I.
Tala, the Black Iris reader who sits across from me at work, was telling me about an interesting social observation she noted a while back. People in Jordan like to notice and know other people, so they can say they saw so-and-so the other day, or that they know so-and-so. For example. People seem to […]

I think the only thing possibly worse than that chaos associated with actual snow in the country are those few days leading up to a potential snow fall, when everyone is talking about it. The topic is so dominant in everyday conversation that the war and conflict which surrounds us is rendered insignificant. Weather information […]

The rain. The thunder. The cold. The crying. The quiet. And a whole population mourning. I think the day King Hussein died is a day that is ingrained in my memory. The storm outside was unforgettable and somehow seemed fitting for the moment. I remember that Jordan was so quiet that every drop of rain […]

The World Bank has said the quality of education in the Arab world is falling behind other regions and needs urgent reform if it is to tackle unemployment.
…The report concluded that Jordan and Kuwait were the top educational reformers in the region, while Djibouti, Yemen, Iraq and Morocco ranked lowest in terms of access, efficiency […]

The rumor of snow tends to sweep through the nation like the storm it emerges from. For days people speak of the approaching flurries with great and anxious enthusiasm. Just like a dying man trying to get his affairs in order before his grand departure, Jordanians will carry out last minute tasks and rearrange appointments […]

The February issue for Jordan Business, which should hit newsstands in a few days, is going to feature a pretty unique cover story about corporate social responsibility. At the heart of the story is a colorful little building in Jabal il-Nathif called the Ruwwad center and it is home to a large number of activities […]

Yesterday, a bus on the Amman-Jerash road slid out of control and collided with a water tank, killing 23 people and injuring 33 others. A few weeks ago, Hikmet Kaddoura’s tragic death in a hit-and-run inspired an awareness campaign initiated by his family and friends. That campaign was instantly carried forth by organizations that included […]

If you might recall, the Action Committee visited a family in the Baqaa camp back in early November, after their home had caught fire. At the time, they had lost so much and thanks to the contributions of many people who were made aware of the story through the Facebook group and the Black Iris, […]

Emad Hajjaj has been using his artistic genius lately to issue a strong and dark statement about this latest disgusting social phenomenon, which I’ve personally dubbed “the dumpster babies”, that has been on the rise since the fall. At times he addresses the topic directly, an sometimes he uses these incidents as a metaphor for […]

The digital age is really, really fascinating.
Greeks fed up with their pesky neighbours, old flames, the government, or society in general can find release in a new Internet site that posts e-curses for free.
“Have you been dumped, harassed or angered? Why not unload with a curse?” offers www.e-katares.com (e-curse.com), which currently has more than […]

So apparently it’s supposedly cold. I’ve had the house to myself these past couple of days and anyone that comes over thinks I live in a freezer. Years of living in Canada have rendered me adaptable; cold blooded, so to speak. I am seriously thinking of wearing some shorts and a t-shirt this week, just […]

Last night I attended the jaha for my best friend Abdullah, who was visiting here from Canada for a few weeks. I’ve known Abood for over 13 years and so I can safely say this is definitely the only jaha I’ve been to in Jordan where I was actually happy for someone and/or happy to […]

The Fifth:
A new born baby boy was found early Monday in a bag left behind in an uninhabited area in Maan, the fifth abandoned infant discovered in the last four months. According to Maan police, a passerby heard the infant’s cry and discovered the black tote bag on a roadside in Al Mreigha district yesterday […]

I was having a conversation last night with my sister about the things that piss me off in Jordan, typically the whole west Ammani atmosphere, and an offspring of that conversation got me thinking this fine morning. The title of this post is derived from one of my favorite books/movies, Fight Club, in which the […]

…heartless people…
AMMAN - The authorities said they will intensify measures to prevent retailers from stockpiling oil derivatives as several distributors of fuel and gas were reportedly arrested and referred to court Saturday…Officials said the new measures are meant to curb a trend among some petrol station owners and gas cylinder distributors to turn back customers […]

There is an absurd law - the Citizenship law - in Jordan that women who marry foreigners cannot pass the Jordanian citizenship on to their children. Most reside in Jordan, these are Jordanian women, with, for all intents and purposes, Jordanian kids who were born on this soil and have probably lived here their entire […]