The wretched state of bloggers and their corporate chums in Kuwait.

Caesar from Kuwait-Music submitted this article to be postd here on Kuwait Blogs Suck! It is an excellent and interesting article about the history, degradation, and possible solution for blogs in Kuwait. If you have an avid interest in Kuwait blogs or have your own blog then this is a must read.

The wretched state of bloggers and their corporate chums, in Kuwait.

Back in 2004-6 , blogs in Kuwait were far and few but they were quality. The likes of Chillnite and 248am.com ruled the roost and posts were relevant to lifestyle, opinion and topics were discussed rather than vomited out from the wrong end of the conscious. The web industry was still at a very premature stage in Kuwait (not that it is firing on all cylinders now!), and being a blogger back then was like having that second fancy phone that you carried around to look good.

Times have obviously changed, but not for the better.

Back in 2004, wordpress and blogspot weren’t as popular as they are today. This meant that options for setting up, customizing and publishing your blog weren’t as many. So statistically, most bloggers were typically designers or developers who understood a bit of code and had some constituents of design backgrounds in them. This scarcity actually boded well for the industry because bloggers focused on quality and not quantity. Over the years the transformation of wordpress in particular, from a purely blogging platform into a full blown CMS (content management system) allowed seamless integration with other mediums, got a lot of non-technical folk onto the bandwagon. Mind you, this is not a bad thing. Look at Smitten Kitchen in the US for example, where bloggers with zero technical knowledge can earn tremendous success simply by having vision, purpose and a clear directional strategy for the blog.

But like the automotive and fashion industries in Kuwait, when they have a new toy, most people here don’t know what to do with it. 99.9% Youtube code, 1000 pictures per post, ad – infested sidebars, animated gifs that look like they belong on a 6 year old’s playscreen,  and pitiable English flung into the mix; is what ends up happening. The quality and purpose of running an “opinionated web log (blog)” has been defeated.

Can you blame them? Yes you can.

Kuwait is not a touristic destination and art is not encouraged here. So writer’s block is quite common. But this is no excuse to buttonhole the Kuwaiti blogosphere with dull, besotted , drivel that is both irrelevant and insubstantial. Kuwait has a lot more to offer than just food, Youtube videos and, errrm, food.

Here are some classifications of the “sad-osphere” we live in:

  1. 1.     The Youtube hog
    1. Standard: Post Title | 3 words | Embed code.
  2. 2.     The ad-infested lagoon. So sad it should have its own freshwater stream.
    1. When the ad size dimensions in the sidebar are larger than the images and videos in the posts themselves.
  3. 3.     The food connoisseurs
    1.  Out of 1000 posts, 999 are about food. Yet they are a “blog”. If I need food reviews, I have epicurious and don’t need your sad excuse to tell me how much you enjoyed the apple tart or the hummus with laham.
  4. 4.     The newspaper cut outs
    1. Blogs that purely exist to copy and paste text from news portals like Kuna, Arab times and Al Rai.
  5. 5.     The status quo regiment
    1. Bloggers that start blogs for namesake and event gatherings. A domain name and a “Hello world” post are all they need to deck up and attend some event sponsored by naïve corporates who actually believe these bloggers will make a difference in their publicity stunts.
  6. 6.     The engrabic gurus
    1. Those that post in English and Arabic at the same time, in the same post. They probably sing that way in the shower too.
  7. 7.     The review extraordinaire  
    1. Those that believe it’s their birthright to review the world and actually believe their reviews will benefit people. Reviews are done by trained and certified professionals who understand dissection, weight-age, and opinion meters among other factorials, not some part time blogger who’s being incentivized by a corporate.
  8. 8.      The list goes on…

Oh, you think that is bad?

It gets worse. To top it all, you’ll find these bloggers with media kits that boast exaggerated prices for advertising. From KD 200 upward to KD 600/month! KD 600 is approximately  1,950 USD. With that money you can run a highly targeted small size Google adwords campaign and receive tons of relevant hits that will boost your conversion rates. On these blogs, you won’t even get a third of that traffic with the useless “passerby”.  Yet, naïve corporates buy advertising for the sake of visibility and errrm “status”.  The icing on the cake? Most of these blogs don’t provide you with real time statistics for your ads!

There are a handful of exceptions though like 248am.com and others that are transparent and provide real time access and bang for your buck, but the vast majority are running on a ruthless existence based on “offline relationships”.

So what can be done to improve the standard of blogging in Kuwait?

I have been building web based businesses internationally since 1995 and in my humble opinion, standardization and monitoring has always been key on the web. A union or a platform such as Technorati needs to be established locally and managed with goals, strategic initiatives and a mission. Technorati is the world’s biggest blog rating platform. It rates blogs based on content scores, SEO performance, niche value, design, style, identity, technical quality and others. Once this happens in Kuwait, a lot of the current bloggers here will start to disappear because advertisers will only invest in the ones doing well in the “real” ratings. None of that Alexa and fake media kit crap.

But until then, its back to the Youtube madness!

This long post has been brought to you by a Youtube-less, picture-stripped, thought-infested, opinionated mindset.

By Caesar Fernandes

Caesar is founder and Chief Ideas Officer of Kuwait Music, Kuwait’s largest and most influential music network. Kuwait Music has been featured on the BBC world report, arab times, Bazaar magazine, EMI Capitol records and has transformed the way the world looks at Kuwait’s music industry. The rest as they say, is history.

www.kuwait-music.com

153 comments

  3. GreY

    Well written,

    but IMO every sane thinking person has a choice to follow a blog or not, it’s like music industry itself, shit load of indie band who can barely play C,F,G7 form bands, record songs even get live shows thanks to organizers who give rats ass about quality 😉 , but then it’s up to the listener to ‘follow’ or not. (I am not talking about you as I have never attended any live shows in Kuwait)

    Likewise you can’t stop someone from starting a blog just because they do not major in English, freedom of speech is for everyone and anyone. If you don’t like certain blogs steer clear of them.

    Reply
    • Caesar Fernandes

      Playing C, F, G7 chords and doing it well is a matter of using fundamental concepts of music theory with creative style. Look at the Killers for example. Lets not confuse creativity combinations with outright highway robbery and naivety that is seen in Kuwait’s blogging space 🙂

      Reply
    • Caesar Fernandes

      Thats absolutely right Grey, but the subject at hand is not choice to read a blog- but standardization of an industry that is polluted by deceptive bloggers who are not transparent with their source of of traffic, fake numbers to get a deal and provide absolutely no value to the blogosphere.

      Yes, its a given that if you dont like it, dont read it- But thats not what were tackling 🙂

      Reply
  4. None

    الغفله تسير والكلاب تنبح

    Loool you just broke my heart so jealous, they call it blog , log , website up to them…what they want to post also up to them….just shows how jealous you all are, btw all advertisers are stupid and don’t know how to run a business , maybe you should contact each advertiser and explain to them your point of view.. They might put an ad on your site 😉 sore losers hahahahaha

    Or you can open a school for blogging anyone that wants to blog should go through u since your the king of blogging ;p

    And instead of looking at what others have and acting jealous , you should focus on your own “blog” or whatever u call it…because it seems to “suck” also , mr. Im so jealous I cry at night and write posts about other blogs “success” ;p Just made my day loserrrrrrrssssssssssssssssssssssss go wipe your tears off nowww

    Reply
  5. Caesar Fernandes

    “you should focus on your own “blog” or whatever u call it…because it seems to “suck””..

    🙂 I like your enthusiasm. When you get featured on the BBC world report for making a difference in your community, we’ll talk.

    Reply
  6. Caesar Fernandes

    “maybe you should contact each advertiser and explain to them your point of view.. They might put an ad on your site”
    🙂 A very versatile retort, I must say. Here’s a cookie.
    We dont exist as an advertising hungry organization. Our vision is to change and enlighten.

    Reply
    • Caesar Fernandes

      Although we appreciate folks writing about us – way back in early 2011 (and have personally thanked all that did), we received a total of 39 page views from back links from these blogs. Hardly “part of our success”.

      Our success came from hard work, relentless purpose-driven strategy, and a large local community of music lovers who believe in our vision an free support and encouragement that we give our artists day in and day out 🙂

      Reply
  8. BuYousef

    I agree with the description of what’s out there but I disagree that regulation is a solution. Simple market forces will reduce the amount of rubbish that’s offered as soon as people realise they should only read quality. I used to read every Kuwaiti blog I could find. I now read a handful probably once a week – and ‘read’ is an overstatement… Our ‘offline’ world is regulated enough… Simply demand and expect better!

    Reply
  9. Spartan

    wow..you use 248am as an example of decent blogging? and then you take a stab at “advertising hungry organiazaitons”?? interesting

    Reply
    • Caesar

      I love when folks take things out of context 🙂 I dint use 248am as an example of decent blogging – I used it as an example of transparency with advertisers . Big difference 🙂

      Reply
      • Spartan

        really? out of context?? so when you stated how opions and topics were being discussed at the great 248am as opposed to being vomited elsewhere, you were’nt using 248am as an example of decent blogging? what was that comparison all about then?

        Reply
    • Klonk

      Compared to the majority of blogs in Kuwait, 248 is decent blogging. He encourages activity in Kuwait and tries to shine a bright light on positive things in the community. He also doesn’t just post a picture or a youtube video (he created 248pm for that). He’s not the greatest writer, but he’s decent.

      Reply
      • Spartan

        im not going to argue on whether or not 248am is or isnt a decent blog..at the end of the day its a matter of opinion….I was merely questioning the logic used by the author (Caesar), where he used 248am as an example of decent blogging then he attacked what he referred to as “advertising hungry organization”…that is one hell of a paradox

        Reply
        • BoDanah

          9 out of 10 posts is a useless product review. When you look at an amazon affiliated link, it is almost impossible to know whether that link is a legitimate hyperlink to the product page itself, but I assure you that every single amazon link on 248am is an affiliate one, even if you end up buying the product 20 days later, that cookie will still tell amazon where you came to this product from. The intention behind 248am is very confusing, I learned to teach everyone around me not to click these amazon links, they all translate into $$ under mark’s pocket. I really wonder if the entire furniture in his Lebanese home were paid off commissions from amazon, if im not mistaken it used to be $6000 per year, I think now it topped $15,000 per year, that’s how he got his FJ too all paid off by his false integrity and monetary intentions.

          Reply
          • Klonk

            I don’t get it, are you saying that bloggers shouldn’t be allowed to make some form of income? When someone spends a lot of time working on their blog they have a right to do that, don’t they? I’m sure if you had the means to live off a blog among other things, you would try to accomplish that. 248 has been around for ages, before this big boom in the Kuwaiti blogosphere. So what if the Amazon link is an affiliate one? Compared to other blogs in Kuwait at least he makes an effort to bring in new content or content not featured on other blogs. He seems to care more about Kuwait then some Kuwaiti’s around here. It’s given that his posts might not be super journalistic or whatever, he doesn’t do any detective work, but it’s a decent guide for things related to Kuwait. The difference between 248 and lets say Ansams blog is that each of Ansams posts is an advert for something shitty.

            Go three or four pages back and count how many product reviews he has compared to posts about things happening in Kuwait or things related to Kuwait itself. Lets at least be a little realistic here lol.

            Reply
          • Spartan

            How come you won’t answer my question? I am not fixated on anyone but I hardly think i’m committing a crime when I question the validity of the logic you used in this “gem of wisdom” of a post (as someone called it)..so, can you explain the paradox in what you said or are you just used to people who clap for you and not question u? I will repeat my question:
            “so when you stated how opions and topics were being discussed at the great 248am as opposed to being vomited elsewhere, you were’nt using 248am as an example of decent blogging? what was that comparison all about then?”
            oh and you know what else is considered a hallmark of broad and creative perspective? being able to actually defend what you say..this way you show people that you can construct a proper argument and stand behind it to prove that it makes sense

            Reply
  10. A big C-fer fan!!

    I’ve been trained by Caesar once and I tell you: this man knows his shit. And the fact that some people are still commenting with stupid words like “jealous” and such childish stuff, they’re missing the big picture. Reread this post carefully and get your facts straight: KUWAIT BLOGS DO SUCK. this blog is by far the best blog I’ve ever read (not that I am interested in reading blogs since.. Well, Caesar said it best. )
    I hope this blog helps some of those talented bloggers shine and please, walk away from the crowd!!! Good on you, KBD and good on you Caesar!! FULLOVE!!

    Reply
  12. Abmaster

    KBS is kind of like Morgan Spurlock, the doc director from Super Size Me. Just like he proved that super sizing at McDonalds was harmful, unethical and just plain wrong, KBS is doing the same. Back in the day, it used to be such a treat to check out ppls blogs, and find out what’s happening in Kuwait. Nowadays, just like the cupcake industry, everyone thinks they are a pro. Bloggers, take the feedback from KBS and other responses. Change your ways, quality over money in your pocket or a cut and paste from an article. We follow and read you to get your insight on stuff that matters. Stand up and take count for your work. You’re in the public eye.. So everyone has a right to have their opinion of you.

    I have to say all these posts and debates can only be healthy and helpful in improving the quality of the blogs in Kuwait today.

    Reply
    • Kuwaitya

      يا غريب كن أديب

      I wish you will understand what’s the following sentence …

      I think this blog is taken an ugly turn .. It’s weird that All the Lebanesee “Non Kuwaity” blogs are good and the Kuwaiti are sux !!! Did you forget blOg His and Her have been hosted in a Tv Chanel !

      By the way it’s our country and you are eating and living By our own country money so the blogs with Kuwaiti owners doesn’t need to make money thru blogs cuz they are already in their country not like the other ..

      They are a lot of other decent Kuwaiti and not Kuwaiti blogs at the end it’s their personal web space …

      And one question ya expert isn’t one of the blOgs you mentioned quit his job to work as free lancer social media expert which we are proudly see Ansam 518 did looooong time ago …

      Pathetic and this is a warning if you insert KUWAIT name in more ugly sentence I swear you will live a nightmare ..

      Have a good day by breathing Kuwaiti Air and eating by Kuwait money !!

      Bbye

      Reply
        • Alfalfa

          But Caesar you cannot deny that there is a huge amount of expats ( western and eastern) who come to this country, make a living and then sh%$ all over it verbally.
          That’s not right. If people don’t like it here then they should just leave- surely their own familiar hell is better than the one they make Kuwait out to be…..hypocrisy at its finest I’d say.

          Reply
          • meeh

            I’m an expat. I was born in Kuwait and most of my family members relocated here during the 50s. We are all accomplished individuals and we love Kuwait for all that it has given us and all we have accomplished.
            My family was one of the families who stayed in Kuwait during the invasion because they believed it was home. We were separated from our father for almost 2 years.
            To be honest, people like the lady up there make some people lose their courtesy and respect to certain people hence, say bad shit about Kuwait. That is not fair but this is what you can expect in such scenarios.
            I, for one, think she’s been locked up for too long at home that the mere thought of dealing with anyone from any other race/religion/nationality is so difficult, she needs to say shit like that.
            You can’t expect some of us who have similar stories to tolerate with such racist crap. Not all expats are here for money. We could have invested our salaries into bank accounts outside of Kuwait but we chose to live our lives and enjoy it here. Money is expensive TP. To make money, you invest your life, time and money. Expats are not here to beg. Money is given in exchange of their services and dedication. For expats to tolerate such bad behavior and choice of words just because we “breathe Kuwaiti air” is not acceptable. It is extremely insulting to realize that this is how some people actually function.
            I just hope she doesn’t/didn’t breed.
            I have a lot of Kuwaiti friends who are more than wonderful and I thank God for them because they force me to refrain from seriously slapping her likes across the face (because we do stumble upon witches who are always willing to yell “6el3o barra deratna!!” in the middle of the busiest malls on a Thursday night for accidentally bumping into one of them or – God forbid!!- looking into their direction).
            In our case here: giving an opinion about a blog… really? We’re all grownups here. GROW. UP.
            Some people need to realize that treating expats like they’re slaves only makes things worse.
            Conclusion: Respect to receive respect. PERIOD
            Sorry for the long, boring story 😛
            PS: Love the name.

            Reply
      • nuwayer

        LMFAO!!! holy crap. ambeeh hathy shga3da tkhoora! i knew that this will be a ” this is my country not yours” type of debate. stop it will you, im sick and tired of kuwaities thinking this way. we3 we3 grow up. and this blog ROCKS!

        Reply
      • Kal

        Typical.. Racism at its best! Threatening isn’t a mature way to take, it’s more like waaaaay low coming from a spoiled unmannered child… I feel sorry for Kuwait for having such a mentality…! I’m a proud Kuwaiti but not so proud when I see your kind defiling humanity.. and by the way how come this thing became about Kuwait, grow up man and let’s enjoy maturity with this (hard to see nowadays) constructive criticism! and @Q8Geek give me that popcorn damn it!

        Reply
    • Caesar Fernandes

      yes debate is very healthy. Ive seen my fair share of flame wars over the last 16 years in the business. From java enabled chats in the 90’s to discussion boards and relays in the early 2000’s. Folks taking a personal stab at me on blogs and forums is nothing new and I completely anticipated both good and bad comments on this article. Thats how we grow. I would have hated it if everyone complimented the article and there were no negative feedback. For humans to grow, we need both sides of the coin.

      Reply
  14. BoDanah

    (Replied the same to a different post, but I believe the information within can be crucial to this post too).

    Note to all bloggers: being an IT assistant professor myself, please understand that simple knowledge on how to extract a compressed wordpress file onto the web server is no computer literacy at all, a monkey can decompress that file on their hosting account just to have a blog appear 10 seconds later, you are fooling nothing but yourself with your “Technology Skillz”!
    It takes years of dedication and hard work to become a full computer literate, making banners using Photoshop to fit predefined image boxes on the word press template is NOT website design.

    Every single fucking day I come across asshole in their twenties carrying their recently bought silver macbook laptops to the coffeshop. They look like geeks, they dress geek, talk geek, drink geek and sit for countless hours discussing blog traffic and twitter followers, خف علينا يا social networking expert. They cant even type a single unix line within their terminal window to kill a hanging process. Even the geeks these days are fake.

    Reply
  15. dude

    Some of the comments here,especially that last one by that chick called Kuwaitya make me want to shoot myself in the head

    Reply
  17. BuYousef

    I was hoping this blog would offer something different. The comments here have done nothing but make it into what may blogs are: a waste of time. It’s a shame because the idea is sound.

    Take control of your idea and space and make it work before it dies very prematurely!

    Reply
  19. 965malls

    awesome post caesar – kuwait music rocks, all bloggers no exception need to match the benchmark you and narine have set, though your blog has evolved into something much bigger – this one can reach new heights too, if the people behind it focus on what matters and stop personal attacks, people are not mature enough to swallow their pride.

    on a separate note, it’s so pathetic to read some of the comments up there… what next? an attempt to segregate a sunni blog from a shia? get a life!

    Reply
  20. Caesar Fernandes

    Cheers 965malls for the constant and undying support 🙂
    Yes, when people miss out on the bigger picture and focus on petite personal ego issues like “you are breathing Kuwaiti air” and “You’re jealous” , and “Your blog sucks”, it stinks. Its like I took off time from my super busy schedule to show these bloggers how jealous I am.

    What’s strange is that not one of the comments have dissed or attacked Kuwait Music’s design, content or vision. Strange, very strange isnt it?

    Reply
  21. Fadi Matar

    Brilliantly written article caesar…. its good to see for the first time a constructive, well structured exposure of the farse that is Kuwait blogging community! rare to find such thought proving stuff nowadays.

    As for some of these sad comments like kuwaitya and spartan etc… instead of nitpicking on silly details like attacks and jealousy, focus on the wonderful gem of wisdom this man has just shared with us to help the bloggers in kuwait…
    We can all learn from this and get better .

    Reply
    • Spartan

      what part exactly shows me being jealous?? and of whom? and sorry, “gem of wisdon” this post is not…the essence of this post is redundant and I have read many posts of many sites talking about the same thing..so its not exactly an original-thought-provoking post..just because you are easily impressed doesnt mean everyone else has to be

      Reply
  22. Lovingtheheathere

    Most of the bloggers here in Kuwait should thank their lucky stars that the chances of a Time Out or a What’s On Magazine deciding to launch a Kuwaiti edition look bleak indeed. Should they do, almost all these bloggers would run out of topics and will have to shut shop.

    Reply
  24. Christos1

    Since my last comment was deleted, and my username gets filtered on here. I figured I’ll try posting on this post. Hopefully, you don’t delete it this time. Hehe, you’re awesome cutie! ❤

    Thanks for deleting my last comment. A case of the pot calling the kettle black I guess, since it's okay for the Kuwaiti bloggers to offer a rebuttal to my comment even if it has no basis when it comes to the discussion at hand.

    Also, if that was your reason, you would've initially deleted my original comment. I assume it was my point about how your leader came to the UN hat in hand, tears in his eyes, begging for world support. Plenty of discussions in your other posts stray from the subject at hand and just from tangent to tangent.

    "Thank god I was never brought up American and it brings inner peace to me at night to know that I can die not being one. I receive free housing! free medications and treatment! free food (for a while now, but heavenly subsidized), free education all the way to PhD."

    Yeah, well it's those very same Kuwaiti students that love government money and enjoy talking crap about their own country. You can make fun of American English all you want, the fact is, you come to this country to be educated. You can't compare the size and population of America, to Kuwait when it comes to educational disparity.

    I wonder which of our two countries is going to be around in the next 100 years. Kuwait is rumored to reach peak oil production pretty soon, and there is such a thing as to many malls. Hah, it'll be fun.

    Reply
    • BoDanah

      Your country was as a world hub and a major power have only been doing so for the past 40 years. I assure you with all the wars going on, with the capitalist federal nation going through scarring recessions and onto a great depression (soon!), it won’t be there for another 20-30 years.

      Please understand that the privileges and benefits that we get are not only offered by us, you would be shocked how good welfare systems are in Scandinavian countries, as well as many other European countries? Go educate yourself and see what the countries of Norway, Sweden, Netherlands, Kuwait and a bunch of other countries have in terms of social welfare systems. Will all of these countries go away in a 100 years time? They have been there long before yours and I assure you they will remain afters yours go away!

      Sorry I lost respect for your government and your country when I witnessed a person suffering from injuries get REFUSED treatment because he had no insurance on him, you do realize that doctors are under oath? I seriously suggest you immigrate from wherever you are and jump over the bandwagon to expatiation and check out what your missing out.

      OH WAAAIT, HANG ON! you have to pay money to get a passport in the US, shit! an Adult pays a total of $200 in fees to get a passport to travel in the USA and because of these costs in uncertain economic times, that’s why only 1 in 4 Americans have ever decided to issue a passport, and only 10% of the entire population have ever crossed the border.

      (Keep in mind 83% of Kuwaities have passports, 75% of UK and 60% of Canadians do as well, all numbers taken from “Why more Americans don’t travel abroad” by Natalie Avon from CNN)

      I guess that idea I proposed earlier ain’t going to happen either! tough luck douchebag

      Reply
      • nuwayer

        you summed it up in two words, WORLD POWER. they did not become a world power out of nothing. our government gives us everything for free but that doesnt mean its of good quality. americans dont need to get a passport, they dont need to cross borders, they have everything they want to experience around the world in their own country. Since all countries try so hard to be americanized why should an american travel abroad?
        maybe you are the douchebag now.

        Reply
      • nuwayer

        another point you mentioned is that americans pay 200 USD for a passport. Thats the only fees they pay they dont pay visa fees, thats a fair trade off. How much do we pay as kuwaities to get a visa to go anywhere except for visa free countries? 150 USD for an american visa, loads of money for a UK visa, 22 KD for a Schengen visa, god knows how much for a canadian, australian, etc etc etc visa.

        Reply
        • BoDanah

          only 10% traveled out of the country. 25% own passports. A 16 year old girl sleeps and wakes up clinging to a dream that one day, that one day, she can travel to paris or greece at least once in her lifetime. I travel to europe 2-3 times a year lol, even our 22 year old maid have been to egypt and the UK…. our jobs here in the public sector are less than that in the states, but our government gives us everything and doesnt tax our income, so our entire salary goes into savings. in the states they cannot breathe. If you get cancer (1 in 3 in US gets cancer in their lifetime) and you are lucky to have the insurance cover 75%, you can still lose your house, car and family over the remaining that you cant pay. How you expect them to travel.

          Reply
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  26. Pingback: So Some Kuwait Blogs May Suck, But Let’s Not Get Carried Away Here. « owlolive
  27. Abdullah

    Blog | noun \ˈblȯg, bläg\
    a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer;
    also : the contents of such a site.

    Source: Merriam-Webster

    1. The Youtube hog, has the right to provide hyperlinks of their favorite videos on their blog; according to the definition above.

    2. The ad-infested lagoon, has customers who are willing to pay money for their ads. I want to see you write an article about fast food chains selling unhealthy food to people. I want to see you write an article about the strip clubs and the services they offer. If the customer wants it, I provide it. That is how business works. and that’s what blog owners are doing. Be it in Kuwait or on Mars. http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/

    3. The food connoisseur, has the right to offer his comments in regards to food; as per the definition above.

    4. The newspaper cut outs, see point 1.

    5. The status quo regiment, if I get invited because of a “Hello World” post, then that means I did a hell of a good job on that post and the inviting company liked it so much.

    6. The engrabic gurus, can fill their online personal journal in whatever language they like; English, Arabic or Klingon.

    7. The review extraordinaire, has the right to offer their comments on whatever product they bought/watched/experienced; as per the definition above.

    Reply
    • Caesar

      Nice 🙂 I’m glad you blatantly chose to restate the obvious 🙂 pristine elements of participatory character . I like you already !

      Reply
        • Caesar Fernandes

          Ok since you want to play the empirical evidence game- here goes!

          You said: The Youtube hog, has the right to provide hyperlinks of their favorite videos on their blog; according to the definition above.
          Me: Dont confuse “has the right” with “drivel and blandness”. George Bush “had the right” to be smart, but he wasnt.

          You said: The ad-infested lagoon, has customers who are willing to pay money for their ads. I want to see you write an article about fast food chains selling unhealthy food to people. I want to see you write an article about the strip clubs and the services they offer. If the customer wants it, I provide it. That is how business works. and that’s what blog owners are doing. Be it in Kuwait or on Mars
          Me: Fundamental mistake you make here. You used the word “article”. Since your copy paste happy, I’ll do the same from wikipedia: An article is a written work published in a print or electronic medium. It may be for the purpose of propagating the news, research results, academic analysis or debate. Kuwait blogs dont write articles, they write drivel.

          You said: The food connoisseur, has the right to offer his comments in regards to food; as per the definition above.
          Me: Read point 1 re: “has the right”. Seems you like divinity toward legal terms.

          You said: The status quo regiment, if I get invited because of a “Hello World” post, then that means I did a hell of a good job on that post and the inviting company liked it so much.
          Me: Read between the lines re: “offline relationships”

          You said: The engrabic gurus, can fill their online personal journal in whatever language they like; English, Arabic or Klingon.
          Me: Yes, and a cat can scratch a DJ kit and sing YMCA at the same time. uuuh, Klingon is a fictional warrior race, not a language 🙂 Shakespeare would be proud of you.

          You said: The review extraordinaire, has the right to offer their comments on whatever product they bought/watched/experienced; as per the definition above.

          Me: “Comments” is very different from review. Reviews are done by certified professionals…and there you go again with the “has the right” 🙂

          Have a lovely day buddy !

          Reply
  28. Christos

    “Sorry I lost respect for your government and your country when I witnessed a person suffering from injuries get REFUSED treatment because he had no insurance on him”

    By law hospitals have to treat anyone in a hospital, whether they have money or not. So you’re full of shit, and with the new healthcare mandate, that’s already improving our healthcare problem here. It is a problem, Americans don’t have a hard time being critical of themselves.

    Regarding your comment about passports, American is huge enough that one can live his entire life without still seeing all the states. We have different climates, tourist destinations, music centers; basically diversity at its finest. Which is why we get plenty of Kuwaiti tourists. Kuwaitis travel because their country is a shit-hole, where they can indulge in what they do abroad. All they do is bitch and moan when they’re around us. Don’t get me wrong, I love them and they’re absolutely hilarious. For you to think Kuwait is anywhere near the level America is, has to be the most asinine thing I’ve read all week.

    Again with the loss of respect for Americans, it wasn’t long ago where it was Americans that bailed you out from the pillaging of Iraqis, when you Kuwaitis couldn’t even defend your own country. I wonder what will happen when a full out war breaks again, are you going to send another leader crying and begging for help from the UN?

    Glad you’re putting your American education to good use in your country. The Americans gave you back your country in 1991, and America is responsible for the education you earned abroad, but yeah thanks for the money for our local colleges and institutions. We sure do love oil money, keep it coming!

    Reply
    • Abdullah

      Oh, a my country is better than your country commentator?
      And the US of A is part of the discussion?
      I volunteer I volunteer!

      What do you want to discuss? Your foreign policy?
      Sure. You saved our asses from Iraq? You gave Iraq the green light to invade us, then suddenly acted like it was all a surprise. We still pay you for this “surprise”. I hope you sleep well at night. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8DWG9h3cIk

      Your debt? $57,000,000,000,000. Source: http://www.usdebtclock.org/

      Hmm, what else? Unemployment? 8.3% of the US population. Source: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf

      Your economy? The homeless people we see when us Kuwaiti tourists come visit? The high tuition fees? The college debts on young Americans? Your health care system? Enjoy Obamacare.

      You were a world power, but you’re certainly weakening. Proof? You did not do shit in Syria. You we’rent allowed to. Uncle Russia and Aunt China did not allow you. World power? LOL. Just enjoy your Hollywood movies and fast food chains and give me a break.

      Reply
    • BoDanah

      Again the attacks are directed to Kuwait. Other countries that I have mentioned appear to be a scary thing to touch eh?

      Climates? Cultures? its the US ffs! what culture other than burgers and beers am I going to get from California to new york? All my European friends talk 2 or more languages, have crossed the borders forever aware of others and what they have to offer. I’ve been to museums in Europe and the states, you cant compare what cultures in Europe have in terms of rich history that predates your founding fathers and the discovery of the red skins.

      The gulf war shit is bred and created by the Americans, you have a history of violence built to intervene and kill. Don’t even talk about humanitarian work, you have no respect for the human soul when you decided to exterminate half a million civilians over a simple little harbor named pearl? never did the states do something from their deep heart, its all about their deep pockets asshole.

      11 out of the 14 postgraduate academic researchers, all from the states were enrolled in the same program at my faculty back in 1998, almost 15 years later, and they are almost half way to paying their student loans, and when I get in touch with them, they have removed the subject of money and loans out of their life because it was about to destroy them. Ironically only ones that made it out safe is myself and 2 exchange admins from Denmark and Germany.

      I don’t see Kuwaitis working in the US, I see the US working in Kuwait. I never saw an European work in the states unless it’s academia related or part of a consultation, yet I have seen almost homeless US bag packers overstaying their trip in Germany and Holland to the point where they are deported by force. In fact the last time I’ve seen this happen was in July 28th 2012 in my one month stay in Munich Germany. Especially with the language students who come over their temporary VISA issued to them on arrival, then overstaying the length, ditching their language courses, finding jobs in shitty jobs like translation, travel agency and holiday accommodation and housing. Is this what the US has become?

      It takes 25 minutes to get to the city of Mahboula in Kuwait, a place where you see thin line that separates the US army from the Kuwaiti people themselves. Thousands and thousands of American contractors for the army is found, with their loyal Filipino wives (all respect to Philippines), their commercially built 1 bedroom apartments that can collapse at any time, and their GMC pickup trucks call this place (in your case: shithole) home, willing to endure the killer heat just to practice their capitalistic values and earn their beloved tax free dollars.

      My own father is an American, how is that for a fact? 14 years the manager of one major alamnium company in Austin Texas an honest hard working genius and the top in his ’63 class. I made the right decision 23 years ago, not to be part of that society for the sake of my well being, and to that of my children. You would have done the same given these facts and the choices. I could go forever with the flaws and I can touch some even more sensitive cases, but it will get us no where. All sympathies to the US and its people and what they have to go through.

      Reply
      • BoDanah

        لوعو جبودنا هالامريكان. عبالهم عايشين ابجنة النعيم و قاصين على روحهم.

        Google translate this Christos, this is just a living fact that your brain can accommodate more than one language, dumb ass.

        Reply
        • Christos

          My Kuwaiti friend just translated that for me. You and your cute sayings, always loved the bit about livers. This place is certainly not paradise, which is why we as a people keep seeking to improve our country in a variety of ways and have a respect for our country to keep on improving it. I’m pretty comfortable with only English, you’re using it to communicate with me. It’s a global lingua franca 🙂

          Reply
      • Christos

        The US has a variety of cultures, ranging from Basque, Jewish, Italian, Irish, Chinese, Korean, etc. It’s like we have a little part of the world and various pockets of the US.

        If you ever make it to the US, have a native of the city your in show you around. Whether it’s the Cascade mountains, or sightseeing in our plentiful national parks, but I’m sure roughing it might be foreign to you, so I suggest our various metropolitan cities. There’s something for everyone here!

        Reply
        • BoDanah

          That doesn’t justify anything Christos, You are basically telling me that the citizens of countries such as Australia, Canada, South Africa and the USA have no reason to travel abroad because their immigrant makeup (of their entire population) as well as them multiculturalism that exists makes it easier to experience other cultures while being in the same country. Well you are wrong, very wrong. when I visit their country I like to experience their culture, immerse myself in their cuisine and indulge on their values. If I want to experience the Chinese culture, I basically grab my passport and fly to Beijing for example to learn what shanghai has to offer, I cant have that same experience by driving to downtown Chinatown.

          Here is some facts, Australia and its multicultural history is an interesting subject, one in two Australians in a passport holder and travels abroad at least once a year. The biggest tourist destinations are Zealand and Thailand for Australians (Numbers are all from TravelTrendz website and not mine) they recently had a prime minister (Kevin Rudd) who studied the Chinese culture all his life and spoke fluent Mandarin! he was a pioneer behind the Australian Chinese relations, and now the Australian dollar for the first time in history has been valued more than the American dollar!

          This is what you get when countries that are very similar to yours have clear intentions, steer away from wars, open mindedness and understanding other cultures. Then you get free education! free health care! subsidized foods (in super markets like Woolworths), excellent transportation (ferries,trams,trains,buses you name it!), excellent welfare system! (you get paid 4000 dollar bonus for each baby that you get, as well as parenthood rebates and bonuses).

          I am writing all of this just to show you what you guys are missing out Christos, that’s why I encourage travel, go and get yourself that $200 dollar passport and go see what other cultures have to offer, so you can become patriotic and fight to have these rights introduced into your own country to benefit your own people. If you stay living in the bubble for any longer you will turn into that American guy that things Germany is still a country in the axis of evil.

          Reply
      • umkhaloodie

        Back without my potty mouth.
        +1 on this.

        Regardless of what this site says it is about it has now become something completely different.

        The comments that are being approved and published are actually shocking.

        To mention the invasion is a really blow.

        P.s BoDanah – that is not me in the picture.

        Reply
  30. Christos

    “Just enjoy your Hollywood movies and fast food chains and give me a break.”

    You guys are buying up all the American franchises, and enjoying our Hollywood movies too 🙂 You’re welcome!

    Reply
      • Christos

        Well obviously, that’s what those countries are good for. The more oil, the better it is for our industry. But even when it comes to oil, you guys are small game, you can’t even do that right. The bulk of our oil comes from Canada, Mexico, and Saudi.

        Reply
    • none

      and you pay 40 dollars to fill your tank, we pay ———— what’s 3kd guys? 7 dollars? LOL
      …. you’re most welcome! 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀

      Reply
      • BoDanah

        Christos, just go down on your knees and say that the US sucks and I will forgive you, send you a ticket to Kuwait, and give you a XXL shirt saying that you ❤ this place.

        Reply
      • Christos

        Enjoy those subsidized oil prices, they sure won’t be lasting for too long. But don’t worry, when your country is hurting in the future, we’ll be sure to send over some financial aid. I mean we already do that with Pakistan, so why not for our good Kuwaiti friends who supplied us with some oil during there good years.

        Reply
  32. Caesar Fernandes

    Moral of the story?
    Kuwait’s blogosphere will only catch up with international blogging standards when Windows and Linux machines go back to being popular publishing OS platforms! You cant look technically geeky carrying that macbook around!

    Peace out all- Hope this helps those who had the open mindedness to receive. And to those who feel I didn’t make sense to them, that’s alright too 🙂 The world needs both sides of the coin.
    Cheers

    Caesar
    Kuwait-Music.com
    Kuwait’s biggest music network.

    Reply
  34. technogeekq8

    This has got to be the best written article Ive seen coming out of Kuwait in years…. keep it up mr. fernandes! I hope your writings will open these numbskull brains we call bloggers in kuwait..

    Reply
  36. Ryan Gooding

    Just stumbled on this post through google! amazing is an understatement… Ive been living in Kuwait for just over 3 years now and have been following a few blogs because I am in the social media business. This man (caesar) hit the nail on the head. I come from a country (south africa) where we pride ourselves in good writing and purposeful electronic journalism and i experience retarded blogging from kuwaiti blogs everyday.

    i hope this article will be seen by the companies who decide to waste their money on these highway robbers.

    Reply
  38. Pingback: Kuwait-Music removing watermarks and PLAGIARIZING! « Kuwait Blogs Suck!
  40. Jacko

    Funny you mention “248am.com” as a quality blog, because the smug self-important Lebo asshole who writes it, commits most of the sins you list.

    Reply
  41. why is the pirate bay down june

    The two murdered troopers, Power and Cahill, were men from good Irish families.
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