Job Discussion Forums

wantok · Joined: 05 Jul 2012 Posts: 168

DAMMAM/MADINAH: Nearly 500,000 students in the Eastern Province returned to school yesterday after the summer break. In each government-run school in Dammam, Alkhobar, Jubail, Hofuf, Ras Tanura, Abqaiq, the students were welcomed with sweets to mark the just-concluded Eid Al-Fitr festivities, celebrating the end of Ramadan...

Not much anorexia here!

http://www.arabnews.com/eastern-province-students-welcomed-sweets

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

Who's Jamie Oliver... and what does he have to do with KSA or the handing out of candy...

I googled and he is some TV chef or something in the UK?

VS

Captain Willard · Joined: 11 Sep 2010 Posts: 251

The bigger news for us is that students will be returning to the Saudi universities which are without a full complement of instructors due to the typical Saudi incompetence at filling positions promptly, and the headache which is the Saudi visa process.

wantok · Joined: 05 Jul 2012 Posts: 168

VS: Ever listen to NPR???

...Oliver then began a formal campaign to ban unhealthy food in British schools and to get children eating nutritious food instead. Oliver's efforts to bring radical change to the school meals system, chronicled in the series Jamie's School Dinners, challenged the junk-food culture by showing schools they could serve healthy, cost-efficient meals that kids enjoyed eating. Jamie's efforts brought the subject of school dinners to the political forefront and changed the types of food served in schools. In 2012, after supporting Scottish primary school blogger Martha Payne in her NeverSeconds blog, Oliver attacked education secretary Michael Gove for failing to adhere to the standards agreed to by the previous administration. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamie_Oliver

On your side of the Pond, VS, Jamie's ambition: A national movement to change the way America eats http://www.jamieoliver.com/us/foundation/jamies-food-revolution/school-food

Saudi Arabia is considered one of the largest markets for chocolates in the Middle East with annual sales reaching more than SR 500 million...Annual chocolate production in the Kingdom is estimated at 26,350 tons. http://www.arabnews.com/saudi-chocolate-market-estimated-sr-500-million

As health consciousness and an infatuation with looking slim become increasingly common, chocolates have assumed the image of an inherently unhealthy and taboo product. Consumption of chocolates is increasingly viewed as sinful - and therefore, an activity to be indulged in infrequently, as a special treat to reward oneself. Yet according to a TNS study, chocolate holds strong in UAE and KSA: 99 per cent of Saudi respondents in the study claim to have consumed chocolates in the last seven days, an increase from 95 per cent in 2004, while consumption of chocolates in the last seven days as claimed by respondents in the UAE has remained constant at 98 per cent in both the corresponding periods... http://www.ameinfo.com/140537.html

RIYADH: Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Fahd bin Abdulrahman Balghunaim, said that per capita food level in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia surpasses the global level. http://www.arabnews.com/node/422829

Cpt Will: Is that news or News, in which case, citation?

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

Actually I listen to NPR every day... still never heard of him...

VS

wantok · Joined: 05 Jul 2012 Posts: 168

Aways wise to consider all things, VS!

posh · Joined: 22 Oct 2010 Posts: 430

trapezius · Posted: Mon Sep 03, 2012 9:09 am Post subject:

Eh, chocolates are not to blame for the rising obesity and diabetes rates in the Gulf Arab countries, some of the highest rates in the world. The biggest factors are:

1) A terrible diet of fast food, packaged junk food, carbonated beverages, Red Bull, massive amounts of white rice and white bread, several cups of sickly sweetened tea daily (or highly calorific coffee drinks from Starbucks), desserts drenched in sugar syrup, and lately, the cupcake craze which has spread like wildfire here.

2) Inactivity, partly due to the climate, partly due to the culture (sit and talk with friends all day/night long with sheesha), and partly due to the lack of actual activities to do, you know, lack of sports facilities, museums, libraries, parks, adventure/outdoor activities, etc., at least in Saudi. There is really nothing to do other than go to malls, restaurants, and cafes.

Chocolate in fact, is good for you in moderation. Decreases blood pressure and chance of stroke and heart disease. Talking about real chocolate here (esp dark chocolate, or equally, pure cocoa powder), not candy bars.

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

wantok is clearly a blinkered Ukanian who thinks an oblique reference to a UK "Celebrity" can be universally understood. We are not all subects of Hrer Britannic Majesty and we are not all brainwashed by the BBC !

Captain Willard · Joined: 11 Sep 2010 Posts: 251

Better than not getting a lunch because you need to cover another class.

I really enjoyed it when I was asked to judge the students English level, when in fact they could ask to be in a class with their friends regardless of their true ability level. Happily, I am no longer at that alleged educational institution.