Ya gary gary elwo7oosh Gheir naseebak lan te7oosh

Literally: You who runs with monsters, other than your fate you will not meet.

Figuratively: Those who get caught up in big dreams will still receive what they were meant to receive, meeting only disappointment.

Matgeesh gheir fe teez el erd we teshim

Literally:  Why come to the monkey's butt and sniff it?

Figuratively: Someone who is self destructive, or who constantly chooses something of lesser value out of a line-up of "better" options.

3amil zay el ar3 betmidel bara

Literally: You are like pumpkins, your roots reach outwards

Figuratively: To call someone disloyal, or referring to someone who helps others but not their own family and close friends.

Christopher Caldwell on "What is the West's Problem with Islam?"

Reflections on the Revolution in Europe: Immigration, Islam and the West: your purchase benefits LCC programming Europe has received a wave of immigration from the global south in recent decades, similar in scope to the US-but very different in its results. Many immigrant and second-generation communities have astronomical unemployment rates and a thin connection to European identity. Some have produced terrorists. The problems are particularly severe among newcomers from the Muslim world.

If Europe has an Islam problem, whose fault is it? Is Islamic belief and culture incompatible with Western institutions? Or is there such a thing as "Islamophobia," poisoning immigrants' efforts to integrate on European terms?

Christopher Caldwell, who writes for the Financial Times, The New York Times Magazine and The Weekly Standard, visits Zócalo to talk about themes from his upcoming book, Reflections on the Revolution in Europe: Immigration, Islam and the West.

Niloofar, a film by Sabine El Gemayel: a story on the border with Iraq and IranMeet director Sabine El Gemayel when the AFI Fest screens her new feature, "Niloofar" Nov. 9. El Gemayel will discuss the challenges of shooting on location in Iran this year.

This Franco-Iranian production includes Roya Nownahali, Shahab Hosseini, Hengameh Ghaziani, Mobina Ayenedar, Amir Aghai, Sadegh Safai, and Fatemeh Motamed Aria.

Niloofar is a twelve-year-old girl whose dream is to read and write in a village where education is only for boys. While assisting her mother during a delivery Niloofar meets a wise woman who allows her to secretly study. "

The 4th Annual God Loves Beauty Festival, Nov. 12-20, 2008

The eclectic Al-Fareed aka Alfred Madain is a deejay, musician and ethnomusicologist in Los Angeles. A walking encyclopedia of traditional, folkloric and contemporary music of the Arab/Islamic world and Africa, he intimately “gets” and analyzes music ranging from ancient traditions to modern world techno, hip hop, western new wave, heavy metal and punk. Al-Fareed’s attuned feel for rock gives him the ability to reflect on the west from an eastern perspective and on the east from a western perspective. As a music historian he can explain the history and influence of ziryab (a musician of the Baghdadi and Andalusian courts) as well as the history and influence of Woody Guthrie, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Black Flag, Blind Lemon Jefferson, the Velvet Underground and more.

By Christie Bahna

Obama vs. Osama?: This objectionable magazine cover is just one of the many attempts to conflate Obama with Arab/Muslim fundamentalism.With only two weeks remaining until the presidential election, both Barack Obama and John McCain have expressed a desire to redirect the campaign towards more relevant, "kitchen table" issues. Yet attempts to quell the angry voices of character-questioning rally-goers have not been entirely successful.

In the final presidential debate, John McCain reprimanded Senator Obama for not repudiating negative comments about the Arizona senator, while triumphantly noting his own attempts to distance Obama from nasty and offensive labels (like, say, "Muslim" and "Arab"). Yet as some have argued—including LA Times columnist and civil rights attorney Constance Rice—to simply repudiate untruths is not enough:

From October 24-26 in Hollywood, Arpa International Film Festival will screen 50 films from 21 nations, including Armenia, Australia, Canada, China, Congo, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Romania, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Tobago, Trinidad, Turkey, UK, and Venezuela.

Arpa International Film Festival, which goes green in 2008, is produced by Arpa Foundation for Film, Music, and Art (AFFMA), a non-profit organization dedicated to artists exploring identity, multi-culturalism, war, exile, genocide and global empathy.

Against the backdrop of the current presidential election, this diverse panel will give an overview of the portrayals, often negative, of Muslims and Arabs in mainstream media and what circumstances and issues help perpetuate those portrayals. It will further seek to shed light on current efforts to engage more realistic Muslim characters, storylines and news coverage, bring depth and balance to a faith and people frequently misunderstood in the media, and expose efforts meant to characterize political candidates in an “extremist” manner.

Zarbang and Banafsheh with Namah Dancers at the Wilshire Ebell. Enjoy an evening of exquisite contemporary mystical Persian music and dance. An evening of wild and whirling dance, ground-breaking drums and Rumi's evocative poetry. A collection of masters, seasoned from years together, Mirror features the Sufi dance innovator Banafsheh, her dance company NAMAH and music from the world renowned ZARBANG.

Merging contemporary dance with Sufi ritual, Persian dance & Flamenco, Banafsheh and ZARBANG take the audience on a journey into the mysteries of being alive and living from the heart, featuring Pejman Hadadi, Behnam & Reza Samani, Javid Afsari, Kelly Archbold and Bahareh Ebrahimzadeh. At the Wilshire Ebell Theatre, 4401 W. 8th St., Los Angeles 90005. Tickets & Information: 818.887.7878, 818.908.0808.

Zarbang and Banafsheh: concert of contemporary mystical music and dance

Arab Film Festival12th Annual Arab Film Festival (16-28 October 2008) Features Screeings at the Writers Guild Theatre, UCLA and USC, Oct. 24-26, 2008.

The Arab Film Festival screens films from and about the Arab World that provide realistic perspectives on Arab people, culture, art, history and politics. Visit the Arab Film Festival site for complete schedule of the following selections (not all films screen in Los Angeles):