Rabih Dagher

You have previously heard about the documentary exposing Lebanese faking their Canadian permanent residency, and this one just adds to it.

Quebec’s healthcare system RAMQ (Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec) is trying to recuperate around $500,000 caused by the illegal use of the system, which made it the largest fraud in RAMQ’s history in relation to illegal use of the medical card. And guess what, the majority of this is caused by Lebanese.

RAMQ has investigated in the recent months around 1,700 immigrants. More than two-third of them, the majority Lebanese, have simulated their presence in Quebec with the help of a fraudulent Lebanese immigration lawyer, the famous now Nizar Zakka. They have obtained a medical card and used it for healthcare services totaling $500,000. RAMQ was only able to recuperate around $42,000 since most of the immigrants do not live in Quebec. The control of this fraudulent activity will not be easy until RAMQ implements its new barcode card.

You can read the investigation report on RAMQ’s official website here.

Quebec's healthcare system (RAMQ) medical card

Lebanon was once home to a thriving Jewish community, but its estimated that there are now fewer than a hundred Jews left in the country. So it came as a surprise when the tiny Jewish community announced the rebuilding of one of Beirut’s historic synagogues.

Natalia Antelava from BBC reports on the Beirut synagogue in the video below:

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If you’ve never watched this documentary, then I urge you to do so unless you have a weak heart.

Earthlings is a 2005 multi-award-winning documentary about speciesism by Shaun Monson. The film was narrated by Hollywood actor and animal rights activist Joaquin Phoenix. Earthlings also features a score by musician and activist Moby, who’s one of my favourite musicians.

The documentary is about the suffering of animals for food, fashion, pets, entertainment and medical research. It is nicknamed “the Vegan maker” for its sensitive footage shot at animal shelters, factory farms, slaughterhouses, circuses etc… The film took around six years to complete because of the difficulty in obtaining footage within these profitable industries.

You can watch the documentary online for free at www.earthlings.com .

Watch the trailer below. Viewer discretion is advised:

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If you think the Man Bra is weird, well check this out.

Ever been in the middle of something, then realized you really want a game of golf? Well the Japanese lingerie manufacturer Triumph have come up with a solution: a putting mat bra. The bra can be transformed into a 1.5 meter long putting green which is fully equipped along with a special skirt to ensure silence during the game.

Check it out in the video below:

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Where would you find the weirdest creations on earth?

Japanese online lingerie shop Wishroom has recently unveiled a strange addition to its new product line: the Man Bra. Strangely, the $30-dollar Man Bra is now Wishroom’s fastest-selling men’s garment. The Man Bra comes in three colours - black, white, and of course, pink.

Check it out in the video below:

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One by one, Lebanese designers are conquering catwalks across Europe. While many designers in Europe have faced problems due to the economic downturn, Lebanon’s fashion designers have had no shortage of work. They are thriving as the country profits from a year of political stability.

BBC correspondent Natalie Antelava reports below from Beirut on Lebanon’s bid to become the capital of the Middle East fashion world:

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After bringing you the Beer Bath in Czech Republic and the Chocolate Bath in Hanoke, Japan, a new type of bath will be added to the list. It’s the Noodle Bath, again in Hanoke, Japan.

The Yunessan Spa House have launched a bath containing noodles and broth for their customers. Health authorities have banned edible noodles , so a synthetic noodle is used. A noodle bath is apparently good for the skin, and can increase metabolism.

Check it out in the video below:

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We see it every year, without paying much attention to it. We say it every year, without being aware of it. It’s the word Xmas, which is a substitute of Christmas. It bothers me when people use the word Xmas instead of Christmas, because they are substituting the Christ by an X. After all, ‘X’ is an abbreviation of ‘Ex’ (such as extreme, extra, etc…), and does not represent, in any form or another, the word ‘Christ’.

Out of respect for Christianity, I suggest you use the word Christmas instead of Xmas.

Meanwhile, I leave you with this Jingle Bells song, Punjabi style, and I wish you a Merry Christmas full of joy and happiness to you and your family:

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China has just launched the fastest express train in the world on the longest track on earth. At a speed of around 400 km/h, this locomotive is so smooth that even a standing cigarette won’t be toppled. It ran from the central city of Wuhan down to the south coast in a record of less than 3 hours, compared to the 10 and a half hours that it normally used to take.

This is not something new for the Chinese, and if you’ve been to Shanghai then you know what I mean. They have the Maglev train that takes you from Shanghai airport to downtown at a speed topping 432 km/h.

Check out the express train in the video below:

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Now, I feel like doing laundry.

In Hamburg, Germany, the Wash-Bar is no ordinary laundromat. It’s in fact a disco laundromat! While the spin dryers get to work, DJs spin tunes for the customers. The laundromat even serves food and drinks.

Check it out in the video below:

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I have previously blogged about beer bath as the ultimate relaxation treat, but for non-alcoholics or chocolate lovers, these top it all. They are the latest craze in Valentine’s gifts: the chocolate spa in Israel and the chocolate bath in Hanoke, Japan.

Check them out in the video below:

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The New York Cat Show in 2004 was the first public exhibition of cloned cats. Three cats, which were named after Lebanese culinary dishes, wowed the visitors. These cats were Tabouli, Baba Ganoush, and their genetic donor Tahini. At 50,000$ for the clone, Tabouli and Baba Ganoush are two of the most expensive cats in the world.

Check them out in the video below:

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If you’ve been dreaming about flying a personal jetpack for way too long, then your wait is finally over! Jetlev Sports Inc. is proud to introduce the Jetlev-Flyer, the recreational jetpack almost anyone can enjoy over water. But just one thing, it’s priced around 130,000$.

Check it out in the promotional video below:

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In Tokyo, Japan, this recital is the only one of its kind in the world, since most of the audience members… are asleep. In this two-day event called “Dolce Heavenly Concert”, spectators are invited to relax in luxury beds and since it’s sponsored by Haagen-Dazs, they are provided with as much ice cream as they can eat.

Check it out in the video below:

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The Kayabukiya Tavern in Utsunomiya, Japan, employs two waiters with special background: they are both macaque monkeys. If you’re wondering how they are tipped, well they earn boiled soybeans as tips. Though in line with animal regulations, they only work for two hours a day.

Watch them while they’re working in the video below:

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In October 2007, the Japanese firm NTT DoCoMo unveiled a prototype “fitness phone”. Designed to help you stay fit, it has devices that measure burnt calories, heart rate, and even body fat. But most useful of all, the phone can tell you if you have a bad breath. An alcohol-breathalyzer is apparently due next.

Check it out in the video below:

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In Uttar Pradesh, India, the 29 year old Saroj Kumar claims to be shock proof. To demonstrate this, he plays with high-tension electrical cables and holds naked live wires. Saroj discovered his ‘gift’ when his village got electricity six years ago. He claimed that after touching two naked wires, he emerged unhurt.

Watch Saroj Kumar in the video below:

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Compare this with the History book in which we used to study in Lebanon.

Danish students could soon be allowed full access to the internet while sitting their final school exams if a pilot scheme goes well. They can use the internet to answer any of the questions, but cannot communicate with each other or with anyone outside the classroom.

More on this in the video below by BBC News:

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The Chodovar brewery in Chadova Plana, Czech Republic, has come up with the ultimate relaxation treat that draws people from all over Europe: a beer bath.

According to its creator Dr. Roman Vokaty, the mineral water in the bath relieves the carbon dioxide which highly impact the capillaries and allows muscle relaxation. The bath also contains beer with additives which are good for the skin, because of the vitamin B and the ale yeast. These have a very positive effect against skin illnesses.

Nevertheless, drinking your bath water is generally frowned upon.

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Chinese meteorologists say they brought about Beijing’s earliest snowfall in a decade, after seeding rain clouds with silver iodide to ease a drought.

The Weather Modification Office sprayed clouds with 186 doses of the chemical to bring rain for the wheat crop, the Beijing Evening News said. But the arrival of a cold front caused heavy snow to fall, disrupting road, rail and air travel. Cloud seeding is often used in China in an attempt to bring on rain. The country’s north is prone to droughts, while the south is often flooded.

Check it out in the video below:

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Lebanus is doing it again! Their third edition of the famous annual “Lebanese Night” party is set once again at Club Opera on November 27th, 2009.

This is an event not to be missed in Montreal since it is one of the best for the Lebanese expatriates. The 15$ entrance fee will go at 100% for financing needy Lebanese students in Lebanon. Lebanus will also be celebrating their 20th anniversary in Montreal during this event in which DJ Mario will be spinning.

For those of you who don’t know, Lebanus is a cultural and humanitarian organization dedicated to financially assisting needy Lebanese students. It was founded by four students in Paris and Lebanon in 1986, and three years later expanded to include Montreal.

Address of Club Opera:
32 Ste Catherine West
Montreal, Quebec
H2X 3V4
(514) 842-2836

2009 Lebanese Night by Lebanus

The internet regulator has approved plans to allow non-Latin-script web addresses, including Arabic, Chinese, in a move that is set to transform the online world.

The board of Icann voted at its annual meeting in Seoul to allow domain names in Arabic, Chinese and other scripts. More than half of the 1.6 billion people who use the internet speak languages with non-Latin scripts. It is being described as the biggest change to the way the internet works since it was created 40 years ago. The first Internationalised Domain Names (IDNs) could be in use next year.

More on this in the video below:

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So one of James Bond gadgets is now true.

Scientists from The Freie University of Berlin in Germany have developed an iPhone application that allows a car to be controlled by it. Of course, you cannot download it from the iPhone App Store. The scientists had to modify the car for that to work.

Check it out in the video below by BBC News:

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The weather in Canada is starting to get cold, and Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) - also known as “winter depression” or “winter blues” - is at the doorsteps. As I have brought to you last Winter a simple solution to combat SAD, I now introduce a new solution: the happy glasses.

Developed in 2006 at the Liege University physics department in Belgium, the glasses are designed to stop the production of sleep hormone melatonin by shining light rays into the retina.

Check them out in the video below:

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In December 2006, an Israeli company Lumus Ltd. developed a miniature projector that turns regular glasses into a personal video screen. Although the video image is clear to the wearer, the glasses appear normal to anyone else. Imagine the applications you can have with such glasses.

Check it out in the video below:

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