Lots of Noise, Lots of Poverty

By Nesreen | April 15th, 2008 | 1 Comment »

This article from the New York Times this week, “Cairo: A City Where You Can’t Hear Yourself Scream,” might interest you. It tells about a recent study that shows that people living in Egypt’s capital city are enduring noise levels that are harmful to hearing, as well as general well-being.

As the NY Times writer suggests but doesn’t bring home forcefully enough, noise is the least that residents of Cairo have to concern themselves with these days. The abject poverty and overcrowded conditions common among Cairo’s population is unsustainable. The fissures these conditions have contributed to are already evident in the demonstrations common on Cairo’s city streets. News of these demonstrations, and the human rights violations of Egypt’s government against its population, are, by the way, disturbingly underreported in the American media. Just shows it pays to know where our tax dollars go. Check out which foreign countries receive the greatest share of US foreign aid and you’ll understand what I mean.