A Sick Cairo

The Egyptians have become hysterical when people sneeze around them. A phobia is spreading like fire, faster than the disease in the city of Cairo and all its suburbs. Well educated people are leaving there sneezing family members alone on their sick beds. They forgot about our culture and religion. According to Islam visiting the sick is like visiting God. Like every God sent religion visiting the sick is something not negotiable in the Islamic religion. Especially visiting a family member,

Now in Egypt a person sneezes and the words swine flu are rubbed in their faces, how insensitive is that? Everyone runs away like they were infected with a deadly disease. My husband's British friend told him he was infected with H1N1 and he stayed home for a week and got better. He said that his daughter was too, in a normal way he said it and he brought no drama. In Egypt the word pig is a very disgusting word in pronunciation and meaning. Although pigs are creatures of God, but they symbolize the nastiest of habits. Islamic teachings prohibits the eating of ham, but does not support abusing pigs.

Now the word swine flu in arabic sounds like the worst thing in the world, words in arabic can be very harsh and very demeaning. The name of the virus has been changed to H1N1 in the west out of their humanity. Here in Cairo I walk into a nail spa and the women tells me where were you I tell her I was in America, she says take care that you did not pick up the pig disease and in arabic it is pronounced influenza al khanzir! She says it sarcastically and in disrespect the way a bully in grade three would.
If someone sneezes instead of a God bless you, you get childish cruelty of people taking a step back and saying oh they have got the pig disease making you feel like a pig your self, while in fact they are the pigs!
The media is magnifying the disease here in Cairo like it is Armageddon, like a crazy old superstitious woman who saw a black cat and a broken mirror at once.

I wondered how the kids were teasing each other in schools, and worse how the teachers treated the sneezing child in a public school. This swine flu bullshit is a big lie! yes it is there, but it is exactly like the normal flu, in california it is not even a subject of conversation. The rate of mortality is lower than that of the normal flu. In London many people go to parties wanting to get infected so that they get over with it and move on.

People here are acting insanely, cruelly, selfishly and ignorantly. Fear of the disease has left sick family members sad and alone at home scared and feeling like a disgrace. This propaganda is all for more and more attention to the media, for vaccinations getting sold more, for medicines to profit, for newspapers to sell more, for people to panic and get distracted.

This stupidity and ignorance has to stop. The only thing we have here that is better than the west in Egypt is close family ties and compassion and the all for one, one for all collectivist culture, if you take that away too and turn into cruel selfish monsters, who desert their family members in fear of catching a stupid flu, then we are left with nothing here. Just an over crowded cruel crazy place that no sane person would want to be at.

People of Egypt remember that the sneezer deserves a God Bless you wish not a judgement and fear and selfish cruelty!

The disease is in your hearts and heads! you who abandon your sneezing loved ones!

The pigs are innocent, the pigs are those who act like pigs, have you ever seen a sneezing pig?

Have you ever seen a pig panic because his brother sneezed? Pigs are pink! at least pigs are pigs! Nobody expects more of them, but you who got the education, you with the heart that beats faster when in love, you who recites the book of God, you who knows good from bad, why are you acting like this?

Who are the pigs? Who are the victims? Who should run away from who? and who should be scared?

Next time someone sneezes, grow up, be brave, say the words, say them! God Bless the sneezer, who is my friend!!