Comments on: Oil, Oil Everywhere, But Not a Drop to Drink

By: Mohammed

Mohammed — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 09:44:52 +0000

Its funny how “religious muslims” are quick o point out that this country wants to practice its religion when there are many exceptions to the rules infront of them.

Religious schools where children studied the Quran where mixed, a non muslim is allowed to make, trade and consume alcohol while a muslim is not, littering should be non-existent and people should not harm nature at all.

The most important thing is that in Islam, you never FORCE anyone to do anything, if they choose to do it then that means more to God.

For those that claim that they are faithful, take an example from the prophet (PBUH) and actually live tolerant and accepting lives. Instead of telling people with differing views to leave the country if they don’t like it, why do you leave the conversation if you don’t like it.

There are many other things for you to focus your energy on. Focus on fixing the standard of pulic education, focus on helping the environment, focus on all the other more important things. But always accept another persons opinion.

If you want to heed the prophets words then heed ALL of them, not just the ones that are convenient at the time.

By: Much Ado about Nothing

Much Ado about Nothing — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 04:03:25 +0000

Fine, ban alcohol in Kuwait if you must but there’s no harm having an alcohol concession at the airport duty free in Kuwait for the benefit of outbound passengers Similarly, I cannot understand why all flights from KWI based airlines are dry? Surely, they can serve liquor once the aircraft is outside Kuwaiti air space. I think more than drinking itself what is truly haram is religious intolerance of other faiths, cruelty and physical violence against domestic helpers and women, under age smoking/drinking/driving, talking on the mobile while driving or for veiled women to drive.Now that’s what’s really really dangerous for public safety.
Besides what to say of the health benefits of drinking red wine in moderation?!

By: Say oui! to Wine et NON! to nicotine

Say oui! to Wine et NON! to nicotine — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 17:47:21 +0000

Alcohol’s banned in Kuwait?? I didn’t know that living here the past 35 years. Anyway, I suppose you learn something new each day. Thanks for sharing the TIME magazine article.

By: DG

DG — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 17:41:56 +0000

Smoking, Shisha, Reckless Driving and Drugs do vastly more damage than a few regulated pints of beverages would do. Its just that in Kuwait no one wants to rock the boat when the money train is running like a teflon railway for all segments. Thre are more AA listings in the newspapers here than in UAE. Therein lies the dichotomy. Bring 1960 back ! Kuwait is a country of tolerance saddled with archaic rules.

By: Rajesh

Rajesh — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:19:03 +0000

All those who defend by citing reasons such as Islam and Constitution, please be aware that the other GCC countries (minus KSA) are follwoing the same principles and are more liberated than Kuwait.
Liquor, as a medicine, is a tradition that is more than 500 years old.

So the mindset needs to be broadened and should be made slack.

Take the case of the hooch tragedy in a city in Gujarat in India, where more than 200 lives were lost, due to illicit liquor.

It is human tendency and denying it, create illegal ways to get it.

By: A random reader

A random reader — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:17:14 +0000

Love the way the article was written!!!!!!!!!!!

By: TQ

TQ — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 07:27:42 +0000

I have to agree with mooch, anything that’s banned can be more desirable. In Amsterdam the crime rate is decreasing and prisons are closing down so its not about religion and it was never about religion, its about people profiting more from the black market. Financy your wrong Islamic sharia is the main source, it doesn’t mean the only source.If it is the only source we would be like Saudi Arabia cutting hands for people who steal etc. and to go back to the quote “Freedom of belief is absolute. The State projects the freedom of Practicing religion in accordance with established customs, provided that it does not conflict with public policy or morals.” so what i understand from established customs that it was OK to see people drinking before 1965. Also is conflicting with public morals if I drink with my friends at home without bothering anyone? conflicting with public morals is drinking and driving or making a scene in public, if i drink with my own peace of mind how am I conflicting with public morals?

By: wa7ed

wa7ed — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 02:33:16 +0000

walla, oo moo m3a99ib mithil cham wa7ed/wa7da hnee lanna 9ij i’m arguing a point, mo ga3ed at^hawash, inna may9eer in5alli ildeen a pick and choose thing..at least in STATE affairs, illi uhwa moo shay basee6 ya3ni.. hathi mas2ooliyya, and personally, lanni muslim ogaf, oo a9awwit ‘9id il5amir bil kwait, itha ya3ni fakkiraw ib ending the prohibition, winshala may9eer hel shay, bass let’s face it- wayed naas bil q8 na6reen hel yom.
Ana mu2min imya bil imya inna fee 7ikma wara hel shay, ya3ni i believed inna allah ma inwalad..how could i not believe that prohibiting alcohol waraaha 7ikma oo inna hatha il shay il9a7?! hatha il definition of faith. t9addig ilshay min ghair adilla. oo islam uhu faith, witha i7na mu2mineen (faithful), ilmafrooth nisma3 kalam rabbi 7ata bil ashyaa2 illi doesn’t really make much sense, cuz we believe in the big picture. hathi awaamir rabbi ya3ni..
winshala ashoof liq8 9ij matighayyirat oo ashoof more supporters of prohibition, just saying :)..oo ee by the way, i support prohibition solely because of religion..moo shay 3aib..oo shsalfatkum 3ela inna ilkill yishrab bass yankir, ee oo ba3dain? lat3aqdoonha ya3ni wit5alloonha chinhum hypocrites..ya5i yishriboon bass moo ma3naata yaboon hel shay ib deerat^hum..it’s just funny that the same people call these guys as “hypocrites” oo uhma they aim for a prohibition-free kuwait..oo yadroon deep down inna shay 7araam..(not accusing anybody here of being a hypocrite)
hatha kill illi kint bagoola :)..thanks mark for this interesting article.

By: SSD

SSD — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:33:23 +0000

Before writing down my lil rant and lecture, Let me start off by saying that I absolutely despise alcohol, and my drunkard days in my teens was the worst time of my life. I find the fact that alcohol and cigarettes are tolerated while other substances (marijiuana) is looked down upon to be incredibly strange, ridiculous, and the true definition of the term “negative phenomena”. And now, my lecture to you all, bear with me :)

News flash to the people who are saying that legalizing alcohol will create more alcohol related incidents: Alcohol related incidents are already happening everywhere in kuwait, illegal or legal, let’s not be in denial, it will stay that way for good and there is nothing you could do about it. You should think, since alcohol is everywhere in Kuwait, and there’s is no way in stopping that, then what is the best way to curb it? The answer is simple: Legalize it and Control it. The banning of alcohol in Kuwait not only failed in reducing alcohol consumption, it created a huge business boom in the black market for criminal gangs, which means while criminal gangs who are selling alcohol brands 2 or 3 times the price then they would sell in countries where it’s legal and making a shit load of money, the Kuwaiti government keeps losing money chasing and trying to catch these guys due to the false and ridiculous assumption that someday alcohol bootlegging will be wiped out from Kuwait.

I can’t help but chuckle when I read the crime sections on newspapers talking about a big bust involving alcohol smuggling, or (my favorite) a few weeks ago where the headline that the bootlegging business is gone down 80% (I checked that same day with an indian local who sells alcohol, and guess what? He just recieved a new shipment of top brands). What is happening in countries like Kuwait (who ban alcohol) is very similar what happened during the prohibition days during the 1930’s in the US, I suggest every person here who is pro-prohibition to read it, and please ask youself, if a country with as strong the US failed miserably at prohibiting alcohol, how is Kuwait going to succeed, to spare you the trouble of thinking that through here’s the answer: It won’t be able to succeed to stop the flow because it simple can’t.

To the people who are using religion as a reason for banning, yes, it’s true that buying, drinking, selling, and transporting alcohol is sinful in Islam, but look around you, did it banning it stop people from buying, drinking, selling, and transporting alcohol? No. And since you can’t stop it, let the state legalize it, control it, since it seems to be the only way to curb alcohol consumption. It may sound haram, but is helping curb alcohol when it’ so widespread and impossible to stop gonna make you a sinner in god’s eyes? Or a person who’s being realistic and is trying to help his country and his people work it’s out around this evil?

Also, one more thing I’d like to add. Doesn’t anybody find the fact that alcohol is more accepted and tolerated by people (and law enforcement) in this country then hash to ncredibly strange and stupid? I know stories of people who got caught with bottles for personal consumption, and all the cops ever did to them was confiscate the bottles, force a bribe and look the other way, or give them a lecture on how they’re also drinkers and would not recommend them to drive while drunk. Yet, with hash, they get arrested, beaten up, and are forced to sign a letter of good conduct, all because they were caught with a piece as long or shorter then the index finger. It’s absolute BS.

By: Liquor permit from 1964

Liquor permit from 1964 — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:54:02 +0000

[...] post from TIME magazine dating back to 1965 talking about how alcohol was banned in Kuwait click [Here] Print Email Jul 13, [...]

By: Thirsty

Thirsty — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 10:33:48 +0000

I think they should legalize alcohol in Kuwait. in Failaka for instance. the issue isn’t religion, its the big MOBs that are making 500% the regular price of a bottle of licker. so ligalizing it and seting rules won’t hurt but we need to ban all Saudis from entering our country. cuz they will mess it up.
plus i am sick of going out of kuwait to drink:S thats just sad and criminal to go under the name of religion. more than 80% of kuwaiti adults drink, but they deny it, cuz they are muslims :)

By: PAPA_BRUTUS

PAPA_BRUTUS — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 05:34:21 +0000

there was an article in todays kuwait times bout alcohol being legal in kuwait….but the punch line was tht it was an april fools day prank……cudnt belive my eyes in the morn but then all hopes faded whn i saw the last line……..i m n expat n huv been here 4 bout 3 yrs now….i do drink but i huv not drank in kuwait not even wine….its kinda principle issue for me here….but th has not stopped me frm buyin my bar stool n wine glasses…..atleast they look gud in my aprtment….but is really sad tht though there is a law tht bans alcohhol most of the citizens houses have a basement dedicated to a bar setup tht at time migh put some of the best bars in vegas to shame!!!! does this really make sense?????

By: sfsa78

sfsa78 — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 03:38:47 +0000

I AGREE WITH FINANCY… WE SHOULD BE PROUD OF OUR MUSLIM DEMOCRACY.. WE SHULD TURN INTO AN TALIBAN STATE… WE SHOULD GO AS FAR AS BAN ALL WOMEN EDUCATION AND FREEDOM… FINANCY,,, GET THE F OUTTA OF HERE WITH THAT BS!!
YOU SHOULD GO LIVE IN SAUDI ARABIA… BUT YOU WOULDNT WONT TO, WOULD YOU?!?!?!??
IF A GOVERNMENT WAS BASED ON A RELIGION, IT WOULDN’T BE A REAL DEMOCRACY, BECAUSE IT WOULD INFORCE ITS BELIEFS ONTO OTHERS.
I’M AS KUWAITI AS MUCH AS ONE CAN GET… I’M FOR FREEDOM OF RELIGION AND BELEIFS, AND FREEDOM TO EXPRESS ONE SELF. IF YOU DONT WONT ALCOHOL… THEN QUITE SIMPLY,.. DONT DRINK.
I ENJOY MY VODKA DRINK… WHICH IS FREELY AVAILABLE IN KUWAIT THRU DEALERS,,, EXCEPT ITS VERY EXPENSIVE SINCE ITS ILLEGAL.
WHATS SO BAD ABOUT HAVING A DRINK TO RELAX AFTER A HARD DAYS WORK????
THIS COUNTRY IS GETTING SOO BACCKWARDS AND REALLY UP ITS OWN ASS WITH FANATICAL RELIGION.. ONE DAY WITH OUT KNOWING, WE WILL TURN INTO AN IRAN, OR AFGANISTAN BECAUSE OF THIS ISLAMIC HESTERIA THAT HAS GRIPPED OUR PART OF THE WORLD.
WE WERE NEVER LIKE THIS, BEFORE PEOPLES RELIGION WERE BETWEEN THEMSELVES AND THEIR GOD… BUT NOW IT;S LIKE A BLOODY WITCH HUNT.
WHY ARE PEOPLE HERE AFFRAID OF SPEAKING UP.
EVER SINCE THIS RELIGIOUS FEVER HAS APPEARED, THINGS HAVE BEEN GETTING WORSE FOR THE COUNTRY, IT ALL HIPOCRACY!
IT ALL STARTED WITH THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION IN IRAN.. BEFORE IT WAS UNHEARD OF WHEN YOU SAW A WOMAN WEARING A HIJAB, NOW ITS LIKE A BLOODY WITCH HUNT… IF YOU DONT WEAR IT THERES SOMETHING WRONG WITH YOU.. ITS LIKE A PRESURE.
LETS FACE IT PEOPLE,,, BECAUSE OF ALL THIS SHIT, ITS NOT SAFE FOR OUR WOMEN IN THE STREETS.. I FEEL OUR WOMEN ARE MORE SAFER IN EUROPE THAN HERE. BEFORE GUYS WOULD NOT LOOK TWICE AT WOMEN.. NOW THEY CHASE THEM LIKE ANIMALS..ITS RIDICULAS.
You say that kuwait’s constitutional religion is islam, whats next… if im not muslim i lose my citizenship??? wtf is going on??

By: Holla

Holla — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 23:45:15 +0000

for all you fucking braindead cunts that argue against alcohol in kuwait bc it’s a muslim country, how the hell do explain that ALCOHOL WAS LEGAL IN KUWAIT UNTIL 1964????

what kuwait used to be jewish then it turned muslim?

seriously GROW A FUCKING BRAIN and stop repeating that same shit your brother told u while fucking you in the arse kuwaiti incest style.

By: rehan

rehan — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 11:45:04 +0000

Don’t know why some of us can’t get along with out alcohol .common on its not like u will not be able to drink water and dehydrate or not able to survive without alcohol.