normal

When you’re in a relationship:

You and your boyfriend have plans but he cancels at the last second. You: A) Say ok, then sit and mope at home. B) Tell him “that’s fine, I kind of wanted to hang out with my friends anyway.” And if he calls/messages you later that night you don’t answer. C) Tell him you’re disappointed but you understand. D) Start a fight

You call your boyfriend twice throughout the day but he doesn’t answer. You: A) Worry that something happened to him B) Don’t call again. And blow him off when he calls you back. C) Send him a message saying: “just making sure everything’s ok. Call me back when you have a free moment.” D) Keep calling until he answers

You see a girl flirting with your boyfriend, and he doesn’t seem to mind. You: A) Have an inner breakdown. Of course he doesn’t mind, she’s a million times hotter than you!

38 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

B) Ignore him and flirt with another guy the rest of the night C) Go up to them and politely introduce yourself D) Pull your boyfriend away and start a fight

You get in a huge fight with your boyfriend. What do you do? A) Cry and predict that it’s probably over B) Not speak to him until he calls you to apologize C) Let yourself cool off, then call him to calmly talk it over D) Call him and cry hysterically on the phone

After you break up: Your boyfriend changes his FB relationship status from “in a relationship” to “single”. What do you do? A) Deactivate your Facebook account. You can’t deal with this right now. B) You only know about this from a friend, because you already deleted the bastard from your Facebook C) It upsets you but what can you do? You’ll try your best to avoid checking his profile from now on D) You stalk his profile daily, and the profiles of any girls who post on his wall

You see your ex at a party talking to some girl, and you don’t know if she’s his date or just a friend. You: A) Leave. You’re still too emotional to be dealing with this right now. B) Ignore him and laugh and flirt with some of the other guys there C) Politely greet him if you make eye contact, but mainly try to avoid him D) Pull him aside and question him about who that girl is

You and your ex are still semi-friendly, but then he calls you up to tell you that he’s dating someone new and it’s kind of serious. How do you react? A) Cut off all ties and hate yourself for not doing it sooner B) Pretend you could care less C) Tell him you wish him the best, but maybe you guys shouldn’t really speak anymore so things don’t get awkward D) Start crying on the phone

Results:

Mostly A’s: Your biggest enemy is yourself. Your issue isn’t being either te2eela or faseela, your issue is that you have low self-esteem which can work against you as much as being either a bitch or clinger could. Mostly B’s: You’re the type of girl that guys go crazy over in the beginning because you’re so hard to get. As long as you keep a good balance of it and not get too caught up in your pride or trying to one-up the guy (flirting with other guys if he’s talking to another girl, etc.), you have a good chance of keeping your man in line. Mostly C’s: You’re a great mix of emotional availability without being suffocating. Look for a guy who can appreciate these qualities, not someone who’s only into it for the chase. Mostly D’s: Sad to say, but you’re a clinger. In the beginning, guys like a chase and don’t want what comes easy, and in a relationship no one wants someone who’s a drama queen and who will suffocate them. Try to loosen up a bit and remember that he could be pursuing YOU, not the other way around!

Are you

te2eel (Men)

Fatret el tazbeet:

faseel?

You randomly meet a girl you want to get to know better. Do you: A) Wait until you may or may not see her again B) Add her on Facebook/follow her on Twitter C) Ask for her number and text her a few days later D) Ask for her number and call her the next day

So you’ve been chatting with this girl for awhile and it’s time to ask her for your first one-on-one date. Do you: A) Decide there’s no need to ask her out, you see her anyways in group situations and it’s less awkward that way. B) Tell her you’re going to so-and-so event, and if she wants she can meet you there for an hour or so before you leave to meet your friends C) Ask her casually if she wants to meet you for coffee or a drink D) Carefully plan the date, pick her up, go to movies, dinner and the works, and drive her home at night

When you’re ‘mezabat’ ma3 wa7da, how often do you contact her? A) Only if I have a legitimate reason to call or text – to ask a specific question or arrange what time we’re going to meet. B) I’ll randomly call and text, but then be silent for a few days, just to keep her guessing C) I usually text her at least once a day but I don’t necessarily have to call her every day D) I call her a couple times a day – girls love the attention!

When you’re in a relationship How often do you go out with your girlfriend? A) Not that much, I don’t really like going out that much. B) Whenever it’s convenient for me C) I try to see her at least three/four times a week D) Every day

You guys have a fight and don’t speak for a few days. How is it usually resolved? A) I switch off my phone until the storm blows over. I hate dealing with this drama. B) I refuse to call her until she calls first C) It depends on the fight. Sometimes I’ll call her, sometimes I’ll wait for her to call me D) I call her. I hate this whole not-speaking thing so it doesn’t matter who calls first

Your girlfriend has a very close male friend. How do you feel about this? A) She has a close male friend? Didn’t even notice B) I have tons of close female friends so to each his own C) I’m not particularly comfortable about it, but I never mention that to her D) I don’t like it and I’ve told her numerous times

It’s a special occasion – your anniversary, her birthday, Valentine’s, whatever. How do you celebrate?

A) I don’t really celebrate that stuff, it’s just another normal day. B) I don’t give a shit about anniversaries or Valentine’s but I’d take her out for her birthday I guess C) If it’s important to her, I’d make an effort… get flowers or go out or something D) The full deal – fancy dinner, flowers, a gift

After you break up: You hear your ex is mezabata with someone new, very soon after you broke up. How do you react? A) Whatever. I don’t see or talk to her so it makes no difference. B) I’ve already moved on myself, and she’ll eat her heart out when she sees my new girl C) Obviously I’m not happy but it just pushes me to move on myself D) I call her to either fight or talk her out of it

How often to you talk to your ex after you break up? A) We don’t. What’s done is done. B) If I run into her I’ll be friendly and promise to call, but then don’t C) If we broke up on good terms, I’ll text her every now and then to ask about her, but if we broke up on bad terms it’s better just to keep my distance. I’d be polite if I saw her though. D) We speak very regularly

Your ex (who you still have feelings for) wants to get back together. What do you do? A) Together or not, it really doesn’t make a difference. I take the path of least resistance. B) Keep her hanging – she can’t get you back THAT easily C) Honestly tell her you need some time to think about it. There was a reason you guys broke up, after all. D) Get back together of course!

Results: Mostly A’s: You’re either extremely shy or socially inept. If you care enough about a girl, you should put yourself out there, take risks, or at least try to show interest and enthusiasm. Get it together man! Mostly B’s: You’re ta2eel all right. But unfortunately it’s the kind of to2l that’s also somewhat assh*lic. And while that might get the girl intrigued in the beginning, it’s hard to mold a real relationship out of that. Hold on to that to2l in the beginning, but it’s fine to ease up as the relationship progresses. Mostly C’s: Bravo! You’re the perfect mix of ta2eel and sweet at the same time. You’re nobody’s bitch but at the same time you know when to be considerate and caring. Please advise other men to act in the same manner. Mostly D’s: It’s true that every girl wants to be treated like a princess, but the sad facts of life is that it gets old quick. Please do continue being caring and considerate, but make sure you know when to put your foot down and when to make HER jump through the hoops.

Vodafone Discover

An exceptional career opportunity Campus gets an insider’s perspective on Vodafone’s training program Upon graduation, everybody goes through a prolonged confusion phase, especially when it comes to career choices, because basically, nobody knows where to start! Vodafone has devised an ingenious training program to help fresh graduates with precisely that problem! Earlier this year, Vodafone Egypt launched the second round of its Discover Program; a 12-month training program designed specifically for ambitious fresh graduates wishing to join the Vodafone Egypt team and jumpstart their careers. After the huge success the Discover Program received last year, Vodafone decided to expand the program by increasing the number of participants from 5 trainees to 10 this year. The selection process is rather long in order to ensure that the selected candidates are of the right caliber. During the 12-month period of the discover program, each trainee is exposed to four 3-month rotations. During each rotation,

trainees are exposed to different functions within Vodafone Egypt in order to formulate a better understanding of how the whole company functions. Those departments include HR, Finance, Retail, Customer care and Technology. We visited the Vodafone headquarters and had a chat with some of the trainees participating in this year’s program, and it’s safe to say that they were all ecstatic! They all agreed that they’re going through a once-in-a-lifetime experience at Vodafone Discover, explaining that it’s an excellent opportunity for them to learn and that they feel quite relieved when thinking about their future careers. Vodafone discover is an opportunity not to be missed; it gives you the chance to uncover your own potential, and more importantly, start off your career on the right foot.

SECTION GAY SECTION ] ] THE

How to Screw up Any Relationship

by Being Ridiculously

Insecure about Almost Everything By Menna Tarek I KNOW, I KNOW. YOU DON’T THINK INSECURITIES HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH THE FACT THE RELATIONSHIP ENDED OR HASN’T EVEN BEGUN. THIS COULD BE TRUE. IT COULD BE A CASE OF HEART CHANGE OR ANYTHING SIMILAR. BUT THE CASE COULD ALSO BE THAT YOU OR THE OTHER PERSON’S INSECURITIES HAVE SCREWED THINGS UP BEYOND ANY REPAIR.

42 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

suffocating partner’s end could be a bit of distance which crystallizes as “time with the guys/girls”. Too much suffocation goes unnoticed from the aggressor’s end and BAM, bye-bye.

3. Looks: It is not as superficial as you might think it is. Has he met your parents in his worn-out shirt? Has she not looked top notch when you were out making someone jealous? Has an accumulation of bad hair days made him not love you any longer? Of course not. What I mean to ask here is who is prettier? Who looks better on arms? Who is the insecure one when outsiders look at the cute little love birds that are you guys? These things will get to him/her at a certain point and it can be easily blamed on a list of other things like jealousy or possessiveness, but if you really break it down, someone who is insecure about how they look all the time will eventually obsess about it. Or someone is insecure about the physical appeal of their partner and how their family, perhaps, will absorb their choice of partner into their world. There might be a problem if she is veiled, there might be a problem if she is not. The list goes one.

4. Past Experiences: This varies from whether your partner has said When things end, you tend to “romanticize” the reasons why this had happened. You empty out any logic, you drown in a puddle of self pity and misery, you ask stupid questions that you already know the answers to but keep asking nonetheless and so on and so forth. You probably are too hurt to grasp the practical reasons behind this epic fail. A journey of confusion usually follows that phase where you try to “find yourself” and all that cuteness. After a while, you find your balance and you are ready to start dating again. Taking this course, you never really confront yourself with the “real” reasons as to why things have ended. You don’t establish a clear list of things that drove you apart in the first place, you are unable to define why your “combination” wasn’t working even with all the chemistry/love/ physical appeal or whatever you guys have been calling it.

The following is a list of things you haven’t really thought about that could have been why you guys screwed things up consciously or subconsciously: 1. Money: She makes more money than he is a classic one that might go over your head sometimes. Males feel threatened by that, no matter what they tell you. If you both can’t reach a compromise as to a certain lifestyle that you can maintain together, it will eventually drive you apart. Of course, the female can be smart about it which might lessen the man’s persistent feeling that he is “not enough” but this is very hard to sustain and even harder to develop. He could be too cheap for her taste, she could be too splurge-y for his taste. Money is a big deal. If don’t learn how to handle it, it might ruin things.

2. Personal Space: People tend to compare the amount of personal space one needs to one’s own. This is a fatal mistake. People are different when it comes to prioritizing their lives. A partner could need 10 units for personal space while the other partner needs 4 units of it. The partner who needs 4 units doesn’t grasp how could someone need TEN units of personal space while the other person is suffocating from all the affection and attention and love and SUFFOCATION the other person is giving - with good intentions. Calculating how many units of personal space the partner needs is of crucial importance. A mild reaction at the

the three word line to someone before to whether they have shared their bed with anyone else. Of course some couples can be rather comfortable with that area. However, this isn’t always the case. Some couples let ghosts from their past haunt their relationship. To my surprise I have witnessed cases in which a male refuses to be involved with a female he really, really likes simply because she has been engaged to another before him. Past experiences take the portion of your time and effort that you are willing to give. Give it too much thought and calculations, the whole thing will be blown. Like the person who is there with you now, not what they have been, not what they will become. The two could be just inside your head.

5. Maturity: When she is more emotionally mature than him, this constitutes a problem. This is not an insecurity per se, it is rather something that goes unnoticed from both ends. Say you are with a guy and everything is perfect, the female has a biological clock ticking that insists it is “time” you took this to another level. The gap in maturity is very apparent when it comes to “timing”, when “things” should happen. This is not exclusive to a proposal, of course, it might as well make itself apparent in regular daily incidences, or if there is a decision that the couple needs to take. The insecure partner, if told to make the decision, might interpret it as the other partner being condescending. If have the decision made for him, might interpret it as the other partner acting superior. It might turn into an obsession.

6. Social Backgrounds: Different backgrounds might not be apparent when you guys first hit it off but might slowly be making its way into your perfect little paradise, especially if you decide to take further steps and more and more people will have opinions about your relationship. If families are involved, they will have an opinion about almost everything ranging from whether the female is veiled or not, for instance, to where your selected partner lives and so on. Small things can be good indicators in that case, table manners? Anyone? These are things that you need to consider when thinking about a potential mate or to ponder upon when it all comes collapsing down. And again, don’t make the same choice every single time and expect a different result. Till we meet again, Have a good one.

] PATTERNS ]

Show Off Those Abs!

Shorts for all occasions Wear your favourite shorts by the beach, at a party with a cute top, or even by a pool in the city.

Cropped tops are making a big return to the fashion scene! Wear a cropped bustier, t-shirt or sweater coupled with your favorite high-waist skirt, denims or shorts whenever you can and you’ve got yourself a super trendy summer look!

French Connection

‫‏‬La Redoute

New Look

H&M ‫‏‬Boohoo ‫‏‬Republic

River Island ‫‏‬Primark

ASOS River Island

‫‏‬MaMatalan ‫‏‬Pilot

River Island

Summer Classics

Ethnic Patterns

For all the Mad Men lovers and all the dainty girls out there, the glamorous styles of the 50s and 60s are all over runways!

Afro-ethnic patterns are very in this season; make sure you have one item with an African-style print and you’re good to go.

ASOS ASOS French Connection

Debenhams

River Island

‫‏‬Pilot

Zara

H&M

Zara Accesorize

‫‏‬Boohoo Accesorize

44 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

Monsoon

PATTERNS

Made In Egypt

Own the beach in this multiway beach wrap with pompoms from The Pink Powder Room

The phrase “Yalahwy” is inherent in Egyptian culture, and this Runi Yalahwy White T-shirt brilliantly fuses it with a funky pop art-ish image.

Snatch yourself a pair of Shibshibi flip flops to match your favourite bathing suit

As we all know floral patterns are hot this summer, so get yourself a simple, playful layered dress from Amina K

Whether you’re by the beach or at a party, throw on this simply fabulous multicolored top with a sheer front and a cotton navy back by BDesigns on shorts or jeans and you’re good to go!

If you were a kid growing up in Egypt in the 80s or 90s, you will love Runi’s Boogie & Tamtam T-Shirt

We have seen many ideas evolve from Arab and Egyptian culture, but this Boho Sharky signature bag, made from genuine leather with the circular messenger creatively shaped like the brand’s signature ’Req’ (oriental musical instrument), wins the prize for most original idea this month!

4545

Fashion Bulletin PATTERNS

H&M Shocks the world with an Eco-Friendly Collection H&M gives back with launching an eco-friendly collection designed with glamorous taste and made of sustainable materials like organic cotton, hemp, recycled polyester, etc. Not only that, the collection has already hit the red carpet as both Amanda Seyfried and Michelle Williams rocked pieces from it before the official launch that took place on April 12th.

Oscar de la Renta Designs For Kids Finally both you and your kid can look simply fabulous in Oscar de la Renta designs! Well, maybe not for everyday life, considering they’re very fancy and a bit expensive, but if you’re in the mood to splurge and pamper your kid for a special occasion like a birthday or a wedding, you should check this collection out. It’s made for boys and girls ages 12 months to 14 years old, and the price ranges are from $65 to $350.

46 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

Claudia Schiffer returns to Guess, 23 years later They say that true beauty ages best, and this is crystal clear with the new Guess campaign, where Claudia Schiffer returns to being the face of Guess, looking just as good as she used to, some say even better. Check out some of these photos from the campaign from 23 years ago, and todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. I think the

PATTERNS

Edith Head The Most Influential Costume Designer Hollywood’s Ever Known

One of her famous pieces for Mae West

WHEN IT COMES TO FASHION, TRENDS SHIFT ALL THE TIME. THERE’S NO DOUBT THAT HOLLYWOOD ACTORS AND ACTRESSES ARE THE WORLD’S TOP TREND-SETTERS. THE REAL DEAL, HOWEVER, ARE THE COSTUME DESIGNERS DRESSING THESE MEN AND WOMEN IN THEIR BIG MOVIE ROLES.

48 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

Alfred Hitchcock and Edith Head.

When looking back, Edith Head’s name has undeniably been engraved in 20th century fashion as a brilliant costume designer, and her influence resonates up to this very day. Edith was your average American; a school teacher who wanted to improve her drawing skills so decided to take night classes at Chouinard Art College. Although she hadn’t yet shown any remarkable artistic or designing skill, and she hadn’t hadany sort of experience, she was hired as a costume sketch artist at Paramount Pictures in 1924. You’d ask yourself how an amateur artist would land a job like that. Well, actually, long after she became famous, she admitted that she hadborrowed her own classmate’s sketches for her job interview in Paramount, because she hadn’t been very talented at that point and she had known her drawings were not good enough. But, to be fair, she compensated for that lie like no other during her career. In fact, she won eight Academy Awards (more than any other women ever has) for her costume designs. Not only that; throughout her life she was nominated for 35 Academy Awards (every year from 1948 through 1966), which is unbelievable in itself. Some people would argue that there wasn’t much competition at that time, but as one looks at her contributions to all the Hitchcock movies and many other classics, and it becomes evident that she was a fashion genius of the rarest type. Her film career began with her working as an assistant for costume design on the movie Wings. 10 years and many movies later, she was finally promoted to costume designer, where she began by working with Mae West in the film production ofShe Done Him Wrong. And just like that, five years later, she became the head of Paramount’s costume design, making her the first women to ever hold such a title in Hollywood history. Edith worked at Paramount Pictures for 43 years, until, in 1967, she moved to Universal Pictures - where she became the prime costume designer for Alfred Hitchcock. Throughout Edith’s career, she became famous for many classic pieces – including the “sarong” dress she created for Dorothy Lamour in The Hurricane. And, of course, one cannot forget the design that most people associate with Audrey Hepburn to this very day, the work she did in collaboration with Givenchy for Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Not to mention her designs for Hitchcock’s, which still affect fashion styles today. For example, she made Grace Kelly the face of the Icy Queen look, whichhas been trendy this year. The icy queen look is pretty much the chi-chi classic look, or – for those of you who watch Mad Men - the Betty Draper look. Moreover, Edith Head not only made designs for the movies; but contributed on all levels to Paramount, as she used to design uniforms for Paramount security guards for decades. In the 1970s, she even designed the women’s uniform for the United States Coast Guard. Through the inventiveness and diversity of her designs, Edith’s fashion philosophy lives on. She is the person behind the timeless rule everyone keeps repeating: “Your dresses should be tight enough to show you’re a woman, and loose enough to show you’re a lady.” Everywhere you look in the fashion or movie worlds, you are bound to see something influenced by Edith Head. You might not have known this, but – for example - the character of Edna Mode in Disney and Pixar’s movie, The Incredibles, is inspired by Edith Head – and that’s why she was created as a spitting image of her. As a costume designer, Edith became a celebrity through her own personal style. The flattop hairdo and the oversized sunglasses, coupled with the chic and classic Chanel suit, were central to her look. She was a very minimal, quiet person, but her success truly was not. This year, decades after her death, the prime Barbie doll being sold in the United States is Grace Kelly wearing Edith Head’s designs. “The cardinal sin is not being badly dressed, but wearing the right thing in the wrong place.” -Edith Head

One of her famous pieces

Audrey Hepburn and Edith Head at Edith’s birthday

One of her famous pieces

Costume sketch by Edith Head for Joan Fontaine in ‘September Affair’, 1950.

Joanne Dru in 3 RING CIRCUS (1954 Paramount) Edith Head

The Grace Kelly Barbie from Rear Window

SECTION PATTERNS

Yasmine Said – A Hot New Designer is on the Block! FOLLOWING HER STUDIES IN PARIS FOR THREE YEARS, YASMINE SAID GRADUATED IN 2011 FROM ESMOD UNIVERSITY OF FASHION DESIGN AND CREATION WITH A DEGREE IN NOUVELLE COUTURE STYLE AND PATTERN DRAFTING. SHE COMPLETED HER DEGREE BY CREATING HER OWN PERSONAL COLLECTION AS WELL AS INTERNING AT CHRISTOPHE JOSS HAUTE COUTURE AND BALMAIN PARIS IN 2010/11. WITH A YOUNG AND HIP VISION IN FASHION, YASMINE’S FIRST FALL/WINTER 2012-13 COLLECTION IS LAUNCHING THIS MONTH; COMPOSED OF CONTRASTING IDEAS AND INFLUENCES, ADAPTED TO A MODERN WOMAN’S LIFE. How did you get into fashion design? I’ve always been interested in art, painting especially. After graduating from high school, I went to AUC for a semester. Meanwhile, I started applying to several Fashion Design Universities in London, Paris, and Milan. After getting my acceptances, I decided that Paris would be the perfect fit for pursuing my career in fashion. And that’s when I went to Paris to start my three-year studies at ESMOD University of Fashion Design and Creation.

What is it that first inspired you to get into fashion design? Art in general inspired me; especially how it influences fashion designers sometimes, whether through paintings used to make prints on fabric, or abstract shapes used to give clothing volume and style.

What do you enjoy most about designing clothes? The thing I enjoy the most about designing clothes is the idea that it’s always challenging. Designing clothes is not as easy as it sounds. There’s always a technical side to every piece I design. The way it will

be sewed, how it will look on the buyer; how it will feel, how the buyer will move in it, and so on. A million aspects must be assessed and thought out when designing every single piece.

And what’s the most challenging part? Finding inspiration. The right colors, volumes, ideas… that is definitely the most challenging part.

And where is it that you find inspiration for your designs? Different things always inspire me. I always go with the concept of “contrast”. I use different ideas, colors, and fabrics together to create a collection. The idea of light and dark colors, strong and soft shapes, geometrical and non-geometrical, etc. I try to take a part of each to create something that gives a statement, yet remain very elegant and feminine.

If you could work with/for any international designer of your choice, who would it be? If I had to pick one designer to work for, it would definitely be Alexander McQueen. Both Lee Alexander McQueen and Sara Burton as his successor are extremely talented designers. Each piece created at Alexander McQueen is complex and beautiful in its own way. Each piece requires an enormous amount of knowledge and technique to be constructed. The technical level to design and create an Alexander McQueen piece is completely inspiring.

Who’s the fashion designer who influenced your work the most? RiccardoTisci. His work at Givenchy has always been my number one influence. His ideas are always inspiring for both collections: ready-to-wear and couture. His work for Givenchy’s R-T-W collections is always amazing, but his collections for the couture line are definitely the most inspiring. Each detail, idea, fabric, piece is simply breathtaking.

50 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

Is there a particular color dominating your first fashion collection? Black, definitely! It is by far my favorite color. It’s the most inspiring, and not just for my first collection, but generally. Some people think that black is dull, and some think it’s the easiest to work with, but I believe that it makes everything have a stronger statement.

What’s your favorite piece from the collection?

Well, I cannot reveal much of my collection until the fashion show is over, but my favorite piece is a fully detailed and embroidered bustier dress.

Is there any particular celebrity you’d like to dress one day? Daphne Guinness, Anna Dello Russo and Lou Doillon. They have always been involved in fashion; and they have such amazing taste and appreciation for fashion.

What sacrifices did you have to make in order to have this career? Not much, really. I just believed that I have to succeed. I had no other option to fall back on. I’ve never been interested in anything else but studying art. So when I got accepted to ESMOD University I knew I had to do whatever it takes in order for me to get a degree in fashion and not have my parents send me back to Cairo!

What are the main duties of your job?

I have to always make sure that EVERYTHING is perfectly made. Designing is actually the easier part of this job. The hard part is when we’re actually sewing the pieces, because at this point every single detail counts. Every millimeter makes a huge difference.

What is a typical day for you like?

Does your work reflect your personal fashion taste? My designs do not really reflect on my own personal style. I love dressing up and trying new things, but I always believe that simplicity makes a statement. However, when I’m designing, I become more creative and experimental; I try to set my personal style aside.

Since I’m working from home, it’s much easier for me. I start work at around 11 a.m. and finish at around 5 or 6 p.m. I have to make sure that my employees are sewing perfectly. I’m always standing next to them, watching every move; and if anything goes wrong they have to re-do it until it’s perfect. It gets really exhausting sometimes, but I really enjoy it. After all, I’m doing the thing I love the most for a living!

Do you feel your formal fashion education at ESMOD helped prepare you for working in the industry? Most definitely! Studying at ESMOD has been one of the most challenging things I’ve ever had to deal with. I didn’t only practice designing, but I also learned how to sew and create my own designs from scratch. However, I believe that my work experiences have taught me even more than what I learned at ESMOD. Working at Christophe Josse Haute Couture and Balmain Paris made me realize how a brand actually works.

What’s one piece of advice would you give someone wanting to start a career in fashion? Even though the industry is one of the most competitive, stressful and time-consuming industries, it is by far the most interesting, fun, creative industry, for me personally. Therefore, one needs to learn the technical side of creating a piece, then designing really comes naturally. Start with finding inspirations, then designing the collection, finding the fabrics, making the proto-types, then making the actual pieces with the fabrics you found… each step is a different journey!

What trends do you see being big in 2012? Seeing the latest Fall/Winter 2012-13 fashion shows, I have to say that there has been a wide range of trends. Shades of blue, purple, beige and rose pink are in, as well as black of course. Capes, gloves, skater and A-line skirts… Monochrome, Brocade and Zigzag prints. Each idea has a feel to it!

PRESS RELEASES

CitJo.com– The Hub for Citizen Sky News Arabia: Launches 6th Journalists in the Middle East May 2012 The first Middle East based citizen journalism portal is officially launched in Egypt to assist Citizen Journalists in sharing and monetizing their photos and videos CitJo officially launched their online platform, www.citjo.com, a citizen journalism portal which connects citizen journalists with media agencies worldwide. The first of its kind in Egypt, CitJo provides an innovative local news source in addition to the ability of citizen journalists to sell their photos and videos. Citizen Journalists, freelance journalists, activists and other contributors can upload their photos and videos to www.citjo.com, set a price, and if they are picked up by news agencies, get paid for their content. To make life easier for the user, they can also connect to their twitter account and from then on, if they upload a photo/video to twitter and hash-tag their tweet with #CitJo, they will be able to index and sell it on www.citjo.com. The price and license will be set in their account settings.

A channel committed to delivering fast, live, impartial news across multiple platforms

Sky News Arabia, the 24-hour Arabic language multi-platform breaking news service, will launch on 6th May, 2012.

Local, regional and international news and media agencies, looking for the next big story or trying to find pictures or videos for a past event, can search our archives and purchase the photos and videos at the price set by contributors. As one of the top 20 finalists in the Google Ebda2 competition, the founders, Mahamad El Tanahy & Sarah Wali are looking to change the news cycle and transform this by merging with social media.

Independent Editorial Advisory Committee to ensure independence of channel

The channel, which promises “a new horizon” for news reporting across the Arab world, will be available on Transponder 14 on Arabsat Badr 4, Transponder 15 on Nilesat 201, on du IPTV and e-Life platforms plus in high definition on the OSN pay-TV platform. The announcement was made during a press conference held by the head of the channel, Nart Bouran, at Sky News Arabia’s state of the art studios in Abu Dhabi.

McDonald’s Egypt Participates in 2012 McDonald’s Crew Olympics McDonald’s Egypt participates in 2012 Crew Olympics MEA (Middle East & Africa) regional competition that will be held in Dubai in May 2012. Participating crew from all McDonald’s Egypt restaurants will participate in the local qualification rounds. The top five who demonstrate the highest levels of operational excellence in different working stations in the restaurants and customer satisfaction will be selected to compete in the regional’s finals in Dubai (May 2012). Alaa Fathi, General Manager of McDonald’s Egypt, stated “At McDonald’s Egypt we are committed to providing the highest levels of customers’ satisfaction by consistently adhering to solid unprecedented standards of quality, service and cleanliness; building on our promise to deliver best quality service and strengthens the customers’ trust in our brand.” It is noteworthy that McDonald’s corporation is the official restaurant of the Olympic Games and has been the official sponsor of this global sports event since 1976. Additionally, McDonald’s Egypt participated in the schools celebration held at the Children’s Cancer Hospital 57357, under the title What Would You Do If You Were A Minister, to celebrate the 2011/2012 academic year. McDonald’s Egypt provided 200 meals to preparatory and secondary school students from 20 different schools that participated in the celebration held under the auspices of the Ministries of Education, Health, Tourism and Environment.

40 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

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] THE GREEN PASSPORT ]

Lebanon: ّ ‫ما راح‬ ‫بلش إال فيها‬ By May Kamel

SoÊ IÊ justÊ gotÊ backÊ fromÊ aÊ much-neededÊ tripÊ toÊ Lebanon. Best.Ê Trip.Ê Ever...MainlyÊ becauseÊ myÊ parentsÊ paidÊ forÊ it.Ê ButÊ no,Ê seriously,Ê youÊ shouldÊ goÊ thereÊ someÊ time.Ê LebanonÊ hasÊ forÊ sureÊ gottenÊ lotsÊ ofÊ attentionÊ fromÊ EgyptianÊ touristsÊ inÊ theÊ pastÊ coupleÊ ofÊ years,Ê beingÊ anÊ hourÊ away,Ê sansÊ theÊ visaÊ hassle,Ê knownÊ forÊ theÊ nightlifeÊ yaÊ m3allemÊ andÊ fullÊ ofÊ mozazÊ lelÊ gensein.Ê ButÊ thatÕ sÊ notÊ myÊ point.Ê TheÊ thing that got me to write about this trip in specific is how almost everyÊ incidentÊ IÊ encounteredÊ everÊ sinceÊ IÊ steppedÊ footÊ thereÊ triggeredÊ aÊ comparisonÊ pointÊ toÊ OmÊ ElÊ DonyaÉ Ê andÊ IÊ meanÊ itÊ literally;Ê soÊ literalÊ thatÊ IÊ foundÊ myÊ meticulousÊ selfÊ documentingÊ incidentsÊ withÊ picturesÊ andÊ notesÊ justÊ anÊ hourÊ afterÊ IÊ landedÊ tillÊ IÊ boardedÊ theÊ planeÊ backÊ toÊ CairoÉ aywallahy.

54 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

AllÊ overÊ theÊ country,Ê thereÊ areÊ thoseÊ bigÊ yellowÊ billboardsÊ withÊ ‫ما راح‬Ê ‫ب ّلش اال فيها‬Ê writtenÊ onÊ themÊ inÊ brightÊ red.Ê InnuendoÊ aside,Ê itÊ translatesÊ toÊ Ò IÊ wonÕ tÊ startÊ exceptÊ hereÓ ,Ê andÊ itÊ probablyÊ aimsÊ atÊ encouragingÊ peopleÊ toÊ stayÊ andÊ workÊ inÊ LebanonÊ andÊ stuff.Ê CuteÊ keda.Ê WhatÊ followsÊ isÊ aÊ listÊ ofÊ reasonsÊ whyÊ IÊ thinkÊ itÕ sÊ properÊ forÊ evenÊ theÊ averageÊ EgyptianÊ toÊ yeballeshÊ feehaÊ howaÊ kaman.

1-Ê LebanonÊ isÊ notÊ partÊ ofÊ theÊ evilÊ ginormousÊ multidimensionalÊ supercalifragilisticÊ conspiracyÊ plottedÊ againstÊ Egypt.Ê NeedÊ proof?Ê AmrÊ MostafaÊ wasÊ there!Ê AndÊ donÕ tÊ youÊ dareÊ questionÊ hisÊ patriotism.Ê Hayla3bak.Ê La2Ê basÊ 7a2ee2yÊ theÊ guyÊ stoodÊ outÊ inÊ theÊ crowd.Ê IÊ mean,Ê IÊ spottedÊ himÊ justÊ 15Ê minutesÊ afterÊ IÊ arrivedÊ atÊ SolidaireÊ (DowntownÊ Beirut)Ê atÊ aÊ veryÊ busyÊ lunchÊ hour.Ê MustÊ haveÊ beenÊ theÊ hairdo,Ê orÊ thatÊ chickÊ withÊ theÊ ShobraÊ allureÊ (mostlyÊ theÊ hairdo).Ê HadÊ itÊ notÊ beenÊ forÊ myÊ mom,Ê whoÊ sworeÊ sheÕ dÊ shipÊ meÊ backÊ toÊ CairoÊ inÊ anÊ hourÊ ifÊ IÊ Ò giveÊ thisÊ excuseÊ ofÊ aÊ beingÊ anyÊ attentionÓ Ê (alsoÊ sheÊ paidÊ forÊ theÊ trip,Ê remember?),Ê IÊ wouldÊ haveÊ gladlyÊ givenÊ himÊ aÊ pieceÊ ofÊ myÊ mind.Ê Yalla,Ê mayestahloushy. 2-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê lamaÊ elÊ koraÊ betrou7Ê 3andÊ elÊ parliamentÊ ma7adeshÊ bey2atta3ha.Ê NorÊ doÊ soulsÊ getÊ wastedÊ inÊ theÊ process.Ê TheyÊ donÕ tÊ evenÊ giveÊ theÊ incidentÊ aÊ labelÊ Ò a7dathÊ elÊ maglesÓ Ê andÊ theÊ likes.Ê IÊ swear.Ê ItÊ wasÊ onÊ MarchÊ 27th,Ê 2012,Ê betweenÊ 13:00Ê andÊ 13:30Ê thatÊ aÊ kidÊ wasÊ seenÊ playingÊ footballÊ withÊ hisÊ dadÊ whenÊ theÊ ballÊ accidentallyÊ passedÊ inÊ frontÊ ofÊ theÊ parliamentÊ andÊ justÊ whenÊ IÊ wasÊ aboutÊ toÊ takeÊ coverÊ inÊ preparation for the gunfire I was expecting, the officer started playing alongÊ too!Ê Mash-hadÊ maheeb. 3-Ê ‫بيروت ليست دبي‬. That was actually a graffiti sprayed on a random wall, butÊ itÊ holdsÊ soÊ muchÊ truthÊ inÊ it;Ê IÊ actuallyÊ foundÊ itÊ brilliant.Ê GrowingÊ upÊ inÊ UAE,Ê IÊ assureÊ you,Ê DubaiÊ andÊ BeirutÊ areÊ notÊ aÊ singleÊ bitÊ alike.Ê WhileÊ whoeverÊ sprayedÊ thatÊ probablyÊ didÊ itÊ outÊ ofÊ frustrationÊ afterÊ notÊ nailingÊ thatÊ oneÊ interviewÊ inÊ DubaiÊ andÊ thusÊ kissingÊ hisÊ dreams of being filthy rich in 3 hours goodbye, I saw it in a different light.Ê ToÊ me,Ê BeirutÊ isÊ notÊ DubaiÊ inÊ aÊ positiveÊ sense;Ê forÊ instance,Ê youÊ goÊ shoppingÊ atÊ lavishÊ stores,Ê yetÊ theyÕ reÊ inÊ anÊ areaÊ thatÊ oozesÊ ofÊ LebaneseÊ heritageÊ andÊ essence,Ê notÊ aÊ faux,Ê Ÿ ber-modernÊ mallÊ withÊ people buying “sett 7abbat men kol shei” in clashing outfits. Beirut is bothÊ coolÊ yetÊ keepingÊ itsÊ essence,Ê sortÊ ofÊ likeÊ aÊ superÊ hotÊ girlÊ whoÊ isÊ stillÊ decentÊ wÊ kedaÊ andÊ notÊ whoringÊ herselfÊ around. 4-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê youÊ donÕ tÊ haveÊ toÊ beÊ AboÊ 7adÊ toÊ openÊ aÊ shawermaÊ place.Ê PlacesÊ withÊ namesÊ likeÊ BarbarÊ orÊ ElÊ BaladÊ (justÊ toÊ nameÊ aÊ few)Ê doÊ exist.Ê TakeÊ aÊ hintÊ ba2aÊ youÊ youngÊ peopleÊ whoÊ haveÊ passionÊ forÊ LebaneseÊ cuisineÊ butÊ areÊ notÊ readyÊ yetÊ toÊ haveÊ aÊ babyÊ ofÊ theirÊ ownÊ toÊ nameÊ itÊ afterÊ them. 5-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê petrolÊ stationÊ ownersÊ areÊ soÊ badass,Ê thatÊ theyÊ stoleÊ theÊ Exxon-MobilÊ Ô OnÊ TheÊ RunÕ Ê brandÊ notÊ onlyÊ once,Ê butÊ twice;Ê OnÊ TheÊ WayÊ andÊ OnÊ TheÊ Road,Ê bothÊ writtenÊ inÊ theÊ sameÊ font,Ê sameÊ colorÊ onÊ aÊ banner.Ê Daaaaynjerous,Ê IÊ tellÊ you. 6-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê thereÊ areÊ wayÊ tooÊ manyÊ friedÊ chickenÊ places,Ê itÊ wouldÊ beÊ impossibleÊ forÊ mowateneenÊ shorafa2Ê toÊ frameÊ revolutionariesÊ andÊ pinpoint where exactly they get their fried chicken fix. Also I would so ratherÊ beÊ labeledÊ aÊ traitorÊ forÊ eatingÊ atÊ ‫حرقوص تشيكن‬Ê orÊ LordÊ ofÊ theÊ WingsÊ thanÊ atÊ KFC.Ê SoundsÊ moreÊ legitimateÊ asÊ aÊ badass. 7-Ê NoÊ matterÊ whatÊ timeÊ ofÊ theÊ dayÊ itÊ is,Ê LebaneseÊ peopleÊ areÊ alwaysÊ smiling.Ê YouÊ knowÊ whatÊ IÊ mean. 8-Ê LebaneseÊ peopleÊ appreciateÊ avocado,Ê salads,Ê juice,Ê kolloÊ ba2a.Ê EnoughÊ said. 9-Ê LebaneseÊ peopleÊ breakÊ intoÊ danceÊ onÊ theÊ streetsÊ moreÊ oftenÊ thanÊ not,Ê andÊ peopleÊ joinÊ inÊ 3ady. 10-Ê LebanonÊ hasÊ theÊ essenceÊ ofÊ oldÊ Europe,Ê withÊ theÊ three-Ê storyÊ housesÊ madeÊ ofÊ stoneÊ withÊ steepÊ roofs,Ê snowÊ blockingÊ theÊ frontÊ doors,Ê everything.Ê TheyÊ evenÊ tookÊ itÊ upÊ aÊ notchÊ byÊ havingÊ absolutelyÊ noÊ shattafasÊ atÊ all.

11-Ê LebaneseÊ peopleÊ sayÊ Ò pardonÊ mademoiselleÓ Ê afterÊ cuttingÊ intoÊ yourÊ lane.Ê EveryÊ time.Ê OfÊ courseÊ theyÊ doÊ makeÊ youÊ missÊ theÊ greenÊ lightÊ andÊ keepÊ youÊ stuckÊ forÊ likeÊ 15Ê moreÊ minutesÊ (theyÊ callÊ itÊ TRAFFIC.Ê Cute,Ê IÊ know),Ê butÊ trustÊ me,Ê thatÊ Ò mademoiselleÓ Ê makesÊ yourÊ wholeÊ week. 12-Ê LebanonÊ hasÊ moreÊ treesÊ andÊ greeneryÊ thanÊ AzharÊ Park.Ê Hatetbesto.Ê HatoÊ elÊ awladÊ ma3akom. 13-Ê LebaneseÊ peopleÊ shower.Ê Mostly. 14-Ê LebaneseÊ peopleÊ areÊ greatÊ withÊ numbers.Ê IÊ meanÊ allÊ thoseÊ conversionsÊ betweenÊ dollarsÊ andÊ lirasÉ Ê respect. 15-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê thereÕ sÊ noÊ centralization.Ê GoÊ anywhereÊ inÊ theÊ countryÊ and you’ll find something unique about it. 16-Ê IfÊ youÕ reÊ Egyptian,Ê youÕ reÊ aÊ godÊ there.Ê ExpectÊ toÊ beÊ showeredÊ withÊ compliments,Ê drinks,Ê freeÊ foodÊ andÊ theÊ likes.Ê IÊ wasÊ onceÊ salutedÊ withÊ UltrasÊ WhiteÊ KnightsÕ Ê ‫!شمس احلرية‬ 17- Lebanon has an up-and-coming graffiti scene that leaves the walls sparkling with energy. Not Nafa2-El-Thawra-horrors graffiti, but rather hip, creative, demonstrative art that reflects some truth about the city. 18-Ê LebaneseÊ strayÊ catsÊ areÊ cleanerÊ thanÊ ourÊ ownÊ pets.Ê AndÊ theyÊ haveÊ dignity.Ê YouÊ throwÊ stuffÊ atÊ themÊ once,Ê theyÊ donÕ tÊ comeÊ back.Ê #Fact 19-Ê InÊ 6Ê days,Ê IÊ sawÊ 23Ê peopleÊ throwÊ stuffÊ inÊ theÊ wasteÊ basket.Ê ThatÕ sÊ likeÊ 22Ê incidentsÊ moreÊ oftenÊ thanÊ inÊ Cairo,Ê theÊ wholeÊ populationÊ included. 20-Ê AlmostÊ atÊ allÊ times,Ê youÊ canÊ hearÊ FairouzÊ singingÊ throughÊ someÊ speaker.Ê ItÕ sÊ asÊ ifÊ herÊ voiceÊ isÊ theÊ backgroundÊ musicÊ ofÊ theÊ wholeÊ country. 21- In Lebanon, the army officer with a Mohawk hairdo is treated with fullÊ respectÊ andÊ takenÊ seriouslyÊ and,Ê contraryÊ toÊ whatÊ wouldÊ happenÊ here,Ê wasÊ handedÊ theÊ carÊ licenseÊ withoutÊ beingÊ calledÊ Ò yaÊ seedÊ ommakÓ Ê orÊ theÊ likes. 22-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê youÊ canÊ goÊ toÊ theÊ beach,Ê goÊ forÊ aÊ picnicÊ inÊ theÊ woods,Ê REALÊ woods,Ê andÊ goÊ skiingÊ allÊ inÊ oneÊ day. 23-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê gaysÊ announceÊ theirÊ orientationÊ byÊ wearingÊ aÊ t-shirtÊ withÊ hangersÊ alongÊ withÊ theÊ phraseÊ Ò OutÊ ofÊ theÊ ClosetÓ Ê onÊ it,Ê inÊ contrastÊ withÊ theÊ pinkÊ SpongebobÊ onesÊ withÊ pinkÊ glitterÊ andÊ kaharebÊ usedÊ here. 24-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê peopleÊ tendÊ toÊ acceptÊ oneÊ anotherÊ forÊ whoÊ theyÊ are.Ê TheyÕ reÊ aÊ livingÊ exampleÊ ofÊ howÊ kolÊ menÊ leehÊ nabyÊ beysallyÊ 3aleih. 25-Ê InÊ Lebanon,Ê thereÊ areÊ enoughÊ EgyptiansÊ toÊ makeÊ youÊ feelÊ atÊ home. IÊ mustÊ admitÊ thatÊ beforeÊ thatÊ visit,Ê IÊ alwaysÊ sawÊ LebanonÊ asÊ aÊ post-warÊ damagedÊ country,Ê withÊ prettyÊ peopleÊ andÊ noÊ electricity.Ê IÊ wasÊ wrong.Ê TheÊ countryÊ isÊ beautiful,Ê peopleÊ areÊ notÊ necessarilyÊ thatÊ prettyÊ andÊ theÊ powerÊ outageÊ goesÊ accordingÊ toÊ aÊ pre-announcedÊ schedule. SoÊ forÊ allÊ ofÊ theseÊ reasons,Ê andÊ forÊ theÊ greatÊ timeÊ IÊ spentÊ there,Ê IÊ haveÊ toÊ goÊ againstÊ Mashrou3Ê LeilaÊ thisÊ oneÊ time.Ê No;Ê balashÊ ne7ro2Ê halÊ madina.Ê ItÕ sÊ awesomeÊ asÊ itÊ is.Ê IÊ canÊ howeverÊ adviseÊ youÊ aboutÊ anotherÊ oneÊ toÊ burn,Ê andÊ IÊ wonÕ tÊ charge. C

SECTION SHELVES & SPEAKERS ] ] SCREENS,

Youssra El Hawary, the voice behind the viral song, “El Sour”: “We need to look at things through a broader perspective” By Mariam Abdel Gaber

I USED TO LIKE HER WHEN SHE WAS PART OF THE ‘CHOIR PROJECT’ AND, NEEDLESS TO MENTION, I LIKE HER NOW A LOT MORE AFTER LISTENING TO HER SONG, “EL SOUR”, THAT WENT VIRAL IN ONLY A COUPLE OF DAYS. I DECIDED TO HAVE A CHAT WITH YOUSSRA, NOT ONLY BECAUSE OF HER SONG, BUT BECAUSE SHE’S A GREAT EXAMPLE OF BREAKING NORMS AND TRADITIONS WITHOUT BANALITY.

Campus: Congrats on the song. Youssra: Thanks!

C: How old are you? Y: 28, although I do realize that I look much younger.

C: What’s your educational background? Y: I studied decoration, theater and cinema in the Faculty of Fine Arts then I studied theoretical music at the Cairo Musical Center. I also started learning the piano at the age of 8 and the accordion two years ago.

C: So you’re currently a musician? Y: I started off as a Graphic Designer then an Art Director in the field of advertising, then I studied editing and started working in the field of editing and animation, and I still am doing that as a freelancer besides my music. Also, after graduation, I joined “El Tami”, a theatre group, as an actress and a singer.

C: What about the Choir Project? Y: I’m one of the founding members of the Choir Project, which was originally an idea by Salam Youssry and it’s basically an open musical workshop that can be joined by anyone without having to have any prior musical, theatre experience or writing experience. The project aims at channeling the participant’s ideas, emotions and dreams in the form

56 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

of singing. We pick a different topic every time and start working on it, eventually making it into a choir.

C: Why have you chosen to be an independent musician? Y: So I can produce the type of music I want. This, of course, comes at a price because I’m forced to look for a secondary job in order to finance myself and not fall prey to production companies that would take my work and convert into what they’d see as a commercial success, but would be in reality naïve and direct.

C: Is your family supportive of you? Y: I was lucky to have grown up in a family that appreciates art and talent and they’ve made sure to teach me music at a young age. They demonstrated some reservations when I joined the theatre because it made me stay out late for long periods of time. This led to arguments, but they always remained as nothing more than arguments, and by time, they started accepting the nature of what I did.

C: What were the reactions to the inclusion of the word “Peepee” in your song? Y: The lyrics to the song had been published in “Al Dostour” because they originally belonged to artist Walid Taher and they were written next to the drawing of a man urinating. Then it was also published in Walid Taher’s book, “Haba Hawa”, and as far as I recall, it didn’t stir any controversy then! When I sang it however, a lot of people were taken back, including people from my age group; they thought that a word like “Peepee” isn’t appropriate to be sung. What bothered me was that people stopped at the word itself and didn’t try to look at the subject through a broader perspective. Furthermore, a big portion of the negative feedback goes back to the fact that I’m a girl, because “a girl shouldn’t say words like these!”

C: Do you believe we have a problem when it comes to accepting strange ideas? Y: We have a problem with everything that’s different. We don’t ask ourselves what makes a right thing right and what makes a wrong one wrong. We sometimes only object to things just because they’ve never been done before, but I believe that our generation is different and that we have a broader awareness and reasoning skills.

C: What’s your biggest issue with our society? Y: My biggest issue is that we’re not fully aware of both our own rights and others’, especially the latter. This phenomenon can be observed in our day-to-day lives; like a person cutting in a queue for example. We need to have more respect for each other’s rights and privacy.

C: As a girl, what problems are you subjected to within our society? Y: Women are always perceived as weak and vulnerable and that they always need help, nevertheless, I think that the girls of this generation are far more responsible than the guys. The mere idea that a woman’s biggest achievement is to get married is ludicrous, not to mention that society can be very forgiving when it comes to men making mistakes but not when women do.

C: What do you aspire to achieve? Y: Egypt has been suffering from controlled and naïve media for a very long time, which has led to the degradation of the public taste in art and the appearance of misconstrued criteria for success. In the future, I really want all artists to deliver whatever form of art in whatever way they please without control or censorship. I also want artists to be free of commercial controls, because that way they can put more effort into their work and develop an individual sense of evaluation for their work.

Small Space - Big Space Size Does Not Matter! Call: 0100 66 87 667 E-mail: zelalfy@core-publications.net

Zamalek: 5 Sayed El Bakry St. Off 26th of July St. Cairo, Egypt. Tel.: 02 27 380 080 Heliopolis: 131 Omar Ibn El- Khattab, St. Cairo, Egypt. Tel.: 02 24 174 095 Reservation no. 011 544 412 34

FOR RENT

Small Space - Big Space Size Does Not Matter! Call: 0100 66 87 667 E-mail: zelalfy@core-publications.net

FOR RENT

Small Space - Big Space Size Does Not Matter! Call: 0100 66 87 667 E-mail: zelalfy@core-publications.net

Small Space - Big Space Size Does Not Matter! Call: 010 66 87 667 E-mail: zelalfy@core-publications.net

Newly Opened!

Anyone who’s been driving down 26th July st. in Zamalek recently will know which place we’re talking about – that entrance just can’t be missed!

Zooba

For those who are tired of international cuisine and overdosed on cupcakes and waffles and just want some good ol’ Egyptian food without the hassle and discomfort of going to an 3arabeyet 2akl, look no further. Zooba offers all the Egyptian classics but with their own twist – and everything is prepared fresh in front of you. They offer foul (classic, tehina, spiced sausage, Alexandrian, barbecued), ta3meya (classic, spicy peppers, eggplant and the ‘Zooba’ style – with mozzarella and tehina) and all different kinds of cheese, served in their fresh balady bread. They also have kebda, spicy sausages and hawawshy – that’s what we’re talking about! And if that’s not enough, they also serve koshary, soups and all kinds of breads. But one of the coolest things about Zooba are their extremely original dips – coriander besara, roasted red pepper hommos, olive labna and tons others. Before you leave make sure you check out what they’re selling on their shelves: all types of pickles and molasses sticks. And tell us if you don’t fall in love with the way they decorated the place and wrapped up everything! Prices are obviously more expensive than 3arabeyet foul but it’s no wonder, considering the quality and presentation. However, compared to other Zamalek prices, your wallet will be VERY happy!

Top Dawgs

The world-famous celebrity chef/ travel TV star Anthony Bourdain always said that every great country in the world has at least one great hot dog place. For a long time it seemed like Egypt didn’t have one (sad face) but now with the opening of Top Dawgs, we can rightly take our place among other international hot dog greats! Top dawgs is where you should head, no questions asked, when you’re hungry and on the go (or after a long night doing whatever it is you do). The venue isn’t big, but it offers exactly what’s needed – a counter and few spots where you can stand and enjoy your dog before continuing on with your life.

Types of dogs offered: original, chili cheese, BBQ bacon, NYC, Chicago, Blue Cheese, Bratwurst, and our personal favorite, the Merquez dog – lamb sausage topped with harrissa, caramelized onions and mustard. You can also pick and style what kind of hot dog you want and with what kind of toppings from their long list. The bread is super fresh, the fries are tasty and they’re open late. We have a feeling it’ll be Cairo’s new after-party location. 5, Ibn Nabih St., Zamalek Tel: 01022238802

16, 26th of July Street Tel: 01001326000

Snack Time If you’ve been to Luxor recently, you might remember seeing the popular ‘Snack Time’ restaurant, a favorite with both locals and tourists alike. If you have no plans to go to Luxor any time soon then never fear, you won’t miss out – Snack Time just opened its first branch in Cairo! Snack Time isn’t your regular fast food place, it has an extensive menu and they try to keep everything as fresh and authentic as possible – the food almost has a homemade quality to it! They have starters, salads, pasta, paninis, wraps, burgers, baguette sandwiches, pizza and ‘meals’ (a plate of food instead of a sandwich). We recommend their Blazin’ Beef Panini (grilled beef, mozzarella, mushrooms, vegetables and spicy sauce) as well as their Big Daddy Mushroom & Bacon burger. Oh and make sure you try their cheesy fondue sticks as an appetizer! Other dishes to try: the Cajun Shrimps baguette and the Thai Crunchy Chicken baguette. You can turn anything into a combo (drinks and fries) and make sure you ask them for their sauces – honey mustard, spicy green mayo, hot bbq, tahina, garlic and Asian Zing sauce! They’ll definitely add to your experience. Prices are extremely reasonable (a burger is for 16 LE and a large sandwich ranges from 10-20 LE). Keep them in mind next time you’re about to order lunch! 59 ElMadina ElMonawara st, off Gamat el Dowal, Mohandiseen Tel: 333 556 59/ 333 556 51

60 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

] BALLS ]

Mahmoud Hassan:

Cairo Jazz Club bouncer by night,

world-class fighting champ by day By Youssef Saad Eldin

All superheroes have a regular day-job and a “superhero job” at night, but not this guy. Mahmoud Hassan is a bouncer at night and an Extreme Fighting Championship fighter during the day! Enough said.

Campus: What is the Extreme Fighting Championship (EFC)? Mahmoud: It’s a tournament that started in South Africa and is pretty similar to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC); it’s a mixed martial arts tournament. It combines several sports such as boxing, Judo and Jujitsu. The main difference between it and UFC is that UFC is more commercial and receives more media attention. C: What about the rules? M: There aren’t that many rules, just the basic ones: no low blows, no biting and you can’t kick your opponent in the head when he’s on the ground. C: How far did you go in the championship? M: I had a fight in South Africa with the ‘South African Karam Gaber’. He’s quite the celebrity in his country. Anyway, I beat him in 1 minute and 18 seconds, which is an achievement. C: How did that feel? M: It felt great! When I went there, no one knew me; I was the “nobody” who was going to fight the man who was foreseen as the upcoming champion. But after I won the fight, I became the center of attention and sponsors started approaching me. C: That was your first fight? M: Yes, that was my first Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight.

62 MAY 2012 CAMPUS

C: And what was your feeling before going to South Africa. Any sort of anxiety? M: Yes, a little. There are a lot of technical differences between boxing and MMA so I guess I was a bit worried. I’ve also been warned when I was there about how good my opponent was and how my boxing background could negatively affect me. But whenever a fight starts I try to put all my fears behind me and concentrate only on the fight. C: What did you do use to do before enrolling in the EFC? M: I’ve been working as a bouncer in the Cairo Jazz Club for 7 years and I still am. I’ve also been boxing for 14 years now and I won the national championship several times, the last was in 2008. C: And how did you train for the championship? M: I trained with Coach Mohamed Abdelhamid; he is the one who started this whole thing in Egypt. He is the one who brought MMA to Egypt. After 2 months of training, I went to South Africa for the match. I hadn’t done any boxing training because I was mainly training to use my legs in fight along with some Jujitsu in order to evade and break free from my opponent’s grapple. C: How long has it been since the last time you boxed? M: The last match was a year ago because I broke a finger and couldn’t box for the entire rehabilitation period. I only did some

weight-lifting and cardio along with some shadow boxing (which is boxing without actually hitting objects), and by time I started to feel better. But I eventually quit boxing all together. C: Why did you quit boxing? M: Will you actually publish what I’m going to say? C: Of course we will! M: I was fed up with the Egyptian Boxing Association; they are extremely corrupt over there. They literally pick who to qualify for championships regardless of their level. For example, during the qualifying trials, a boxer could get defeated, yet STILL qualify for an international tournament! One time they fixed it so that two boxers qualified for a tournament outside Egypt, and guess what? They fled and never returned to Egypt without even taking part in the tournament! I had gotten several offers before but they were all through the association, and consequently, they were more of scams than offers, because the association gets 70% of the benefits in the contract. They twist your arm because they know that we (athletes) will settle for anything.

The Egyptian Boxing Association is extremely corrupt. They literally pick who to qualify for championships regardless of their level. C: Do you ever feel sorry for any of your opponents? M: Sometimes I do, but there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. If I stop hitting him, he’ll hit me and I’ll eventually lose the match. So this part is left to the referee, if he sees that one of the contenders is at a great disadvantage, he calls the fight off. C: Being a bouncer at the CJC, did you ever have to beat someone up? M: Well, there was this guy who spent 2 weeks in the hospital. But violence is usually my last resort. In the street, if someone started calling me names I let it slide. However, some people just ask for it, and even then, I do my best to control my temper because if I don’t, I could end up in jail. I mean I never punch someone in a street fight, I only slap them! C: Have your friends started getting scared of you since that last fight? M: No, they’ve always been scared sh*tless of me! C: Has any of your friends or your family advised you not to go to South Africa? The EFC looks kind of brutal. M: On the contrary, they all encouraged me to go; they were all very supportive. C: What about your family? M: My father didn’t like it ever since I started when I was 16 years old till he passed away last year. He was never able to get himself to watch any of my fights. My mother, however, always encouraged it and three out of my four brothers are also boxers so I’d say they’re pretty much ok with it. C: When and where is your next fight? M: The date is not confirmed yet, but it should supposedly be on the 1st of June and it will also take place in South Africa. If I win this fight my, the one after it will be with the EFC champion. C: What are your optimum goals? M: On the short term I want to win the EFC championship, then I want to join the UFC in the US and then I want to start a similar organization here in Egypt. There is so much potential here, there are many people who are like me or even better but never got the chance. Along with Coach Abdelhamid I want to establish an organization that would host people with such potential. C: We wish you the best of luck in South Africa!

Y U NO STOP BEING PASSIVE AGRESSIVE?!

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