http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/024347.php#more begins, "Anyone who has bargained with someone in an Arab souk knows ..." and discusses "selling in a souk (that metalwork zarf-and-finjan set in Morocco, the hubble-bubble pipe in Egypt, the carpet in Damascus)".
Is this account accurate, or an exaggeration? Has anyone here had such an experience? The problem arises, apparently, when one party knows the social conventions and the other doesn't. Elaine Sciolino, in her book about Iran, calls Iran "the land of the white lie". If a cab driver invites you to his house, she writes, he is just being polite. He would be really disconcerted if you accepted his invitation. (Yes, I know Persians are not Arabs.) The last two comments (by Archonix and 11B40) are worth reading. -- Mark Spahn (West Seneca, NY) --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Persons posting messages to not_honyaku assume all responsibility for their messages. The list owner does not review messages prior to posting, and accepts no responsibility for the content of messages posted. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
