Saudi Arabia's Sporting Revolution: Woman Entry for Olympics

"It looks as if Saudi Arabia will avoid exclusion from the 2012 Olympics – by entering a token female presence in equestrian events."

Still with Gulf sports or competition....

(or chips, if you prefer)

"Dear Laila kindly provided a translation of my article in al akhbar

What Is In a Bag of Crisps?
What is in the bag of crisps that our children are so addicted to? Apart from the high calories that are the result of soaking the thin potato slices in cheap oil of doubtful origin, there is human and environmental tragedy."

A long read from Joshua Landis: Maybe have a cup of tea on standby...Multi-layered and multi-linked:

"Take two rather weird Finns, a camera and a mountain of jocularity. The result is one of the stranger travelogues you will ever encounter: Madventures YEMEN. This film was made shortly after the attack on the U.S. Embassy in 2008. The two travelers are hardly experts on Yemen and much of what they say (about tribes and geography, for example) should be taken with a grain (at times a pillar worthy of Lot’s wife) of salt. But I love this film..."

"The Syrian regime’s blanket ban on journalist access has some carefully selected exceptions. Robert Fisk, for instance, who seems to be compensating for the naive anti-Syrian and pro-March 14th line in his reporting of Lebanon over the last years by treating the statements of Syrian regime figures – professional liar Boutheina Shaaban is one – with great naivety."