Boris' comments were somewhat rude, but ESL teacher, your statement about Landcruisers being purchased by Qataris for safety reasons is also outlandish. SUVs have high turnover rates and are dangerous weapons in the hands of folks with freakish driving behavior. Just last week four Qatari women died in a car accident as their overfilled and speeding SUV flipped over.
My hope is that Qataris begin (if it hasn't happened already) some process of coming to terms with the rapid changes in their society without losing the manners and ethics mandated by their culture and religion. I think there are some deeper implications that should be considered, including: What will their next generation look like when their education system has been made by RAND, children raised by foreign-born nannies, and a majority of the population consisting of non-Qataris?
Wearing white robes and black abayas, and naming things Lulu, is one thing -- but modernization produces dislocation and alienation, both in a personal/psychological sense, and in a collective/cultural sense. The poor behavior of Qatari children is a symptom of all this. I assume that pre-modernization Qatar was marked by the presence of strong values, respect of elders and guests, and orderly/deferential public conduct. Much of that has disappeared.
On a related note, anyone have thoughts on what sorts of issues Qatari families face nowadays? Are there problems with communication, divorce, overspending, infidelity, generation gaps, etc? Based on their outward behavior, it seems to me that there might be significant problems indoors that are only veiled from outsiders.
Boris' comments were somewhat rude, but ESL teacher, your statement about Landcruisers being purchased by Qataris for safety reasons is also outlandish. SUVs have high turnover rates and are dangerous weapons in the hands of folks with freakish driving behavior. Just last week four Qatari women died in a car accident as their overfilled and speeding SUV flipped over.
My hope is that Qataris begin (if it hasn't happened already) some process of coming to terms with the rapid changes in their society without losing the manners and ethics mandated by their culture and religion. I think there are some deeper implications that should be considered, including: What will their next generation look like when their education system has been made by RAND, children raised by foreign-born nannies, and a majority of the population consisting of non-Qataris?
Wearing white robes and black abayas, and naming things Lulu, is one thing -- but modernization produces dislocation and alienation, both in a personal/psychological sense, and in a collective/cultural sense. The poor behavior of Qatari children is a symptom of all this. I assume that pre-modernization Qatar was marked by the presence of strong values, respect of elders and guests, and orderly/deferential public conduct. Much of that has disappeared.
On a related note, anyone have thoughts on what sorts of issues Qatari families face nowadays? Are there problems with communication, divorce, overspending, infidelity, generation gaps, etc? Based on their outward behavior, it seems to me that there might be significant problems indoors that are only veiled from outsiders.