Playing football with my kids, kissing my wife, reading Spanish newspapers, drinking wine of our region, drinking café con leche, driving my car, walking in the forest, listening to my favorite radio morning show, working in my studio, going to the bakery of the village, cooking for my family, speaking Finnish, speaking Spanish, reading children's books, watching the fireplace, sleeping in my bed. And my mother-in-law is preparing my favorite food, cocido, on Sunday to celebrate my return.

I've seen it all, I have seen the trees,
I've seen the willow leaves dancing in the breeze
I've seen a man killed by his best friend,
And lives that were over before they were spent.
I've seen what I was - I know what I'll be
I've seen it all - there is no more to see!

You haven't seen elephants, kings or Peru!
I'm happy to say I had better to do
What about China? Have you seen the Great Wall?
All walls are great, if the roof doesn't fall!

Bjork, Sjon, Lars von Trier: I've Seen It All

On Wednesday I'm going finally back home after living two months in Beirut. The Beirutis seem to love their city but to me it represents basically everything what I'm fighting against - capitalism, corruption, religious fundamentalism and sectarianism. The world is very visible in Beirut and that makes it a perfect place for my practice.

Now I feel that I never want to travel again but I know that if I don't do it, after some time, I can't work anymore. I've seen the Great Wall, but I haven't been to Peru.

I didn’t manage to go to Syria but Abir sent me photos that depict my art work very present in Damascus. I did with Nisrine the last show of All Art Now before the full scale war landed in the city. Now the venue is a refugee shelter. The residents haven’t erased the titles of our works written directly on the wall with permanent marker and they have even left the semi-burned flags of Western countries I used in the opening reception performance. I think our exhibition became reality. The current condition of the leftovers of the installation might be my strongest work ever.

I chatted with Nisrine and we decided to propose Abir to do also the first exhibition in the space when the war is over and the displaced people have returned to their homes. We plan also a publication including photos of the first show, the shelter period and our new show. I hope that we can do this soon. I hope that the war ends soon.

I feel empty. I have neither ideas nor inspiration left. I've done a huge amount of drawings here, including The Cola Wars (Coke is Zionist), Less Than 100 Calories, Oriental Style Instant Fantasia, Captain Rik Will Save Your Country, Arabiata, Golden Caviar, Ban Big Bank Bubble Gum (It Insults Our Religion), Fantasia (Arab Street Hookers), Le Meilleur des Mondes Possibles, Super Night Club Halal, Pepsiland, Loosing My Orient-ation, No More Tears. Die in Style, PeeWee Saves Abused Domestic Slaves, The Heaven Helps the Rich, Don't the Arabs Know They Are Oriental, Liquid Lebanon, This Project Is Made Possible with the Support of the American People, Diet Jelly, Skin White, Geopolitical Bingo, Arabs Got Problems and The Revolutionary European Artist in the Middle East.

Lebanon celebrated it's Independence Day this week. The editorial of The Daily Star was titled Un-independece. 

On the 70th anniversary of Lebanon’s “independence,” it may do well to consider what this word actually means, and whether the country really deserves such a label. (...) it is hard to claim that the country has ever witnessed true independence. (...) Today, the country is as un-independent as ever, unable to protect its “sovereign” borders from rocket attacks or the entrance of rebel fighters. (..) Instead of basking in the glory of Friday’s military parade, the Lebanese must come to terms with the fact that this country is no more independent than it is an island.

McDonald's launched a new burger to commemorate the Independence Day. It's called the Taste of Lebanon and, surprising or not, tastes like all other burgers of the fast-food chain. In Thomas L. Friedman's 1999 book The Lexus and the Olive Tree the following observation was presented: No two countries that both had McDonald's had fought a war against each other since each got its McDonald's. He stated that when a country has reached an economic development where it has a middle class strong enough to support a McDonald's franchise, it will not be interested in fighting wars anymore. This is what we were promised in the end of the Cold War - global capitalism will bring the world peace. Now ee all know that it was a big lie.

Furthermore, Friedman was totally wrong. In 1989, the United States had invaded Panama, a McDonald's country, and after the publication of the book there have been several wars between McDonald's countries, including, of course, the United States. The homeland of Ronald McDonald is the most belligerent entity of the world.

So it seems obvious that the Taste of Lebanon burger, served only a limited time, will not maintain the fragile peace (a situation that would be called in most of the countries a civil war) of this country. If you are interested in my humble opinion, a better formula would be a secular constitution and banning all religious and ethnic political parties, which means most of them excluding the Communist Party and a few more.