Turning Afghan Opium fields into vineyards.
New churches in the Gulf.
A novel way to fight corruption in Egypt.
A confused al-Azhar opens to Shi'as, and gives up on adult breast feeding, wet-nursing, in the new year.

                  
"They ask you concerning wine and gambling. Say: "In them is a great sin, and (some) benefit for men, but the sin of them is greater than their benefit."         The Holy Qur'an - Saurat al-Baqarah 2:219 
         
The Lord says, "Wine, both old and new, is robbing my people of their senses!"                        
                                                                                                  Hosea chapter 4

The World Bank has called for an investment of $ 2 billion in irrigation and rural development in Afghanistan, in order to wean that country from opium cultivation. This is a tall order, given the profitability of opium, the country's main crop and export.

Perhaps they can transform the land as they did in California's central valleys. Along US I-5, vineyards have been expanding in recent years. The same can be done in Afghanistan. This is not to say that the land around, say, Kandahar, will become an Asian Napa Valley, sprouting vineyards and tasting rooms any time soon. Not likely that Pinot Noir, Chateau Pashtun, or Taliban Zinfandel, will grace any tables anytime soon. Mullah Omar is not the type who aspires to establish a vintner dynasty- he is not a Mondavi or a Gallo brother. But then one never knows.

Perhaps the crop can be used to make virgin grape juice, which is less intoxicating than opium or heroin. Unfortunately, it is also much less lucrative- which might mean that the Afghan government, actually the Allies, will have to subsidize the grape crop to offset any losses from giving up the opium. Makes sense?

Qatar has allowed churches for the first time. At least two churches will open this year in the only other country that nominally follows the strict wahhabi sect of Saudi Arabia. This has started an interesting debate in the Qatari and Gulf media. Other Gulf countries such as Kuwait have had churches for a long time. Qatar has been hosting an annual confeence on dialog between the three monotheist faiths for several years.
However, do not expect a church in Riyadh anytime soon- not even a teetotaling Latter Day Saints Church.

An Egyptian parliamentarian has proposed a draft law to establish a cabinet department, a ministry, to fight corruption. But then what happens when this new ministry itself, inevitably, becomes corrupt? Who would watch it? The deputy complains that there are sixteen public bodies that have the task of exposing corruption in Egypt, and admits that they have all failed. He must be a great optimist to propose yet a nother, larger, bueaucracy to watch other bureaucrats- he certainly ain't running for president.

I recall another Arab country, a Gulf country, that was frustrated with incidents of serious corruption. In that country, very high officials had embezzled literally billions of dollars in funds from the state's foreign investment fund and from its oil corporations during the 1980s and early 1990s. In frustration they hit upon a new law to "protect public funds". That was almost fifteen years ago- and public funds and properties are still being misused.

I bet the sheikh has never been to France, and if he did he never met a jeune fille, or maybe a fille not so jeune, anywhere outside an airport duty free shop. That would be during his wild youth, of course, not during his even wilder middle or old age. Just a thought....
Cheers
mhg
m.h.ghuloum@gmail.com