Entitled the “Sarhan Well” - with the word sarhan meaning “daydreaming” as well as the name of the oil well in the valley known as “Wadi Sarhan” - I think Emad Hajjaj’s latest caricature perfectly describes this country’s pipe dreams when it comes to oil production; a topic that has picked up some steam recently […]

The man who stabbed the German tourist a few weeks back has been charged by a military court with committing a “terrorist act”, after earlier being passed off as a mentally deranged person with no terrorist intentions by the Interior Minister. The charge has to be approved by the attorney general and it probably will […]

Two articles of interest caught my attention today, both related to water in Jordan, or the lack thereof:
Jordan has invited private firms to tender for the Disi project — estimated to cost 944 million dollars — on a build, operate and transfer basis under a 25-year-concession agreement.
“The treasury will handle around 220 million dollars […]

The latest draft of the new traffic law has been given urgent status in the Lower House, and will likely be put up for discussion but seeking an endorsement after the recess. Running a red light will now cost you 250JDs, that’s twice the average monthly minimum wage, which the average Jordanian earns. If you’re […]

All the lessons of history in four sentences:
Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad with power.
The mills of God grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly small.
The bee fertilizes the flower it robs.
When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.
- Charles A. Beard

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It may be hard to believe but March is almost over and the summer blockbusters are only a few weeks away. There are too many movies coming out, including Iron Man, Speed Racer, and Adam Sandler’s Don’t Mess With the Zohan, but here’s a selected list of the ones I’m personally looking forward to.

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To break the political monotony of the last couple of posts here are a few of my delicious pickings for the last couple of days that are more entertaining than serious.
- Recycled Wonderlands: Simply put, some of the craziest architectural creations you’ll ever see.
- Muppet President: You know how they say every president is […]

…when all the water fountains on all the major traffic circles are working: mildly important person, e.g. Foreign Ministers
…when all the water fountains on all the major traffic circles are working, and security at the Four Seasons is increased: pretty important person, e.g. Conddie Rice
…when all the water fountains on all the major traffic circles […]

“The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.” - The Second Law of Clarke’s Three Laws
To Arthur C. Clarke, whose words fueled my imagination growing up (especially the wanting-to-become-an-astronaut phase). May God rest your soul.

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Salah Malkawi/Getty Image
Mr. McCain said at a news conference in Amman that he continued to be concerned about Iranians “taking Al Qaeda into Iran, training them and sending them back.” Asked about that statement, Mr. McCain said: “Well, it’s common knowledge and has been reported in the media that Al Qaeda is going back into […]

Number of souls that have been freed:
- 82,000 and 89,000 - Iraq Body Count
- 151,000 - Iraqi government & the World Health Organization (Mar.03 - Jun.06)
- 654,865 - British medical journal The Lancet (March 2003 and July 2006)
- 1,189,173 - Opinion Research Business (as of 2008)
Take your pick.
Then read Fisk:
We have dispatched our armies […]

Folks, I know that those of us who are still sane have been massively affected by the “Messenger of Allah Unites Us” campaign in Jordan that is boycotting Danish products. Suddenly, Lurpak, our favorite butter is no longer sold in stores, and I know, I know, we were all shocked to our core when we […]

Author’s Note: This is, unfortunately, my 14th post on Fouad Al Farhan’s detention by Saudi authorities; 11th in the series of day-counting. So I felt it only appropriate to say a few words to mark the sad occasion. I think most of these posts pass unnoticed by most of my readers, and indeed most people […]

Read this, and this, in addition to this if you’ve missed it.
When HM King Abdullah said some time ago that “the sky is the limit” when it comes to press freedoms, I don’t think this is what he had in mind.
What more can I say?
Nothing.

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As most people know by now, there is a massive shortage of bread in Egypt these days with reports of actual deaths as many Egyptians line up in long bread queues. Mubarak has even declared a sort of martial law on subsidized bread, by ordering the army to increase production and aid in the distribution […]

As I now enter my fourth year of blogging I thought it would be appropriate to do a bit of spring cleaning; an evaluation with the purpose of improving both the Black Iris and my blogging capacity. While I hate surveys and trust them even less, I do appreciate honesty. So I wanted to open […]