“It is easy to blur the truth with a simple linguistic trick: start your story from "Secondly." Yes, this is what Rabin did. He simply neglected to speak of what happened first. Start your story with "Secondly," and the world will be turned upside-down. Start your story with "Secondly," and the arrows of the Red Indians are the original criminals and the guns of the white men are entirely the victims. It is enough to start with "Secondly," for the anger of the black man against the white to be barbarous. Start with "Secondly," and Gandhi becomes responsible for the tragedies of the British.”
― I Saw Ramallah
― I Saw Ramallah
“You're mine," she whispered. "Mine, as I'm yours. And if we die, we die. All men must die, Jon Snow. But first, we'll live.”
― A Storm of Swords
― A Storm of Swords
“Egyptians undergo an odd personality change behind the wheel of a car. In every other setting, aggression and impatience are frowned upon. The unofficial Egyptian anthem "Bokra, Insha'allah, Malesh" (Tomorrow, God Willing, Never Mind) isn't just an excuse for laziness. In a society requiring millennial patience, it is also a social code dictating that no one make too much of a fuss about things. But put an Egyptian in the driver's seat and he shows all the calm and consideration of a hooded swordsman delivering Islamic justice.”
― Baghdad without a Map and Other Misadventures in Arabia
― Baghdad without a Map and Other Misadventures in Arabia
“هناك ستارة سرية تحت تصرفي ، أشدها عند الحاجة ، فأحجب العالم الخارجي عن عالمي ، أشدها بسرعة وبشكل تلقائي عندما تستعصي ملاحظاتي وأفكاري على الإنكشاف بكامل وضوحها ، عندما يكون حجبها هو الطريقة الوحيدة لصيانتها ”
― رأيت رام الله
― رأيت رام الله
“The first thing you notice, coming to Israel from the Arab world, is that you have left the most courteous region of the globe and entered the rudest. The difference is so profound that you're left wondering when the mutation in Semitic blood occurred, as though God parted the Red Sea and said: "Okay, you rude ones, keep wandering toward the Promised Land. The rest of you can stay here and rot in the desert, saying 'welcome, most welcome' and drowning each other in tea until the end of time.”
― Baghdad without a Map and Other Misadventures in Arabia
― Baghdad without a Map and Other Misadventures in Arabia
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