Graffiti : pausing to think

The days and weeks following the revolution did not only express the average Tunisian's thirst for freedom of expression , but it also provided the space badly-needed for a different form art to flourish : the art of the streets, namely, graffiti.Different groups of artists sought in this newly-found freedom the perfect opportunity to share their attitude, thoughts and expectations through their art. Among these aspiring street artists, we find a group called ahl al kahf has been taking over the walls and the streets of the city for the past months. The members of this group identify themselves as ‘’a movement of young artists from Tunisia, anti-Globalization & anti-Orientalism , born in revolution .’’ I have been seeing their work all over the capital in different places dealing with themes like oppression, revolution or the relationship between state and power. what I love the most about these graffitis is how they alter your attitude to these walls and streets that seemed to be emptied of meaning. You are in a metro going to school early in the morning staring at the white walls , and then you see one of their tags reminding you of who you really are or you are going back from work and these graffiti cross your way bringing into question certain issues.

you can find more pictures on their facebook pagehttp://www.facebook.com/pages/%D8%A3%D9%87%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%83%D9%87%D9%81-ahl-alkahf/115175015229496

Yesterday, I was walking in the streets of La médina de Tunis when I came across another set of graffiti and tags. I am not sure if it is by the same group or not. I couldn’t find any information about it online , but judging from the style I think it is by a different artist . It was a delight to the sight and the soul to see those drawings on the walls with references to moments of history we all contributed to its making . The marge of freedom is beyond any description when these pictures express you innermost feelings and hopes regarding your country.

Finally , a thought to the young soul who was killed during the riots of the second al kasba sit-in and all the martyrs : pausing amid chaos to think of those who left .

Life in a day

Life in day is a unique experience of cinema .On 24 July 2010, thousands of people around the world uploaded videos of their day to YouTube to take part in Life in a Day, a historic cinematic experiment to create a documentary film about a single day on earth. Watch the trailer here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8S4gGI4nRo

Different country , different people and the same indifference

The chief Raoni cries when he learns that brazilian president Dilma released the beginning of construction of the hydroelectric plant of Belo Monte, even after tens of thousands of letters and emails addressed to her and which were ignored as the more than 600 000 signatures. That is, the death sentence of the peoples of Great Bend of the Xingu river is enacted. Belo Monte will inundate at least 400,000 hectares of forest, an area bigger than the Panama Canal, thus expelling 40,000 indigenous and local populations and destroying habitat valuable for many species - all to produce electricity at a high social, economic and environmental cost, which could easily be generated with greater investments in energy efficiency.

and one for satanism

The quote of the day :

شباب مهمش داخل في حيط مايعرش اللي التهرديس عبادة للشيطان

This was something I read a while ago by this guy who thinks himself religious enough to judge people. I don't want to write about this, but it is really sad that after everything that has happened, we are still at this low point of making judgement about people we don't know. The person who wrote this is someone who believes he holds the truth, and is acting as if he knows better than anyone else. I am not taking sides with anyone here, it i just that I am trying to reason throughout this. before you judge someone , try to get to know more about them. try to talk to the person in question. I personally know many people who are rockers and metalheads , and they happen to be respectful people who are intellectual and interesting . there is also the fact that the lyrics of the greatest rock bands are brilliant texts which deal with various universal themes ranging from faith to war , and some of these texts are taught in universities as poetry . It is very immature to start such debates at this point when you have the choice ,and the access to the knowledge that would provide you with better insight into the matter. being different is not an excuse for you to judge and attack others. we are all different eventually ,and you are not better than me .