muhannad, tool for what? could this be a conspiracy to promote equality? or could it be a plot to undermine social injustice? or might this be a cover for a sneak attempt at developing a more just society? tool for what?

or do you work for the ministry of health and you see a conspiracy to tarnish jordan’s image.

the only thing you are afraid of is that a more inclusive democracy will put an end to the unchecked looting and incompetent policy making.

you have not proven that you love jordan. talk is cheap, but the corruption index and failed state index are more proof of your patriotism than your chest-beating and sloganeering.

My Idea for equality begins with the economic and the social aspects and from there we can move to the political one, you might ask why? My answer is that we should do so to mitigate the risks of using propaganda to charge people with false emotions based on unattainable goals. And also because by providing socio-economic equality you build a good sense of citizenship that leads to more loyalty.

As for what is wrong with using call for equality to gain political points, I leave you with the thought of arab “democracy”.

Peace.

Do you also need elaborationa on this thought?

thank you!
but i assure you! i could never reciprocate, first because thats not who i am, and second because as i said, its not the people that do it on daily bases, the truth is that as i said also before, most my frineds are from karak. and of course i am not ashamed of my origion, i am annoyed about the frown that comes after my answer. and yes, little things, but accumilate to leave you feel that you are not a real citizen. and not like i go complain about it all the day, its the first time i ever talk about it online, and rarely ever brought it up in real life too.

thanks for your words again.

everytime i travel i get stopped at the borders and interrogated by mukhabarat and treated like a suspect for no reason, often asked about the names of people i met and places i visited, very often have my passport taken and sent to mukhabarat headquarted for further “tourtine” investigation.

When dead lines of registering classes are passed, its next ti impossible to get the regesiteration people register any new classes for you. if you happen to be fromt he same tribe its possible though.

cousin got rear ended by a car in salt, since both the guy that hit him from the back and the traffic police happened to be both ra7a7lih, he decided that it was my cousins fault! and then 3eni 3enak he told him: look if you take this to court i will repeat my story under qasam, and you know this is more than enough in front of any judge.

its a ton of little stories like that. always, always asked: mnen 7ayyaka Allah? and then you see the frown when the answer is heard. or silence at best. a shy kind word rarely. ‘

listen i am not one of those people raising the slogan of “they hate us” at all. i am all for social integrity, i dont evaluate people based on their origin at all, i swear and God is my witness. and i am not saying that the country is full of discrimination on everyday bases and around every corner, it would be silly to say so, as i stated before, people treat you well in the south regardless of your origion, thats my experience, but its always that little extra when you are engaged with any governmental issue..

my dad bought a rifle to hunt in our farm, it took weeks before the mukhabarat refusal came! they refused giving a 55 years old buisnesman a lisence to have a hunting rifle. Our good Friend from a famous local tribe managed to make us one in notime. just entered the makhfar screaming keefkom ya garaba and things worked like magic, couple of weeks later we had the lisence.

other stories i dont want to tell here.

its things like that, little stupid things, that make you feel always like a second class citezen, with questioned loyality and a little bit smaller chances in getting any legitimate reequest answered than if you were one of the people with “priority”.

and that feeling totally sucks.

dear Mr Hatem:

i am talking about equal treatment for every Jordanian in terms of equal apportunities for everyone seeking progress, and equal punishment for anyone that commits whatever makes one deserve it. Equal chances in achieving legitimate goals and equal treatment by the law. To be treated as “jordanians” without being asked about my origin, to be identified as Jordanians in the eyes of the law, and as jordanians ONLY, everyone of us citizens enjoying the citizenship of this country, working for its good and respecting its rules: without “priorities” as someone put it.

To be treated as Jordanians and then gain equal access to govermental offices. Equal apportunities to fill them too! to have equal chances to correct what we see wrong through legitimate chanels, and critisice who we see mistaken no matter how high we aim as long as the heart is in the right place and the ways are legitimate.

To gain equal protection and the same level of trust in the eyes of mukhabarat in the boarders. to be considered innocent unless otherwise proven and not the other way around. to be considered a good loyal citizen unlee proven otherwise. to have equal rights in freedom of expression and..

well, i guess you got the rhythim:)

you shall speak now!

how is jordan’s interests interfering with the any of what i said? with calling for equality? you can play with words now the way you like! but its obvsious that this isnt what you meant, and if your real answer was this innocent and clear and simple, there wouldnt be a need to guess i will have other meanings to load it with, no?

i guess your point is well taken and understood.

why do i use my last name? why dont you?:)
of course to distinguish me from other khalids, i am khalid jarrar just like he is naseem il 6awarna and she is roba il assi, where is the big mystery in that?

and of course i am proud of it too, Jarrar happens to be a family with significat patriot history, full of names that are famous for fighting the israeli occupation by all means, since early 40s and till now. I am proud of it just like anyone has the right to be proud of their small or extended family.

But it doesnt define me, i know more of 6arawna and `6moor, 7amayda and 7alal7ma than i know of the jarrars probably, because although i am proud of my family name, its only a small part of me, and it doesnt define me, i like to believe that there are enough skills and acievements in my life to define me, much more important to me than my last name, that i did no great acheivement to get it, just like everyone else in the world, other than getting born.

I am for using last names in social life, it helps getting families together etc. but in the eyes of laws, we all should be equal, that in my eyes is justice, and justice and equality is for the best interest of Jordan.

Clear? Or do you need any more explanation, if so then I would suggest that others jump to help you understand what I mean.

So whats up with you using your last name? is it one of the “choices” I gave you in the question before?

Peace out.

i happen to believe in this crazy concept of equality, you know? the concept where everyone is equal in the eyes of law? setting that is my priority, and that is my agenda! whats yours pleasE? you responded to my question with two comments and lots of questions but not an answer: what are the priorities you talked about when you said:

“I am with eliminating the last name from the ID, but I am also with setting priorities if you know what I mean… ”

i would like a straight answer, please.

HOWEVER: is it possible to continue this debate without resorting to any name calling or even insulting anyone?

I think it is.

So lets give it a try.

Bilal: thanks for the kind words!

Rola: I understand your frustration, but perhaps reposting your comments here isn’t really going to help you get your message across the way you think?

Explain Khalid Jarrar:)

Let me hear what “your” priorities are and let us all see if they fit with the jordanian agenda(If there is one). Many agendas we have here in jordan, o kol wa7ad be3′anni 3la mowallo.

Salamz Mr I-know-everything-and-I-have-something-to-say-whatever-the-subject-is-because-I-know-it-all-etc..

Salamz.

no actually mr neo con muhanned, would you pleas explain i am eager to hear it.

Batir, you’re stuffing words in my mouth. I never associated the lack of education or awareness with low income levels. However, you made a blanket statement when you said that Jordanians of Palestinian origin especially in districts like the 1st and 2nd districts end up voting for members of the IAF. Again, I didn’t say that this story is in fact a “web of organized crime” as you alluded to, again, that’s how rumors are being fabricated. I offered a story, that a friend told me about their mother. Believe it or not, it happened. I just find it frustrating when people get hung up on specifics and miss the bigger picture.

If intelligence units and police forces are so essential for the prosperity of any economy, then explain the fall of ex-USSR? Had the USSR gave more space and freedom for people to talk and criticize their governments in a CONSTRUCTIVE fashion, a lot of things would’ve been different. But that government opted to terrorize its own people with an over-abundance of intelligence units. You want more examples? Look up north (Syria).

Again, I am calling for equal opportunities. That should be a birthright, and not a perk.

Batir, I appreciate your comment, but what I would appreciate more, is for you to read my comments a bit more thoroughly.

So what does Kinzi do when I raise this issue, she deletes my post. She is free to do so, but I am free to repost.

http://kinziblogs.wordpress.com/2007/09/30/some-love-comments/

I salute you for being a great writer

I salute you for being a true Jordanian citizen

I salute you for trying to push reform in Jordan through digital outlets.

I salute you for making the black-iris my only gate to whats happening in my dear Jordan while am far away from it.

I salute you for being outspoken and courageous.

I wake up, I make coffee and check your blog. I come back from work, I check your blog, before I go to my college, I check your blog. I am addicted. Soon I will be coming back to Amman after years studying in the US.

my brothers like pheras and others on here are totally right. and I would like to add something maybe you guys are not aware of. most of the problems in Jordan stem from our constitution. where are the amendments? where is our bill of rights that protects the Jordanian citizens from the tyranny of their government? why do we not respect our constitution like all these ‘civilized’ people do?

maybe i am more exposed to the ‘constitution issue’ than most of Jordanians are because I live in the US, and I witness first hand how Americans -no matter how different they are- they all take pride in their constitution and respect it. In the UK they do not even have a constitution, but everybody including the queen herself respects whats known as the ‘common law’.

where is our bill of rights that SHOULD be learnt by every Jordanian? some of our government officials are corrupt because either they do do not follow the constitution or simply are protected by it. when was our last constitutional amendment in an ever changing social and political system in Jordan?

I do fully respect our Jordanian constitution because its our own legal document that should -supposedly- protect us from the tyranny of our own government. but some parts of it are out-dated. why do we STILL go by some laws that were vested early 1920s and represented by people far from what the people of Jordan are today?

the constitution of the most powerful country in the world, the USA, has been amended more than 25 times.

people should never be afraid of GID, or corrupt government officials, because our constitution should protect us. do we even have the right to challenge the GID in courts?

ask any of our tawjehee students about our constitution, and thier faces become blank. thats our setback, thats our shame. do we even learn our constitution in our schools?

its saddening to read a comment above from a brother, who brings in the issue of ‘the vote of Jordanians of Palestinian origin’ into this article! every body points a finger at everybody else. I bet this brother is like some of our government officials: they laugh at our ignorance of our own constitution.

second, when voters know that their votes don’t count and they will be canceled out by the cruel joke called Jordanian parliament and their political underrepresentation, they will try to sabotage the machine. this is passive aggressive behavior.

but lets look at the other side of the story. we have a “parliament” that was elected based on the sham system of representation. where is Jordan today? have you checked the corruption index? failed state index? unemployment figures? inflation? erosion of public schools? suppression of media? is this what you propose we keep in place? is this your defence against ending the dysfunctional status quo? or do you propose we implement a system that punishes populations for electing opposition candidates by removing their voting rights?