| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 10:04:56 AM | Quoted from Saudi Arabia' news source, Al-Hayat, reported by Amina Kheiry:
Arabs . . . cheered up . . . discovering it was . . . the 10 anniversary of the launch of Viagra. The little blue pill is hugely popular in the Arab world (some 35 million men in the region have used it an average of 50 times each) and the event was celebrated with much razzmatazz and a big international convention in Cairo. One speaker after another noted Viagra's enormous revelance to Arabs, who more than anyone labor under a sense of political, economic, and social impotence. Viagra, said the speakers, was the perfect antidote for millions of Arab men, young and old, who feel their virility has been damaged by lost wars, Western invasions, and the incompetence of their rulers: 'Viagra restores something of their "lost rights."' And this isn't just a metaphor--the experts cited studies showing that improved sexual satisfaction enhances people's contentment with their public life. If only, people are now saying, the miracle cure's inventor could come up with "political Viagra," a pill with the power to banish a pervading send of hopelessness and "restore the situation to an upright position".
No comment from the Arab ladies posted here . . . .. .
I remember the child bride force to marry an elderly man in the indi film "Osama" made a few years ago. Then, I have to consider an article in Vanity Fair around 15 years ago about how a Saudi princess had a clitoradectomy because that is what is demanded of her.
Being stated, I have always said in my years of maturity and knowledge that "the male ego is the most fragile substance in the universe", and indeed, the whole planet is at its mercy.
MY COMMENT TO THE GENTLEMAN BELOW, Van Buren: IF I WAS SUCH A MALE BASHER, WHY ARE MOST OF MY PERSONAL FRIENDS MEN? I think that you can judge a person, often times, by the company that they keep. The only person I control is myself.
The Big E | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 11:09:58 AM | If you think this has anyting to do with ED and the male ego, I think you're far off base, van buren. It has to do with power and control. The men in these countries are celebrating this drug and basically saying it makes them feel more powerful..more manly, because they are politically repressed. That is sad and wrong. And furthermore, this drug is intended to be used for people who have erectile dysfunction, not as a party drug. I don't really care if people use it for a party drug if they are in a loving relationship, but look at the women these men are with and how they are still treated in society. Genital mutilation for the women, Viagra for the men. Sad and wrong. Women can't attend school, Viagra for the men...because the men need to feel more powerful.
That's what I read in the original post. And before you call me a man basher, hold your fire. I love men. I'm raising two of them. We need to see this for what it really is. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 11:29:51 AM |
Women can't attend school, Viagra for the men...
I recall that more Saudi women attend college than men.. Genital mutilation is a pre-Islamic practice not directly related to Islam and mostly practiced in Africa. In its mild form, it's an analog of male circumcision.
Girls under Islam have the right to say "no" to marriage if they want to... although if they don't and instead, say, burst in tears, it does not count. You have to realize that a girl married to a (probably rich) old man will not starve, and her children won't starve, either.. and her entire extended family will be elevated in status. Life is more complex than many here realize... one should really try and make sense of own life before going and judging others. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 11:44:22 AM | Genital mutilation ............ In its mild form
Would YOU want YOUR genitals mutilated in "it's mild form"?
'Didn't think so!
It's no secret that infibulation is practiced all over the world ..... including right here in the US. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 11:54:14 AM | | ^^^ What is worse in your opinion, male circumcision, or female genital mutilation that does not impact sexual function? | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 11:56:04 AM | | Genital mutilation in it's mild form is lopping off the clitoris and sewing up the vaginal opening so only a stream of urine can pass. Maybe the Arabs don't do it as brutally as the Africans do and don't kill and permanently disfigure as many girls. By removing the clitoris and sewing up the vaginal opening, they are taking away womanhood. The men are complaining that they are politically impotent. The women have had their entire physical feminine identity taken away and reduced them to nothing but breeding machines. I will never agree with that nor be happy for the select few who marry a rich older man no matter what the culture. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 12:02:33 PM |
female genital mutilation that does not impact sexual function?
Female genital mutilation ALWAYS DOES affect sexual function. (See post above)
Also, why the dichotomy? Who wants to chose? | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 12:03:06 PM | Excuse me... but... umm... are you saying urine passes through the vaginal opening?  And that's the ONLY thing that passes? Hmm... if that's the case, then I am afraid you are right and Viagra won't help. 
If that's MILD, then what do you call severe? | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 12:05:06 PM | | Research it yourself. They sew up the vaginal opening (I should have said labia) so that the only part that is open is the part that is under the urethra. And yes, I've read that's the only thing that passes, urine, making childbearing deadly. Go ahead and keep on laughing though. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 12:16:02 PM | Well, I'm old enough to appreciate Viagra and the other meds. Having been with a man who was dependent up it for whatever reasons.
I also know that if I was born outside of a western culture they would have stoned me to death a long time ago. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 12:17:00 PM |
the male ego is the most fragile substance in the universe
I have yet to need the little blue pill, I guess my ego is still intact. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 12:50:38 PM |
Research it yourself. They sew up the vaginal opening (I should have said labia) so that the only part that is open is the part that is under the urethra. And yes, I've read that's the only thing that passes, urine, making childbearing deadly. Go ahead and keep on laughing though.
Yes, you SHOULD have said that.. thanks for the edit.
OK, I've researched. Have you?
Female circumcision a pre-Christian and pre-Islamic practice, widespread in Egypt and other parts of africa since the pharaos, though now outlawed in Egypt. What you call the MILD form is what the World Health Organization calls "Type III circumcision" and is in fact an extreme form, like I said. All independent research shows that 90% of circumcised women experience or have experienced an orgasm of varying intensity and frequency. Research shows that circumsized women are pleased with themselves aesthetically and find the sense of empowerment in what they believe to be a "masculine" part of their body having been removed (just as they believe male circumcision removes a "feminine" part of the male body).
"UNICEF stated that when "looking at religion independently, it is not possible to establish a general association with FGM/C status."[37] The arguments used to justify FGC vary; they range from health-related to social benefits:[38]"
While any procedure performed by a midwife in a bush can cause complications, "deadly childbearing" does not exactly explain the explosive population growth in Egypt, does it?
I am against the practice.. but I am against many other things that happen right under our nose. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 1:13:18 PM | | Can anyone pose a pertinent question or point or have I missed it ? It is still early in the morn over here. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 1:17:20 PM | | It's gotten really off track. Please read the news article quote with the beginning of the thread. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 1:39:34 PM | In light of the levels of repression women are subjected to in most Arab countries, it's not surprising to me that it would affect their men's virility. It also makes pretty good sense to me that their politcal failures leave them feeling impotent in other ways. Living under tyrannical laws with the lives of your entire family hanging in the balance of your personal behaviour is enough to hold many men from standing up with a backbone for what is right. They don't just kill you, they kill a chunk of your family to really get you where it hurts. It's no wonder the Iraqi people are being such sheep after the removal of Saddam Hussien. He has been replaced with a motely crew of petty fiefdome cheifs intent on their own prosperity at the expense of the population on one hand & radical extremists who will kill your family for trying to stand up & participate in a healthy reconstruction.
That has been their history since the dawn of time. I don't know if it can be fixed & the only part that makes it any of our business is that they've [many Arabs] decided to hate America for supporting Israel's existance. ([our support of Israel] which in my opinion has been abused by Israel in many instances.)
In any case, the viagra connection is an interesting observation. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 3:00:46 PM |
That has been their history since the dawn of time. It is the ignorant statements like these that are a problem, whether they are directed against Blacks, Whites, Jews, Chritians, Muslims or Arabs. It's factually incorrect, too... google Islamic Golden Age... or Islamic Renaissance... The Muslims in general, and Iraquis in particular, were carrying the torch of the anscient civilizations while the Europeans were busy burning books and people. We owe them algebra, medicine, and much, much more. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 3:23:51 PM |
who feel their virility has been damaged by lost wars, Western invasions, and the incompetence of their rulers
No mention of diabetes, high blood pressure, age - both physical and mental. Looks to me like just another topic to politicize. ie You can't say "Hot today" anymore without defending your political views, now we're discussing the politics and racial ramifications of erections (lack thereof). | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 4:13:03 PM | Gee, I wish we could get a comment from a Muslin.
I hope it's not the young woman with a baby carriage and burka I tried to "rescue" years ago on the Boston subway system. This was way before 9/11. I was sitting next to her whispering thoughts of freedom in her ear.
My God I love their food, though, and the belly dancers. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/14/2008 7:52:14 PM | | Back on point,I hope.........................So, if I understand the point that the OP is tying to make,it`s all about the pill making these 35 million Arabs feeling revelant. Take this scenario to the extreme, and as long as Saudi Arabia continues to be the primary exporter and financier of their special brand of Islamic teaching in the madrassa`s all around the world..............................it would seem that the women from the Western World really need to watch their backs. Can you even imagine these religous fanatics all hyped up on Viagra,and let loose on America.................... | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/15/2008 3:35:25 AM | | Maybe one day their manhood will become dependent on the viagra and will not work at all without it. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/15/2008 8:45:02 AM |
One speaker after another noted Viagra's enormous revelance to Arabs, who more than anyone labor under a sense of political, economic, and social impotence.
Now does this not sound like something an academic would say?
And this isn't just a metaphor--the experts cited studies showing that improved sexual satisfaction enhances people's contentment with their public life.
Surprise, surprise. Works for me too.
Latin American sales of Viagra, which wasn't even in the top ten in 1999, grew by over 57% in 2000 to make it the third-highest selling drug in the region. Worldwide, Pfizer reported Viagra sales growth of just 27%. In fact, Latin America is the only region in the world in which Viagra even figures in the list of top ten drugs.
Looks like those Latin American men also like to have their ego stroked. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/15/2008 9:14:35 AM | | Well, at this points I'm really hate myself for being not on top of it again. I should have bought a load of Pfizer stock years ago. I should have mortgaged the house for this one. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/15/2008 11:04:33 AM | LOL, Enigma, for a moment I thought you were a man trying to "rescue" an oppressed Muslim woman, that would have been at least funny... but for a woman to prozelitize on a subway... eek.
I doubt a Muslim will post here... they tend not to be as verbally confrontational as most people think, and mostly tend to ignore.
The feeling of impotence prevalent in the Arab societies - yes, they speak about it all the time, and use this very word, this is actually true.
I've only mentioned the past accomplishments of Muslims because someone had denied them and had to be called to task. As for today's accomplishments - no dispute here, read above on "impotence"... However, do you notice that, when we judge other cultures, we always do so within an arbitrary time frame that portrays *us* in the most flattering light? Every culture does that.
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/16/2008 7:41:03 PM | However, do you notice that, when we judge other cultures, we always do so within an arbitrary time frame that portrays *us* in the most flattering light? Every culture does that.
So the Arabs can look at us and say ‘Sure you are great now, but let’s see where you are in a few hundred years.’
Sorry but when you stop moving forward you… get left behind. When you are always looking backwards at how great you were it must be hard seeing where you can go. | |
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| Viagra and the Arab culture
Posted: 6/17/2008 8:33:09 AM | ^^ Civilizations, like people, have their ages... America is a very, very young civilization... with its arrogant ignorance of youth. It's good and bad.
Please use quote signs. | |
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