Month: November 2007

Categories
People World

War Quotes

Here’s a selection of some war quotes I like that I found on the net, all of them are true but people will never learn that war never solves anything!

They wrote in the old days that it is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country. But in modern war, there is nothing sweet nor fitting in your dying. You will die like a dog for no good reason. -Ernest Hemmingway

War does not determine who is right – only who is left. -Bertrand Russell

The direct use of force is such a poor solution to any problem, it is generally employed only by small children and large nations. -David Friedman

It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets. -Voltaire, War

Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity. -Author Unknown

You can’t say civilization don’t advance, however, for in every war they kill you in a new way. -Will Rogers, New York Times, 23 December 1929

and finally I hope that …

A day will come when a cannon will be exhibited in museums, just as instruments of torture are now, and the people will be astonished that such a thing could have been. -Victor Hugo

Categories
Cars Personal University

Karting and Studies

I just got back from Exoleb’s meeting in Circuit des Champions and it was great, the guys from Lebanon Racing came too so we got to see the great cars they drive.

After everyone talked with everyone for half an hour, we decided to race in 2 groups of 8, but when the first group got on the track 4 people joined them and they raced together so we decided not to have a second race and end the meeting since the second race wasn’t gonna be very exciting.

After the meeting we all drove together for a while before separating. This is the 3rd meeting organized by Exoleb and this one is by far the best one. A lot of people showed up and had fun so we must have another one soon.

Now I am back home studying for my exams next week, I still have a chapter of Oracle, some Java and statistics to study but I think I’ll manage to finish everything on time.

Categories
Gadgets Technology

Microsoft Surface postponed

You might have heard of Microsoft Surface last year, it’s a touch screen table that can simplify many of you daily task, from transferring photos from your camera to your PC or ordering a drink at a pub. Engadget is reporting today that the official launch of the Surface was postponed by Microsoft because they have to write a lot of applications for it depending on the customers needs.

In case you haven’t seen the table in action before here is a short clip about it, you can also search YouTube for more detailed previews of the Surface.

Categories
Lebanon Politics

Abou Arez Running for President

Ethiene Sakr also known as Abou Arez leader of the Guardians of the Cedar announced that he is running for president, I just read his statement on Tayyar.org and I must say he has some nice Ideas in his plan. He is not liked by many Lebanese from both sides and is accused of “collaborating with the enemy” (Israel) by some so he has no chance of becoming president but at least he has the guts to say what most other candidates are afraid of saying.

Categories
Computers Internet Technology Weird

The Future?

I just watched this weird Flash presentation predicting the future of computers, the internet and its user. The presentation is a mix of history and fiction starting in the 90s and ending in 2014 (I think fiction starts in 2004). What’s really weird is that this is actually currently happening and we are all helping turning this fiction into a reality.

Categories
Economy Lebanon

Should we keep using the Dollar?

US Dollars $$$

Since the Dollar is currently loosing its value and since a lot of countries are apparently considering abandoning the Dollar, shouldn’t we do the same? Our loans are in dollar so won’t they become smaller if the “Banque du Liban” converts the money we have to Euro for example and then reconverts them when we want to pay back? (That will only work if the value of the dollar keeps dropping)

BTW: I am not an expert in economy so those are just questions based on some stuff I’ve been reading on the net, so you are invited to correct me if anything is wrong with my reasoning.

Categories
Internet

Google Image JavaScript trick

My friend Ahmad (aka Ahmid) just gave me a very nice Google images trick, all you have to do is search for any image you want and then paste the code bellow into the address bar of the search result page, press enter and enjoy the show.

javascript:R=0; x1=.1; y1=.05; x2=.25; y2=.24; x3=1.6; y3=.24; x4=300; y4=200; x5=300; y5=200; DI= document.images; DIL=DI.length; function A(){for(i=0; i<DIL; i++){DIS=DI[ i ].style; DIS.position='absolute'; DIS.left=Math.sin(R*x1+i*x2+x3)*x4+x5; DIS.top=Math.cos(R*y1+i*y2+y3)*y4+y5}R++}setInterval('A()',5 ); void(0)

Categories
Movies

The Kingdom

The Kingdom Movie Poster

Last night I went to the movies with a friend to watch The Kingdom. We went to Cinema City in City Mall and all the theaters were full so getting our tickets one hour before the movie started was a good thing to do, I just wish we chose some other seats because we were surrounded by two very annoying people. The guy on my right came in with a large popcorn in his hand and before sitting he started unloading his 4 pockets from chocolate bars he brought in with him, so he spent the whole movie eating and moving in his chair. The girl behind me was so excited about the movie that she felt she had to comment on every action scene in it, sometimes giving advices to the actors and shearing them up and some other times commenting on how stupid they were in her opinion.

The movie is banned in many Arab countries so I was afraid they removed some scenes in it here but I think the movie was left intact since all the scenes didn’t have any strange cuts in them. The movie starts with a small documentary about Saudia Arabia followed by a Terrorist attack on a foreigners compound in the country. After the attacks happens an FBI team goes to the Kingdom to try to catch the group behind the act but is slowed down by the lack of cooperation given by the Saudis who feel that the terrorist act is an internal problem. The team finally finds a Saudi Colonel who is ready to help them in the mission to find the Terrorists.

The movie manages to show the real division in the Arab and Muslim street with some supporting terrorism and some fighting it. You can also clearly see the clash of cultures between the West and the East and how each camp sees that his cause is the just one. During the movie you also discover that the only thing both sides have in common is the desire to kill more enemies from the other side forgetting that the enemy is another human with a life and a family of his own.

Every person living in this region of the world should watch this movie, if it’s banned in your country get it on DVD or download it from the net, it is a great movie showing us a lot of stuff we live everyday so make sure you watch it soon.

Categories
Internet Lebanon

List of Free Wi-Fi Hotspots in Lebanon

List of Free Wi-Fi Hotspots in Lebanon

I opened a new page on the blog with a list of Free Wi-Fi Hotspots in Lebanon, I am sure a lot of places are missing from the list so please use the comment section of this post to give me more places with free Wi-Fi to add to the list.

Categories
Lebanon People

Bad news for straight Lebanese women, Good news for straight Lebanese men

I was checking the Top 100 websites on Alexa for Lebanon and found that the 38th most visited website in Lebanon is Manjam.com, Why is this good/bad? Well here’s ManJam description: “The Ultimate Gay Social Network for dating, work and travel. Promote yourself, your talents and lifestyle through a network of like-minded people. Hookup Now with the Hottest Guys Online!”.

The rank of this website is better then the rank of NowLebanon, LebanonFiles, Download.com … so a lot of Lebanese men are apparently interested in other men, so if you’re a man, you now have more chances of finding the love of your life, and if you are a woman, you better find yourself a man real soon because apparently half the men are gay and most of the other half is outside the country :P .