Arabisc: Asian Games, Democracy and Models  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

Why was there no celebration of the Arab heritage in the opening of the Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, and what is the relationship between democracy and models and why is an Egyptian blogger asking his readers to watch award-winning movie Good Night and Good Luck?
These are some of the questions our North Africa and Middle East bloggers hope to answer this week.
Bahrain-based blogger Haitham Sabbah doesn't seem to be so pleased with the Asian Games opening ceremony and wonders why the Qataris failed to include any representations of Arabs in it.
In Egypt, 3rby writes about the impact of democracy on the socio-economic standard of people, as well as their physical appearance.
Still in Egypt, blogger Mohammed Hisham urges his readers to watch the movie Good Night and Good Luck, which he says spells out the situation in his country today.
هذا هو اسمه ، وإذ لم تستطع أن تشاهده أثناء مهرجان القاهرة السينمائي، دور عليه على الإنترنت،ماعرفتش .. شوف منه نسخة مسروقة- مش حرام صدقني!- عند واحد صاحبك.. اشتريه سي دي مضروب من العتبة..برضه ماعرفتش.. يبقى سافر أمريكا وشوفه هناك! أعمل أي حاجة بس أمانة عليك لازم تشوفه..وأنت تتابع مشاهده ألغى من دماغك فكرة أن أحداث الفيلم تدور في خمسينات القرن الماضي حينما تحولت أمريكا إلى “كيان خائف من نفسه” بفعل السيناتور “ماكارثي” الذي أصبح يطارد كل الأمريكيين بتهمة الشيوعية.. أنسى ذلك وضع مكان الأسماء الأجنبية آخرى مصرية..ستجد أنك تشاهد بلدك على الشاش
In Kuwait, Zaydoun is steaming that workers forgot to paint white lines on a main road, for drivers to stay within their lanes. But he says it won't make a difference because drivers in his country don't follow the rules anyway.
Our last stop this week is with Saudi blogger Sara Mattar, who goes to school in nearby Bahrain, an Island which is separated from Saudi Arabia by a 25km causeway. In a post which has so far attracted 83 comments, Sara tells us about her experiences in Bahrain and the simplicity of Bahrainis she has met.
In relatively ‘freer’ Bahrain, Sara thought she would be able to free herself from wearing the black Abaya (cloak) which is obligatory in Saudi Arabia.
From her experience and despite the fact that her home is only 45 minutes by car from Bahrain, Sara says Bahrainis are very different from Saudis.
Sara also thinks that Bahraini women are more likely to get married and not end up as spinsters because they come from a more open society, which is ready to embrace other traditions.
The Gulf region or the Gulf Cooperative Council is made up of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.