Post by unanimous on Feb 9, 2012 10:55:10 GMT 3
There's an article from BBC by Kevin Connolly that came out yesterday: Standup Comedy Qatari Style. What stuck in my mind reading this is how curious the writer is about why Qataris are not making fun of their own leaders. What with all the revolution going on around middle east, it seemed curious to outsiders how come Qatar is so quiet, nary a complaint it seems. Having lived here for close to six years now, I will hazard a guess:
As to why locals are not complaining about their Emir and Government: They seem to have a generous Emir.
- Qatar is affluent and locals arent doing so bad financial opportunity wise. It is just up to them if they dig themselves deep in a debt, but even there, the govt tries to lecture them about spending wisely, and to prevent them from incurring further debt that have been generously offered by banks before. The govt made measures by putting a cap on their debt limit (the amount of which is still nothing to scoff at), which according to local newspaper articles, a big percentage of which are spent on travels and cars and shopping.
- Locals, though outnumbered by expats, are generously favored and prioritized. Everywhere in Qatar. It is their country afterall, so expats who will have to leave after some years anyway should just try to live with that. (English is spoken most anywhere though, they've already given you that. Can you imagine if the French people in their own country have to be serviced in any other language? If Pakistanis conduct business in their own language while in Britain? It's not like that here.)
International fancy schools in Qatar Foundation are welcoming them with open arms. Campaigns for school orientation, registration for courses and initial college immersion meetups are often held in five star hotels and advertised in newspapers in significant ad sizes. Afterall, if there are no locals in their school, where's the justification for funding them further?
Big companies looking to hire employees have to give priority to locals. This may be hard to fathom anywhere else, for one would think qualifications would be the initial criteria. It is still, but the higher the posts, the more priority it should be given to locals. and the locals know that!
- When students have to travel abroad for their class, they dont usually just stay in normal accommodations. Education-related expenses are one way or another subsidized by govt. (On a side note, you know who acts difficult and fancy in these excursions? usually not locals apparently!)
- They have social allowance. housing allowance. transportation allowance.
- If they get sick and the local hospital's expertise is not sufficient, they get flown off to top hospitals abroad for treatment, all expenses paid. If it's a child who is sick, the parent's of course are flown too.
- During the market crash that kicked off in 2008, promotions were suspended, nonessential benefits and privileges were trimmed down to normal levels, etc., but still a salary increase was given to locals and announcement circulated to every employee.
What normal local person would not be thankful for that? Maybe they can make a comedy of that, locals begging their emir to stop showering them with benefits already!it's too much!cant take anymore 60% increase in my salary! There is not much space left in the garage for a new car! They are even selling us two monalisas now!!
- Locals dont usually lose a percentage of their salary through taxes. NO TAXES. you have allowances, you dont have taxes.
So if say you're from UK and some of your taxes might go to say Kate Middleton's wardrobe and Prince Harry's parties, yes you may have cause for satire, but it does not happen here. no tax!
you win some, you lose some, but for the locals here, they seem to like more what they get as opposed to what might be sacrificed for that...so it's understandable they have utmost respect and cant find a funny joke about their leaders, they can laugh their way to the bank...sometimes literally, i often see locals laughing with their friends on their way to a bank or atm machine, and im not surprised.
Things that might be a problem for expats, are not really problems for locals; the same way that things that are big deal to them seem trivial to others.
The government might have some few jokes though. You know they give all these privileges to people, great opportunity for EDUCATION, they even fly in speakers, professors just to give lectures. and travels. allowances! And yet, sometimes people would still complain on print that their favorite fruit juice sells for 5QR in one store, but this FANCY store sells the exact same thing for 10QR. some still want to buy from the fancy store but they them to sell it for 5. You'd think some people would just volunteer and help not bug their govt and just solve the problem themselves by boycotting that 10QR posers! but no, do they want us to hold a conference for this too!?
For a Qatari comedian to make a splash in the international scene...that might be tricky. Audience should have travelled enough to know where their stories are coming from - and no, watching sex in the city 2 does not qualify! Man, even the trailer alone for SITC2 was cringe worthy! For a joke to be funny, it has be understood first and if you can relate, so much the better. They are different in values and beliefs, you have to share or at least understand that before you can laugh with them. The alternative is laugh at them. When the world cup 2022 was awarded to them, a local i was talking to felt proud, and related a story about how her classmates abroad used to ask her curiously, sometimes condescendingly about their 'lifestyle', like as if they still use camels to get their groceries or they live such a hard life because they are 'so different'. She said she just say what they want to hear and laugh to herself about it.
The ones ive met are funny in a surprising (to me coz im expat hello!) kind of way. One time, we were looking for an apartment for drama mama and we want to get a decent deal. we were calling people on the phone, we didnt want her to speak coz her western accent will give her away, so her qatari friend started to make the calls. when the phone on the other end started ringing she said: Wait! Should i speak with a lebanese accent or indian!?!? i thought that was funny, like who cares!?! she decided to speak in "lebanese" and had fun doing so!harrr! she was funny:P
Then one time at a class, our teacher was asking us what animals we have in the house..so meaning pets, and my local classmate's turn, he answered camels! that was funny to me coz seriously, do you have friends outside of qatar who has camels in their house!?! but that's not funny to them coz that classmate of mine actually has lots of them.
so where can the "funny" come from from a local? stereotyping? a funny rap song about how he loves his camels for shizzle!?!? are you looking for a qatari version of Ricky Gervais? one has to be an atheist first! a muslim Larry David? make fun about how rich they are? but with all the poverty going on now and the number of people getting killed for revolutions, that might sound a bit insensitive. they are affluent but hopefully not yet tacky enough to rub material wealth on other people's faces. I saw this maid onetime with her local boss, and the maid was carrying a lot of stuff...and wearing a louis vuitton garb! like the kind you'll see on Andre Leon Talley! That put a smile on my face coz you know how ALT can be so OMGITSLOUISVOUITTONORNOTHING, and here a maid is wearing it...probably a hand-me-down, but i believe outside of here, it is called vintage!
what i hope though is that these emerging local comedians find something that is smart funny, not be apologetic of their own culture but proud - in a funny way. Stick to their own true culture and not be influenced too much by what theyve seen outside - that way they can be original and wont fall short from being compared to someone who has or is already doing that schtick. come to think of it though, ive not heard of a regional or local joke from around here...i think there's one about the difficulties and unique advantages of having a veil related by a local to an expat, but cant remember that one exactly.
As to why locals are not complaining about their Emir and Government: They seem to have a generous Emir.
- Qatar is affluent and locals arent doing so bad financial opportunity wise. It is just up to them if they dig themselves deep in a debt, but even there, the govt tries to lecture them about spending wisely, and to prevent them from incurring further debt that have been generously offered by banks before. The govt made measures by putting a cap on their debt limit (the amount of which is still nothing to scoff at), which according to local newspaper articles, a big percentage of which are spent on travels and cars and shopping.
- Locals, though outnumbered by expats, are generously favored and prioritized. Everywhere in Qatar. It is their country afterall, so expats who will have to leave after some years anyway should just try to live with that. (English is spoken most anywhere though, they've already given you that. Can you imagine if the French people in their own country have to be serviced in any other language? If Pakistanis conduct business in their own language while in Britain? It's not like that here.)
International fancy schools in Qatar Foundation are welcoming them with open arms. Campaigns for school orientation, registration for courses and initial college immersion meetups are often held in five star hotels and advertised in newspapers in significant ad sizes. Afterall, if there are no locals in their school, where's the justification for funding them further?
Big companies looking to hire employees have to give priority to locals. This may be hard to fathom anywhere else, for one would think qualifications would be the initial criteria. It is still, but the higher the posts, the more priority it should be given to locals. and the locals know that!
- When students have to travel abroad for their class, they dont usually just stay in normal accommodations. Education-related expenses are one way or another subsidized by govt. (On a side note, you know who acts difficult and fancy in these excursions? usually not locals apparently!)
- They have social allowance. housing allowance. transportation allowance.
- If they get sick and the local hospital's expertise is not sufficient, they get flown off to top hospitals abroad for treatment, all expenses paid. If it's a child who is sick, the parent's of course are flown too.
- During the market crash that kicked off in 2008, promotions were suspended, nonessential benefits and privileges were trimmed down to normal levels, etc., but still a salary increase was given to locals and announcement circulated to every employee.
What normal local person would not be thankful for that? Maybe they can make a comedy of that, locals begging their emir to stop showering them with benefits already!it's too much!cant take anymore 60% increase in my salary! There is not much space left in the garage for a new car! They are even selling us two monalisas now!!
- Locals dont usually lose a percentage of their salary through taxes. NO TAXES. you have allowances, you dont have taxes.
So if say you're from UK and some of your taxes might go to say Kate Middleton's wardrobe and Prince Harry's parties, yes you may have cause for satire, but it does not happen here. no tax!
you win some, you lose some, but for the locals here, they seem to like more what they get as opposed to what might be sacrificed for that...so it's understandable they have utmost respect and cant find a funny joke about their leaders, they can laugh their way to the bank...sometimes literally, i often see locals laughing with their friends on their way to a bank or atm machine, and im not surprised.
Things that might be a problem for expats, are not really problems for locals; the same way that things that are big deal to them seem trivial to others.
The government might have some few jokes though. You know they give all these privileges to people, great opportunity for EDUCATION, they even fly in speakers, professors just to give lectures. and travels. allowances! And yet, sometimes people would still complain on print that their favorite fruit juice sells for 5QR in one store, but this FANCY store sells the exact same thing for 10QR. some still want to buy from the fancy store but they them to sell it for 5. You'd think some people would just volunteer and help not bug their govt and just solve the problem themselves by boycotting that 10QR posers! but no, do they want us to hold a conference for this too!?
For a Qatari comedian to make a splash in the international scene...that might be tricky. Audience should have travelled enough to know where their stories are coming from - and no, watching sex in the city 2 does not qualify! Man, even the trailer alone for SITC2 was cringe worthy! For a joke to be funny, it has be understood first and if you can relate, so much the better. They are different in values and beliefs, you have to share or at least understand that before you can laugh with them. The alternative is laugh at them. When the world cup 2022 was awarded to them, a local i was talking to felt proud, and related a story about how her classmates abroad used to ask her curiously, sometimes condescendingly about their 'lifestyle', like as if they still use camels to get their groceries or they live such a hard life because they are 'so different'. She said she just say what they want to hear and laugh to herself about it.
The ones ive met are funny in a surprising (to me coz im expat hello!) kind of way. One time, we were looking for an apartment for drama mama and we want to get a decent deal. we were calling people on the phone, we didnt want her to speak coz her western accent will give her away, so her qatari friend started to make the calls. when the phone on the other end started ringing she said: Wait! Should i speak with a lebanese accent or indian!?!? i thought that was funny, like who cares!?! she decided to speak in "lebanese" and had fun doing so!harrr! she was funny:P
Then one time at a class, our teacher was asking us what animals we have in the house..so meaning pets, and my local classmate's turn, he answered camels! that was funny to me coz seriously, do you have friends outside of qatar who has camels in their house!?! but that's not funny to them coz that classmate of mine actually has lots of them.
so where can the "funny" come from from a local? stereotyping? a funny rap song about how he loves his camels for shizzle!?!? are you looking for a qatari version of Ricky Gervais? one has to be an atheist first! a muslim Larry David? make fun about how rich they are? but with all the poverty going on now and the number of people getting killed for revolutions, that might sound a bit insensitive. they are affluent but hopefully not yet tacky enough to rub material wealth on other people's faces. I saw this maid onetime with her local boss, and the maid was carrying a lot of stuff...and wearing a louis vuitton garb! like the kind you'll see on Andre Leon Talley! That put a smile on my face coz you know how ALT can be so OMGITSLOUISVOUITTONORNOTHING, and here a maid is wearing it...probably a hand-me-down, but i believe outside of here, it is called vintage!
what i hope though is that these emerging local comedians find something that is smart funny, not be apologetic of their own culture but proud - in a funny way. Stick to their own true culture and not be influenced too much by what theyve seen outside - that way they can be original and wont fall short from being compared to someone who has or is already doing that schtick. come to think of it though, ive not heard of a regional or local joke from around here...i think there's one about the difficulties and unique advantages of having a veil related by a local to an expat, but cant remember that one exactly.