Gimme my BD50!

FORTY pages of newsprint!
Four Zero.

That is what three newspapers dedicated in Bahrain for announcing the names of the beneficiaries of a BD50 hand out from the government to help them cope with the increasing costs of living in Bahrain. Forty pages, line by line, name by name. 30,000 names.

I am speechless. The cat has eaten my tongue. Had it been BD200, what would we have done? Written a book in honour of the beneficiaries or built a pyramid and carved their names on it?

And BD50? What will that do? And who benefited from it and why and how?

Bahrainonline has a hilarious line up of the names of some of the Bahrainis who benefited from the .. erm .. I don't want to sound ungrateful here .. the windfall.

They include names like:
بنج شمبية داد
عبد الة تيزهوس
نكهدار
خشان خبيل شواك
خنتوش سخني
خصاف
الدغم الخادم الغبر
?? كلاب دين
مهاوش
هليبان
هوجان
جساس
جزاع
جدعان كسار
دساس
زعيان عذاب

Arabic was my first language before coming across those names ... now I am not so sure any more :)