Welcome to Eisenhower Fellows

Fatin Bundagji writes for the Arab News!

Autor

Fellow from Saudi Arabia, Fatin Bundagji, wrote an article in the January 9th, 2008 issue of the Arab News - you can read a bit of the article below, and click the link at the end of it to go to the Arab News site to read the rest!

‘A Stitch in Time Saves Nine’
Fatin Bundagji, Arab News, January 9, 2008

I had never realized the truth of the proverb “A Stitch in Time Saves Nine” like I did today. As is usual to my daily morning routine, I logged on to be greeted by my Yahoo homepage. As I sat sipping my necessary morning tea, an unusual “news” headline caught my eye. “Garbage Crisis Stirs Protest in Naples”.

Unusual in its seemingly benign topic because in comparison to current news headlines of war, terror, death and disease, garbage seems secondary and trivial.

But is it really? In Naples it seems that it is not. According to the news, the city is suffering a two-week-old garbage collection crisis that has resulted in “scattered stinking mountains in the city.” With no solution in sight, angry citizens have taken to the streets in riots and rebellion. The media latched onto the story and finally government officials began to pay attention. In a public statement, Italian President Giorgio said that he was “alarmed” by the situation and called on officials to shoulder their responsibilities in resolving the problem. Premier Romano Prodi announced that government ministers would meet to resolve Naples’ garbage problems “once and for all.” Fearing negative international coverage on such a domestic issue, he continued to state that “Everybody is watching us, and I don’t want Italy to have such a negative image. It’s an emergency we must tackle rapidly.”

Click here to read more.

Share This