The Women's Rights Movement in Saudi Arabia

In Saudi Arabia, we do not have any large private organized women's groups or generous sums of private money contributed to causes promoting or protecting women's interests. It is not because the concept is illegal or frowned upon, I believe that it would be a welcome concept within the country. As a matter of fact, I feel that the men within the country are much more supportive of women's rights and the cause than our own gender. However, these men will not win our battles for us.

As I noted above, the initiative has not been taken by the women themselves to promote this idea or suffer through any cause. Civil rights movements have generally throughout history been grass roots movements in which the majority of people are affected by a certain cause, organize themselves and by some means are able to voice their struggles. By working through the difficulties and paving the way for others while correcting ill conceived perceptions of those dominant in power, progress is made for a unified cause.

Locally, within the country I do not see this happening. Women are slowly gaining employment by encouragement from the government, though the cultural norms and social norms are still dominating. Due to the high rates of unemployment and out of sheer necessity, many families are accepting their daughters working (around males) though it is still a relatively new concept for the majority of people. These are the lower classes.

The upper classes do not face financial difficulties, nor do the women (with the exception of the minority) take initiatives to handle their own inheritances/businesses and allow brothers or dominant husbands to control their share of the wealth. Of course, their lives are comfortable and there is no need at this point. Again, the cultural norms, are dictating this behavior.

The middle classes are in between. The women are currently comfortable enough, depend on a male relative for all their needs and have little to no responsibilities in life. A house maid cares for the children, a driver drives them to school and they do not have the large funds required to travel or have any type of assets/financial interests to look after. These are the majority within the country, and yet they are comfortable enough with their lives to stay silent, yet not comfortable enough to achieve fulfillment in terms of contributing to society. A catch 22 indeed! I do not know when the "limbo" will be tipped over, perhaps with the decline in the economy, men may become tired of being the sole person responsible for the entire household and hope for a more supportive spouse.

Then there are the daughters of executives within Saudi Companies who obtain positions within companies and appear to be a model for middle class Saudi women to emulate. Unfortunately, their behavior is not replicated easily, nor are they role models as their "jobs" were attained through corruption and special favors. The average Saudi woman can not use these women as mentors, as to obtain these "jobs" through standard channels is a great struggle, So these handful of women have done nothing to pave the way for future generations, and are happy just receiving their paychecks. Though these women are few in number, their hypocrisy is particularly damaging as they are presented as advocates of women's rights and shroud the true Saudi woman's struggle. You will find these women in newspaper articles being paraded about what a typical Saudi woman is able to accomplish with hard work and a keen mind. However, when the Saudi women struggle and do not attain what these "daughters" have attained, they become discouraged and resentful without understanding the key concepts of the rampant discrimination that is still heavily prevalent within the society.

In light of all the social intricacies within the society, I am sure that it is poverty alone and the struggles of the lower classes that will bring Women's Rights to the country. As they say, necessity is the mother of invention.....

Political Correctness in the Corporate World

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The corporate world... Just the words sends shivers down my spine.

Anyway, I have a theory about the corporate world - however I am not completely sure that my theory does not have large holes in it. There are too many people with opposing viewpoints, personality, belief systems and ideologies within the corporate world for a unified group of employees to have any strong viewpoints or vision of the future.

Stating that, there will always be people who disagree with one another, however the corporate world ensures that everyone plays "nice" and the majority of people are not free to communicate their true thoughts and beliefs on company initiatives, business goals, management style, etc. Fear guides this as well, as many employees will not rock the boat.

This lack of transparency (and truth) on a larger scale is devastating to the organization yet necessary at the same time. The organization can not achieve true greatness without the unadulterated input of the people, yet the organization can not exist if all people are bickering amongst one another.

I suppose this is where strong leadership is important, where people feel comfortable stating they do not like an idea, though in the end the leader decides and it is supported by a majority of staff members (both inside and out).

I do not know, though political correctness and lack of freedom of expression is suffocating within itself, and that is a prospect that is difficult to enjoy.

Music and Expressions of the Heart

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I read a poster the other day that stated "Music expresses what words cannot". This touched me deeply... As an avid fan of music, I have often wondered why music is capable of penetrating a layer of the self that mere words can not.

When we hear beautiful music, it fills a space completely and one is surrounded with the beauty and joy of creative expression. I believe there is more meaning to the poster than what appears at first glance. Language utilizes a certain portion of cerebral activity; however the heart (containing brain cells) and thoughts associated with emotion may not have the most prime way of communicating by utilizing the section of the brain devoted to language alone. Music may express, quite literally, feelings and emotions on a level that affects our heart and may translate our emotions into a depth, that is not understandable by language alone.

The Subconscious Mind

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Our subconscious mind is constantly giving us signals in the form of feelings that a rational mind may find difficult to interpret or understand. However, I believe that it is important to place emphasis on these feelings rather than soley base one's life decisions upon logic and "reason." As our conscious mind, is only utilizing upto 10% of the brain's true capabilities - the question arises what is the other 90% doing.

When I dream, I often hear the most beautiful music that I am unable to transcribe on to pen and paper because it is there in my mind for the split moment, and then vanishes into the dream itself. Similarly, I believe the subconscious mind is capable of providing inspiration, guidance and true interpretation to that daily stage that is our lives. The key is to isolate that voice and take the time to really hear and feel what is happening within ourselves. I suppose that is where meditation may be beneficial, however I have not actually tried true meditation. To embrace nothingness, and perish all thoughts within my mind has not been an easy task.

Saying that, tying all thoughts together into one powerful and focused frequency (for lack of a better word) may allow for true greatness and artistic expression in work.

However, the entire concept is humbling and interesting. I may investigate further into this....

The Commercialization of Art

I, who have been an avid admirer of the arts and the freedom that the work and the term represents have had a reawakening after studying the history of artistic works. All the greatest artists that are revered in the Western World, were excellent at their trade, however they too were promoted heavily, marketed, and commissioned by the powerful families and the Catholic Church (no less) to create works that are admired by millions. Also, the fact that religious drawings, that touch people's hearts due to their faith, will always recieve an emotional response from the viewer regardless of the exceptional talent of the painter. Not to say that these artists did not have skill. They did, but so did thousands of others. If one is to view Eastern art, where the artist's name has not been promoted or discussed or even recorded, then one can easily say that they are on par with the European arts. However, it is rare to hear a famous eastern artist's name echoed again and again throughout musuems or in discussions about the arts.

A sad fact regarding the commercialization of arts is the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles using the famous names of artist's which ensures that an entire generation of children will grow up knowing who Raphael is.

Marketing, commercialization, replication through posters and images, as well as religious leanings have biased the perception of art in the world today. Is it possible that we can actually live in a world where people see and think for themselves? How many millions of dollars have been made by replicating the Mona Lisa or frescos from the Sistine Chapel. Angels, demons, Gods, Serpents, and other religious Catholic "images" are famous the world over. How long will it take before the other religions with "graven images" (not associated with the Church) get an understanding of the fabulous amount of money to be made and decide to promote their "artists" on a mass scale. For shame..... You can NOT buy and sell God.

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Atheism

Atheism as opposed to Theism, asserts that there is no deity or divine essence within the Universe. My question is why such certainty in the non-existance of a Divine Being? I understand the millions of people who have "faith" in a certain belief system, largely to the fact that they were raised as children in a certain belief system. Religion holds value in the sense that it, in most cases, purports excellent values, provides a unity among it's followers, and serves as a gathering point/social community for it's believers. However, religion itself, it must be made clear has many less positive sides, especially the use of violence towards those who do not practice the same faith. In many cases, the religions themselves do not view violence in a positive light, however the followers of a certain faith may not be 100% religious (ironically enough).

Religion, is practiced by billions of human beings, and though not everyone can be right, it is rare to find people actually seeking truth. For there is only truth or untruth in the universe regarding the divine. One can not tell truth and lie at the same time..... As most religions in the world claim to be the correct one, it can only be said that the majority of the people in the world, must be "incorrect" in placing blind faith in the religion of their fathers. That is why education, knowledge, and extreme caution should be exercised when seeking truth. I have met a large number of people whom are happy to be born into and practice a certain faith throughout their lives, without really paying any attention at all to what they are worshipping or doing.

Hence, all the violence in the world, due to religion. If people actually cared for their belief system, and truly believed in it, they would not break the codes so nonchalantly and claim divine guidance when they do so.

Saying that, atheists, without proof claim there is no divine. To deny the existence of something, due to lack of evidence does not make sense, when the denial itself has no evidence. Would it not be more accurate to state, this is a grey area, and unknown? However, atheists too are subject to human feelings, and must have an idea of what will happen in the after life. Atheists do not believe in an afterlife yet somehow they must have knowledge that "nothing" happens after death except non-existence.

I believe Atheists are subject to what all other human beings are victim of which is the fear of the unknown. To die and not have a belief about what will happen must be a scary prospect. So the atheist has faith that when he dies nothing will happen and he will become non-existent. That is fair enough, however a belief just the same, as there is no proof of this concept.

Perception of our World with Limited Senses

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Being confined to the five senses is so limited, how can one perceive this world with only five senses. The fact of the matter is that there is so much in existence that our senses are not capable of defining. We know for a fact that energy exists, it is all around us yet we are not aware of the energy patterns in our world. Also, we have technology to detect heat, yet our bodies can not do the same function.

There could be so much going on around us, that we really have no idea what is happening in the vicinity near us. Imagine our perception if we were to add an additional 95 senses to the five that we already have. Our world would be a completely different place. Just as the world of a blind person is experienced differently from a person with sight. Take this difference, and multiply it by hundreds, possibly thousands, perhaps more and that is the minute fragment of our personal experience compared to the reality of the Earth/Life. It is definately humbling that our minor perception of reality, leads to science and other skills, and yet there is so much more out there. It is so true, that the more I learn, the more I realize that I do not know.

What is the true nature of the world we live in, I do not think we as humans will ever be in a position to define. For now, it will have to suffice that our perception of this world is a small fragment of what the world truly is. Humbling indeed.....