---------------------------------------------- Serious satire "Humor is a funny way of being serious" -Thomas Edison -------------------- To have your emails deleted please write to me at renatoobeid@hotmail.com -------------------- Copyright© 2001-2010, Renato Obeid   Archives April 2001 May 2001 June 2001 July 2001 August 2001 September 2001 January 2002 February 2002 March 2002 June 2002 July 2002 August 2002 October 2002 November 2002 December 2002 February 2003 March 2003 April 2003 May 2003 June 2003 July 2003 August 2003 September 2003 October 2003 November 2003 December 2003 January 2004 February 2004 March 2004 April 2004 May 2004 June 2004 July 2004 August 2004 September 2004 October 2004 November 2004 December 2004 January 2005 February 2005 March 2005 April 2005 May 2005 June 2005 July 2005 August 2005 September 2005 October 2005 November 2005 December 2005 January 2006 February 2006 March 2006 April 2006 May 2006 June 2006 July 2006 August 2006 September 2006 October 2006 November 2006 December 2006 January 2007 February 2007 March 2007 April 2007 May 2007 June 2007 July 2007 August 2007 September 2007 October 2007 November 2007 December 2007 January 2008 February 2008 March 2008 April 2008 May 2008 June 2008 July 2008 August 2008 September 2008 October 2008 November 2008 January 2009 April 2009 October 2012 << current prequel   "Top blog/Renato Obeid's World/Today's pick: This rambling weblog is worth reading not so much for its satirical posts but more for its insight into the minutiae of life in Lebanon, including the etiquette of road accidents and how to hire a taxi.” -Jane Perrone, The Guardian my profile audio

renatoobeidsworld   Thursday, April 05, 2007   EVERBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD ‘’He only wants the presidency’’ is the common refrain you’ll hear from General Aoun’s detractors. Duh! How eccentric – a politician who wants power! Stop the press! Call the Guinness Book of records quick! Mcfly! Earth to Aoun detractors! Every Maronite male over the age of ten (and possibly even younger) wants to be president. An American journalist I know compared the field of candidates in Lebanese presidential elections to the field of participants in the Boston Marathon – everyone’s a candidate (although candidates rarely ever actually declare their candidacy). Maybe that’s why the Lebanese constitution (unsuccessfully) stipulates that a president can only serve one term* – to give everybody a turn. *Although a president may be elected again after another term has elapsed. GENERAL ELECTRIC Say what you want about General Aoun, but this straight-talking populist sure knows how to fire up a crowd! Electrifying! 8:45 pm Wednesday, April 04, 2007   The bad news is that my watch has stopped (after I got caught in the rain during my walk on Sunday afternoon), the good news is that at least it tells the correct time twice a day. So now I have to schedule all my appointments for 4.30 in the afternoon or 4.30 in the morning. Anyway, I’m Lebanese so I don’t really need a watch. Besides, I have a brand new watch that someone gave me as a present which I don’t wear because I’m used to this old watch that I’ve had for more than twenty years (it’s more classical and streamlined than my new modern chunky watch which is very nice by the way). 7:30 pm Tuesday, April 03, 2007   When my cousin Foaud was a toddler he used to think that there were two ‘’Lilatos’’ (what he used to call me) – the Lilato he used to see in the flesh and the Lilato he used to hear on the radio. Sometimes he used to say that he preferred ‘’the other Lilato’’ (the one on the radio) presumably because ‘’the other Lilato’’ never told him what to do and never gave him a hard time. When my mum used to baby-sit him and they’d be listening to me live on the radio in the living room, he’d go looking for me in my room and around the house during the commercial break. Also when he was around that age, Foaud intentionally hit another child in the head with a racket. Literally playing the man not the ball. When asked what he was doing he said ‘’tennis’’. He was punished for this out of character behaviour of course. I certainly don’t condone that sort of thing, but, in his defence, tennis isn’t that popular in Lebanon, so it’s understandable for Lebanese not to have a perfect grasp of the rudiments of the game, especially at his age. 7:30 pm

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