A Few Things...

First: Obama and the Nobel Peace Prize!
Just one question, though... Why? What has he accomplished thus far to actually earn it? You can't hand out the Nobel Peace Prize to people with good intentions for "change." Meanwhile, our troops are still in Iraq and Afghanistan. On the other hand, maybe it will give more legitimacy to some of his proposals for change.

Second: Egypt and the Niqab!
Egypt is trying to ban the niqab, the full-facial veil, in all-female sections of universities. The argument is, if everyone in the class is female, including the teacher, then what reason do you have to wear the veil? On the other hand, what reason does the government have to ban it, if it supposedly doesn't matter either way? Politics! The sheikh of al-Azhar originally intended to ban the niqab in all public universities, but women aren't standing for it. My understanding, from past research on Sufism in Egypt, is that al-Azhar University was appropriated by the Egyptian government and is now used as a tool to grant religious legitimacy to government decisions. But whatever you think about the niqab, this is just one more instance of the (male) establishment trying to dictate how women should dress, without bothering to consult the women themselves. I know U.S. media would have people believe that the veil is a symbol of oppression, but the reality is that it is usually something women choose to wear, whether for cultural and/or religious reasons, and many find it quite liberating to be free from the male gaze. The niqab is not explicitly mentioned in the Qur'an, but it is one interpretation of modest dress and covering oneself. Some women who wear the niqab also wear gloves in order to keep even their hands covered.

Somehow I was able to understand an entire conversation about the proposed niqab ban in Egyptian Arabic the other day in one of my classes. I'm very excited about the progression of my language skills now that classes are a little more reliable (though I've heard rumors they're thinking of closing school again). My vocabulary is becoming increasingly political, and includes things like "Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking discussions" and "settlements" and "minister of foreign affairs." It's a relief to not feel like I'm learning Arabic in a vacuum. I'm learning how to talk about issues that are of major concern in Egypt and the Middle East. Now I just need to review my notes on recent Egyptian history and politics, so I can use my new vocabulary with some degree of intelligence.

Lastly: Dooler and the Disturbing Dreams!
In completely unrelated news, just because I want to put it down, I've been having really bad nightmares lately. For the past two nights in a row, I've watched the people I'm with in my dreams become horribly disfigured or mutilated right in front of me. They start off as strangers, but as soon as I come to know them, their fingers are chopped off, or their bones begin to disintegrate, or a cat is being skinned alive. Really disturbing, messed up stuff. I even dreamed that I woke up screaming, and I'm not sure if I actually did. I wake up feeling groggy and physically sore, and have headaches all day. I'm getting 8 hours of sleep and I'm drinking plenty of water, so I don't know what the problem is. Dana tried to help me analyze my dreams, to maybe figure out what my subconscious is trying to tell me, but we couldn't come up with anything. Insha'allah (God willing) I will sleep better tonight.