Newsweek's Take on the New Morocco

Morocco: A Suburb of Paris - Newsweek: International Editions - MSNBC.com

"Of course we love our own culture," says Leila, who lives in the cultural capital of Marrakech. "But ours is now a European way of life."

Newsweek has a superficial but generally favorable commentary on Moroccan modernization and liberalization. Although the article points out the disparity between the living standards of most Moroccans and the Europeans who are populating the new tourist playgrounds, it does not really analyze how the interaction between them is likely to play out.

Foundation of Foundation

The Morocco Times reports that Moroccan students in Canada and the United States have established a new foundation to provide aid to Morocco and leadership training to students.

Rights for Detainees

Hearings for Moroccan Suspects Postponed - New York Times

RABAT, Morocco (AP) -- Hearings for the 56 people rounded up in a recent anti-terror sweep in Morocco scheduled for this week have been postponed to an unspecified date, judicial officials said Tuesday.

The indefinite postponement of hearings for 56 terror suspects arrested in Morocco raises questions about whether the rights of the suspects are being respected.

Hackers Busted for Hitting States

Morocco Jails Two for Disrupting U.S. Computers - New York Times

The New York Times reports that Morocco has jailed two hackers for unleashing worms on the United States:

RABAT ( Reuters) - A Moroccan court on Tuesday jailed two men for one and two years for unleashing computer worms that disrupted networks across the United States, court officials and lawyers said.

My question is, does this say something positive about the current level of technical and scientific education in Morrocco? Arguably only a society that is truly computer literate produces hackers.

Disneykesh

In case you wondering whether the Disnification of Marrakesh is complete, the New York Times reports that Club Med has opened an exclusive high-end resort, "Le Riad," within the city walls:

MARRAKESH, Morocco — Beside a huge wooden door crossed with bolts stand two somber men in the flowing white Moroccan robes ordinarily reserved for traditional weddings.

They are the princely guardians of Le Riad, a walled compound at Club Med’s La Palmeraie resort, where first-class suites are sprinkled daily with fresh rose petals and solicitous spa attendants are on call nearby at a jasmine-scented pool to offer bubbling papaya baths.

Lutist Haj Youness Barred from U.S.

Music : Haj Youness, persona non grata in US :: moroccoTimes.com

The Kennedy Center concert by Moroccan lutist Haj Youness has been cancelled because, for reasons that are not completely clear, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has denied him entry to the United States. The Morocco Times comments:

It seems that the US sees everybody as terrorists! The famous Moroccan lutist, Haj Youness, was refused a visa to the US, mainly because of his name, reported the Moroccan daily L'Economiste.

For more, see The View from Fez.

End of an Era

Naguib Mahfouz: An Appreciation

Laila Lalami laments the death of one of the Arab world's great writers in this appreciation in the Nation:

With the death of Mahfouz, Egypt has been deprived of its greatest living writer and of its last icon of the twentieth century, and the world has lost one of its most humane literary figures.

Particularly interesting is Lalami's discussion of Mahfouz's interest in both Pharaonic and Islamic Egypt in his works, and his complicated politics in his life.

On the Beach

Carnival band leader Gloria Cummins would rather be in Agadir, the Guardian reports. Personally, I have never seen the attraction, but then I have never been to the Paradiso Valley, either.

Opposites Attract

Hadar Harris and Rahim Sabir - New York Times

Human Rights advocates Hadar Harris and Rahim Sabir met in Morocco and were recently married after Mr. Sabir finished an eight-month stint as a human rights monitor in Sudan.

Mr. Sabir, a human- and legal-rights advocate in Morocco, had organized a series of workshops on pending reforms to the country’s criminal procedure code. Ms. Harris, an international human rights lawyer, was a guest speaker.

The couple were married in Chevy Chase, Maryland, at a "traditional Jewish ceremony with Moroccan flourishes."

Cooking Lust

Tagine shopping in Crate and Barrel Specialty Cookware

Crate and Barrel Ultra Tagine

Crate and Barrel has the following to say for its 21st century tagine:

Named for both the vessel and the savory stew-like dishes it produces, the traditional Moroccan tagine has a conical lid designed to recirculate moisture and return it to slow-cooking foods. Our version uses a new glazed clay called "flame" that's exceptionally resistant to heat, allowing you to break with tradition and use your tagine on a gas or electric stovetop, in the microwave or oven.

• Clay from the Burgundy region of France
• Heat-resistant "flame" technology
• Dishwasher-, microwave-, oven-, broiler- and stovetop-safe
• Made in France

At $89.95, however, I doubt it will make much of an inroad in the Moroccan market.