From the President's son to renowned actors and actresses, media figures, writers, and Facebook users, fury has blinded common sense; Dr. Mostafa Al Naggar was there the night of the demonstrations in Zamalek and he hated what he saw:

Wael Nawara knows that a hairline separates patriotism from chauvinism:

Ahmed Naje is disgusted with the Egyptian cultural scene

Naje goes on to denounce the shameful statements of those who should carry the torch of enlightenment. He actually believes that they have tricked us into looking up to them for decades and tricked those in charge of film festivals into believing that they were worthy of honors and awards:

Naje continues the saga of prejudice saying:

When asked to choose sides, Egyptian-Algerian actor Ahmed Mekky chose Egypt. Zeinobia cheered for his new song “I am Egyptian“:

Ahmed Mekky has released a new Rap song but this time he is singing for Egypt. Egyptian-Algerian Mekky demands an official apology from Algeria for what happened. It is the best among all these songs released lately may be because it is more honest and it is not about the crisis rather about Egypt itself.

Instead of separate Egyptian and Algerian statements, Wael Nawara published a joint Egyptian-Algerian statement signed by 140 people from all over the Arab world:

Karim El Beheiry of Egyworkers posted ” A common Decision … We Won't Separate” in English, Arabic, and French:

Ahmed Al Sabbagh posted an initiative to reconcile the two countries on Facebook and on his blog:

Bikya Masr group blog see the verdict as “Another blow to free speech in Egypt as graphic novelist gets no love from court“

It was supposed to signal a new era in Egyptian novels. The country’s first graphic novel, Metro, was supposed to be a show of free speech and artistic merit. Instead, it has become the hallmark of what rights groups say is the Egyptian government’s continued censorship of what its citizens can write. On Sunday, a Cairo misdemeanors court fined author Magdy el-Shafei and publisher Mohamed Sharkawi 5000 Egyptian pounds ($900) and demanded the confiscation of the novel after accusing them of writing and distributing a novel, which included statements and phrases considered “offensive to public morals.”

Sarah Carr is furious; people got so absorbed in the Egypt-Algeria football war and forgot about every thing else

Shahinaz Abdel Salam is disappointed

The author Magdy El Shafee refuses to give up and promises to appeal

Mubarak's Speech

Sarah Carr is skeptical about Mubarak's speech:

Jasmine Aladdin is keeping her fingers crossed

Sharif Hafez is a political analyst who admires the President's wisdom when he asked Parliament Members to keep their calm and not act on impulse

Perwin Ali is not happy with BBC News headlines!

Dr. As`ad AbuKhalil - The Angry Arab is angry at lawmakers in Egypt for “applauding”

What is the job of Egyptian lawmakers except to applaud the comments of the president. Some of the lawmakers were friends of my father, and they applauded for Nasser, and then applauded for Sadat, and then applauded for Mubarak. Do you know that the Mustafa Khalil, who led Egypt's peace with Israel process was a staunch Nasserist, under Nasser?

And Zeinobia wonders about Egyptian's dignity inside Egypt

Mubarak said in his speech in front of the people’s assembly and the Shura Council that the Egyptian citizens abroad are the responsibility of the state and that the dignity of Egyptians is from the dignity of Egypt !!

I do not know what to say except that Mr. President none of this could have happen if we are enjoying our dignity as Egyptian citizens inside  Egypt in the first place !!?? Please tell these words to the victims of police brutality  , please them again to thousands of Egyptians abroad who haven been humiliated enough around the globe because of your economic policies for 28 years. Mr. President please these words to the families who lost their members on the borders with Israel , on the board of flight 990 , on the board of Al Salam ferry and on the board of Badr I.

As a business tycoon, Alaa Mubarak has always maintained a low profile. Last May, his 12-year-old son - Mohamed - died suddenly and Egyptians sympathized highly with the bereaved father, mother, grand mother, and grand father. Zeinobia covered the funeral saying:

President Mubarak did not attend the funeral … Alaa Mubarak was crying during the prayer and the funeral. It is hard for any father to be in this situation … Seriously I feel sad … I want to hint out that across the internet where the news was published the comments came to prove how great the Egyptian people are in these times.

Before the 14th of November Egypt-Algeria match there was a lot of tension for the encounter was to determine which of the two teams would qualify to next year's FIFA World Cup in South Africa. But instead of responding to the Egyptian-Algerian actor Ahmed Mekky's wake up call for unity, peace, and tolerance, Egypt's loss on November 18th in Sudan proved that it was much more than football!

The Mubarak brothers were in Sudan to cheer for the national team and, along with the rest of the Egyptian hooligans, they were assaulted by Algerian hooligans. Upon his return Gamal Mubarak was totally silent but Alaa Mubarak made two very angry live calls.

The first call was on Dream TV with Khaled Al Ghandour.

On this call, Zeinobia wrote:

We have reached the point of no return as Alaa Mubarak has opened his fire on the Algerian federation , the Algerian fans and the Algerian thugs in Sudan not to mention the Algerian press and the Algerian Ambassador. “The Algerian press attacked him and his brother unfairly if I may say , it is a normal thing that they would support their country’s national team for God Sake !!”
Speaking about Alaa himself , well he is more human and more simple than his pale brother. There is a huge difference. If you do not know who he is , you will think that he is normal Egyptian football angry fan.

His second call was on national TV (Al Beit Beitak). Once again Zeinobia said about his second strike:

It seems that Alaa Mubarak has a lot to say from that bloody night in Khartoum that left so shaken and so furious , last night he did it again and called a live night news show ; this time it was the official Al Beit Batik.

This time it was much long , he was ballistic and you have something interesting quotes more than the previous time with his famous line “ They were treating us as if we are Jews killing people in Gaza”

On Twitter, Sandmonkey and Pakinam Amer had questions:

On Facebook, the reactions varied from extreme sarcasm to extreme endorsement as status updates, fan pages, and groups were created overnight in support of the new national hero.

Spring wrote a cynical note about the elite that ended in:

The Arabist was furious at Alaa Mubarak's shamelessness and asks what about Egyptians?

Alaa Mubarak, denounces Algeria as a “country ruled by generals and pashas!”

Mourad thinks it's all a political manouver

Nawara Negm wonders where this Alaa Mubarak came from:

Moftah quoted Alaa Mubarak's statement:

Kareem El Behiery of Egyworkers quoted political analysts saying:

And in another post Kareem El Behiery wrote:

Jack Shenker of Chatoyant Crumbs wrote:

Mubarak adds fuel to the fire as football riots spread
President vows to defend Egyptians abroad as violence spreads across Cairo and Algiers
Egyptian regime accused of whipping up nationalist fervour for political gain

Alaa Mubarak called live for the third time on TV and pulled the “I am a provoked Muslim” card

Alaa Mubarak with Amr Adib

Nawara Negm wants Alaa Mubarak to be arrested in the name of the Egyptian emergency law:

Nawara Negm sympathizes with him:

Hassan El Helali thinks he is psychotic:

Wael Nawara wants to remind everyone that:

In late June 2007, Mr. Hasan stood before his supervisors and about 25 other mental health staff members and lectured on Islam, suicide bombers and threats the military could encounter from Muslims conflicted about fighting in the Muslim countries of Iraq and Afghanistan, according to a copy of the presentation obtained by The Washington Post.

“It's getting harder and harder for Muslims in the service to morally justify being in a military that seems constantly engaged against fellow Muslims,” he said in the presentation.

US-based Lebanese Dr Asa'ad Abu Khalil - The Angry Arab - quotes a newspaper report which says:

““When a white guy shoots up a post office, they call that going postal,” said Victor Benjamin II, 30, a former member of the Army. “But when a Muslim does it, they call it jihad.”

And Egyptian SandMonkey has tried to avoid writing about this because:

Anything I think of will sound contrived anyway. I mean, the [shooter] was Arab, Muslim and Palestinian to boot. What’s there to say? It’s an isolated incident? It might never happen again? This doesn’t mean that everybody in the military who is Arab or Muslim will act this way? For real? Do I need to say this? What is there to say?

I can only think of two things actually: 1) My deepest condolences to the families of the victims , and 2) in the name of every Arab or Muslim that will now get screwed over because of your actions: I hope you never enjoy a single day of peace in this life or any next one!

In hats off for Mekki,
Zeinobia wrote:

After hearing provoking and insulting rap from both Egypt and Algeria attacking each other , Ahmed Mekki ; Egyptian-Algerian Actor/director/rapper released this song which I believe should have been released earlier as it could help a lot in making both sides wake up from this stupidity.

Nawara Negm is falling in love with Mekki:

The lyrics:

Egypt’s chief Egyptologist Dr. Zahi Hawass called American pop-star Beyonce a “stupid person” during her brief tour of the Giza pyramids:

during Hawass’ self-guided tour, he said “I showed her the Sphinx and I gave her a book on King Tutankhamen,” but then his anger and frustration made its way to the forefront.

“Then he stopped being diplomatic and said in anger, ’she’s a stupid person and she doesn’t understand a thing and she doesn’t want to understand’,” wrote Summer al-Gamal for Al Shorouk Newspaper.

Hawass is known for his outbursts. A number of foreigners have told Bikya Masr that he has employed Arabic to insult others at dinner events and gatherings, believing the non-Egyptians will not understand his Arabic. Beyonce, obviously, did not understand his jabs, Gamal said.

And speaking as an honored guest at the Cairo International Film Festival, Salma Hayek described how she was sexually harassed in Egypt when she was 17:

Hayek said she went on a touristic tour of Cairo, visited the Pyramids since her arrival earlier this month and expressed her happiness to visit Egypt for the second time in her life and that she thinks the country is very safe, saying she could accompany her daughter in the streets of Cairo without fear. In her native Mexico, where kidnapping is commonplace, this would be unheard of, the Frida, From Dust till Dawn and Fools Rush In star told the audience.

But, she recalled memories of her first visit to Cairo 26-years ago when she was 17, which immediately garnered the applause of the audience for revealing her age.

Sue of AdBasha posted the Coca-Cola TV ad supporting the national team and wrote:

In what can only be called a brilliant initiative, CocaCola brings its fans an utter sense of nostalgia, mixed with goosebumps and smiles and even loud laughter.
With their latest National Football Team sponsorship campaign, “1989″ marks some of the best commercial content I've seen in a long while.

20 years ago, same two teams, same crucial crossroad, same month…Egypt and Algeria met for a World Cup qualifying game; A Special Dedication to 80 Million Egyptians.

Zeinobia called the campaign a beautiful marketing disaster:

If you hear tomorrow that angry Algerian hooligans have crashed every single Coca Cola bottle in their country , do not be surprised.
If you hear tomorrow that someone has set the Coca Cola factory there on fire do not be surprised.
If you find that the Algerians are calling for boycotting Coke do not be surprised.
Despite how beautiful this ad is from the artistic point of view , I do not know if it is the suitable time to release it in this tension between the two countries.
The Algerian FM has visited Egypt to speak with his Egyptian counterpart and there is talk that the presidents of both countries will attend the match in order to ensure maximum security , I do not know about the Algerian President’s security but I know ours very well.

Henkel came up with a counter campaign entitled, “From Egyptian mothers to the Egyptian team”:

Meanwhile, MohAly is fed up with all the noise:

I am definitely cheering for Egypt, I even will allow my students to leave 30 mins early to watch the match, but I still can't see why is it as important as October war (as some papers have written)?! Does this mean if Algeria wins, it will be another Naksa that will take another 40 years to fix its consequences. I am wondering that we have reached a stage where I wish that we take our work as serious as we are dealing with football issues!

Football is the opium of the masses and in Egypt it is used to distract people from real issues but what about Algeria, Zeinobia thinks that:

Algeria is suffering from the similar problems that we have in Egypt and driving anger and despair. They are headed by sick president who refuses to leave his place , an army that controls the country, ghost of terrorism moving around and youth that want to leave the country in every possible way because of the economic conditions !!

The Egyptians and Algerians love their countries so much and are extremely angry that they feel helpless in front all these challenges despite they are not ; they just need a strong motive , a strong and real motive not a pseudo match for 90 minutes.

SandMonkey summed up the war explaining how the Egyptians are gearing up:

There is a football tradition of killing owls in order to jinx your opposing team. It has been relayed to me that an Owl holocaust was started last week and is continuing until this very moment.

Tamer from the popular TV show el beit beitak went on TV a couple of days ago and informed the Egyptian audiences of the Hotel the Algerian team will be staying in, and urging the Egyptian people to “go there and hang out” until the day of the game.

How the Algerians retaliated

Algerian airlines has donated 3000 free tickets to hardcore Algerian fans in order not to have their team stand by its lonesome against the cheering might of 80,000 Egyptians.

Algerian hackers hacked the Egyptian football association webpage today, and put the Israeli flag on it (??!!!?).

Algerian municipality workers have stopped the paperwork for an Algerian girl getting married to an Egyptian guy, telling her that she can come back for it after Saturday’s game.

And what happened one day before the game

Egyptians dying for a ticket to the Game attacked all ticket selling centers in droves today. The Elite Heliopolis Sporting club managed to secure a couple of thousand tickets to sell to its members, only to have word of this reaching the Egyptian population and having hundreds of Egyptians storm into the private club to get their hands on tickets. 40 police cars were called to secure the facility.

The Bus carrying the Algerian team got attacked today, with Egyptian fans reportedly attacking it by throwing rocks at them. And then this is where the story gets hazy: The Algerians claim that the rock throwing reached such a degree, that the windows chatters and 4 of their players got injured. The Egyptian officials deny that any Algerian players got injured, and some are even claiming that the Algerians are making the entire thing up, with them breaking the glass of the bus themselves to set the Egyptians up. There are videos here and here. You make up your own mind.

Zeinobia thinks this video is sad:

It is very sad because it will be much better if I had heard those football fans screaming “We Want better education , We Want better health care system, We Want clean water and clean streets, We Want better salaries and better food , We Want democracy , We want our rights backs “ but unfortunately all what I heard was “We Want tickets” !!! It was just loud lost scream !!

Shokeir writes:

Zeinobia shared the top 10 most influential people in Egypt according to Shokeir's survey:

First of all we do not have these kinds of lists in Egypt regularly , second you must know that this was held on an Egyptian blog , the participants are considered a very small sample from the Egyptian society “More than 120 participants on his blog and more than 300 participants in the event on the face book” and some may considered it as unrepresentative sample still most of the answers surprisingly represent the views of most Egyptian people as I see it.

Saving the best for last, Zeinobia shared the top 9:

In 10th place for 168 points The Egyptian National football team trainer Hassan Shahata.
In 9th place for 181 points businessman Naguib Sawiris.
In 8th place for 200 points president Hosni Mubarak. “26 votes”
In 7th place for 200 points journalist Ibrahim Eissa . “46 votes”
In 6th place for 202 points businessman Ahmed Ezz.
In 5th place for 215 points scientist Ahmed Zowail.
In 4th place for 262 points TV hostess Mona El-Shazely.
In 3rd place for 325 points footballer Mohamed Abu-Tarika.
In 2nd place for 364 points Gamal Mubarak.

As for Egypt's most influential figure,

Now to my surprise :

In 1st place for 496 points comes Islamic TV preacher Amr Khalid.
With no doubt that the previous nine except for Ahmed Zoweil has played an important and influential role in our lives in 2009 but Amr Khalid !!??

Zeinobia is aware that:

this survey came at the seasonal peak of Khalid’s popularity after his Ramadan TV shows this year contributed much to this result besides of course the role of religion in our lives.

But she still wonders if he deserves to come first in the list.

As he went to retrieve his package at the post office:

it had been opened by various puzzled customs and postal employees who, at a loss, defined the product in writing as “containing an unknown red liquid” – and awaited my description.

 
He told them it was “cinematographic make-up” and took the item home:

Such is the “hymen”: a 5×7cm folded piece of plastic – of albumin, the notice promptly corrects me – covered on one side by dark red ink. Placed in the vagina before sex, the plastic hardens slightly, and rips upon intercourse. A few drops of “blood” will stain the sheets, preserving the woman's, her family's, or society's “honour”.

Whether it does actually work or not I cannot answer. The complete absence of medical information on the product, as well as online accusations that this product can cause infections, made me unwilling to give it to a volunteer to test.

Mona El Tahawy did not like how Egyptians were hot and bothered over fake hymensWith all the troubles Egypt faces these days — spiralling cost of living, a president in power for 28 years whose son looks likely to succeed him, etc. — why all the fuss over hymens, real or fake?

Welcome to the hypocrisy and denial that together drum at the heart of conservative religious views on women and chastity. And in the case of Egypt, that conservatism applies equally to Muslims and Christians.

As a Muslim, I know the Qur’an preaches chastity for men and women, but the conservative obsession with women means only females are expected to abide by the prohibition on extramarital sex. This obsession with virginity is shallow at best and deadly at worst.

Mohamed El Rahhal strongly condemns:

the hypocrisy that allows us to discriminate against 50% of the society while giving a free pass to the other half. I am against forcing women to go such lengths, sometimes endangering their health, to allow us to delay a long-awaited national moratorium on gender relations.

Morality is worst interpreted by anatomy. And if we're waiting upon a small piece of plastic to define morality, then we've already failed – and ought to find a better definition.

Egyptian Fe-mail (Marwa Rakha) listed the signs of publisher-author abuse:

If your publisher
1) Makes you pay money to get published (cheap blackmail)
2) Does not consult you when changes are made to your original text
3) Does not consult you when choosing your book cover
4) Does not pick up the phone
5) Does not deliver the book on time
6) Does not distribute your book in the bookstores he promised
7) Does not market you or your book
8) Does not show up with copies on your book signing event
9) Does not send copies to the media
10) Corners you into a 5, 7, 10 year contract

Then he does not know what being a publisher means and you are abused

Taking a stance against abusive publishers, Marwa Rakha made her book, The Poison Tree - planted & grown in Egypt, available online for free download. Then she launched a free publishing service on her website:

Marwa Rakha's Free Publishing Service - Who Needs Publishers When He Has Friends

Yes … send me a PDF file of your book and I will publish it here, promote it on my blog, and send it to my official Facebook group.

In solidarity with their fellow writer, many Egyptian authors sent Marwa their books for online publishing. Mohamed Sami ElBohy (2 books), Bassam El Boghdady's Arabic translation of Richard Dawkins THE GOD DELUSION, Usama El Shazly, Mostafa Hussein, Mohamed Al Arafy (2 books), Ahmed Ramadan, Nashwa Nagy, Tarek Hassan Refaat (2 books), Ayman Shawky (2 books), and Ibrahim El Mahallawy. Two British authors joined the campaign as well; Alex Jenson  and Lynda Renham. Jasmine Madkour, Zeina Medhat (2 books), Adel Shaaban, Mostafa Mohamed, Mohamed Farouk, and Rehab El Melehy who turned their blogs into books and published them online as well.

While many bloggers linked to the initiative on their blogs, Zeinobia shared her experience with the publishing “hell” in Egypt:

Now I am not surprised at what Marwa suffered or is suffering with her publisher at all , this is a normal thing in Egypt , publishing is just a printing for profit job in Egypt nowadays. It seems that most of the publishers are vampires in Egypt and this I am saying from a personal experience.

Without mentioning names after the death of my late grandfather I found out his last book on which he was working and I used to help him in was published without our knowledge , I found out by coincidence  online !!

On the WHO NEEDS PUBLISHERS WHEN HE HAS FRIENDS initiative, Marwa wrote:

The relationship between a writer and a publisher in Egypt has turned into a textbook definition of abusive relationships! I am not out to attack paperback books … I am not undermining their importance … I am just trying to put an end to this farce-in-disguise. When we feel desperate and option-less we compromise. I decided to set an example of “the other options” that writers are not aware of …. who the hell needs a useless publisher who serves as nothing but a lousy print shop when another door opens … I am paving the way hoping that more people will follow. Publishers have no business if writers say NO but writers are scared … just like an abused woman!

During his tour he saw a 13 year old girl fully veiled from head to toe covering her entire body but for her eyes. Moataz El Demerdash, host of a talk show called 90 minutes had a phone interview with one of the press members who witnessed Sheikh Tantawi order the girl to take off the niqab as he told her that niqab is a tradition that has nothing to do with religion. A few days later, Hani Helal Egypt's Minister of Higher Education banned female undergraduates from wearing the niqab in the country's public universities,  Al-Masri Al-Yom newspaper reported.

The exchange between the Sheikh and the girl can be followed in this video [Ar]:

In an older post, Desert Cat blogged about a man who was caught hiding behind a niqab to go see his mistress:

Desert Cat hailed the Sheikh's decision saying:

Tarek Ez AlDen reported that an Egyptian rights organization is suing the Minister of Higher Education:

Elder of Zion found the reactions to the niqab ban interesting:

Commenting on Tantawy’s statement, Sheikh Mahmoud Ashour, member of the Islamic research Center said that the Sheikh’s decision is not a fatwa, but a move aimed at preserving security among students.

Allowing the niqab in academic institutions can cause problems, he added, since anyone can use it as a disguise to enter the university, even terrorists.

Muslim Brotherhood MP Hamdy Hassan couldn’t disagree more. He told Daily News Egypt Monday that he denounces Tantawy’s anti-niqab statement.

As for The Minister of higher Education's decree in Cairo University

neither Ain Shams University nor Helwan University issued similar decrees.

The niqab ban did not come as a total surprise

In 2007 Helwan University was the subject of a huge controversy when university security guards prohibited the entry of some female students wearing the niqab into the university dorms, even though they agreed to reveal their face to the female security guards for an identity check.

In the same year, Minister of Religious Endowments Hamdy Zaqzuq dismissed an employee from a meeting for refusing to remove her niqab.

In 2004 the American University in Cairo (AUC) caused a similar stir after a decree prohibiting the entry of students wearing the niqab into the university campus.

At the end of his post, he wrote:

Tantawi has been in hot water before, for shaking hands with Shimon Peres.

Like Elder of Zion, blogger Khaled Fouda reminded his readers of the day the Sheikh shook hands with Shimon Perez:

Joseph Mayton of Bikya Masr wrote a post on how Europe took advantage of the niqab ban in Egypt:

On Tuesday, only one day after news of Tantawi’s possible ban hit the media, Italy’s Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his right-wing coalition have presented a proposal to ban the niqab, or burqa. The anti-immigration Northern League party is leading the charge, and Italian politicians are now quoting Tantawi in support of their goal.

The party’s proposal would amend an anti-terrorism law of 1975 that forbids anyone in the country from making their identification impossible. The current interpretation of the law allows for religious reasons as a “justified cause” to cover the face, but the possible law could end such interpretation.

A party member, Roberto Cota was quoted as saying “we are not racist and we have nothing against Muslims, but the law must be equal for everyone.”

People of Freedom Member of Parliament, Barbara Saltamartini, said that “banning the burqa cannot be considered anti-Muslim because it is not obligatory in Islam,” echoing Tantawi’s sentiments, when he demanded that the young girl in a local school remove the veil as it is “not part of Islam.”

Meanwhile, Kareem El Beheiry of EgyWorkers announced his solidarity with Egypt's niqabis free right to choose and Hassan El Helali who is against hijab (regular veil that does not cover the face) writes, addressing the Minister of Interior:

Ana Silent (I am Silent) wrote a post titled

The unique selling proposition of the product as advertised in the media:

Sharm Life wrote:

Concluding the post with a clear rejection of the product, Sharm Life wrote in defense of Egyptian girls:

How Am I shared a different perspective:

The blogger asks:

Nawara Negm thinks the Chinese are brilliant:

In an attempt to educate Egyptian males on how to spot an artificial hymen, Moftah posted pictures of the female genitalia, the different types of hymens, and the difference between an intact hymen and a torn one. Mohaly wondered if raped women deserve a life:

Would you go against your society and family and marry a girl who has been raped? Out of love and respect and trust - not out of pity or a heroic temp feeling? Only at a certain phase you would know this truth about her. Would you believe her word, or she has to provide some proof? Would you be able to completely forget this fact and start a normal life with such a girl, keeping in mind that she is human, or unconscious influence of society would interfere here? … Would you be yourself and really work on making it up to her because she is just the same girl you know well enough to ask her to share your life? or would tradition interfere and you prefer to stay away and enough that you would keep her secret?

Eman Hashim of Muslimah Media Watch quoted Souad Abdel Rasoul from Radio Netherlands saying:

China is a country that has really understood us and revealed our truth, our diseases, and our obsession with image but not content. We are a contradictory nation that suffers from severe schizophrenia.

By selling us prayer beads, Ramadan lanterns, Hajj clothes, veiled Barbie dolls, Islamic swimsuits, and no hymens, China has been caressing the “Islamic” concept inside all of us by providing us with the image of what we want others to see in us, even if it is just a lie

She also quoted Sheikh Saied Askar, a member of the parliamentary bloc of the Muslim Brotherhood and a member of the Committee of Religious Affairs of the People’s Assembly, warning the Egyptian government:

Girls in general are afraid of committing such a sin for the sake of preserving their membranes and the presence of such products will tempt the weak souls to commit it as the availability of an alternative is now everywhere.

Eman Hashim found the Sheikh's statement offensive:

So any Egyptian girl who doesn’t have premarital sexual relationships does so only for the sake of staying a virgin? So virginity as a virtue and a concept is all about the hymen? I am not defending the product, nor am I defending premarital sex. I am offended by the implication and questioning the value of “virginity”.

Let’s assume for a second that this is the case, that the hymen is everything. So this is how women are supposed to be treated? Like children who are better kept away from danger cause they are incapable neither of protecting themselves, nor telling right from wrong? Notice how Askar refers to women as “girls.”

According to Askar, a woman is a weak creature who is incapable of choosing what to do and what not to do, and is easily tempted to commit “sins” if they became closer and easier to her. No mention is made of how the fake hymen may tempt men to sin—doesn’t a man face the same temptation?

Rather than asking ourselves what made China come up with such an idea or why there’s a very high possibility that the manufacturer of this product might hit his first million from selling it in Egypt, we are “afraid” that it might just make sex easier and in turn, more common.

In a community that worships appearances and gives minimal—if any—attention to the reality of things, it’s no wonder that news of a product like this can spread quickly.