The New “About Drima” Page

Posted on January 6, 2008
Filed Under Personal, Blogging and New Media |

I rewrote the “About Drima” page. Lately I was becoming increasingly unhappy with it. It was too “rantish” and not as coherent as I’d have liked it to be.

Check out the new one. It tells an updated story.

The old “About Drima” page is below:

Short version:

I’m Drima and I’m a pro-democracy, anti-communist, caring capitalist, HUGE fan of American pop culture (Friends anyone?), grateful consumer of Western products (Danish cheese anyone?), NOT a fan of various aspects of America’s foreign policy, certainly NOT a fan of Muslim extremists, anti-Wahhabi, strong believer in the notion “the pen is mightier than the sword”, non-conformist, independent thinking kind of guy seeking to expand his mind by engaging in productive, open-minded and peaceful discussions. Hello!

Long version:

What?! Too short? Want to know more about me? Okay okay fine fine, I’ll tell you more.

I’m a 20 year old Sudanese Afro-Arab guy and I passionately love my country even though in many ways I realize it’s a complete disaster. The fact, that I criticize so many things about Sudan doesn’t mean I hate it. On the contrary it just means I care about it a lot and I want what’s best for all Sudanese regardless of tribe, skin-color, race or religion.

I’m also a practicing Muslim. I pray 5 times a day, I fast during Ramadan, I don’t drink alcohol or eat bacon and I do my best to avoid what a Muslim needs to avoid. Islam to me is peace of heart and peace of mind. Islam to me is a healthy and complete way of life.

The reason I chose the nickname “Drima” is simply because I really am a Dreamer. I have big dreams for myself and big dreams for my country. The reason I called this blog “The Sudanese Thinker” is simply because I’m always thinking 24/7 about everything, anything from trying to figure out why the Coca-Cola logo is in red and white to trying to figure out the root causes of terrorism. I know, I know I think too much. Sometimes my head feels like it’s about to explode from all the thinking but it’s all so very rewarding. I love to question and think. Without the most basic requirement which is thinking, my dreams will never be achieved and the context of my mind will forever remain narrow. That’s why I can’t stop thinking.

Politically I can’t really describe myself. I did take an American political quiz once and after getting done with it, I fell right smack on top of the line separating a centrist and a right winger. I guess that makes me a “right leaning centrist” if there’s such a thing. When I told somebody I know about the result of the quiz, he jokingly replied “welcome to neoconsville”. Economically speaking I am very much anti-Marxist.

When it comes to America, I’ve got a lot of opinions. I don’t hate America, quite the contrary actually. I love America. I’ve got dear American friends, many of whom are in America and whom I’m still in contact with. I’ve also got family living in America. Moreover I’ve had the pleasure of visiting America and traveling to many of its great cities. You name it. I’ve been to Chicago, Portland (Maine), Los Angeles, Denver, Las Vegas and last but not least the one and only New York City. I enjoyed them all.

I love America even though I’m not a very big fan of various aspects of its foreign policy and even though it’s screwed up in a lot of ways just like all countries are. I mean hey, if you’ve got homeless people roaming around the streets of L.A. begging for money in the wealthiest nation on earth, then something is definitely screwed up. But like I said, America nonetheless is still a cool place. Moreover Muslims there (and in other Western countries) surely do have more rights than Muslims in the Arab world. That can’t be denied.

Now come the shockers. I’m a supporter of the war in Afghanistan. Yes, I am but I’ve always vehemently opposed the Iraq war until recently. US troops are already there. This is the reality whether we like it or not and I believe that the process of democracy should be fully supported. I also realize that sudden withdrawal of US troops now will only turn Iraq into a bigger disaster. That will be bad for Iraqis, the region and bad for America too. Hence, I really hope that won’t happen.

Ouch! My back hurts. Can I go now? No? Ok I’m just kidding. You know I love you all. It’s very clear that I can’t end this “About me” section without delving into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Crap, where do I even start? Hmmm *scratching head*… Okay… Mmmmm… Not so long ago I used to be a passionate hater of Israel since I had the impression that all Israeli Zionists were evil little blood sucking land-hungry buggers who enroll in their Devilish military just to get a chance to kill Arabs. Hey don’t blame me! Blame the damn media that I was always watching. Blame it for always only showing me the evils of Israel but hardly the positive good stuff (yes, apparently there are good stuff). How was I supposed to know the enlightening blogosphere was such a cool alternative for real information? Through it for the first time ever, I started communicating to some very friendly Jews and Israelis who (prepare to be shocked) consider themselves Zionists! We engaged in many “perception changing” debates. Plus, I realized something. You can’t allow one side to bash the other side without giving the bashed side a chance to respond thoroughly.

I’m not going to say I’m a fan of Israel now though. Oh no sorry I can’t. There’s still a lot that I oppose about Israeli policies. Yes, sure retards like Hamas who refuse to recognize Israel are part of the problem. Yes, retards who love, just LOVE firing rockets into Israel are part of the problem. BUT Israeli policies are part of the problem too. Example? If talking peace and continuing to build settlements on Palestinian land isn’t a problem then I don’t know what it is.

Nonetheless though, I have become increasingly interested in Jewish history and culture. Furthermore, I recognize Israel’s right to exist. Yes, I do. And whether you realize it or not, you do too if you support a 2 states solution. I hate the bloody history of this ugly conflict. I HATE it, we all do BUT… as naïve as it sounds, I want peace and I will continue to support peace. Hence, I strongly oppose the insane idea of “wiping Israel off the map”. Okay okay fine, maybe Ahmadinejad can give it a try but only after I visit cool places like Haifa and Tel Aviv. ;)

Oh well, there you have it… a longer version of “about Drima”. Welcome to my blog. Welcome to Drima’s “The Sudanese Thinker”. And remember… the opinions we develop mostly tend to be shaped by how well informed or ill-informed we are so do your best to always be well informed.

 

Peace & enjoy your stay!

 

Comments

17 Responses to “The New “About Drima” Page”

  1. Roman Kalik on January 6th, 2008 1:48 pm

    I like the new version. It’s clearer, concise, and a lot easier to read.

  2. Drima on January 6th, 2008 4:27 pm

    Glad you like it. I’m defintely satisfied with the new one. Don’t have to explain myself every time to new readers who misunderstand me and get pissed off.
    It represents my views and what I stand for very well. :)

  3. Nominally Challenged on January 6th, 2008 4:33 pm

    I agree.
    Very much easier to understand, and well thought out.
    Well done :)

  4. Dalu on January 6th, 2008 6:35 pm

    Spark notes, please. :P

  5. Nobody on January 6th, 2008 11:26 pm

    i was always curious about that little guy on the picture … is it you ???

  6. Drima on January 7th, 2008 6:22 am

    “i was always curious about that little guy on the picture … is it you ???”

    Maybe. Maybe not. :P

    And Dalu what the hell are spark notes?

  7. Dalu on January 7th, 2008 5:57 pm

    That child in the picture is not Drima, lol.

    Drima, Spark Notes are basically cheat sheets. Although they are supposed to be “study guides.” I barely read any books in high school and still managed to write really good papers. :P They basically give you summaries and at times pretty good analysis of chapters and different characters in books. Of course you also have to be pretty good at b.s.ing to begin with or your teachers will know that you just sparked your way through it.

  8. Dalu on January 7th, 2008 5:59 pm

    Oh. I said Spark notes please (a popular saying, amongst my friends and most people I’ve met anyway), basically to say make your point in three sentences. :P But I was just kidding, you did well. :)

  9. Andrew Brehm on January 11th, 2008 10:22 am

    “It continues to expand its illegal settlements”

    I still don’t see how that is “evil”.

    There is no law that makes settling on land won in a war inherently illegal. (It is illegal to move population there, but not to allow people to move there if they so wish.)

    Many of the settlements, I understand, are built on land that was Jewish before 1948 and land that was legally bought from its owners.

    The only thing that made the settlements illegal was the peace treaty between Israel and the PLO, which the PLO broke.

    So what exactly is illegal about the “settlements”?

  10. Andrew Brehm on January 11th, 2008 10:23 am

    I understand Arab villages in Israel are also expanding.

  11. Nobody on January 11th, 2008 12:21 pm

    Andrew Brehm on January 11th, 2008 10:22 am

    “It continues to expand its illegal settlements”

    I still don’t see how that is “evil”.

    There is no law that makes settling on land won in a war inherently illegal. (It is illegal to move population there, but not to allow people to move there if they so wish.)

    well andrew .. i dont know if it’s evil .. and probably it is illegal … but whatever it is, i think we will have to agree that expanding settlements in the west bank can hardly count as a gesture of good will towards the palestinians … neither it can be interpreted as a declaration of the intention to leave the west bank at some point in the future with a view of allowing the palestinians to create a state of their own

  12. Andrew Brehm on January 11th, 2008 1:11 pm

    Nobody,

    I agree with you in that expanding settlements is not a good will gesture. OTOH, not claiming the West Bank or offering to give it back was ALSO not counted as a “good will gesture” by the Arabs. So what’s the point of good will gestures?

    But I don’t see how the settlements declare that Israel doesn’t have the intention to leave. Israel will just keep a part of the West Bank and the Arab state will exist in the rest.

    Also, when Israel didn’t control the West Bank and when Israel offered them the West Bank in 1967 the Arabs were not satisfied, so what’s the point of trying to satisfy them?

    They neither wanted to live with the Jews in 1948, nor allow Jews to live in any middle-eastern country at all, and neither do they accept a Jewish state or accept an Arab state given to them by victorious Israel in 1967.

    There is no Arab demand other than complete destruction of Israel that has not already been fulfilled by Israel at some point.

    Return of refugees: The original refugees lived in Israel in 1948; yet the Arabs attacked anyway.

    Arab state in the West Bank and Gaza: They could have had that in 1948 and it was again offered in 1967, 1994, and 2000; yet the Arabs rejected it and kept attacking.

    End the occupation: That was done recently in southern Lebanon and Gaza; yet the Arabs have become MORE rather than less violent.

    So what exactly is the precedent for the idea that removing “illegal” settlements will play any positive role in the “peace process”? EVERYTHING ELSE they demanded, INCLUDING removal of settlements did NOT work.

    But OTOH, whenever Israel moved forward and claimed more land and did the opposite of what the Arabs wanted or demanded, the outcome was more positive for Israel and even for the Arabs.

  13. Nobody on January 11th, 2008 1:21 pm

    But I don’t see how the settlements declare that Israel doesn’t have the intention to leave. Israel will just keep a part of the West Bank and the Arab state will exist in the rest.

    :d :d :D

  14. Nobody on January 11th, 2008 1:49 pm

    you know andrew … i think it was martin kramer who when commenting on the second lebanon war asked something in the sense of: could it be that hezbollah has brainwashed itself to the point that it started believing its own propaganda …

    i think we need to stay clear of two things:
    1) to turn everything into propaganda
    2) to fall into the trap of believing our own propaganda

    the settlements keep expanding first of all because we have no control over these people … and neither the government nor the army dare to mess with them … because we all know one thing, tomy lapid formulated it brilliantly, that for gaza they cried, but for the west bank they will fight

  15. Drima on January 11th, 2008 2:51 pm

    I guess I don’t have to say much Andrew. Nobody did a better job than I ever could. :)

  16. Andrew Brehm on January 11th, 2008 3:37 pm

    Problem is, Israel cannot stop people from buying land and living on it, not easily.

    And Israel cannot stop protecting those who do, not easily.

    The settlements would be a non-issue if it was clear that an Arab government would protect them from fanatical Arabs just as well as the Israeli government protects Arab settlements in Israel from fanatical Jews.

    Yes, the settlers are mostly idiots and do not represent Israel well (and I understand some of them are not technically Israelis anyway).

    But I am not aware of any international law that disallows specifically Jewish settlements on occupied land and the treaty that made the settlements illegal was broken by the Arab side, hence no longer valid, I guess.

  17. Andrew Brehm on January 11th, 2008 3:40 pm

    BTW, don’t misunderstand what I said as a general endorsement of the settlements or the settlers.

    I am not saying that I am in favour of them just because I cannot figure out why what they do is supposed to be “illegal”.

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