Western Arab

Took my car this morning to have the door pull handle trim replaced. VW has some crappy rubber material on the door handles to give a soft touch to them. But this material is crap and rips after some time. The handle underneath this crap is just fine, they didn’t need to put this on it. So I previously had VW service replace one pull handle and the other needed to be ordered. So I called last week and confirmed they had the order and scheduled an appointment for today.

And so today, I took the car. They always take a long time to do any service. The service adviser tells me it will take about 45 minutes. So I go and wait. It was 9am, I pretty much had not slept at all, and I hadn’t eaten so I was hungry. I got an almonds bar from the vending machine and decided to have coffee which they offer free. I am not really a coffee drinker but the last few times I had it, it wasn’t bad. I see a machine for hot water and grab a hazel nut flavored coffee package. One of those round little bowl type things with an aluminum foil cover on top. So I rotate it looking for the extended piece of aluminum foil to peel it open. I can’t find one, I grab another package to check, nothing … and another.

Green Mountain Coffee Maker

Alright, so I try peeling it. I cut my nails very short so it doesn’t help. I try and try, then decide to just punch a hole with my finger. Inside I see coffee whatever it is, but it is a lot. I think I can’t put this in a cup and add water. This doesn’t make sense, plus it had this zig-zag filter looking thing the coffee is sitting in. I dump it in the trash, figure coffee is too weird, let me go back to my tea. Grab a green tea. This is the same as the coffee thing. Punch a hole in it. Ok so this is weird, it has that filter as well. Poured some of the green tea in the cup. Finally a sales guy, comes by and asks me if I know how to use the machine. I said huh? isn’t this just hot water. Nope. He flips open a top which reveals a round tray the exact fit of the package in my hand. Yah embarrassing. I didn’t know how to use a coffee machine.

Or maybe he was a manager and figured I was going to punch holes in all the tea and coffee packages before I figured out how to use that machine. Well at least the hazel nut coffee was good.

Alright so obviously the car took more than an hour to finish and the service adviser tells me that they replaced the bottom piece only because the top piece had not come in. And I explain to him right in the show room with everyone there, that I called and made the appointment after they told me the parts were in. He said they must of just saw one and assumed and I complained that they are wasting my time. Yeah, so morons!

At this dealer, they always wash the car free when you do your service. FYI it has been raining here for the past few days, plus it was raining today. So why are you washing my car? Why are you wasting more of my time? Yeah, so morons!

Finally they pull my car up. I look at the door handle. The TOP part was replaced and the bottom was not. I call over the service adviser and show him. He said he must of misunderstood the service guy and got which part was replaced mixed up. Yeah so, morons!

Now before you call me a moron for not knowing how to operate the coffee machine, keep in mind, on a previous visit to that dealer. I actually had the green tea, and I didn’t use the machine. That tea didn’t taste good, and now I know why. Yeah so … shaaaadup.

Was at the mall today. I wasn’t in there for five minutes and I see a Muslim couple with their children. We pass each other. Normal as anything else, until some random woman walks to me and says something. I didn’t really understand what she said at first. So she tells me again, looks at the Muslim couple that passed me, points to them and says the ones that wear that on their head, he makes her walk behind him. What the heck? How do I respond to this woman?

So I tell her, they look like they are walking side by side to me. She said no they aren’t, they always do that. wtf?! They? always? Who is she talking about? This woman has no clue that I am a muslim and is telling me what we always do? I didn’t know how to respond to her but I said something like you don’t know that. And she maybe realized that I may be muslim, gave a “I don’t know” look, shut her mouth, and walked away.

I was surprised that a strange woman would walk up to me and say things like this. She doesn’t know me. How can she just openly admit her discrimination? A dumb ignorant woman. I should of said something like I can’t wait to make my wife walk behind me. I am a Muslim! Walk behind me woman!

She was probably mad because she can’t get a husband to walk behind.

What ever happened to “behind every great man is a great woman”? I suppose if you are Muslim, you should walk as a family all side by side and block the entire isle. Ever thought that maybe the woman was stopping to look at crap to buy? Or maybe she walks a little slower and can’t keep up?

For the record, we don’t do make our women walk behind us.

Ok, so I decided not to call Monday or Tuesday or even Wednesday, I figured I will wait out my accountant. Well here is Thursday, still no call. Nine days after I submitted my taxes to be completed, after being told I will get a call in two days, I have not recieved a call telling me they are complete and ready to be picked up. Why? Because I used an Arab. Simple as that. Am I going to wait for two weeks to go by? I don’t know yet, but I am very annoyed. I know when I call, the secretary will say they are ready and I should come by and pick up. The problem is the accountant said he will call me, so why can’t I get the call saying your taxes are ready, come pay us for our service.

Idiots.

Maybe next year I will go to a Jew for my taxes.

When are Arabs going to step down from their high chairs? When will we get past the arrogance? Why is it when an Arab tells me he will call me in two days with the work I requested completed, he never does, in fact days go by and I have to call and ask? Why do Arabs in business treat Arabs as second class citizens? When they promise an Non-Arab American a call in two days, they deliver, but with Arabs, they feel like they are doing you a favor, even though you are paying them like anyone else to do the work you asked for.

This isn’t a one time incident, it is everywhere I go, with all Arabs, Christians and Muslims alike. I made the mistake of going to an Egyptian dentist once. I was going to an Indian prior. So what was wrong with the Egyptian? The same arrogance. I don’t want you doing me any favors, just do your job like with anyone else and I will pay you like I pay anyone else. Instead after the work is done, I get the typical Arab statement. Khalieyah 3alyeena. Translates to leave it on us. Bite me. You know very well I am not walking out without paying you. And you are not letting me leave without paying you. So just tell me to pay X and I will. Then to add insult, after I tell him no, he says ok just pay $xxx for the x-rays. UGH. I am not stupid, you are not doing me any favors, and I do NOT want you to. All this ever does is make me leave with no intention of returning to this dentist or whatever profession it may have been. And the dumb Arab loses another customer.

So why can’t we work together as Arabs? My cousin once needed a paper signed to let him in a class in college. He made the mistake of going to the Arab. Thinking hey, he is an Arab, I am an Arab. He will gladly do it. WRONG. “I am busy now”. “Come back later”. Busy doing what? It is your damn job to sign shit like this. Sign it. So what happens, some blonde American girl walks in. All of a sudden the Arab is not busy, ahlan wa sahlan, welcome welcome, how are you? What can I do for you? So what does my cousin do? Walk to the next room to an American, who signs the sheet without even looking at it. He does his fucking job. Yes I am angry. I am angry with Arabs.

If we look at our “cousins”, we see them work together. They fight with each other as much as we do, but they would drive 15 extra miles to buy from their own than one of ours or anyone else for that matter. Why? Because they want each other to succeed, not for the individual, but for their own as a whole. They think long term. We think right now.

Arabs goes something like this:

Firas: hey did you hear, Abu Fulan opened a grocery store on Main Street, I hear it is doing great. Al hamdillah.

Hashim: Al hamdillah, Al hamdillah. This is great news.

Next day Hashim opens a grocery store across the street from Abu Fulan on Main Street. Spends the next 6 months with his top priority of putting Abu Fulan out of business. Why? Simple, why should Abu Fulan make all the money? Is he better than Hashim??? NO. Hashim can’t let this happen, he must put an end to this. Not only does he end up putting Abu Fulan out of business, but himself as well because he soon realizes he is a complete moron who doesn’t know how to run such a business, and now that he lowered his prices so much to get rid of Abu Fulan, his customers have a fit when he starts to raise his prices again. The mentality is the same, why should he get this or that? He isn’t better than me, I can do this too. It is all about image and prestige. Screw your image. Screw your prestige.

So Arabs. When I come to your work place to use your services. Treat me like anyone else. I don’t want “special” treatment. I do not want a discount. I want to be treated like any other customer, I want service. And if someone opens a business and does good, be happy for them, support them, use their services, buy their products. It is sickening that this kind of competition not only happens just against other Arabs, but against family members. So many Arab families are split because of business.

Today is day three. Weekend will go by. Monday I will call and ask if the work I requestesd is done. Tuesday I will call again. And I will probably have it by Thursday. This way, I am supposed to feel like it took him so much time to do, that he is giving me a great price considering all the time he spent on it. When I know it doesn’t take two hours to do it and his price sucks. Serves me right for using an Arab for service, so why do it? I always hope that there will be some change. That maybe I will find some Arab who is different, someone whom doesn’t treat me as less, someone whom I am pleased to use his service, because he did his job and because I am helping him succeed by using his services and I can recommend his services to others. Maybe too much to ask.

This is a simple video that asks the question, when shall we become Lebanese? It is right to the point, showing various people from different countries announcing what they are, i.e. I am American in English, or I am French in French, or I am Palestinian in Arabic. Only when it gets to Lebanon, each Lebanese person announces who he is by his religious sect. The small strip of land called Lebanon is divided into about 22 pieces, so when shall we become one?