ARE YOU ON A MISSION TO DESTROY SOCIETY? What do you mean “make all schools mixed”? Don't you know men are beasts and according to one taxi driver the female’s lust if 77 times that of the male’s? (Yes 77 and he told me it was scientifically proven)
One thing I remember I used to get a kick out of is the samir and samira on the third floor of the biology building. My wife (gf then) used to work at a lab there and I usually passed by after my classes. Just go there after 4 pm. all m7ajabat flaunting their covert sexuality. w hat ya masik idein, w hat y a lazz...until some zinikh like me came and ruined the mood.
ba3dein you have some ass-wipe editing a picture of a couple hugging. You should be impressed that such a retard can use a computer.
But I think am I am missing the whole point here, when did UJ ever have bungee jumping?! Or for that matter, when did Jordan ever have it?
“Psssst eish ya qamar? Imshi 3ala rimshi…mal il hiloo za3lan?...tayyeb 7in 3aleina bnathra”…I always tease my wife with that and she hates it so very much; she calls me 7afartal! Oh and don’t forget “bee majal la 3olaqa?”
I need to stop blabbering now and go to bed.
Lina,
I dont want to defend masik il idein, but i want to explain it... human beings need physical contact by nature, by instinct, it is the way we are made... i am not talking about sex, but about affectionate touching...such as children being hugged, (in Jordan if they are lucky they will take kafein on their butts!) or being kissed, or feeling that there are people around them...and teenager are controlled by their crazy hormones.. so anyway and since people in Jordan have very little of that physical affection... they need outlest for their subconscious frustration, so they start engage or hold hands with one another...
this is only human, and i do understand... i dont like it but i defenitely dont want to live with stones!
dunno where to begin, shall I define freedom, shall defend, attack, insult, make fun of (like others do), shall I criticize, need so much time to plan up words.
for a beginning, I will say "your freedom ends, where other's begins".
now for regulations, the document # (94/2003), substance 3, paragraph (c) of Student Punishments state
"Any act that is considered to violate honor, dignity, morals, well-behavior, or shall affect the university's reputation, or any of its employees, inside the campus, or outside the campus-if during official representation of the university- shall be punished according to the regulations of the same document.
and the document # (94/2003), substance 4, paragraph (k) states that the punishment can include expulsion
*yes, Dr Hisham Hamdan told me once : "I have never seen a student who knows university regulations by heart but you"
now for me, I support the expulsion, though I doubt it occurred 
just like you, I wont discuss the incident particularly, though I hate scene of guys/girls holding arms of members belonging to the same gender, I consider it better that girls holds guys' arms, both are wrong anyway. (I'm not talkin about shaking hands)
regarding education, I wont discuss mixed/non-mixed schools, but I guess home education matters most, and me personally is against mixed schools, kids grow lacking some important skills, and some important education.
regarding the islamists editing photos, you really cant blame them if the dont wanna see members of the other gender, (and yes, many of them can use computers better that you Mr jameed), you have no right to insult anyone, I'm glad there is a majority who thinks this way actually , and they have the right to impose their thoughts on the entire society, just like you try to impose yours, exactly the same, and being a majority, maybe gives them more right !! some friends told me "rami we were not able to approach you upon leaving the defense cause there were many girls, I excused them, and told them "I was happy to see all those I saw, regardless the gender, I love them all as human beings, and I love you too".
believe me, this is no result of gender segregation, this is a result of religious upraise, which is great -if accompanied by the corresponding community values-.
One last thing, I really don’t think you should blame anyone for adhering to his ideology and ideals, and trying to spread them, and make everyone adhere to them, cause this is exactly what you do, and what you will enforce if given enough authority!
I can understand (to some extent) that the UJ security would intervene if a couple were kissing or something, but I am surprised to hear that they would also prevent holding hands! So is this true even if they're ONLY walking side by side and holding hands??
No wonder they want to ban mixed trips; the horror of the idea that a breath of air coming out of a girls lungs might inadvertently find its way through the nose of a nearby guy!!
Oh, and LOL @ Jameed!
I just saw Rami's comment.
I also have nothing against people being religious and living their lives according to their beliefs. I also accept that a society would set behavioral standards according to the values of the majority of its people. But it's a matter of degree. That's why I said that I understand intervention in the case of kissing, but not for holding hands. You say hand shakes are OK but not holding hands, but most Islamists don't accept shaking hands. So you have decided to set the limit at the point of shaking hands while they chose to set the limit at the point of "any touching" and I see that holding hands would be a reasonable limit!
That's why I say that these limits have to be agreed upon as a society and clearly codified in laws and regulations, and not left to individuals to enforce what they decide is OK for others to do and what isn't. And I don't mean vague wordings like "violate good behavior". Ya3ni the Islamists complain that the press law should be changed (and I agree) because of vague wordings like "harm the social tranquility" wish the government can used to ban any article it doesn't like, but they love taking advantage of vague wordings like "violate good behavior" to call for the banning of things that they don't like. Of all the things I hate in the world, hypocrisy tops the list!!
Madas, I do agree with you... at a certain age kids don't even get hugs from their parents!! And we girls tend to give each other hugs whenever we're feeling extra happy or sad or whatever... I suppose it is a human need 
but you should see the sight of the guys walking while holding arms or hands (or girls together) I personally see it to be quite disturbing!
Rami,
Wow 3n jad I admire your awareness of every regulation... I do agree with Ziad though that this is not well defined because 'good behavior' is relative!! I understand that you agree with the Islamists on some points and not on others, so may be I disagree on more points you know that I respect them and I'm not rediculing their beliefs, I just feel that it should be a matter of personal freedom and not imposed by regulations to make it legal/illegal instead of moral/immoral (the latter being a completely relative personal matter)!
Yes I would definitely love to see more people who have the same values as me, but I wouldn't want those who don't to be punished by law!!!
Ok the jumping while hugging each other was a bit too much and I'm with the uni's police on what they've done. But if couples wanted to hold hands thats their own business as long as nothing was suspecious or disturbing in their attitude.
About two of the same gender holding hands I absolutely agree with you!! God it does annoy me to see such behavior, ewwww and don't we have this common in our university of Sharjah? its driving me crazy actually, I can't believe they allow even more than this while if one single poor helpless "male" walked in he will be almost ARRESTED.
Its a crazy world we live in!
Jameed is there like a "hand-book of comments to throw at girls"??
oh and don't forget the vocal musical talents and recitals of known and unknown love songs as part of the ta3lee2at!!
But seriously now what is the root cause of this?? Upbringing at home? Segregation that makes them look at girls as if they were from another planet??? Am I missing something??
Jameed, I've just read your comment and your rude remarks were so uncalled for.
Lina,
Don't get me started on the sleazy comments we women receive whenever we try to walk in the streets of Amman. It is just a bad scene. And believe it or not, it is one of the things that make me think twice about coming back to Amman. I mean, we are even deprived of taking a walk.. that's just too much!
Wow SC we posted comments at the same instane
You reminded of the time when Petra University here was an all-girls university... my aunt was the clinic's physician, and oh you wouldn't believe the stories you hear and the things some of the girls do!! I guess that's what I'm trying to say, that too much repression and segregation results in much worse behavior and unhealthy tendencies!!!
Well Natasha I sort of learned to adapt to it... dad used to feel uncomfortable about us walking by oursleves for this reason, but what are they gonna do to you? It is so annoying I know, but you just ignore it and move on!!!
Well I witnessed JU before and after the CHANGES.
Now, you can hold her hand or even touch her butt and no one would say anything, just don't have sex in public.
And the "Hold hands" to tease others is very stupid, you can do whatever you want but try not to consider other people's feelings
Mixed-Education is very right.
I always considered guys or girls holding hands (like lovers)-(same gender) gays and lesbians.
And Islamsits don't have that great influence right now at all except...nevermind.
And i'm so cool with friendships bas inno hug each other in public is too much (Zawadooha ya3ni).
I have to post sth abou this :D
It is only natural that if you are dropping from hundreds of feet of the ground, in mid air, for you to hold onto the the person next you. They have this thing at a theme park near by, and the people incarge instruct the couples to hug each other so that way, when the drop, they are flying all over the place, and they get more of a speed factor (soething scientific).
that is beside the point. After going to vegas a few weeks ago, where there were 5,000 arabs staying in our hotel, the one thing i was sure of, is that some arab men stair at women and make it so obvious. it is this obvious gaze that makes a woman so uncomfortable. Being with my father the whole time while on the casino floor, i had to endure these gazes. it was really uncomfortable, because they are so obvious. I made these observations with my dad, since i had to endure these staid downs. my dad would just go into a cussing frenzy in arabic, and say things under his breath. I then explained to my father why arab men do this. every where we go, whether it is the arab grocery store here, or an arabic concert in town, the arab men just stair at the women up and down in such an obvious way. I explained to my father that this happens because we live in a culture where as children we are seperated. and it is not only the seperation that creates this mindset, but it it the constant rules that that say it is shameful or ayb to have a girl or guy as your friend. like i have said in the past, you always want what you cant have or what you are forbidden from. This needs to change. if girls and boys grew up with one another, went to the same schools, and had each other as friends, i really dont believe that the these situations women endure in the streets of amman would take place.
now come on, they don’t punish on holding hands inside UJ, but again I would say, who defines freedom, we all agree it ends where other's begins, but for others, it might be considered a violation of their freedom seeing guys and girls holding each other's hands, and yes, you cant tell they're wrong and you're right (e.g. 5000 years, and no body managed to proof the other was wrong in matters of philosophy, and philosophy is life)
Lina don’t tell me you wont punish guys who harass girls in the streets if you were given the power to do so, they don’t agree with you, and you punish them, let’s not deny human nature, everyone would prefer it if his rules were obeyed everywhere, and will punish upon what he sees wrong is got the power to do so, that’s nature.
For setting the standards of right and wrong, you can never find standards that will satisfy (all), not even (most), it’s always (some). At least islamists (or the so called) got something based on which they define their standards (I tend to believe they misinterpret the sources where I disagree with them).
I think if you think the other way around it will also solve the problem, if we upraise kids in a non mixed environment, and let the whole community adhere to the same rules, and cut down Mexican soap operas, and vulgar nudity video clips, romantics scenes from movies, and remove all stimuli of their physical sexual instincts, and so on, we will reach a new generation that wont feel girls are from an other planet, actually they will be more focused on development more than guy-girl relationships.
We all talk about how much we admire European American culture, yet, I’m sure most of us are really happy they’re from an Arabic family, and they have oriental traditions (not all the traditions though), I’m sure we all are happy we still have morals that more or less govern our community, I’m sure most of you here agree that sex before marriage is wrong (regardless any religion, and any community), all of you agree on all this, and yet criticize the Arabic community, the problem with guys here is that (sorry for what I’m gonna say), e show them how tasty the food is, and we don’t allow them to have it, and I’m sure you all don’t want them to have it.
A friend of mine living in Australia was physically attacked in the street here in Amman, I was talking to her about it, you know what was her last statement; “honestly Rami, I don’t blame the guy that much, my pants were really tight, and I’m sexy”, for me, I do blame the guy that much, but I blame her too. Now some would say it’s her freedom to wear whatever she wants, some other would say it is not. Again comes the question of who defines wrong and right. For me, my wrongs and rights are defined by God. I love having one source to govern us all, and if I am to choose, I will choose it, others would choose others, lucky it’s God who gives power to whom He wills, and lucky He is who judges.
akh Lina, 3anjad 3al waja3. I totally agree with the mixed thing. There's alot that I want to say, I think i'm going to write a blog entry, jad thanks, yes3ed rubbek for this entry.
Oh, wow.. Great post Lina.. this topic is extremely important and again, needs to be discussed by the people with authority.
I'm going to agree with you though, you can't have a healthy society unless schools are co-ed. I think that homes play the bigger part, but it's unfortunate that a lot of parents and families think the wrong way around, and a coed system will help assuring that the coming generations aren't as "mota'7alefeen".
When you segregate a hoard of 6 year old boys from a hoard of 6 year old girls, the kids develop a mentality that being with the other sex is "bad". They spend the next several years not aware of why it's bad, but then they reach puberty and start to discover why it's deemed bad by the society- because "women are sex toys", and "men are sexual animals". To each of the genders, the other gender is not thought of as an equal human being, but rather, as something for a sexual purpose- which is why il men beseel il3abhom when they see women across the street and why girls start to giggle like idiots when they are flirted with..
If the schools are to become coed, then kids will grow up thinking of the other gender as their equal collegues and not as some out-of-this-world sex machine and we'll get cut some slack.
But a'7.. thinking of it realistically, if that a coed system is to be implemented, the amount of illitracy in Jordan will increase by 50%.
As for the problems arising in a segregated school, been there, done that. I actually went to a girl's only school in Riyadh, and ahhh the stuff I saw and the stuff I've been through... Again, assuring Iyas' point, all these "super religious" girls would go at the back of the campus during the early mornings and make out and touch and stuff.. seen it with my own eyes.. we've also had many bouts of disgusting stories of girls getting caught in bathrooms doing "inappropriate actions". I've also had to endure many personal hardships as I am, for some reason I am not aware of, a lesbo magnet(a'7..). Many a days I spent in the counsellors office complaining about love letters and rude comments I recieve from freaky girls...
I just think that two people of opposite genders kissing in public than two people of the same gender doing that is so much more in line with our system of belief(regardless of whether its Christian or Muslim).. We, as Arabs, need to figure out our priorities.
And anyhow, who's business is it what people do in private or in public? I don't understand why people are so "o
And anyhow, who's business is it what people do in private or in public? I don't understand why people are so "overprotected", childre or otherwise. Ya 3ami khalee hal nas ishoofo others kissing out of love.. so what.. a7san min ma yekbaru 3a2elhom '7ara where sex is an act of pleasure rather than love!
My friend's friend says, "if everyone in this society got laid, life here will be much easier."
Now don't shoot me...
Aslan ya3ni, hada il social ta'7alof results in this:
Mesyaf Marriage
and hey they had bungee jumping at school? Hehe, it's so funny, whenever I read your posts I wonder if we attend the same place..
After reading all the previous comments only one word (I think Ziad said it) made sense and that's HYPOCRISY.
Well just another brief remark i read a year ago that the french government "since we already mentioned Hypocrisy" was reconsidering "mixed education" aparently it resulted in lack of concentration by both genders, but of course you know the french they have their cool image to keep.
if anyone has a REAL solution to this problem let me know
Obsession is the natural and inevitable consequence of deprivation. In everything.
I have lots and lots of things to say regarding this- thank you for the post Lina. I will when my finals are over:$
interesting discussion, it will have me thinking the coming few days!
i don't know where i stand yet.. but i'd like to share a few thoughts:
on one hand, i feel this conversation is "city talk". where people want to have freedom to do what they want, wihtout the stares and any attempt of intrusion... this would lead to a society where a person would not know his next door neighbour, and as in the movie collateral "in newyork, a man dies in his seat in the metro train, people get on and off and nobody notices. it's three days before he is dscovered". It's sad, and it doesnt seem "right".. but it's what seems to be the ultimate destination for a growing city.
so it is thought that regulations would be a standard to keep a healthy society. i remember back in saudi arabia a conversation with my saudi friend, where i argued that what's going on there is unhealthy (it can drive one crazy!!). he probably agrees, but he attempted to defend his county, with religion being his defence, i said "tayyib.. "do not drink alcohol".. if there is no alcohol around, how can i obey this order?" an alcohol free place would result from an obedient group of people, not an inforsed law, inforcing laws would cause a disaster, as you can see." that is when i moved to the gender seperation issue with the same discussion. I remember he was surprised, he never thought that his country might be wrong.. a part of the brain washing that happens there, being "the country of the religion", and i was once convinced. "saudi youth are not to be blamed on how they act, they have been forced into this state"
i'm generalizing, some saudis are amazing people, some had everlasting influence on me. and.. i thank that country for making me the person i am.
so too many regulations has proven to become a disaster. total personal freedom, that man in the metro, makes me sad.
i don't know!!
I disagree here and there about people's opinions, being "too loose", but that again is my opinion.
It's something to think about. but I'm sure that totaly freedom is not the answer. (Religion.. Islam talks about "2mer bil-ma3roof, wa nahi 3an il-munkar" as a duty. I'm not literate enough yet of the bible, but i'm sure it's very similar.. it almost always is)
I mean Religion as a concept, on how a society ideally works.
I haven't read the comments yet( I will get to that later) but I have read what your post. You know what? I kinda lived in your bubble about Jordan too I seriously could not believe what was written about your university. It felt like I was reading something about Saudi, or a khaleeji country. You know what? I agree with you. In Jordan, they should go co-ed. In Saudi... nah not yet. It's going to take a LONG.. LONG while till that's ok. I agree with you but not on a personal level. I, for one, would not go to a mixed school. (but my reasons are stupid, it's only because I'm mu7ajaba by choice and I sooo am not in the mood to wear 7ijab to school everyday! UGH 7ar! lol)
But I think you're right. Guys in Saudi have a big problem w/females. Lack of respect, tolerance, and a whole lot of other things. I guess if they'd been able to get a little more interaction with them in previous stages in their lives, or any stages at all, for that matter, it wouldn't have been as bad.
However, I don't think ALL schools should be mixed in Saudi. Yeah, I know, the use of religion is such a tired argument...But (and there always is a but!) being the land of the two holy mosques, we get a trillion "immigrants" (mostly converts to Islam) on a yearly basis (people who even call themselves "Muhajereen") who come from all over the world, West and East, exclusively for the conservative, suppressed life-style and reside in places like Madina, and Mecca. (I think they have blogs up.. there was a couple I came across, one called Ummu Zaineb (Canadian), and another Ummu Kassim(French), Suhail (South African)) I'm at loss, should we keep up with the world or satisfy these people, let them live our lands, while we somehow find a way to co-exist?
But in Jordan.. I'm all for it. I think in the end I'm just going to move. Make room Lina and Co. I'm coming to Jordan!
What if they started a new type of Dapkeh where instead of holding hands, people Bidbikoo while hugging each other? Maybe that would make hugging more acceptable. You know, discretely introduce hugging into our public culture. Can you see it? Thousands of people sitting at the roman theatre in Jerash watching all these men and women on stage in traditional Jordanian garb when suddenly the music comes up and they all hug and start dabkeh-ing. One big group hug of a dabkeh. It would make the stepping a little more difficult, but hey...what a good challenge!
Hahaha Amin that's halarious.. I can imagine.. actually there's a huggy dabkeg step (i used to be in a dabkeh band), where females and males stand alternatively next to one another and then they wrap their arms around each others shoulders and do the dabkeh.. it was awesome except for the fact that your shoulder joints loosen up from having a guy double your height jumping way too high for you while you're hanging on to him! we actually had 2 cases of girls dislocating their shoulders from this particular dance..
and Farooha, ahlan, ahlan!
Ameen, dabkeh won't work. Let me explain why. I remember back when Jordan wsa doing good in the World Cup Qualifiers I was browsing through some sports website and on the discussion board some zealous fan suggested someone upload "batal il mala'ib ordoni". The poor guy got the longest set of replies from a self-appointed sheikh detailing how songs are "haram" and how the only accepted form of singing is "nasheed". On the other hand, I knew a few born agains who would only listen to hymns. Thus, dabkeh (which involves music and singing) is doomed to fail. My suggestion: concentration camps. I can elaborate on that on another occasion.
Iyas...well... good thing you're not in the position of authority (m3 inno you won the blog vote )
LoL Amin always the creative!
Farooha, we'd love to have you here... even with some negative aspects I'm grateful to be in Jordan and I guess you'd like it too and you do give an interesting perspective on the issue!! I didn't think of it this way in Saudi...
Nader, I'm not sure about the Changes, may be IT is different ;p and if you feel Islamists don't have a great influence, stop by the engineering faculty sometime (not architecture though)!
Rami, you know we disagree on many points, and I respect your opinion... but I'm kinda tired of the argument that it's the girls' fault; again I say that if boys and girls got to interact from an early age, guys wouldn't look at girls as "tasty food they can't have"!!! and I don't think it is possible in our time to completely close up the media from children... and it's like that metaphore, if you hide your child in a sterilized environment, once they're out they will be susceptible to the most minor of germs!!!
Linda, I agree...
Roba, sadly you're right that if we do have mixed schools, illiteracy would increase dramatically!! Ufff I wonder if there will ever be a solution! I totally agree that intimacy between members of the opposite sex in much more in line with our system of belief... I don't know why that hasn't been figured out yet!!
Bargotti in this society I think we are introduced to Hypocrisy at a very early stage in our lives!!
Samir, yes it is confusing and disturbing... we have yet to find a balance that is in line with our culture yet free from the dogmas psychological repression!!
Ammar, anytime I wish there was more I can do than just write about it!!
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